Two days after Arcade Fire announced their upcoming album WE, and hours after the band held a surprise show in New York, longtime member Will Butler, the younger brother of founding member Win Butler, revealed that left the group.
“Hi friends, I’ve left Arcade Fire,” Butler wrote in a series of tweets on Saturday. “I left at the end of last year, after the new album was ready. There was no compelling reason other than that I had changed – and the band had changed – in the last almost 20 years. Time for new things.”
Hello friends-
I left Arcade Fire— Will Butler (@butlerwills) March 19, 2022
Will Butler appears on WE Arcade Fire, which they recorded in 2021, but was not on stage during the band’s recent shows in New Orleans and New York. Will, who played a variety of instruments with the band, including bass, synths and percussion, joined Arcade Fire in 2003 and has appeared on all of the band’s studio albums from 2004’s Funeral to the upcoming May 6 release of WE.
Butler tweeted that he has “several other projects” and continues to be active.
“Thank you to everyone who came to AF concerts, bought a record or loves our music. It makes sense to be a part of your life. Thank you to the team, staff, management, label representatives, bands, artists and friends who have helped bring our vision to life for so many years,” Butler added, reiterating that Arcade Fire is “still my friends and family.”
Arcade Fire who will host another surprise charity show tonight at New York’s Bowery Ballroom has yet to comment on Will’s departure.