Wealth inequality, corruption: Malaysian rock band’s debut album strikes out at the country’s political system
- Spooky Wet Dreams started writing their first album in 2016 when their dissatisfaction towards the right-wing Barisan Nasional became unbearable
- The album was released at a live show in Kuala Lumpur in front of a crowd described by Ze as “a pit full of tired, angry and fed-up young people”
Tension spread across Malaysia on the night of May 9, 2018, as the nation waited for results of the general election.
Rumours of phantom voters and power outages in some polling stations were rife on Twitter and speculation focused on the possibility that the opposition coalition would finally seize power from the National Front, which had ruled the country since 1957.
“We couldn’t believe it,” says singer Ze Spooky, of the Malaysian rock band Spooky Wet Dreams. The singer says the band members were concerned about their future and safety as their upcoming album was full of satirical tracks that took aim at the country’s political system, “but when Pakatan Harapan won, we were elated”.
Spooky Wet Dreams are made up of Ze (vocals), Nani Zul (rhythm guitar), Matt Liew (lead guitar), Salihin Rizal (bass) and Aqil Nasri (drums). They started writing their first album – “Koleksi Dendangan Untuk Masa Hadapan”, or “A Collection Of Songs For The Future” – in 2016 when their dissatisfaction towards the right-wing Barisan Nasional, led by former prime minister Najib Razak, became unbearable.