The Maccabees SPLIT After 14 Years

Published on August 8, 2016

British rockers THE MACCABEES have announced they are breaking up after 14 years together.

The London-based five piece, currently made up of frontman Orlando Weeks, guitarist brothers Hugo and Felix White, bassist Rupert Jarvis, and drummer Sam Doyle, formed in 2002 and released four albums, but have decided to part ways while they are on a high to focus on individual music projects.

The group issued a lengthy statement on Facebook and Twitter on Monday (08Aug16), which reads, “After 14 years as a band we have decided to call it a day. The decision has obviously been an incredibly difficult one, given that The Maccabees has been such a huge part of our lives until now.

“We are very proud to be able to go out on our own terms, at our creative peak and off the back of the best and biggest shows we have ever done….It has been a rare and absolutely incredible time that we all feel very lucky to have shared.”

They insisted there is no animosity and the band aren’t “divided” and were planning to host some farewell shows to officially say goodbye to the fans, who they thank “deeply and sincerely” for their support.

“Though there are no concrete plans at this stage, we are all planning to continue making music,” they continued. “We are excited about the future and intend to move on, with some sadness, but with appreciation, affection and a huge pride at the music we have made and all that we have achieved together.”

The group rose to prominence with their debut album Colour It In in 2007 and followed it up with three more albums; Wall of Arms, Given to the Wild, which was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize, and Marks to Prove It, which topped the U.K. album chart when it was released last year (15).