Wavves has confirmed that Cherry Soda, the collaborative album with Say Anything frontman Max Bemis, will no longer be released in its planned form following allegations that Bemis sent inappropriate direct messages to teenage fans. The album had been scheduled for release on September 18.
Wavves addresses the fate of Cherry Soda
Wavves frontman Nathan Williams discussed the album in a series of messages posted in a fan chat on Patreon, screenshots of which were shared on Reddit. Williams said he is not friends with Bemis and described problems with the pop-punk musician during the recording process.
“In [sic] a personal level I don’t know the guy,” Williams wrote. “I’ve hung out with him 3 times when he was on [sic] the studio, on a professional level he was awful.” Williams said he was “about to lose 200k” because of “this gross loser” and could go into debt. “I don’t want to be associated with the guy, and so it’s as simple as that,” he said of his decision not to release Cherry Soda. “Whatever I lose doesn’t matter at that point.”
Williams also told patrons that the “real thing that hurts” was the imbalance in the album’s creation. “he spent 3 days in the studio and I spent 11 months.”
When asked whether he could re-record Cherry Soda without Bemis’ contributions, Williams said he is discussing that possibility and that “it wouldn’t be hard,” because Bemis “barely wrote anything.” Re-recording the album would delay its release, but it could prevent shelving the project from depleting Williams’ savings if he “can at least figure that out, though the downside is that 10,000 records were already pressed.”
Scrapped Alternative Press cover revealed
Alongside the update on Cherry Soda—which may still be released without Bemis’ involvement—Williams shared a now-scrapped Alternative Press cover showing him choke-holding Bemis.
“If the picture doesn’t tell you the story of how I felt about him, I dunno what will,” Williams wrote. “Obviously now this isn’t coming out so. Fuck it.”
Allegations involving Max Bemis
The decision follows allegations from young fans who said Bemis crossed personal boundaries. Screenshots from a conversation between Bemis and a 19-year-old fan appeared to show him allegedly saying that he wanted to kiss them. After the fan objected and cited their age difference, Bemis reportedly argued that being attracted to younger people was “a pretty common kink.”
The fan continued to express discomfort, telling Bemis they were “probably the same age as some of your kids.” The Say Anything frontman responded, “That’s gross and no. I don’t like what you just said. My daughter is 13.” He added, “I don’t think you suck in any way but you’re making me feel bad for simply being me.”
After the allegations gained traction, Say Anything issued a statement on Instagram announcing that Bemis’ upcoming performances on his joint tour with Wavves “have been postponed” “due to the need to prioritize his mental health and personal well-being.”
“Max will be taking the necessary time away to focus on his mental health,” the statement continued. “We appreciate everyone’s understanding, patience and respect for his privacy at this time.”
