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

Greetings:

…..and here’s September and the scene is opening like a can of Cambodia Beer – almost every other one a winner.  Check out the expanding listings and the Coming Soon and Coming Later lists below.

This weekend bossa nova outfit Blue Wave (see Passing Chords below) hit the road for three shows in Siem Reap – at Fellini, Luxury Angkor Resort & Sky Lounge and New Leaf.  In Phnom Penh, Elysee Beer Plaza is holding a Thursday and Friday evening event featuring food, beer and Gareth Bawden. 

Also in Phnom Penh on Friday, Miss Sarawan play Botanico@Odom Garden, Visa Runners are at Craft,  Christian Herve is at Cloud, and Khmer Magic Music Bus are at Bouchon Wine Bar.  Alli G & Pervez are at 90s Pub, Dan Reidy is at The Box Office and Efren is at Beer O’Clock. Later and louder, find K’n’E at Oscar’s on the Corner.In Siem Reap Andy Luna is at Arin’s and solo acoustic act Rain is at AMBAR, and in Kampot, the Jampot open mic at Karma Traders is hosted this week by Ant Colloff.

On Saturday check out Sou Dane at Craft, Scoddy & Jed at Botanico and Dan Reidy at Sundance.  The new line up of Los Primos play at Bouchon Wine Bar and Spiked Gravy are at Sunset Boulevard, with K’n’E at Oscar’s on the Corner.  In Siem Reap, Jam-Cha are at Star Bar and Those Handsome Devils are at Laundry Bar.

Department of Bandcamp

It’s Bandcamp Friday this week!  From midnight to midnight US Pacific time.  Bandcamp Friday means that all proceeds from sales (after payment processing fees) go directly to the artists/labels (to be precise, 92% rather than 83%).   Some recent Cambodia-related Bandcamp releases include – Ariane Parkes / talk to the girl, speak to the ghost – Jet Odrerir / I shouldn’t have said nothing  – Joshua Chiang / Everything Under The Sun.  Or try out old favourites such as Vanntin Hoeurn’s acts Sliten6ix, Phnom Devils, Reign in Slumber and Blood Bricks, similarly loud Nightmare A.D., reggae styles Vibratone, Dub Addiction, the hip hop of Hypnotic Fist Technique and Funan Beat Empire, the pop rock of The Goldilocks Zone, the inimitable Geography of the Moon, and/or Scoddy.  As well as all the ones we’ve missed.

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Takeshi and Machiko (Mari) Yamauchi.  Takeshi (guitar) and Machiko (vocals) have been playing in Phnom Penh for many years, often as a duo, and in recent years in a bossa nova combo, Blue Wave, teaming up with Keiko Kitamura (percussion) and Colin Grafton (harmonica).  This weekend they are doing a mini-tour of Siem Reap, playing Fellini on Friday, Luxury Angkor Resort on Saturday, and New Leaf on Sunday afternoon.

How did they end up playing bossa nova?
Takeshi: Because Machiko sings bossa nova. I also like Stan Getz, who was the first American jazz musician to bring bossa nova to a world audience, through his collaborations with Astrud (The Girl From Ipanema) & Joao Gilberto in the sixties.
Machiko: When I sing bossa, I feel relaxed and happy.

Do you have a pet musical hate?
Takeshi:    I like any style of music, but I don’t like people talking loudly.
Machiko:    People speaking during the music is no good.

A private musical indulgence:
Takeshi:    Listening to Japanese Showa era songs, especially from ‘50s and ‘60s.
Machiko:    I don’t listen to music so often, but once I find my favorite kind of song, I listen to it for many hours repeatedly.

The year you first came to Cambodia:
Takeshi & Machiko: In 2013.

An early music memory:
Takeshi:    When I was an elementary school student, I was blown away by live performances by Japanese pop music bands, what was called gurupu saundzu, which was the name given to the type of 8-beat music which featured electric guitars and musicians with long hair. They are categorised into pre-Beatles and post-Beatles – a good example is The Ventures, who were extremely big in Japan.  Junior high school Takeshi was impressed specifically by gurupu saundzu between 1965 and 1969 (not 1970!).  There is a Japanese onomatopaeic term which describes this kind of music: Den deke deke deke (the ‘e’ being pronounced as in ‘Fred’) or Teke teke, the sound of strumming called tremolo (or toremoro) and glissando (grisudaun) picking.
Machiko:   When I was a kid, my father was listening to an opera record. I thought the record was scratched and kept spinning in the same place. But later I found it was the best part of the opera where the singer was singing a very long note. The singer had a long breath.

The last thing you had to eat:
Takeshi:    Sushi.
Machiko:    Delicious unajyu, broiled eel served over rice in a lacquered box.

A country you want to visit:
Takeshi:    Spain
Machiko:    Spain – I want to see flamenco!

A book or movie you keep going back to:
Takeshi:    Le Mans, with Steve McQueen
Machiko:    I Girasoli (Sunflower) with Sophia Loren

What languages do you have?
Takeshi & Machiko:    Japanese

Your primary instrument, and when you started playing it:
Takeshi:    Guitar, when I was a junior high school student.
Machiko:   Organ at my kindergarten, when I was 5.

Something people might be surprised to know about you:
Takeshi:    Nothing particular.
Machiko:    I have been lucky – Takeshi and his friends educated me in music.

You have a time machine and a magic ticket to one gig or festival in the past.  What do you choose?
Takeshi:    Concerts by Joe Pass and Wes Montgomery
Machiko:   A Michael Jackson concert

Special thanks to Keiko and Colin for coordination and translation.

Steve Porte Photo of the Week

Andrea and Christian at the Geography of the Moon show at The Hideout, Friday, 26 August, 2022

Our sister publication, kumnooh.com, aims to provide a lengpleng.com service for the wider arts – painting, sculpture, literature, dance, architecture and classical music – across Cambodia.  Every Tuesday – to subscribe send a subscribe email to fabianhipp@kumnooh.com.

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Musicians, venues, punters:  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 (mailto:gigs@lengpleng.com)

Weekly Gig Guide – week commencing Thursday 1 September 2022

** residency/weekly

For DJs and clubs, we recommend Phnom Penh Underground

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

*Note that Wednesday events are often not announced until early in the week – check back here for updates*

Coming soon:

Coming later:

 

 

 

 

 

By Weekly Wrap