by Joel Dwek | Jan 5, 2022 | Reviews
Part of a new generation of Lao pop star, Jojo Miracle entertains on his fun debut album… Hailing from the Southeast Asian state of Laos, Jojo Miracle is part of a new wave of Lao pop music. Laos has a long history of traditional music forms, but Lao pop as we...
by Joel Dwek | Jan 2, 2022 | Reviews
Containing a variety of rock genres within, Juan Karlos’ debut album shatters the child star image of its lead singer and songwriter with style… It may come as surprise to some of you reading this article without a knowledge of the Filipino music scene...
by Joel Dwek | Oct 27, 2021 | Reviews
Soul Detergent is well-made indie rock, with psychedelic influences. Or is it something more?… Though rock music is a foundational genre for me – I wouldn’t be writing this if, on a bus journey on a school trip to Spain, a friend hadn’t played me The Beatles on...
by Danny Wiser | Sep 30, 2021 | Reviews
A master of his craft, Kong Nay’s work serves as a vital piece of cultural preservation that can hopefully inspire a next generation… Throughout this deep dive into the music culture of each nation on the planet, we realise that most countries’ music scene...
by Danny Wiser | Sep 5, 2021 | Reviews
Can pop stars become rock stars? Let’s head to Kuala Lumpur to find out Picture the scene. Imagine you are a musician adored by fans across the continent. Whether you are in a nightclub in Jakarta, a swanky hotel in Singapore, or even in a shop back home in...
by Danny Wiser | Jul 24, 2021 | Reviews
While LUNA features experimentalism combined with a fearless attitude, this album by plucky indie band from the Abode of Peace leaves one of us cold, the other enthusiastic… Danny: In the interest in being straight-up and honest, I will admit from the outset...
by Joel Dwek | Jun 9, 2021 | Reviews
This Latin jazz rock fusion piece is not only entertaining, but provides a fascinating look into the Filipino-American community in 1970s California Few artists can truly be labelled ahead of their time. Hannah Gadsby famously riffs on this on her stand-up special...
by Joel Dwek | Mar 17, 2021 | Reviews
Hard rock mixed with ballads and experimental flourishes, Potato manage to put their own spin on the rock genre… Despite the fact that I do like this band and I like this album very much, we must address the elephant in the room, which is the fact that Potato is...
by Joel Dwek | Mar 1, 2021 | Reviews, Top Picks
Their first album after their main songwriter left the band, the remaining members of Indonesian outfit Sore seized the opportunity to reinvent their sound… When a band loses its lead songwriter, it can be disastrous, or it can lead to a rebirth. One only need...
by Joel Dwek | Jan 15, 2021 | Reviews
A legacy of the Vietnam War, Saigon Soul Revival appropriate a Western genre whilst adding a wonderful Vietnamese twist… In some respects, the very idea of Vietnamese soul music seems unusual. Vietnam in the Western consciousness is usually solely recalled in...
by Joel Dwek | Dec 10, 2020 | Reviews
A joyful album born out of trying times, Pareira and Araujo show that entertainment for entertainment’s sake can have meaning… The small nation of East Timor (also known as Timor-Leste, but Wikipedia goes for East Timor and therefore so shall I) shares a...
by Danny Wiser | Dec 1, 2020 | Advent Calendar
PHILIPPINES: Noche Buena – Joey Albert… Constituting the largest Christian nation in Asia, the Philippines has a wealth of different Christmas carols and anthems both religious and secular. Noche Buena by Joey Albert mixes the two creating a pop song about...
by Joel Dwek | Oct 12, 2020 | Reviews, Top Picks
The work of Sinn Sisamouth reveals a fascinating lost world of Cambodian music, and the tragic circumstances that surrounded its downfall… When Danny gave me Reatrei Nov Hong Kong, Vol. 58, he became the first of the two of us to intentionally break the first...
by Joel Dwek | Jul 9, 2020 | Reviews
Lay Phyu is one of Myanmar’s most famous rock stars – but how did he get to this position during the notoriously repressive military regime?… Until the recent process of democratic reforms, Myanmar was one of the states most isolated from the rest of...
