Vulvodynia have officially parted ways with their latest vocalist, Zion Bittenbender. The South African deathcore outfit enlisted his services in the fall of last year, however, days after announcing his new role, allegations of sexual assault and misconduct made against him resurfaced online. Bittenbender denied the allegations and ultimately stepped down from the band to address the claims against this past November.
After that a relative period of radio silence ensued. However, last month saw Vulvodynia vacate their spot on Defeated Sanity‘s spring North American tour — a move many saw as an indication that further lineup instability was at play in the Vulvodynia camp. A statement issued today, March 03rd, by the band confirms that they have parted ways with Bittenbender, it reads:
“We would like to apologize for the delay in addressing this situation. We took time to step back and carefully consider the appropriate course of action. After serious internal discussion, we have decided to part ways with Zion. We will also no longer be participating in the upcoming US tour with Defeated Sanity.
We take allegations of sexual misconduct extremely seriously. Our priority is maintaining an environment that reflects our values and respects our fans, peers, and the wider community. After careful consideration of the circumstances, we believe this decision is in the best interest of the band moving forward.
We also acknowledge that aspects of how this was initially handled were not managed in the way they should have been, and we sincerely apologize. We will now begin the process of finding a new vocalist. Details regarding auditions will be shared soon. In the meantime, Lwandile will be handling vocal duties for our remaining shows this year.
We appreciate the patience of our fans and remain committed to moving forward with focus and integrity.”
Bittenbender had been intended to fill the vocalist role in the band on a permanent basis, after guitarist Lawdile Prusent was filling in on vocals in the wake of the ousting of their singer Duncan Bentley. The latter was fired in 2023 following a violent altercation between him and another member of the band.
