On Saturday we went to the launch of Shouting Out Loud, Audrey Golden's biography of The Raincoats. It was a well-attended and warm-hearted event, with lots of pals: Caryne and Dave, Nadya Buyse, Dick O'Dell, Marie from The Unreasonables and many more.
From the stage Gina, Ana and Shirley told us stories of their getting-together and in particular, their visit to Poland which happened by accident when they played support to a theatre group in west London who were supposed to be going there: the promoter preferred The Raincoats! They talked about the early days of Rough Trade, and there was a particularly moving moment when Ana thanked Audrey for her meticulous research (including reading 500 fan letters and following up an Irish prisoner who'd written to them back in the day). What Audrey has done is show the band themselves the impact that they have had on people, and the unique (sorry) journey they have had through the music industry and indeed their lives. Gina's stories were particularly entertaining.
While they spoke, you could hear how different Gina and Ana are from each other, and you could see how the music worked as a distillation of the personalities of two women who wield their power in entirely different ways. It was a very interesting insight.
At the end, they sang Fairytale in the Supermarket acappella, joined by many members of the audience.
What a lovely night.
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