Various Artists - Molam: Thai Country Groove From
Year: 2005
Style: Thai madness
Country: Thailand
Format: MP3
Quality: CBR, 192 kbps
Size: 86 MB (5% recovery information included)
"The classic recordings featured here are selections from rare vinyl LPs, 45s and cassettes recorded in the Northeastern region of Thailand known as Isan and beyond between the 1970s and 1980s. This was a pivotal time when music of the region began to be electrified and integrated with Western instruments. When electric bass, effected guitars, electric organs, kit drums and horns played alongside the khaen and the phin."
Compared to the "Thai Pop Spectacular" compilation, this one here sounds a bit more traditional, mainly due to the overall use of the mouth organ khaen. But beware: nevertheless it's still a Sublime Frequencies release., so please expect some rather dazzling listening experiences.
Molam: Thai Country Groove From Isan
Sublime Frequencies, SF019, 2005
01. Chiwit Sao Molam (Life of a Molam Woman)
Kwanjai Kalasin Yuk Patana (Modern Stars of Kalasin Province)
02. Pleng Peebah (Crazy Song)
Khong Khao Noi Mea Ka 99 (featuring Noppadol Duangporn)
03. Pleng Keh Sam Sip Sam Natee (33 Second Song)
Unknown artist
04. Oaipon Tahan Chaiden (Sending My Love to the Border Soldier)
Kwanjai Ubon (Stars of Ubon) with Sodsi Rungsong
05. Wasana Gam Par? (Could You Love Me?)
Chaan Siang Phin with Mon Saing Phin
06. Ruk Mai Somwong (Broken Heart — So Let’s Dance)
Sabaithong Powpuri
07. Mai Ow Mai Ow (Don’t Want Don’t Want — Marriage? No Way!)
Gawow Seungthong with Chaba Petchoboon
08. Ahn Nai? (Which One?)
Khong Khao Noi Mea Ka 99 (featuring Noppadol Duangporn)
09. Pua Mao Mea Mao (Husband Drunk, Wife Drunk)
Unknown artist
10. Lam Phun Keaogan (Year of Famine)
Chaan Siang Phin with Sumalee & Pet
11. Molam Sing Tao Bahn Phun (Legendary Man of Bahn Phun)
Boonchu Farlab
12. Lam Thuy Ying Mora (Don’t Accuse Me)
P. Chaland & Pimjai
13. Soong Nam Dondhan Dodhan Salings (The Sparrow and the Waterfall)
Unknown artists [khaen and soong instrumental duet]
14. Ruk Pee Deh Bun Mai Terng (Love the Man I Could Never Have)
Kwanjai Kalasin Yuk Patana (Modern Stars of Kalasin Province) with Chabapai Namwai
15. Seangkhuan Jak Sao Nong Khai (Nong Khai Girl’s Lament)
Sabaithong Powpuri
16. Lam Phun Eun Sai (I Call for You)
Tong Me Malai
17. Lam Phun Songlao Mao Ganja (Ganja Better Than Booze)
Sangwan Lokum
18. Sao Noi Makaleng (Young Girl from Makaleng)
Chaan Siang Phin with Tidmee Danchompu
19. Yung Phen Soed (I’m Still Available)
Hongthong Khanonglam
20. Sop Na Kap Mon (Cry into the Pillow)
Sabaithong Powpuri
21. Tzung Puthao Hua Tokmon (The Old Man and the Bad Pillow)
Unknown artist [soong solo instrumental]
Total time: 61:26 min
Molam is a multi-faceted folk music native to Laos and the predominantly rural Northeastern region of Thailand known as Isan — home to myriad ethnic groups and provinces, and once a part of present-day Laos. Mo meaning “master” and lam meaning “song”, molam literally translates into “master singer”, but it remains more of an umbrella term covering over a dozen types of lam styles in which male and female singers can be backed by a free-reed bamboo mouth organ called a khaen[/i], indigenous lute-like instruments (the phin or the soong), a bowed fiddle called a sor and a percussion ensemble featuring finger cymbals and hand drums.
Lam phun and lam sing are the two molam styles featured most prominently in this collection. Also in the musical family is look thoong, a slower, more tragic style, usually lamenting lost love and perpetual poverty. Examples are heard on tracks 10, 15 and 20. Costumed Isan comedy troupes called Talok incorporate hyper-eccentric molam and look thoong renditions with low, vaudevillian comedy and high social satire on stages and TVs throughout the country. Maniacal examples are heard on tracks 2, 8 and 11.
The classic recordings featured here are selections from rare vinyl LPs, 45s and cassettes recorded in Isan and beyond between the 1970s and 1980s. This was a pivotal time when music of the region began to be electrified and integrated with Western instruments. When electric bass, effected guitars, electric organs, kit drums and horns played alongside the khaen and the phin. Molam had never sounded this way before — and due to the typically ephemeral nature of the music industry and the introduction of the modern keyboard workstation, molam will never sound like this again.
Sublime Frequencies
*
The music of Southeast Asia may sound alien to some Western listeners, but its textures and tonalities are incredibly rich in nuance. With repeat exposure, what sounds bizarre becomes perfectly natural – the ears recalibrate and a kind of naturalization occurs. It’s important to remember that American roots styles such as bluegrass and honky-tonk might sound pretty odd to residents of Laos and Thailand – the countries from which the Molam style originates.
Molam: Thai Country Groove From Isan, is a collection of “folk” songs culled from recordings made in the ’70s and ’80s in the northeastern region of Thailand. A multiplicity of ethnic groups and provincial customs inform Molam, which translates literally as “master singer.” This disc presents a wide array of musical traditions, many of which are in danger of becoming extinct due to the culture’s increasing fascination with keyboard workstations and drum machines.
Molam is hard to pin down to a singular style; the term has become a sort of catch all for dozens of particular musical practices. What these styles have in common though, are their connection to the villages and communities from which they originate. Molam is not of urban character, and is considered embarrassingly unsophisticated, even vulgar, by residents of cities such as Bangkok.
Comedy routines, torch songs and tragic balladry all play their part in this music, as does a blend of traditional instrumentation including bamboo mouth organ, indigenous lutes and the fiddle-like sor. Occasionally an effected electric guitar or bass will find its way into the mix, and the resulting juxtapositions are as charming as anything found on Cambodian Rocks. Subject matter ranges from aching tales of lost love to confessions of perpetual poverty, with levity provided in the form of zany skits.
Often achingly beautiful, the music contained on Molam transcends barriers of language and culture – it’s easy to identify with each singer’s joys and laments. Our lack of linguistic awareness is no hindrance to appreciation; the anguished crooning and emphatic romps on this disc would be affecting in any tongue.
Every culture has a soul, and that soul is most often found in the music of it’s impoverished people. America isn’t so different – from Appalachia to the Delta, the music of the folk remains incredibly potent. This disc grants us a glimpse of a society that in many ways remains mysterious. At its heart, however, the music of Isan is surprisingly familiar.
Casey Rae-Hunter, dustedmagazine.com
Some recent and rather tame videos of Molam music at Youtube:
Phimpha Phornsiri: "Khon Ruk Mai Tarok"
Phimpha Phorsiri: "Shao Deum Sia Ai"
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