Weekly wrap – Thursday 25 November 2021

***for full gig listings jump to the bottom***

Greetings, and happy Thanksgiving for those celebrating today.

As we creep towards the end of a long and rainy November the gigs keep coming, with some interesting new things in the wind – new music projects and venues re-starting.

Backyard Café open new premises on St 63 (corner St 278) on Friday night, with an exhibition of local artists and performance by Arome Khmer, while Gonzalo Rodino is at Odom Garden and Alli G (see our weekly feature below) is joined by Troy Campbell on percussion at The Box Office.  Phnom Penh Ukulele Circle hold their theme night (birds) at Bong Bonlai restaurant, Gerard & Gaby & Danielle are at Green Pepper, and there’s more jazz at Bosporus with Machiko & Takeshi.  K’n’E take it late as ever at Oscar’s on the Corner.

On Saturday Mirasol & Arone join for The Singing Painter at Sunset Boulevard, Cold Club Cambodia are on the roof at Au Marche, and The Extraordinary Chambers are at Duplex.  In Siem Reap, Jam-Cha is at The Harbour.

Come Sunday Bar Oz hosts Packo & Friends for an afternoon session, Tacos Kokopelli is running a boat Sundowners (reservations essential), then later on it’s Alli G & Chema at Duplex and Joe & the Jumping Jacks at Oscar’s on the Corner.

**For the rest of the gigs check out the listings at the bottom of the page**

Siem Reap musician Paul Mackie has launched a The Shack Collaboration Community Project as a way of rebuilding the music scene, particularly those attempting to make their living from music in these tough times.  “I have built a lovely but tiny space from bamboo for our live and tiny film production and  installed a home studio set up for recording. My aim is to keep our musicians and visual artists alive. It will be at least a year until enough tourism is back and we can get back to what we do, play music and entertain our wonderful city and country.  I will coordinate music and art collaborations with our talented local musicians and make sure we have regular output for you. I hope you guys can help us out in the ways that are set out here on Patreon. If you would like to know more or collaborate with us then please do get in touch.”    Check out Patreon and YouTube.

Details are continuing to slow emerge for the Angkor International Festival of the Arts (incorporating the Angkor Writers and Readers Festival) to be held 10 – 12 December in Siem Reap.  Keep an eye on the Facebook pages for more information as it comes.

Note:  LengPleng.com has returned to its weekly email service.   If you wish to receive LengPleng in your inbox every Thursday please send an email saying Subscribe to gigs@lengpleng.com.   And tell your friends.

The Leng Pleng Weekly Feature


That time music saved my life: the journeys of Alli G

First there’s the quick smile, and the infectious laugh, and then there’s the sheer love of performance.  Alli Gecikarana, best known as Alli G, was born in Borneo and spent many years in Kuala Lumpur.  After an extended spell in Siem Reap he has come to Phnom Penh and is getting behind microphones across the city.  Leng Pleng sat him down with him before his new residency on a Sunday evening at Duplex to get some more of his story.

“When I was 16 years old, one time I hadn’t eaten for ten days, living on the streets in Kuala Lumpur, sleeping under a bridge.  I saw someone playing pots and cans and singing whatever – he got some money out of it.  I thought if that guy can do that for some money, why couldn’t I?  So I started busking.  The first time I just closed my eyes – I didn’t play guitar yet, so I just clapped my hands and sang some Beatle songs that I knew.”

Read the whole article here.

Passing Chords: a few things you might not know about… Mol Vibol

Music lover Mol Vibol is the keyboard master with K’n’E and the Cambodia Country Band.  K’n’E play most Fridays and Saturdays, and Cambodia Country Band every Monday, at Oscar’s on the Corner.

Do you have a pet musical hate?
I like all music, and I want to learn everything new – country, rock’n’roll, blues…

A private musical indulgence:
Best for me is pop music, like from Japan.  But I love metal too.

The first time you left Cambodia:
I went to Japan with my piano teacher in 2018 to play classical piano.

An early music memory:
I saw my older brother playing guitar, bass, keyboard, it made me want to play also.

The last thing you had to eat:
A burger.

A book or movie you keep going back to:
I love action movies.  And ghost movies.

Your primary instrument, and when you started playing it:
Piano.  I began to study in grade 6, when I was 13 years old.

You have a time machine and a magic ticket to one gig or festival in the past.  What do you choose?
Some jazz.  I love jazz music and the chords of jazz.

A question from the last participant:   Do you think animals like music?
Dogs and cats I love, but when I play piano and a dog is near me, I say go away.

 

New and Recent Releases

Sam Sandak (AKA Ozymandias) from LA is back in the kingdom and on the loose….  His EP Back To Life was recorded earlier this year by and with Professor Kinski – three punky tracks including a version of Three Little Bops, a musical retelling of Three Little Pigs from a 1957 Looney Tunes cartoon (look it up) and the Ramones tune Beat on the brat.  It’s now available for your listening pleasure at Soundcloud.  And be prepared for Ozymandias & the Phnom Penh Pythons on stages shortly.

On Bandcamp and your favourite streaming platform – Ernie Buck & the Cham Ticks, Self Portrait with Moustache.

Steve Porte Photo of the Week

 

Singer and Thanksgiving Queen Marianna Hensley performing as part of the Joe Wrigley & Friends Tuesday night residency at The Cove, 23 November, 2021

 

If there are things that you know that LengPleng should know, please tell us and we’ll do our best to tell the world.

See you around the traps.

your correspondent,

Guillermo Wheremount
LengPleng.com
gigs@lengpleng.com

Weekly Gig Guide – week commencing Thursday 25 November 2021                                ** residency

Thursday

 

Friday

 

Saturday

 

Sunday

 

Monday

 

Tuesday

 

Wednesday

Coming soon:

Scotch & Soda at Botanico@Odom Garden

Swing Time at Mealea Restaurant / Palace Gate

Rundown Guesthouse (Ronan & Jack) at Bosporus

Joe & the Jumping Jacks at Monkey Republic (Kampot)

The Sock Essentials plus The Brexiteers at Bosporus

Grand opening (no band info yet) of Central Café

Grand opening (no band info yet) of The Sharky’s

Coming later:

Los Primos at Botanico@Odom Garden

Metal night at Oscar’s on the Corner

 

By Weekly Wrap