Muncie Girls Call It Quits

They emerged out of of the UK DIY scene after forming in 2010

BY Megan LaPierrePublished Aug 3, 2023

Exeter trio Muncie Girls have announced their breakup. 

The band took to social media today to share the news. "We started this band when we were 17 and the biggest goal we could muster up was to release a 7-inch single," they wrote of their initial formation in 2010. "We ended up doing more things and going to more places than we could ever have imagined."

Muncie Girls will be playing some final shows in their native UK, with five dates scheduled to see them out in November and December.

Their sophomore album, 2018's Fixed Ideals, made Exclaim!'s list of that year's most underrated records. It followed their 2016 debut full-length, From Caplan to Belize. Frontwoman Lende Hekt, who began jamming with bandmate Dean McMullen while they were still in school, has also gone on to release two solo albums: 2021's Going to Hell and 2022's House Without a View.

See the farewell post from Muncie Girls — and read their statement in full — below.

After nearly 13 years, a demo CD, a demo tape, three 12" EPs, three 7-inch singles, a 12-inch split record and two albums, we're saying goodbye to our band Muncie Girls. We started this band when we were 17 and the biggest goal we could muster up was to release a 7-inch single. We ended up doing more things and going to more places than we could ever have imagined. We were lucky to be from a town with such a brilliant music scene and venue, the Cavern, and I remember how it felt to travel to so many cities and discover other scenes just like ours.

The community we found ourselves a part of was so special and really became our lives. If it weren't for the kindness of total strangers putting on shows for us, feeding us and letting us stay at their houses, we would never have been able to do any of the things that we've done. We were even once temporarily adopted by a family in Texas when we went to play SXSW and they baked us cherry pie and drove us to our gigs. We were taken on a tour around Australia by complete strangers who became some of our best friends. We went to Japan after some strangers offered to book us a tour and we travelled around on trains and borrowed local bands' gear, guitars, everything. We spent most of our time touring in mainland Europe where we made friends for life, playing in squats, venues, gardens, bunkers, wherever.

I often heard stories of bands having to sleep in their vans or in parks or service stations. We always had somewhere to stay, no one ever let us sleep rough. I know we were incredibly lucky and we have our scene and our friends and fans to thank for that. We've relied so much on people's kindness; I hope that we were always grateful enough.

We've decided to do a farewell tour and we hope that you'll join us at a show. Muncie Girls will always be a massive part of our lives and we will each always play music, just in different projects now. Thank you everyone!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Muncie Girls (@munciegirls)

 

Latest Coverage