"I hadn't asked for it at all": Fifth accuser speaks out against Arcade Fire frontman Win Butler

Accusations against the lead singer of the Montreal-based rock band Arcade Fire have been made by another person.

This is the fifth allegation against Win Butler in recent months.

The woman who’s asked the New York-based music news publication, Pitchfork, to use the pseudonym Sabina has detailed the course of a three-year sexual relationship between 2015 and 2018, which she describes as “emotionally manipulative.”

Earlier this year, Pitchfork published a lengthy article detailing allegations that the 42-year-old singer sexually interacted with three women and one gender-fluid individual.

Accusers told Pitchfork that alleged sexual misconduct interactions were inappropriate based on age gaps, unwelcome advances, and power dynamics stemming from “various instances” between 2015 and 2020.

According to Pitchfork, Butler acknowledged he had extramarital relationships outside his marriage to bandmate Regine Chassagne but said they were all “between consenting adults,” and that he “never touched a woman against her will.”

None of the allegations again Butler have been proven in court.

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In the most recent article, Sabina told Pitchfork she met Butler in 2015 when he was 35 and a well-known Grammy Award-winning musician. She was a 22-year-old university student who was recently divorced, had left a strict religious group, and was working as a waitress at a cafe in Montreal.

She said she and Butler stayed in touch and considered their relationship to be friendly. However, she admitted that he occasionally crossed the line and would ask if she’d broken up with her boyfriend.

Sabina said she worried about being seen as “just a body”

The two eventually kissed and in a diary entry viewed by Pitchfork Sabina described the experience as “jarring.” However, she said she felt attracted to Butler, and their relationship progressed and eventually became sexual.

Sabina’s journal entries reveal a conflicting reaction to her encounters with a person (that she referred to as “He”) whom she was drawn to for his power and directness but worried about being seen as “just a body.”

While Sabina didn’t verbally try to stop Butler or say no, she told Pitchfork that she believed Butler would consider it consensual sex.

Sabina said she hoped to spend more time with Butler and talk about art and literature, but text message conversations seemed to lead to sex because of Butler.

She claimed that if she did not give Butler what he wanted, “He would make you feel so bad about it. You’re being cut off from contact if you don’t agree to sexual favors.”

One day, she messaged Butler about him making her feel like she was “not even a person” when he was erratic with his availability and fixated on getting sex from her.

The singer responded by texting her throughout the night and sending two photos.

Photos reviewed by Pitchfork include one that appeared to show him masturbating.

Sabina said she cried after receiving the photographs, claiming, “I hadn’t asked for it at all.”

It wasn’t their last interaction, however, Sabina said she regrets it now.

Previous complaints made to Pitchfork and published earlier this year describe similar experiences of receiving unwanted sexts and feeling pressured to partake in sending explicit photos and videos.

Ticket holders say they’re “absolutely not going” to upcoming show

In two days, Arcade Fire will be performing at Rogers Arena in Vancouver.

Last month, one Reddit user asked if local fans planned to attend the concert amid the allegations against Butler and the major shakeups to the show.

Some Arcade Fire ticket holders said they wanted a refund for the band’s upcoming show after the multiple allegations against Butler were brought forward.

According to the Ticketmaster site, “All sales are final and refunds are only allowed in limited circumstances.”

Daily Hive has reached out to Live Nation for comment.