Within hours of Front Porch Step announcing the cancellation of all current tour plans, two of the bands who planned on sharing the road with singer-songwriter Jake McElfresh in coming months have broken their silence regarding the recent sexual harassment allegations.

Head North and Have Mercy were two of the groups planning to support Mcelfresh on Front Porch Step’s first US headlining tour. That series of shows was originally scheduled to begin on February 9, but those plans were cancelled in recent days. Both Have Mercy and Head North are now speaking out against McElfresh, and we’ve included both their recently released statements below.

Head North wrote:

We are sorry to have remained silent about this issue for so long. We do not in anyway condone the situation at hand with Front Porch Step regarding the recent allegations that presented themselves this past week.

The whole situation is incredibly upsetting and our thoughts go to anyone at all affected by this. We are very sorry to anyone planning on coming to a show, but have been working on an alternative plan to make sure we can still come to towns this spring with new music in hand.

We will post more information about that as it becomes available.

Have Mercy wrote:

We have been receiving your emails, tweets, and posts regarding us not responding to the allegations brought upon Front Porch Step. While we have been planning to disassociate ourselves from FPS for several days, we have been working very hard behind the scenes to book our own tour so we are not left stranded for the spring.

We, Have Mercy, in no way condone the alleged actions that have come to light over the past week, and hope that message above all is clear to our fans. Safety in music, and life, should never be risked for selfish decisions. We were incredibly excited at the opportunity to hit the road this spring, and that is still our top priority.

Over the coming weeks, we hope to have news about a new tour with Head North and other trusted friends.

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

McElfresh has been accused of sexually harassing underage female fans through social media and text conversations. For more information on those allegations, as well as the petition to have Front Porch Step removed from Warped Tour, click here.

The story is still developing, so it’s likely additional information will become available in the days and weeks ahead. Follow UTG on Twitter for updates.

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James Shotwell

James Shotwell is the founder of Under The Gun Review. He loves writing about music and movies almost as much as he loves his two fat cats. He's also the co-founder of Antique Records and the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. You should probably follow him on Twitter.

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