Over the last few years, a new generation, nurtured on everything from European techno to American indie rock, have been transforming Bangkok's music scene. Indie labels such as Small Room and Hualampong Riddim have blossomed -- and nestled among the hostess bars and karaoke clubs that litter Bangkok's small lanes (called soi), dance clubs and live venues are thriving. The Soi Bangkok-Tokyo Music Festival, in its second year, brings this new Bangkok sound out of the back alleys and into Tokyo's clubs.
The Bangkok-Tokyo connection may seem obscure, but there has always been a fair bit of cross-pollination. The festival organizers have encouraged this cultural exchange by sponsoring a festival in Bangkok earlier this year with Japanese artists Cornelius and Spank Happy. Several Japanese bands, including Buffalo Daughter, will also play at the Tokyo festival.
Both Japan and Thailand also share a distinctly postmodern attitude toward pop music. It is difficult to nail down a "Bangkok" sound; it seems that anything goes -- if done with enough panache and playfulness. Combine bossa nova with indie pop and you've got The Photo Sticker Machine. Electronica with baroque polyphony? You've got Cliquetpar. Death of a Salesman weaves acoustic pop with Madchester-era dance beats to make pop that would be at home in Shibuya circa 1989. Futon, who could be called the festival's headliner, melds Cyndi Lauper silliness to the Flying Lizard's stripped-down electro, with nods to David Bowie and a huge debt to fabulous gay disco. Their brilliant cover of Iggy Pop's "I Want to Be Your Dog," done in deadpan Thai backed by "Blue Monday"-era New Order electro is worth the cost of a ticket alone.
