thisiscat.com). Bangkok is the best place to catch gigs – check out bk.asia-city.com for listings.Music is an important part of Thai culture, whether related to Buddhist activities in the local temple (still a focal point for many communities), animist rituals, Brahmanic ceremonies or the wide range of popular song styles. While local forms of Thai popular music such as luk thung and mor lam remain very popular and distinctively Thai in character, a lively, ever-changing rock, indie, DJ/clubbing and underground scene is also fast developing.
Thai classical dance and music can be traced back to stone engravings from the Sukhothai period (thirteenth to fifteenth centuries), which show ensembles of musicians playing traditional instruments, called piphat. The piphat ensembles include many percussion instruments, rather like Indonesian gamelan – gong circles, xylophones and drums – plus a raucous oboe called the pinai. The music was developed to accompany classical dance-drama (khon or lakhon) or shadow-puppet theatre (nang): a shadow-puppet show is depicted in the magnificent Ramayana murals at Wat Phra Kaeo in Bangkok’s Grand Palace complex.
Piphat music sounds strange to Western ears as the seven equal notes of the Thai scale fall between the cracks of the piano keyboard. But heard in the right environment – in a temple, at a dance performance or at a Thai boxing match – it can be entrancing. As there is no notation, everything is memorized. And, as in all Thai music, elements have been assimilated over the years from diverse sources, and synthesized into something new. Check out any of the international albums by the Prasit Thawon Ensemble (Prasit was a National Artist).
Despite the country’s rapid westernization, Thai classical music has been undergoing something of a revival in the past few years, partly as a result of royal patronage. There have been recent experiments, too, at blending Thai classical and Western styles – often jazz or rock – led by groups like Kangsadan and Fong Naam. Boy Thai followed their lead, albeit with a more pop-oriented sound, and had some mainstream success with two albums. One of the two ranat (xylophone) playing brothers from Boy Thai, Narongrit Tosa-nga, now has his own contemporary jazz band: Khun-In Jazz of Siam. The 2004 biopic Homrong (The Overture) features a character called Khun-In (played by Narongrit) who duels on the ranat against Thailand’s greatest classical musician, Luang Pradit Phairoh.
There are dance and classical music performances in Bangkok at the Sala Chalermkrung Theatre, the National Theatre and the Thailand Cultural Centre, and you may also come across some more lacklustre examples at the Erawan Shrine on Thanon Rama I and the lak muang shrine in front of the Grand Palace, where people give thanks to deities by paying for the temple musicians and dancers to go through a routine. A number of Bangkok restaurants also feature music and dance shows for tourists: look out for Bruce Gaston of Fong Naam at the Tawandang German Brewery, and Duriyapraneet, the latter being the country’s longest-established classical band.
Thailand’s folk music is called phleng pheun bahn, and different styles are found in the country’s four distinct regions (central, north, northeast and south). Despite Thailand’s rush to modernity, numerous folk styles are still enthusiastically played, from the hill-tribe New Year dances in the far north to the saw (a kind of three-stringed violin) and fon lep (fingernail dance) of Chiang Mai, from the all-night singing jousts of northeastern lam klawn, to the haunting Muslim vocals of likay huuluu in the deep south.
Most Thais are familiar with the exciting central folk styles like lam tad, phleng choi and phleng I-saw, which often feature raunchy verbal jousting between male and female singers. Styles like these and the ever-popular mor lam from the northeast are incorporated into modern popular styles such asluk thung.
One notable folk style to have grown in popularity in recent years is the up-tempo and danceable northeastern instrumental style known as pong lang (a wooden xylophone that is attached vertically to a tree and was originally used to keep birds off crops). Pong lang is ancient, predating Indian–Thai culture, and was updated by National Artist Pleung Chairaasamee in the 1970s. A few years ago, Pong-Lang Sa-Orn emerged with an action-packed comedy show that propelled the band to national fame, million-selling albums and movies.
The best place to see pong lang is upcountry, especially in Kalasin province in central Isaan in the dry season between November and March. Folk music also features prominently at the major festivals held in the northeastern cities of Khon Kaen, Ubon Ratchathani and Udon Thani, particularly during Songkhran (April), the Bun Bang Fai rocket festival (May), and the Asanha Puja candle festival (July). Generally, any national holiday or religious festival is a good time to look out for folk music, in any region.
Thailand is the second-biggest Southeast Asian music market after Indonesia, and Bangkok is a major and increasingly important regional hub for pop music and popular culture.
Western orchestration for Thai melodies was introduced in the 1920s and 1930s and this led to the development of phleng Thai sakon, or “international Thai music”, in the form of big band and swing, country and western, Hollywood film music, rock’n’roll, and so on. In the early days, two distinctive Thai genres developed: phleng luk krung, a romantic ballad form, popularized by Thailand’s most beloved composer and bandleader Euah Sunthornsanan and his Suntharaporn band; and phleng luk thung (country music). Luk krung, with its clearly enunciated singing style and romantic fantasies, was long associated with the rich strata of Bangkok society (krung comes from Krung Thep, the Thai name for the capital); it’s the kind of music that is played by state organs such as Radio Thailand. However, it was largely transformed during the 1960s by the popularity of Western stars like Cliff Richard; as musicians started to mimic the new Western music, a new term was coined, wong shadow (wong meaning group, shadow from the British group The Shadows).
The term string came into use as Thai-language pop music rapidly developed in the economic boom times of the 1980s. String encompasses ballads, rock and alternative, indie, disco, techno/house, J-Pop and K-Pop (Japan and Korea), heavy metal, reggae, ska, rap and underground; whatever trend is popular internationally is picked up and put into the Thai cultural blender. Currently popular are all things Korean – boy bands, girl bands, fashion styles and haircuts, teen TV shows, soap operas, food and comics.
Megastars such as veteran Thongchai “Bird” Macintyre generally record on either of the two major labels, GMM Grammy and RS. Grammy, which controls more than half the market, has an umbrella of labels that release everything from popster Bie The Star to luk thung star “Got” Chakrapand Arbkornburi. Their most famous Thai rock act of recent years, though, the talented brothers Asanee and Wasan (Chotikul), have now set up their own label, Music Union, to produce a new generation.
The Thai alternative rock scene developed in the mid-1990s with the emergence, on the then-indie Bakery label (now part of Sony Music Entertainment), of Modern Dog, whose last album Ting Nong Noy (2008) swept various Thai rock awards. Bakery helped kick-start indie rock and rap with the mercurial Joey Boy, who later moved to GMM Grammy. Loso developed into the most popular rock band, with leader Sek Loso enjoying a serious solo career and iconic status, but over the last few years his main starring role has been on the gossip pages because of his rehab and marital problems.
Recently, more Western and Asian musicians have joined their Thai counterparts – as with electro-clash band Futon (Thai–Japanese–Western). And no list of current Thai pop stars and rockers would be complete without mentioning Ebola (metal plus rap), Bodyslam (heavy rock), Thaitanium (hip-hop from US-raised Thais), Tattoo Colour (indie rock), Cocktail (soft rock) and singer-songwriters Palmy and Stamp.
Thailand, and in particular Bangkok, is developing its own musical identity, partly as a result of many high-profile festivals, such as the Pattaya Music Festival in March, which showcases Asian bands and Cat EXPO in Bangkok in November for indie bands, and partly because of the explosion of new genres and the emergence of a busy underground and live scene. You’ll find Thai, foreign and mixed bands and DJs playing in Bangkok’s many clubs and bars, and dynamic scenes in Chiang Mai, Khorat and Ko Samui.
Campuses such as Ramkhamhaeng University are good places to get information on upcoming events, as are radio stations (especially Cat Radio on thisiscat.com). Bangkok is the best place to catch gigs – check out bk.asia-city.com for listings.
Another important genre is phleng pheua chiwit, or “Songs for Life”, which started as a kind of progressive rock in the early 1970s, with bands like Caravan (no relation to the British songsters) blending phleng pheun bahn (folk songs) with Western folk and rock. Caravan were at the forefront of the left-wing campaign for democracy with songs like Khon Kap Khwai (Human with Buffaloes):
Greed eats our labour and divides people into classes
The rice farmers fall to the bottom
Insulted as backward and ignorant brutes
With one important and sure thing: death.
Although an elected government survived from 1973 to 1976, the military returned soon after, and Caravan, like many of the student activists, went into hiding in the jungle. There they performed to villagers and hill-tribe people and gave the occasional concert. When the government offered an amnesty in 1979, most of the students, and Caravan too, disillusioned with the Communist Party’s support for the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, returned to normal life.
In the 1980s a new group emerged to carry on Caravan’s work, Carabao. The band split up in 1988 but has had many reunions and reincarnations since; their influence is still strong, with leader Ad Carabao still in the limelight but now more as a businessman hawking his “energy” drink, Carabao Daeng, via the band’s gigs and nasty nationalistic TV ad campaigns. However, despite the bloody street riots of 1992 (in protest at the then military-installed government) once again bringing Songs for Life artists out to support the pro-democracy protests, since the 1980s the strong social activism of Caravan’s early years has generally been replaced by more individual and personal themes. The current top act is fresh-faced singer-songwriter Pongsit Kamphee, whose earnest approach and rise through the ranks (he was reportedly once a stagehand for Caravan) have garnered him a sizeable following.
Musically, the genre has developed little over the years, remaining strongly rooted in Western folk-rock styles. Recently, however, this has begun to change as musicians have belatedly discovered that reggae riddims work well with Songs for Life vocals; perhaps they were inspired by T-Bone, for so long the only reggae band in the kingdom. Best of this new sub-genre is Southerner Job of the Job 2 Do band, while the best classic Marley-style reggae band is the Srirajah Rockers.
Songs for Life fans should check out CD stalls at Bangkok’s Chatuchak Weekend Market, several of which specialize in this genre.
Go to one of the huge luk thung shows held in a temple or local stadium on the outskirts of Bangkok, or to any temple fair in the countryside, and you’ll hear one of the great undiscovered popular musics of Asia. The shows, amid the bright lights, food stalls and fairground games, last several hours and involve dozens of dancers and costume changes. In contrast with luk krung, luk thung (literally, “child of the field”) has always been associated with the rural and urban poor, and because of this has gained nationwide popularity over the past forty years.
According to luk thung DJ Jenpope Jobkrabuanwan, the term was first coined by Jamnong Rangsitkhun in 1964, but the first song in the style was Oh Jao Sao Chao Rai (Oh, the Vegetable Grower’s Bride), recorded in 1937, and the genre’s first big singer, Kamrot Samboonanon, emerged in the mid-1940s. Originally called phleng talat (market songs) or phleng chiwit (songs of life), the style blended together folk songs, central Thai classical music and Thai folk dances. Malay strings and fiddles were added in the 1950s, as were Latin brass and rhythms like the cha-cha-cha and mambo (Asian tours by Xavier Cugat influenced many Asian pop styles during the 1950s), as well as elements from Hollywood movie music and “yodelling” country and western vocal styles from the likes of Gene Autry and Hank Williams. In 1952, a new singer, Suraphon Sombatjalern, made his debut with a song entitled Nam Ta Lao Wiang (Tears of the Vientiane Girl) and became the undisputed king of the style until his untimely murder (for serious womanizing, rumour has it) in 1967. Suraphon helped develop the music into a mature form, and was known as the “King” of the genre, along with his Queen, sweet-voiced Pongsri Woranut.
Today, luk thung is a mix of Thai folk music and traditional entertainment forms like likay (travelling popular theatre), as well as a range of Western styles. There are certainly some strong musical affinities with other regional pop styles like Indonesian dangdut and Japanese enka, but what is distinctly Thai – quite apart from the spectacular live shows – are the singing styles and the content of the lyrics. Vocal styles are full of heavy ornamentation (luk khor) and sustained notes (auen or “note-bending”). A singer must have a wide vocal range, as the late luk thung megastar Pumpuang Duangjan explained: “Making the luk thung sound is difficult, you must handle the high and low notes well. And because the emotional content is stronger than in luk krung, you must also be able to create a strongly charged atmosphere.”
Pumpuang had the kind of voice that turns the spine to jelly. She rose to prominence during the late 1970s, joining Sayan Sanya as the biggest male and female names in the business. Like Suraphon Sombatjalern, both came from the rural peasantry, making identification with themes and stories that related directly to the audience much easier. Songs narrate mini-novellas, based around typical characters like the lorry driver, peasant lad or girl, poor farmer, prostitute or maid; and the themes are those of going away to the big city, infidelity, grief, tragedy and sexual pleasure. Interestingly, it is not always the lyrics that carry the sexual charge of the song (and if lyrics are deemed too risqué by the authorities the song will be subject to strict censorship) but rather the vocal style and the stage presentation, which can be very bawdy indeed.
With the advent of TV and the rise in popularity of string, the number of large upcountry luk thung shows has declined. It’s not easy, said Pumpuang, to tour with over a hundred staff, including the dancers in the hang kruang (chorus). “We play for over four hours, but string bands, with only a few staff members, play a paltry two hours!” Her response to the advent of string and the increasing importance of promotional videos was to develop a dance-floor-oriented sound – electronic luk thung (Grand X had already experimented with luk thung and disco a few years earlier). Few luk thung singers are capable of this, but Pumpuang had the vocal range to tackle both ballad forms and the up-tempo dance numbers. Her musical diversification increased her popularity enormously, and when she died in 1992, aged only 31, up to 200,000 people, ranging from royalty to the rural poor, made their way to her funeral in her home town of Suphanburi (look out for the major biopic, Pumpuang, made in 2011).
Pumpuang’s death pushed ongoing political problems (the 1992 coup) off the front pages of newspapers, a situation that was repeated in 2008 when Yodrak Salakjai died. Yodrak was the most recorded luk thung star of all time, with some three thousand songs and five hundred albums to his credit.
After Pumpuang’s death, the top luk thung slot was occupied by “Got” Chakrapand Arbkornburi, whose switch from pop to full-time luk thung brought many younger listeners to the style, while the reigning female singer was Sunaree Ratchasima, but she has been superseded by the perkier Arpaporn Nakornsawan and, more recently, by Ying Lee and Tai Orathai. Mike Piromporn, originally a mor lam man, became Got’s main challenger, but both now have to give way to Phai Phongsathon. Bangkok’s first 24-hour luk thung radio station, Luk Thung FM (now Rak Thai FM, at 90 FM), was launched in 1997, and it’s even cool for the middle class to like luk thung these days. There is some truth, however, in the criticism that some new luk thung stars are being artificially manufactured just like their pop and rock counterparts, and there’s a tendency to rate a pretty face over vocal expertise.
For many years, luk thung was sung by performers from the Suphanburi area in the central plains, but more regional voices are being heard in the genre now, with northeasterners now outnumbering these singers. A slightly faster rhythm, luk thung Isaan, has been developed, initially by “Khru” (Teacher) Saleh Kunavudh in the 1980s. The south, too, has its own luk thung star, in the enormously popular Ekachai Srivichai.
As well as at temple fairs, fairs at district offices in provincial capitals, national holiday events and New Year celebrations are the best places to catch luk thung shows.
Mor lam is the folk style from the poor, dry northeastern region of Isaan, an area famed for droughts, spicy food, good boxers and great music. Over the past 25 years, the modern pop form of this style has risen dramatically. Traditionally, a mor lam is a master of the lam singing style (sung in the Isaan dialect, which is actually Lao), and is accompanied by the khaen (bamboo mouth organ), the phin (two- to four-string guitar) and ching (small temple cymbals). Modern mor lam developed from mor lam klawn, a narrative form where all-night singing jousts are held between male and female singers, and from mor lam soeng, the group-dance form. Both still play an important part in many social events like weddings, births and deaths, festivals and temple fairs. A mor lam may sing intricate fixed-metre Lao epic poems or may relate current affairs in a spontaneous rap. In the large groups, Western instruments like guitar (replacing the phin) and synthesizer (for the khaen) are used.
The style came to national prominence more than thirty years ago, when a female mor lam singer, Banyen Rakgan, appeared on national TV. In the early 1980s the music was heard not only in Isaan but also in the growing slums of Bangkok, as rural migrants poured into the capital in search of work. By the end of the decade, stars like Jintara Poonlarp (with her hit song Isaan Woman Far From Home) and Pornsak Songsaeng could command the same sell-out concerts as their luk thung counterparts. Jintara remains one of the biggest stars, and her shows mix both luk thung and lam; Siriporn Ampaiporn, whose strong vocals burst upon the lam scene with the monster-selling Bor Rak Si Dam album, mainly records luk thung these days.
The format of a mor lam performance is similar to that of luk thung shows – lots of dancers in wild costumes, comedy skits and a large backing orchestra – as is the subject matter. The music is definitely hot, especially if you see it live, when bands will often play through the night, never missing the groove for a minute, driven on by the relentless phin and khaen playing. To some people, the fast plucking style of the phin gives a West African or Celtic tinge; the khaen has a rich sound – over a bass drone players improvise around the melody, while at the same time vamping the basic rhythm. Male and female singers rotate or duet humorous love songs, which often start with one of the mor khaen setting up the beat. They sing about topical issues, bits of news, crack lewd jokes or make fun of the audience – all very tongue-in-cheek.
Musically, however, mor lam and luk thung are very different; mor lam has a much faster, relentless rhythm and the vocal delivery is rapid-fire, rather like a rap. You’ll immediately recognize a mor lam song with its introductory wailing moan “Oh la naw”, meaning “fortune”. Mor lam artists, brought up bilingually, can easily switch from luk thung to mor lam, but luk thung artists, who often only speak the national central Thai dialect, cannot branch out so easily.
In the 1990s, mor lam musicians headed off the challenge of increasingly popular string bands by creating mor lam sing, a turbo-charged modern version of mor lam klawn played by small electric combos. The number of large touring luk thung or mor lam shows has declined in recent years, owing to high overheads, TV entertainment and the popularity of string bands, so mor lam sing satisfies the need for local music with a modern edge.
Mor lam sing was followed quickly by a more rock-oriented mor lam sound (this is a little similar to Grand X in the 1980s, which played a mix of rock and luk thung), led by funky little combos like Rocksadert and Rock Saleang, actually much better live than on recordings, although the latter had a hilarious hit in 2006 with Motorcy Hoy. Mor lam got a shot in the arm in 2012 with the formation of The Paradise Bangkok Molam International Band by DJs Chris Menist and Maft Sai of Zudrungma Records (see below), who also play percussion. Fronted by veteran khaen and phin players, the band has gone on to play at Glastonbury and other international festivals.
“Isaan neua (north) has mor lam, Isaan tai (south) has kantrum,” sings Darkie, the first star of kantrum, Thai–Cambodian pop, in his song Isaan Tai Samakkhi (Southern Isaan Unity). His music is a very specific offshoot, from the southern part of Isaan, where Thai–Cambodians mix with ethnic Lao and Thais. So far kantrum is only popular in Isaan in Thailand but it has spread over the border to nearby Cambodian towns like Siem Reap where the style is known as Khmer Ler or Khmer Surin.
Modern kantrum has developed from Cambodian folk and classical music, played in a small group consisting of fiddle, small hand-drums and khrab (pieces of hardwood bashed together rather like claves). This traditional style is now quite hard to find in Thailand; thirty years ago, musicians started to electrify the music, using both traditional and Western instruments. Shunning the synthesizer preferred by his competitors such as Khong Khoi, Oh-Yot and Samanchai, Darkie added the wailing fiddle centre-stage and cranked up the rhythms (kantrum has a harder beat than even mor lam). In 1997, he broke new ground with Darkie Rock II: Buk Jah, the first kantrum crossover album to have success in the mainstream pop market. Sadly, in 2001, Darkie died aged 35, but a new generation of kantrum stars emerged, led by Songsaeng Lungluangchai, who has recorded several excellent albums of Darkie covers.
In Bangkok, ask the vendors at the day and night markets about CDs, or the stores on Thanon Charoen Krung (New Road) or at Saturday evening’s Klong Thom market (in the small sois behind Thanon Charoen Krung, between Plaplachai and Mahachak intersections). Most major luk thung or mor lam artists release an album every three months, which is often given an artist’s series number. Old-style recordings of Suraphon Sombatjalern and the like can be found on through Mae Mai Pleng Thai (maemaiplengthai.com), while DJ Siam, nearby on Soi 7, Siam Square, is good for Thai indie and pop (facebook.com/djsiambangkok.com). Look out for the intriguingly diverse output of Zudrangma Records (zudrangmarecords.com): they’ve released compilations of old luk thung and mor lam on their own label, and it’s well worth browsing their record store, next door to WTF, just off Soi 51, Thanon Sukhumvit; they have also opened a nearby bar, Studio Lam, and run awesome club nights, where you might find mor lam mixed with Jamaican dancehall.
In addition, several DVDs are well worth seeking out: Jeremy Marre’s episode on music in Thailand, Two Faces of Thailand: A Musical Portrait (Shanachie, US), from his award-winning Beats of the Heart music-TV documentary series; Homrong; and Mon Rak Transistor.
Classical
Fong Naam The Hang Hong Suite. A good introduction to the vivacious and glittering sound of classical Thai music, this CD includes some upbeat funeral music and parodies of the musical languages of neighbouring cultures. The Sleeping Angel is also a splendid recording.
Lai Muang Ensemble The Spirit of Lanna: Music from the North of Thailand. Top-quality recording, featuring multi-instrumentalist Somboon Kawichai on the peejum (bamboo pipes) and the eerie-sounding pin pia, a chest-resonated oboe.
The Prasit Thawon Ensemble Thai Classical Music. Brilliant playing (and outstanding recording quality) from some of Thailand’s best performers, mainly of piphat style. Includes the overture Homrong Sornthong and, on Cherd Chin, some scintillating dialogues between different instruments.
Folk music
David Fanshawe Music From Thailand and Laos: Southeast Asia Recordings. Excellent range of folk music from different regions of both countries.
Various Sea Gypsies of the Andaman Sea. The traditional music of nomadic Moken (chao ley) fisherfolk in southern Thailand, mostly recorded in the Surin islands.
Various Thailand: Musiques et Chants des Peuples du Triangle d’Or. Recordings of the traditional music of Thailand’s main hill-tribe groups by the French label, Globe Music: Hmong, Lisu, Lahu, Yao, Akha and Karen, as well as Shan (Thai Yai).
Thai sakon
Euah Sunthornsanan Chabab Derm (“Old Songs”) Vols 1–5, 6–10. Modern Thai music was popularized by the late master Euah. Some of the most popular Thai songs ever were performed by the Suntharaporn band and a bevy of singers.
String and Songs for Life
Carabao Made in Thailand and Ameri-koi. Two classic albums from the Songs for Life giants. Made in Thailand was right in tune with the times and targeted social problems like consumerism, the sex trade and a failing education system. Ameri-koi (Greedy America) is even more nationalistic than the previous one, but it also hits out at Thai migrant workers exploited by labour brokers.
Futon Never Mind the Botox. Electro-clash with a punk attitude from the kingdom’s favourite underground band. Excellent cover of Iggy Pop’s I Wanna Be Your Dog.
Loso/Sek Loso The best compilation of Loso’s music is the 2001 release The Red album, while the solo work of Sek Loso is best captured on the same year’s Black & White and live on 10 Years Rock Volumes 1 & 2.
Modern Dog Modern Dog. This album of alternative rock marked an important change of direction for the Thai rock scene. Also see albums Love Me Love My Life, That Song and their most recent, Ting Nong Noy.
Luk thung
If you can’t find any of the albums below, go for a compilation of past albums, usually under a title like Ruam Hits (Mixed Hits).
“Got” Chakrapand Arbkornburi 12 Years of Grammy Gold. Packed with slow ballads, this is one for the ladies from luk thung’s heartthrob.
Pumpuang Duangjan In Thailand, the best of many albums to go for is Pumpuang Lai Por Sor (“Pumpuang’s Many Eras”). Her early spine-tingling hits can be found on several compilations from Bangkok Cassette (Mae Mai Pleng Thai), some recorded when she was known as Nampung Petsupan (Honey Diamond from Suphanburi).
Sayan Sanya Sayan Tao Thong (“Sayan Golden Star”). Classic 1970s luk thung featuring the “honey-voiced” master. As Yodrak said, “Women cry when he [Sayan] sings.”
Suraphon Sombatjalern Ruam Phleng (“Mixed Songs”) Vols 1–4. Greatest hits by the king of luk thung. Great voice, great songs, great backing – Siamese soul.
Various Mon Rak Transistor (“A Transistor Love Story”). From the hit movie about a young country boy who tries to make it in the big city as a luk thung singer. Includes Suraphon’s wonderful theme song, Mai Leum (“Don’t Forget”).
Various The Rough Guide to the Music of Thailand. Good review of mor lam and luk thung, despite confusing liner notes, elephants, and the odd pop group.
Mor lam/northeastern music
Chalard Songserm Rhythms of I-Sarn Vols 1 & 2. Top-quality album from National Artist Chalard, khaen maestro Sombat Simlao and a band of great musicians, covering many styles of Lao music in the region. Sombat’s train-sounding khaen solo is a standout.
Isan Slété Songs and Music from North East Thailand. Excellent selection of traditional mor lam. Vocal and instrumental numbers, played by a band of master musicians.
Jintara Poonlarp Ruam Hit 19 Pii Tawng Chut. Nineteen years at the top on two killer volumes. Vol. 1 features haunting mor lam.
Various Instrumental Music of Northeast Thailand. Wonderful Japanese collection of pong lang and related instrumental northeastern styles. Lively and fun.
Various The Paradise Bangkok Molam International Band 21st Century Molam & Planet Lam. Rousing albums from 2014 and 2016, featuring Kammao Perdtanon on the lute-like phin and Sawai Kaewsombat on the khaen pipes.
Various, featuring Chaweewan Damnoen Mor Lam Singing of Northeast Thailand. Female mor lam National Artist, Chaweewan, headlines this fine Japanese collection of many lam styles. Most mor lam klawn narrative and dance styles, even spirit-possession rituals, are included.
Kantrum
Darkie Darkie, Rock II: Buk Jah. The first-ever kantrum crossover album achieved nation-wide stardom for the King of Kantrum. Darkie’s booming voice moves from rap-like delivery to moans and wails, shadowed closely by the fiddle and some funky riddims. Unmissable.
Songsaeng Lungluangchai Songsaeng Kantrum Rock: Chut Ta Don Duay. Keyboardless, rootsy sound. Look out for his tribute album to Darkie, Kantrum Rock.
John Clewley (Adapted from The Rough Guide to World Music)