It is with great honour that WAH-WAH is releasing this collaboration with The Raincoats, paying homage to their 1979 self-titled album released on Rough Trade Records. 

Original artwork by Pang Hsiao-li

My love for The Raincoats continues to evolve over time. As a teenager I was most inspired by the timbre of the music, the simultaneously complex, cacophonous, but also very catchy combination of melodies, punctuated by a violin no less! Maybe there was room for me as a classically trained trumpeter in a punk band after all!

In my 20s, it was the sense of joy and freedom in the music which really spoke to me. There was no need to follow traditional song structures or strict tempos. There was a sense of emotion that dictated where the music needed to go.

In my 30s The Raincoats helped shaped my view of feminism, not just through their powerfully topical lyrics, but also by questioning and annihilating the masculine assumptions of rock and roll and punk music. They showed me that vulnerability and fragility could be a strength. 

I have no doubt that the music of The Raincoats will continue to evolve and reveal itself to me in years to come!

PHOTO BY SHIRLEY O'LOUGHLIN