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

Greetings:

Visiting Phnom Penh this weekend as part of a tour of Southeast Asia is musician and producer Alejandro Caquero (Spain/Mexico), with his project GlasGlas, a performance blending electronic music, live looping and improvisation, ranging from ambient to groove to world music.  You can catch the act on Thursday at Cloud, on Friday at The Box Office, and on Saturday at Botanico.  Here’s a sample of his work on YouTube, “a composition about change and impermanence” performed at RistIstanbul in Turkey.

A highlight in Phnom Penh on Friday night is the official opening of Placard Studio, a new rehearsal, recording, jamming and performance venue above Noisy Chili in Tuol Tom Pong.  The night will feature a jam and open mic, also special opening night discount packages and giveaways.

Also in Phnom Penh on Friday find Arome Khmer at Botanico, Bustaka Band at Bat Muk Yu, Blues on the Cob at  Little Susie and Zakk Zoot at The Vine.  Later on, Skeptical Chemistry are at Hometown Hangout and there’s a best of British rock night with Temple and Shake79 at Oscar’s on the Corner, while Stu Cottom is at The Silk Route.  In Siem Reap, find open mics at The Panthers Hut and Mex’d Up, and live electro fusion with Where Is Micha? (Micha, Pablo and Toma) at Laundry.

On Saturday in Phnom Penh, Judy J & Dr G are at The Deck, Rags to Rainbows are at Vinoteca, Shake 79 are at Bat Muk Yu, D&Y are at Little Susie and Clay George is at Tropico.   Later on, Montra are at Oscar’s on the Corner.

On Sunday in Phnom Penh, Stu Cottom is at Villa Grange, the Sunday Sundowners open mic at Tacos Kokopelli is hosted by John Memery, and later on Crash Boom Bang are at Oscar’s on the Corner.  In Siem Reap, Poca & the Sticky Tentacles are at New Leaf.

Department of New Releases:  Andrea’s voyage with the ghosts

Available now for pre-order on right here on Bandcamp, with the full album downloadable on Tuesday 10 June, is Voyage, the new release from Tired Panda, the electro/experimental/triphop solo project out of the mindscape of Andrea Rubbio of Geography of the Moon.

Incorporating electric sitar, beats, drone and noise, the howling and whispering suggest the phrases strangely beautiful and beautifully strange.

While there are guests scattered through the album, the bulk of this intensely personal work has been done by Andrea himself.  “I played all the instruments, except [Indian instrument] sarod on What You Do At Night, that’s Arnab Bhattacharya, recorded at Meta House, they sent me the file and I jammed on it.  Most of the songs are played with an electric sitar through guitar pedals, and I also play guitar, bass, synths and beats.  Then it was mixed and mastered by me.”

The featured singers and rappers wrote their own lyrics: Cove Aaronoff, Virginia Bones, Japanese rapper Darthreider and Mahesh Vinayakram, who Andrea tells us is a very well known singer in India, except Miss Sarawan who is heard performing the Golden Era classic Somleng Guitar.

Andrea told me a lot of the material was inspired by the sudden death in January of Phnom Penh musician and scene stalwart Ned Kelly.  “I wrote most of the songs in three days.  I locked myself, in pain, in a very cheap weird hotel in Bangkok full of ghosts.  I was literally going mad, not sleeping, writing songs like tracks like Den Yllek (Ned Kelly), about my personal pain – in fact I can hear the sitar is crying- and Thin Line, about the line between life and death.

“In my pain, I tried to lock the monsters into this album.  Shambala Blues is a trip.  The Last Radio Station is about Gaza.  The Night I wrote a long time ago during a very terrible time in my life, music written in total desperation, but the lyrics are positive.  It’s painful for me to listen to, but I think I did a good job.  A song of hope, recorded in Kampot – thanks to Mark Chattaway for loaning me a bass.

Preview the track The New Normal and pre-order here on Bandcamp.

Passing Chords: a few things you might not know about

Matt Gonano, currently the drummer with Alli G & TheQuilas, The Lazy Drunks and The Visa Runners, formerly with Folk’n’Guys, At Terminus and Smack The Unicorn.  Catch him behind the kit this Thursday at Oscar’s on the Corner with Alli G & TheQuilas.

Do you have a pet musical hate/pet peeve?

I think music is the one of the last few things in this world that transcends all division and social norms.  I really don’t want to have any musical hates or pet peeves because music is so imperative to my life and healing as well as millions of others. bringing any negative influence to it would be counterproductive to all the influence that it has on everyone and everything.  So that being said, if I had to nail it down to any specific it would be just the ignorance that one would have when they choose to not discover different genres of music or branching out to different paths of music.  There is just so much to learn and take from so many different cultural backgrounds/styles of music that you would be missing out on a lot.  It improves not only your instrument playing but as a whole language.  Being a drummer and being a musician are totally different things.  You have to be able to communicate when playing music.  I try my best in this life to play with as many people as I can and expose myself to many different genres and styles of music.  This helps me communicate better as a musician. So in conclusion, I guess musical ignorance is my biggest pet peeve.

A private musical indulgence:

There honestly isn’t a time I can recall having a private musical indulgence.  If I hear something and I like it, I will openly enjoy it.  Love all genres, could be listening to death metal one day then some pop or trance the next.  There isn’t much to hide in my life haha.  Again, it all harkens back to being as open to any genre as I can.  Lately I’ve been listening to a lot of specific drummers and really delving deep into their playing and taking any inspiration whether it be fills, or certain patterns and trying to apply it (rather attempting to haha) to my live playing.  There is a lot of discipline in that and it is a huge obstacle sometimes.  It is hard to  apply some aspects of drumming from a certain style of musick, like Latin, to, say, a live show with Alli G, because everything is improvised rock music.  But I love playing with Alli because it gives me that creative input, so the opportunity is there if I want to take it.

The year you first came to Cambodia:

In May of 2023 – two years on May 28.  Time flies!

An early music memory:

I was about 10 I noticed one of my best friends starting drum lessons, I wanted to be like him. and kept asking to learn drums, my mom kept saying okay, I’ll sign you up – she kept delaying it.   I had a lot of past failure trying out the piano and guitar at the time, so she was reluctant, I mean DRUMS the loudest instrument – good luck!) Finally said MOM I REALLY WANT TO PLAY DRUMS – she caved in and enrolled me into lessons at the Ontario Academy of Music.   After only 6 months of lessons I had participated in my first competition and tied for first place. That was a humbling experience because it showed that I could actually stick to something in my life and make some progress haha.  She told me she remembers her jaw dropping when she realized I could play drums!

The last thing you had to eat:

Pizza, and spaghetti.

Stagefright – yes or no?

I honestly think I don’t show outward signs of stage fright.  But deep down sometimes we all do.  It’s definitely there when you first start playing a show but usually dies down when you become more confident and comfortable and ease into the gig, usually by the second set.  The first set of a show is always worrisome, trying to get the sound right, making sure everything is in tune, that everyone is on the same page. It can be a nervewracking sometimes, but we all have to deal with it.

A country you want to visit:

Australia and anywhere in Africa.  The only two continents I have never been to.

A book or movie you keep going back to:

I like to indulge in anything fiction, I cannot stand nonfiction mostly. So I’m a big sci fi nerd.  For movies, I usually watch one time and I’m done.  I can’t wait for the new 28 years later movie, that franchise is one of my favorites.

What languages do you have?

English.  My parents are Italian so I know some swear words, that’s about it.

Your primary instrument, and when you started playing it:

I started with keyboard but showed no real interest in it, then I tried guitar and showed even less interest in that.   However the passion for drums was clear the moment I started to play.  Around my teens, I started taking lessons and a big influence for me at that time that stuck me with the drums was the Incubus album A Crow Left of the Murder… My drum teacher Nick introduced me to that band, and Jose Pasillas’ drumming was a huge influence on me. The drums just breathe to me on that album.   Since then I have been playing for wedding bands, live cover bands, while also teaching at Northbridge.  I am also available for teaching and band/session work: matthewgonano27@gmail.com / YouTube: Matthew Gonano.

Something people might be surprised to know about you:

I really don’t know, I’m pretty simple and boring, what you see is what you get.  I don’t like to talk about myself much even though I did in this article, I keep to myself most times and want the music and my playing to speak for itself.  I guess don’t be shy to get to know me, if you see me in person strike up a conversation!

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

There’s a lot to choose from. I guess I am very lucky to have seen Neil Peart and Rush play in the early 2000s with my dad, before Neil had passed.  John Bonham, that is one drummer I would love to see play live, unfortunately I wasn’t born when he passed.  Any drummer basically that has passed that I could never see live again, is the gig or festival I would want to go to. There is also an amazing band named ISIS (they formed before that whole fiasco), from California.  They play amazing post metal/rock and they have a wall of sound I cannot describe. Incredible musicians. Basically when I got into them is when they broke up and never played again.  So I would have loved to see them live as well.

A question from the last participant: Do you think it’s you choosing music, or music chose you?

I truly believe music chose me!  I am grateful to my parents and how much they have provided me over the years as well as all the opportunities they have given me.  I don’t think I would have ever found drumming if not for them.  And all the years they had to put up with my playing in the basement.  It has been my lifesblood ever since.  I must have been a pain in the ass because I was always interested in new endeavors in life, I still am.  I think the natural ability on drums showed up as soon as I  started playing, the ability to piece together different aspects of playing.  I was a sponge when it came to everything to do with drums.  I wish I still had that ability but responsibilities and getting older have gotten in the way.  I got lazy!  I really want to get back to those days and hopefully humble myself and start taking lessons again from someone more experienced than me.  I think for many years of my drumming my ego got in the way and I was very ignorant about learning new things, I just wanted to play the heaviest and fastest music.  Maybe I was thinking this is what made you a good drummer.  I clearly was wrong!  Now I start to appreciate all the different genres and types of drumming including world music.  I used to spend hours in a shop called Drummers Choice back in Canada.  I think patience is a huge virtue nowadays especially when you want to teach an instrument, it was always a challenging path.

Department of Mutual Support:  Friends of LengPleng

    

      

 

 

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

Steve is on his annual vacation in New York City.

If you wish to receive 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 5 June 2025

** 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:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Weekly Wrap