A Khmer Rouge Remix

With the Khmer Rouge in the news again, now’s a good time to visit Radio Phnom Penh. The CD was released two years ago by the eccentric but outstanding Seattle label Sublime Frequencies, which introduces the record this way:

Cambodia’s people, economy, and culture have been “re-mixed” perhaps more than any place on earth for the past 50 years. The name was even changed to Kampuchea and then back again to Cambodia. So it almost seems natural that modern Cambodian record companies have been re-mixing the old classic pop and rock tracks from the pre-Khmer Rouge era, overdubbing drum tracks, and sometimes all instruments leaving only the original vocal in tact. These re-mixes, designed to hold the interest of younger listeners, are the staple for current programming on Phnom Penh’s FM radio stations as the AM flagship “National Radio of Cambodia” remains the only source regularly featuring the original master recordings.

Radio Phnom Penh, then, is a ride across the Cambodian dial. Sublime Frequencies assures us that the “older, classic Pop/Rock FM cuts are ALL re-mixed versions while the new forms/other styles of Cambodian music collected here are not.”

Whatever the case, Splendid magazine dug it:

Wisely, then, Sublime Frequencies have elected to present this music as it’s played on the radio, with no separation between genres, time periods, or styles of re-mix. Naturally, this also means that the sound quality varies widely, but no more so an on any number of lo-fi records you already own. The results range from the familiar to the truly exotic, from what must be rocked-up Khmer folk songs to strangely hip-hop-styled tunes. There’s not a moment on Radio Phnom Penh that isn’t eminently listenable, and from one moment to the next, you have absolutely no idea in which direction the whims of DJs and archivists will pull you. One minute: torch song. The next minute: garage rock fronted by opera-quality vocals. It’s deeply exciting and hypnotically compelling.

I agree. The following track is interrupted by a DJ speaking is good but heavily accented English, only to veer, wonderfully, into a smokin’ Beatles cover. Enjoy.

• Bubble Gum Independence – Unknown Artists [Mp3]

BONUS: Here are a couple more Cambodian tracks not from Radio Phnom Penh.

• Sui Bong – Dengue Fever [Mp3]

You can read about Dengue Fever on my recent “In the Lounge” mix.

• Unknown Title – Unknown Artist [Mp3]

A pretty decent Cambodian pop song . . .

PREVIOUSLY: Radio Pyongyang; Choubi Choubi!: Folk & Pop Sounds from Iraq