Showing 1 - 6 of 6
Modernising Mexican groove
Life, John Clewley, Published on 28/03/2026
» The Mexican Institute of Sound (MIS), founded in 2004 by Mexico City-based DJ and record producer Camilo Lara, is a project to bring together fusions of folk and traditional music with digital production and electronica. MIS started as a side project, based on Lara's own remixing of popular tracks.
Say it loud
Life, John Clewley, Published on 27/08/2024
» On Oct 30, 1974, US boxer George Foreman, then the undisputed heavyweight champion, and challenger Muhammad Ali entered a ring in a stadium in Kinshasa, Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) to fight for the title.
Forest folk
Life, John Clewley, Published on 11/04/2023
» As part of an attempt to keep fit and enjoy what little green space we have in Bangkok, I have been a regular visitor to Benjakitti Park and its recently added section known as Benjakitti Forest Park. The new site, situated on land formerly occupied by the state tobacco company, has been transformed into a green space with different forest types such as mangrove, lowland forest swamp and so on.
Queen of Molam honoured
Life, John Clewley, Published on 28/09/2021
» The late National Artist Bunpheng Faiphiuchai featured on Google Doodle last week, as the search engine celebrated what would have been her 89th birthday on Sept 22. She was one of the most influential molam performers of her generation, and a pioneer in the recording of molam on vinyl. According to Google Doodle's blurb, by 1955 she had recorded "more full-length albums than any other woman in the genre" and that is why she was the first molam to be given the title "Queen Of Molam".
The passing of a great
Life, John Clewley, Published on 03/08/2021
» Guitarist, singer and Kassav founding member Jacob Desvarieux died last month in Guadeloupe at the age of 65. Kassav, which was founded after he met with brothers George and Pierre Eduard Decimus in 1978, went on to record more than 50 albums, released by the band or by individual members and the band remains hugely popular in the Caribbean.
Mory Kante is gone, but not forgotten
Life, John Clewley, Published on 26/05/2020
» In 1987, the singer and kora (21-stringed African harp) player Mory Kante released his fifth studio album, Akwaba Beach. The Guinean-born musician included a number of interesting songs including an Islamic song, Inch Allah, but it was the 12-inch single from the album Yé Ké Yé Ké that caused a sensation as it became the first single from Africa to sell more than a million copies. The song swept into the charts across Europe, and if you were walking around the bars and clubs in Bangkok during that period, you could hear the song everywhere.