Click here for an audio-visual look at the gig highlights

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

Greetings:

On Thursday in Phnom Penh find the birthday special jazz jam with Dr George at Tape Deck, check out the Cambodia Blind Band at Boran House or the open mic at Noisy Chili hosted by Muz Muskett.  Aisha & Ace are at Little Susie and The Extraordinary Chambers are at Oscar’s on the Corner.  In Siem Reap Possum Bush are at The Pizza Garden.

In Phnom Penh on Friday Brooke Palmer is at Botanico, Terry Magson is at The Tin Hat and Cassette are at Khmer Funk Sky Bar.  A special event called Jam Church (featuring Jesse, Faith, Daria, Felix, Lewis, Damani and Jack) takes over Canopy on Bassac Street, while The Next Universe are at Meta House and Adam Marsland is at End of the Road.  Later and louder, Nevermind Nirvana are joined by Punch Drunk at Oscar’s on the Corner.  In Kampot the Jampot open mic at Karma Traders is hosted by PJ Nutting, and in Siem Reap Kiko is at The Pizza Garden.

On Saturday for their official opening, Tape Deck hosts the season finale for The Originals, featuring Peter Panic (aka Ben Harrison), Lily, Lewis & Jesse, and Dan Man.  Boran House  host an early double bill featuring Cambodia Blind Band and Bustaka Band, while Cambodia Soundbase are at Botanico and there’s a late night jam with Ace at Stories by Little Susie. For those who like it a little loud, After God are at Distortion Dive Bar, Crash Boom Bang are at Duplex, and We Are Ewe and Johatsu are at Oscar’s on the Corner.  On the coast Nestor Garcia is at The Wave: Kep West and GC & Lindsey are at The Bay, and in Siem Reap Andrey, Giuliano & Toma are at The Pizza Garden.

Come Sunday, Scott Bywater hosts the Sunday Sundowners open mic at Tacos Kokopelli, La Dolce Vita (Sharon & Phil), are at Cin Cin on Post Office Square, and Joe Wrigley is at Bar Oz.  Later on, Shaken Spirit are at Oscar’s on the Corner.

Passing Chords – a few things you may not know about

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Ryan Wright, guitarist with Nevermind Nirvana, and before that heavy metal band Splitter, later known as Knell.  “I’ve been jamming with Doug and Wayne [Splitter/Knell] since 2011/12, but we’ve always had a problem with keeping singers and drummers.  At one point we even thought about becoming an instrumental progressive-style band which prompted the change of name.”   Nevermind Nirvana play one of their final gigs this Friday night at Oscar’s on the Corner with Punch Drunk to follow.

Do you have a pet musical hate/pet peeve?

I’m not sure which I hate more: country or western or K-pop.

A private musical indulgence:

Abba.  That’s some classic stuff right there.  But that’s really private.

The year you first came to Cambodia:

October 2007.  I was living in Vietnam at the time, I went straight down to Otres Beach – my friend had told me there’s one inch waves.  Loved it.

An early music memory:

I must have been about seven.  My brother called me into his bedroom – listen to this!  He played Get in the Ring by Guns’n’Roses – there’s a bit where Axl Rose starts talking, cursing heavily – and I shouted out “Mum! Kieran’s listening to bad music!”  I’m sure I caught a punch for that.  But I had a great introduction to music, Mum and Dad would play the Eurythmics and Queen and Hendrix in the car and in the house as well, so I was always surrounded by cool music.  Dad also used to play Beethoven and Tchaikovsky and Mozart.

The last thing you had to eat:

A barbecue chicken sandwich.  I highly recommend Jack Daniels barbecue sauce.

Stagefright – yes or no?

Not stagefright, just nerves.  I’ll get up there, no problem, but it takes me a song or two to lose the nerves.

A country you want to visit:

I am planning to go to Japan in October.  I’ve always been fascinated by the high speed bullet trains.

A book or movie you keep going back to:

Jaws.  It’s got to be Jaws – a classic movie, and it doesn’t age, it’s like Black Sabbath or classical music, timeless stuff.

What languages do you have?

I speak English, very rudimentary Khmer, and a tiny bit of Spanish.

Your primary instrument, and when you started playing it:

Guitar, in the mid to late 90s, I was about 12.  We used to have an old ¾ nylon string classical knocking around the house.  I started picking it up after my brother had learned a bit.

Something people might be surprised to know about you:

For all the heavy metal and loud music I listen to, I actually have a condition called misophonia.  Obnoxious noises trigger me – I try not to let it affect me.  I’ve been carrying headphones since I was about eight years old.

You have a time machine and a magic ticket to one gig or festival in the past. What do you choose?

If I had a time machine I’d want to go back 67 million years and see the dinosaurs.

A question from the last participant: the question most musicians ask every day – why are you doing this, and what would your life be without music?

I do it because it’s wicked fun.  I really enjoy the camaraderie of hanging out with the lads and learning stuff.  I’d just be so bored if I didn’t play music.

Department of Mutual Support:  Friends of LengPleng

We are pleased to welcome new Friends of Leng Pleng this month: Tape Deck, Riva and Pearl of Kampot, as well as renewed subscriptions for Botanico and The Deck.

 

Being a Friend of LengPleng is open to venues, acts, and even private individuals; if you value the service we provide please consider assisting us financially.   For a modest contribution ($25 for three months, $40 for six months, $75 for 12 months), you get the logo of your choice into the weekly email and onto the weekly wrap page, and an automatically click through to a page on our website for further information, photos, videos and so on – we like to think of it as an alternative to Facebook.

We also pay special attention when you have a good story for us – an upcoming event or an artist you wish to highlight.  Email gigs@lengpleng.com for further details or bail up Scoddy wherever you see him.

 

Steve Porte Photo of the Week

Big Mike Hsu, colossus of the Phnom Penh music scene, who passed away 10 years ago this month.  This photo from one of his customarily long stage speeches at the Sharky Bar 20th anniversary concert in December 2015.

 

If you wish to receive a notification for the new edition of LengPleng in your inbox every Thursday please send a subscribe email to gigs@lengpleng.com.

Musicians, venues, punters:  if there are things 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 (mailto:gigs@lengpleng.com

 

Weekly Gig Guide – week commencing Thursday 28 May 2026

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Thursday


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Saturday                                                            

 

Sunday

 

Monday


Tuesday


Wednesday


Coming soon:


Friday 5 June


Saturday 6 June


Sunday 7 June


Friday 12 June

Saturday 13 June

Friday 19 June

Saturday 20 June

 

By Weekly Wrap