British band Foals’ frontman Yannis Philippakis has released the latest track from his side project with the late Tony Allen, Yannis & The Yaw. The new song, titled ‘Rain Can’t Reach Us’, follows two previous singles, ‘Walk Through Fire’ and ‘Under The Strikes’, and all three songs will feature on the upcoming EP ‘Lagos Paris London’, which will release on August 30 via Transgressive. The EP is available for pre-order/pre-save.
Philippakis first revealed news of his sessions with legendary drummer Allen back in 2017. Allen, known for his work with Fela Kuti and The Good, The Bad & The Queen, died last year at the age of 79, but the music project had already been in the works before his passing.
In a statement, Philippakis discussed Allen’s influence on the track and its development. “We actually referred to ‘Rain Can’t Reach Us’ as ‘The Tornado’ for a long time because it feels like a gale blowing through your house and it’s just cool to hear Tony at the heart of that,” he said. “There’s a chance it could have become a Foals track, but sharing that idea with Tony made it become this other thing. I think that’s really exciting, it’s like putting in random coordinates, getting in your car and driving and not knowing where you’re going to show up. You could be led anywhere.”
In a previous interview with NME, Philippakis expressed relief at the project’s forthcoming release and spoke about how Allen’s passing made the project more serious to tackle. “There should be a feeling of galvanisation, and that all isn’t lost,” he had said. “You can create beauty around and outside of things being on fire. The record is soundtracking this feeling of precipice. It doesn’t impart a specific message other than being the soundtrack to the protest. It isn’t didactic in any way – that isn’t my style.”
The new track features an official lyric video available on YouTube and offers listeners another taste of the upcoming three-track EP. The EP is set to showcase the combined talents of Philippakis and Allen, with Philippakis describing their collaboration as “our spirits getting on”.
Recommended listening from the band’s previous interviews on the project includes their interview with NME earlier this year where Philippakis discussed finally releasing the music he recorded with Allen.
Yannis & The Yaw’s EP is guaranteed to be an excellent showcase of the musical talents of both artists. Fans of Philippakis’ and Allen’s past work can expect something exhilarating and full of surprises from this new release
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