Henry Kohen of Mylets fame has publicly come ahead with a press release towards Sargent Home founder Cathy Pellow, and a free affiliate of the label, Graeme Flegenheimer. Within the beneath video, Kohen alleged that again in 2015 he was molested by Flegenheimer at a communal residence shared by Sargent Home workers. He claims that upon telling Pellow in regards to the incident, he was met with silence and later degradation.
Kohen‘s not too long ago shared written assertion about his ordeal reads as follows:
“First I’d prefer to say thanks to the chums, former/present SH artists and workers, and followers who’ve reached out to point out assist and share their very own experiences. I wish to be clear right here and acknowledge that Cathy has reached out to me privately, expressing curiosity round my earlier video.
It is very important me that there’s an understanding that this difficulty transcends any of my very own private experiences and that, even within the occasion that any of the next could also be misplaced recollections for Cathy, there’s an simple tradition and sample of conduct that’s ingrained within the basis of Sargent Home that must be addressed. I wish to discuss two occurrences that I personally went by means of after which contact on the larger image.
In September 2015 after I was 19 and nonetheless residing in Sargent Home I used to be molested by venue proprietor and Sargent Home-regular Graeme Flegenheimer whereas attempting to kick him out of the home. I instructed Cathy about this, about how he had lingered round after a celebration till everybody left and started asking me extraordinarily inappropriate questions, how he groped me and made passes at me after I refused to get right into a mattress with him, how he had climbed the entrance wall of the home to get again inside and looked for me after I locked him out, how he had then proceeded to ship me insulting and specific textual content messages all through that night time.
I used to be not taken critically, met with primarily a shrug and a clumsy chortle, and some nights later I arrived to the home to seek out him again over as a dinner visitor. Their skilled and private relationship remained intact for lengthy after I had instructed Cathy.
This was the impetus for me deciding to maneuver out of Sargent Home, a transfer that may additionally lead away from my aspirations of getting a life centered round music. I had heard Cathy strongly and publicly condemn perpetrators and advocate for victims utilizing the Sargent Home platform and the shortage of acknowledgement or motion totally contributed to my suppression and denial of what had occurred to me.
In October 2013, after I was simply 17, at a present in Chicago on my very first North American tour, Cathy took me apart and instructed me with the utmost gravity to by no means ever overlook that the one purpose anybody would ever concentrate or worth my music was due to her.
I really have by no means forgotten this! Later this similar night time, she would stroll throughout and injury my data and shirts with muddy footwear and ultimately go on to name my Mother a cunt in entrance of your complete tour line-up, my mother and father, and followers who had caught round.
I’m embarrassed to speak about both of those occasions they usually definitely are usually not the extent of my experiences, however I need to exorcise them from my head and they’re additionally vital in understanding the tradition surrounding Sargent Home.
I witnessed routine excessive degradation and verbal abuse of workers and artists, intentional belittling and manipulation resulting in rivalries and insecurities inside the artist-base, blatant and even proudly misogynistic language surrounding the ‘acquisition’ of emotionally-vulnerable feminine artists, purposeful withholding of monetary data besides when making obscure allusions to how indebted the artists have been to her, open disdain for the fan bases of bands, forceful and focused breaking of artists and worker’s private boundaries, and an all-encompassing strategy of ‘othering’ that instilled a relentless feeling of paranoia.
I’ve no ambitions to ‘cancel’ Cathy, to close down Sargent Home, no emotions of vindictiveness. What I’m asking for is for there to be an acknowledgement of previous behaviors with the intention to guarantee any artists, workers, or followers that this sort of systematic therapy is now not tolerable and that those that have been harm can get accountability with out the concern of getting to place themselves on the road legally or financially and with out having to revisit existentially embarrassing or hurtful instances of their lives.
By the label’s constructed outward messaging and aesthetic, many individuals are drawn to hitch Sargent Home whether or not as artists, workers, or devoted followers and I consider these individuals all deserve an impression constructed on good religion when contemplating pouring themselves right into a model.
To these of you who might communicate alongside me right here, I ask that you just please please do (offering you’re at present legally capable of). Although I can not communicate for you, I promise I bear in mind your struggles and ache as nicely and I do know that you just carry your experiences in the identical manner I do.
I’ve nothing to advertise or achieve by means of this and I’m not sad with the present state of my life, I’m not a disgruntled ex-musician or searching for consideration by means of my grief. I wish to particularly thank these few grownup musicians and workers who took the time to earnestly verify in on me as an individual after I was nonetheless a youngster; seeing previous cliques or business careers and simply recognizing a naive younger man who in all probability didn’t perceive what he was in the midst of.
On the time I detested your efforts and I understood you to be bitter ex-devotees who had merely failed to stick to the steering and genius of Cathy’s management.
Thanks all for taking the time to learn or take heed to this, I really feel disgrace, embarrassment, and loneliness as I end writing right here. It’s no accident that I really feel these emotions now in the identical manner that it’s no accident that it has taken me near a decade to talk up about one thing that follows me each day. It feels treasonous.
———Cathy,
Your final textual content to me was despatched after I got here out publicly as queer. You mentioned: ‘Sending like to you Henry. I’m so completely happy you have been capable of share your fact in the present day.’
I don’t count on this to be a straightforward course of for you, I hope you will notice worth mirrored in my fact and that others will present their truths as nicely.
I consider that Sargent Home really deserves this, to not be torn down, however to be held to the usual it purports to
Henry”
Kohen additionally supplied a video assertion, it may be seen beneath. Sargent Home function a label/administration agency who’re at present dwelling to the likes of Botch, Brutus, The Armed and lots of extra. In addition they issued a pair of albums from Kohen‘s Mylets.
Since posting his assertion, a number of former Sargent Home artists and workers have proven assist. March twenty second noticed Chelsea Wolfe preface a reposting of Kohen‘s assertion with the beneath picture:
King Lady, and so on. vocalist Kristina Esfandiari has since voiced assist for Chelsea‘s feedback concerning Pellow:
Lingua Ignota‘s Kristin Hayter has since posted the next message by way of her Instagram yesterday, March twenty third:
“I’ve been working very arduous to make my life as wholesome and completely happy as doable. A giant a part of that equation meant ending my relationship with Cathy Pellow, which I did final 12 months. I’m specializing in my future and can be going into element about my expertise however I stand in unequivocal assist of the artists and workers talking out. I’m grateful to be free and therapeutic.
Sending huge love,
Okay”
Pellow has now issued a press release in the present day (March twenty fourth) of her personal in response to the allegations, providing:
“I’ve been attempting to collect the correct phrases to say in gentle of a latest video uploaded to social media by an artist I managed named Henry Kohen wherein he shared some experiences throughout his time residing at my workplace / dwelling.
To Henry, I sincerely apologize and had no concept how a lot my phrases and actions harm you. I’ve despatched you a non-public message that additional expresses my remorse in regards to the occasions that impacted you. If you happen to select to share that message publicly, that’s in fact your determination to make.
I additionally wish to apologize to any previous workers or artists who’ve been negatively impacted by my actions. I’ve been too oblivious and unaware of the hurt that my unhealthy conduct had triggered, I do know that doesn’t excuse the details and I take accountability for any ache I dropped at these round me. I really feel ashamed and am really remorseful.
I wish to do proper by these I’ve let down and I’m open and welcoming to anybody who can be keen to have a dialog with me. I see now how offensive I used to be to lots of people, however I’m human and hopefully deserving of an opportunity to make amends.
Sobriety has been actually vital to me lately, particularly throughout and after the pandemic. I don’t count on to realize any sympathy from anybody, however I’m now not the particular person I was, and I’m striving to turn into a greater particular person and proper my previous errors. With that in thoughts, I’ve closed the administration aspect and can be stepping away from Sargent Home to give attention to the issues I can do to repair these points and care for my very own psychological well being.
I’m the one one that may account for my actions, so I ask that folks direct their anger or disappointment in the direction of me and never towards any of the artists related previous or current. I hope followers of the music launched by means of Sargent Home can separate my shortcomings from the work performed for and by the artists that all of us love and cherish, they need to not take any blame for this.
There may be a whole lot of work forward and I’m solely starting this course of. I’ve created a private Instagram account @cathyp_1956 in order that I can proceed the conversations with out being a distraction to the artists and people who proceed to do wonderful work at Sargent Home“
