Traego lead singer Allen Lai does something unusual in the official music video for “Hakka Sucker”. He screams his vocals into a hair dryer in a crowded living room. Members of his Taiwanese punk band play other common household items, like a vacuum cleaner and broomstick. According to Lai, the video embodies the song’s lyrics, which are about lives of ordinary people at the bottom of urban society.
“With little money and a less-than-ideal life, we still have the right to dream,” Lai tells the Toronto Spark. “We can only rely on the limited resources around us to make the most of their value and get through each day. What we want to convey is that even if we don’t have a strong presence in this city, we can still live and dream with the value we have left.”
Lai performs in the Miaoli Si̍n-kiàn (Four Counties) Hakka dialect. Traego recorded “Hakka Sucker” to encourage young people who’ve struggled with moving from their hometowns to big cities in the north, often in pursuit of jobs or higher education. This migration is referred to as the “Northern Drift”.
There are approximately 4.6 million Hakka people in Taiwan. Members of this Han subgroup are descendants of migrants from southern China who built sustainable agricultural communities, often in hilly terrain. However, through nearly four decades of martial law beginning in 1949, the Kuomintang dictatorship repressed the Hakka language. But now, Lai’s mother tongue is making a comeback in public life.
“Hakka is the language I grew up hearing,” Lai says. “It’s part of our life, so when we want to express our spirit or emotions, singing in Hakka is the most direct and natural way.”
Watch the video (above) for “Hakka Sucker”.
Traego will perform at Rally for Taiwan
“Hakka Sucker” isn’t only for Hakka people; it’s for everyone striving to create a life in urban Taiwan.
“We’ve all been on this path,” Lai says. “Everyone’s outcome is different, but hardship always ignites the spirit of ‘never starving but never fully satisfied’—a resilient, tough spirit. That’s the endurance, persistence, and stubborn courage we identify as the Hakka spirit.”
Toronto TAIWANfest will present Traego at Rally for Taiwan: Music in the Soundscape of Democracy 拉力台灣：音樂在民主的聲場中. This free concert runs from 5:30 to 9 p.m. on August 23 on the Concert Stage at Harbourfront Centre. Lai will also deliver a free “Hope Talk” at The Lookout at Harbourfront Centre at 2 p.m. on August 24.
Traego is the world’s first Hakka punk band, and Lai declares that creating in Hakka can also be a form of resistance. Even if others don’t understand the words, he feels that it’s enough if the audience can feel the power behind the music.
“When we first formed this Hakka punk band, we didn’t really think about whether it was ‘necessary’—it was simply about using the language we know best to play the music style we love,” the lead singer emphasizes. “It felt great to shout and vent our emotions in this way, and it was very real.”
But over time, members of the band realized that their existence means something to their fans.
“Some said they never thought Hakka could sound so fierce or cool,” Lai relates. “Some started to reclaim their language and identity because of us. Only then did we realize what we started as ‘just for our own fun’ actually influenced the entire music and cultural scene, especially the Hakka community.”
Pure Filth inspired by early punk rockers
In Traditional Chinese, Traego is written as 粹垢. It’s pronounced like the Hakka phrase coiˊgo (衰過) which means “pitiful”. The Toronto TAIWANfest website points out that in combination, these two Traditional Chinese characters can also be interpreted as “pure filth”, which happens to the title of Traego’s first album. It’s a Hakka version of the revolutionary songwriting of punk pioneers, such as the Sex Pistols, the Ramones, and the Clash.
“The various emotions and themes in Pure Filth—anger, criticism, humour, escapism—are deeply inspired by those classic punk bands in history,” Lai reveals. “The rebellious spirit of the Sex Pistols undoubtedly influenced countless punk bands worldwide.”
In fact, the Sex Pistols’ boldness in attacking the establishment and mocking the monarchy inspired Traego to adapt major Taiwanese campaign slogans into songs. This transformed political messaging into satire on absurd social phenomena.
According to Lai, the grunge band Nirvana has inspired Traego’s performance style. He adds that U.S. bands Green Day, Blink-182, and Turnstile, and Canada’s Sum 41 have influenced Traego’s musical style. Traego also admires the Japanese rockers 10-Feet and the Japanese punk band Wanima.
In addition, Lai has been captivated by Joy Division’s music from the late 1970s. He feels that it “carries a cold yet charming sense of alienation—a dreamlike atmosphere that seems to escape the oppression of reality”.
“We tried to recreate that ambiguous emotion in our arrangements,” Lai says. “From the Clash to Dead Kennedys, these predecessors influenced us not only musically but ideologically. They taught us that punk is not just a musical style but a way of life—a cry of uncompromising resistance to reality.
“What we did in Pure Filth is, in fact, our response to this punk lineage, using our own language and style.”
Event details
Toronto TAIWANfest will present Traego at Rally for Taiwan: Music in the Soundscape of Democracy 拉力台灣：音樂在民主的聲場中. This free concert runs from 5:30 to 9 p.m. on August 23 on the Concert Stage at Harbourfront Centre. Rally for Taiwan will also feature Taiwanese Truku singer-songwriter Lihaw Lihang and the Taiwanese country folk rock band TUDI-VOICE.
Traego vocalist Allen Lai will give a free Toronto TAIWANfest Hope Talk entitled Edge of Taiwan, Hakka Punk from the Mountain City 臺灣的邊緣，客家山城的龐克. He will speak at 2 p.m. on August 24 at the Lookout at Harbourfront Centre. Toronto TAIWANfest takes place at Harbourfront Centre from August 22 to 24.
Ann Cheng translated Allan Lai’s responses into English for this Toronto Spark article. Listen to Pure Filth on Bandcamp. Learn more about diverse communities from the Toronto Spark website. Follow the Toronto Spark on X @TOSparkOfficial and Bluesky @torontospark.bsky.social.
