Leng Pleng - Live Music and DJ Gig Guide of Cambodia: Weekly Wrap

I was expecting this... pic: Blog of Lone

Perhaps I'm missing something but... is Phnom Penh not supposed to be empty this weekend? The Pchum Ben holiday normally entails a quiet time for gigs in the city... but there are actually plenty of really cool live music and DJ parties happening over the next few days. Check out the Leng Pleng Weekly Gig Guide for all the latest tips.

pic: Swing Brosse System

Swing Brosse System are a group of young musicians from France. They share a love for 'Jazz Manouche' or 'Gypsy Jazz' performed on guitars, acoustic bass, trombone, saxophone and clarinet. Sharky Bar Phnom Penh will be welcoming the Swing Brosse family for a special gig this Friday night. Esther, Rachel, Odenson and Sacha Laurent are all in their teens or pre-teens – which makes their precocious collective talent all the more impressive. Swing Brosse are, already, experienced international festival performers. Check out the video below for a sample.

Something really 'out there' and interesting will be taking place on the rooftop of Bo Deng (the 'white building') on Saturday afternoon. Saphy 'Lafidki' Vong let us know about an event featuring Beijing-based musician and poet Yan Jun [http://www.yanjun.org/]. The interactive musical performance is a new edition of Yan Jun's 'Noise Hypnotizing Project'. Bring your headphones to participate in 'a sonic experience of rich, high frequency sound... The sound is improvised with and responsive to the sound of the environment and audience's movement.' - Leng Pleng is not exactly sure what this sonic experience will entail... but it sounds pretty cool!

Later on Saturday, The Kampot Playboys will perform for the first time at FCC – The Mansion in Phnom Penh. Regular readers of Leng Pleng will be aware of our long-standing appreciation of this very cool bunch of genre-bending Khmer fusionistas. If you haven't already heard the Playboys' unique mix of Khmer language vocals with psychedelic-rock grooves, folky accordion... and a virtuoso tro ('Khmer violin') player who sounds like the Cambodian cousin of Jimi Hendrix... check out their Soundcloud page. The Kampot Playboys will be back in their hometown on Sunday for a special re-launch party gig at Khmer River Bungalows.

https://soundcloud.com/kampotplayboys/lost-song

As covered in last week's wrap, a really cool event will be taking place at The Rock this Saturday night - the first ever Phnom Penh Reggae Festival. Live music and DJs are scheduled to commence at 8pm, with Macky Banton headlining a roster of artists including DJ Bree, MC Kaztet Dee, DJ Proff and Vibratone. Check the Facebook event page for details on how to get tickets.

Check out the newly-released music video below by U.S.-based singer Savy. Born in Battambang, Cambodia, Savy has performed at the last two Cambodian Music Festival events in California. Hopefully, it won't be too long before the singer of 'All It Takes' performs for us here in the Kingdom of Wonder!