Sunday, April 21, 2013

khana saman hongsa: lam sing sut... sut chut eo khang



artist: คณะ สมาน หงษา (khana saman hongsa)
album: ลำซิ่งสุด... สุด ชุด เอวค้าง (lam sing sut... sut chut eo khang)
tracklist:
01. เอวค้าง ตอน 1 (eo khang, pt. 1)
02. เอวค้าง ตอน 2 (eo khang, pt. 2)

this week, we hear once again from molam saman hongsa & his fantastic group of isan entertainers! mr. saman, from ubon ratchathani, is one of the greats in the world of lam performers. he's known to some degree outside of thailand as the leader of the isan slété group, who recorded & toured through the u.k. in the late 80's. within thailand, however, he's probably best remembered for his string of comedy albums (one of which has been presented here). this tape, from 1992, features he & fellow molam puinoi uraiwong trying out the lam sing style. sing, originally an english loanword (racing) from motorbike culture, means hip or up-to-date.  while integrating elements from modern pop (amps, drum-sets, risqué dance moves) the style preserves much of the overall context of lam tradition; vocal competition and battles of wordplay, male vs. female, performers vs. audience (though as you might predict, comedy and sexual innuendo take precendence over the didactic elements present in traditionalist lam). a dance mega-mix variety show.. enjoy!

preview:
MRPT174 by monrakplengthai

Thursday, April 11, 2013

suntharaphon: talung phrama lethethai



artist: สุนทราภรณ์ (suntharaphon)
album: ตลุงพระมะเหลเถไถ (talung phrama lethethai)
01. ตลุงพระมะเหลเถไถ (talung phrama lethethai)
02. ตลุงเริงสุข (talung roeng suk)
03. ตลุงพาชื่น (talung pha chuen)
04. ตลุงชาวทะเล (talung chao thale)
05. ตลุงคู่ชื่น (talung khu chuen)
06. ตลุงตากับยาย (talung ta kap yai)
07. ตลุงปีใหม่ (talung pi mai)
08. ตลุงสงกรานต์ (talung songkran)
09. ตลุงตุงนัง (talung tung nang)
10. โฮกป๊ก (hok pok)
11. หลงคอย (long khoi)
12. ขำจริง (kham ching)
13. นึกว่าไม่ใช่ (nuek wa mai chai)
14. ตลุงวันเพ็ญ (talung wan phen)
15. ตลุงคืนลอยกระทง (talung khuen loy krathong)
16. ตลุงสุขสันต์บันเทิง (talung suk san banthoeng)
17. ตลุงวันดี (talung wan di)

the next couple days in thailand will be devoted to songkran, the solar new year's celebration!  the holiday finds its most obvious expression through the throwing of water, with people of all ages running rampant through the streets with flowery shirts, buckets, squirt-guns & talc.  but it's also a locus of merit-making throughout the kingdom, in particular the bathing of buddha images, and a time to return home and care for your elders.  our cassette today features a general sampling of thai holiday songs from the suntharaphon band (songkran features on track 8), done in talung style.  inspired by the captivating rhythms heard in the southern thai shadow puppet theatre, talung was one of several state-sponsored local responses to the international dance crazes sweeping thai popular culture mid-century.  big band/big beats.. enjoy!

preview:

Friday, April 5, 2013

saengthong anothai: hak kho ai theng



artist: แสงทอง อโณทัย (saengthong anothai)
album: หักคอไอ้เท่ง (hak kho ai theng)
tracklist:
01. หักคอไอ้เท่ง (hak kho ai theng)
02. ไปหาหมอ (pai ha mo)
03. มีเมียเพราะประมาท (mi mia phro pramat)
04. บอกคนชื่อเล็ก (bok khon chue lek)
05. วอนน้องกลับมา (won nong klap ma)
06. อยาก (yak)
07. ศิษย์ท่านจุน (sit than chun)
08. หนุ่มไฟฟ้าแม่ค้าข้าวแกง (num fai fa mae ka khao keng)
09. บึบบับ (buep bap)
10. เส้นทางที่สัญญา (sen thang thi sanya)
11. หนทางตัน (hon thang tan)

i'm heading south for the weekend, so i figured i'd leave you with some great old music from down there!  i can't tell you a thing about our singer, although the songwriter is one whose name has shown up on a handful of cassettes in my collection; nakhon si thammarat's own phetthai thanomchit.  to my ears, there's not anything markedly "southern" about the music here, aside from the percussive & funky arrangements that characterized the region's luk thung at that time.  you'll also hear some examples of the "talking music" style pioneered by phloen phromdaen.. check out the sample song for an unreliable english lesson.  enjoy!

preview:
MRPT172 by monrakplengthai