Step into the candy-coloured world of this endearing brother-sister folk-pop duo.
Plastic Plastic/ Stay At Home
In the age where the word “indie” is being bandied around like some sort of foolproof marketing tactic, it can be tricky to know for sure who out there is the real deal. Enter our recent discovery Plastic Plastic, a bona fide indie duo made up of bro-sis Pokpong “Pong” Jitdee and Tongta “Pleng” Jitdee. But who are these guys exactly? Well, Pong and Pleng have long been aspiring musicians. Name any music contest from the last few years and chances are one of them was in it. After separately entering competitions for a while, they decided to come together as a duo, an act that would earn them a winning title at a music contest organised by Good FM.
With an award under their belt, Plastic Plastic were quickly snatched up by Believe Records, a Bangkok record label on which the pair would later release a string of adorably breezy singles like Elastic, Friday and Yaak Ruu (Need to Know). Just when the duo became known for their distinct DIY sound and cutesy lyrics (think every hit from Dojo City’s lineup including Triumphs Kingdom, Niece and H), their record deal came to an end. Unfazed, the pair struck out on their own to self-release their debut LP, Stay At Home.
Recorded entirely in the comfort of their own home, the 10-track album finds Pong and Pleng offering more of the rainbow and sunshine through their signature pastel-coloured production. Built on simple drum and keyboard, English-language opener We’re Dancing Like Crazy is a chirpy number about, well, dancing like crazy. Perd Pratu (Knock Knock) follows in the same vein with an everyday narrative about losing one’s house keys (“Open up please/I must have lost my keys/Would someone please tell me/Is anyone home?”).
The rest of the record sees a mix of Thai- and English-language offerings, from the lite-bossa nova of The Trip to Yib Ham Pen Pan Tee Hok [This is the sixth slice of ham I’m about to eat], an ode to those late night munchies brought on by food photos on social media feeds. “Enough, I’ll stop eating now/Alright now I’m opening the fridge again,” Pleng sings in a message that pretty much everybody can relate to.
Elsewhere there are songs that address puppy love, most of which from the perspective of Pleng, the diary-keeping lyricist of the household, whether it’s the soft sway of With Me (“I’ll just let you know/That I won’t let you go”) or the slightly heavy, moving on-themed Wan Gone (Old days). Equal parts naive and nerdy, Stay At Home is one of those albums that doesn’t require anything much from the listener. The songs here are happy-sounding and melodic enough to keep you engaged throughout, and although the lyrics can often lean towards simplistic, they will make you crack a smile or two.
THE PLAYLIST
The Whitest Crow/ Bangkok Blondie
Ahead of the release of their debut LP Bangkok Blondie, homegrown rock quartet The Whitest Crow treat us to the swaggering track of the same name. “Dye dye dye, dye your hair/Maybe, it’s four, five times/Just to make you there/And then you put a MAC on your lips/But is it for pickled fish drink that you sip,” vocalist Patiphan Suwannasingha half talks half sings with nervous breaths. Add in jumpy guitar riffs (think early Foals and Two Door Cinema Club) and this is perhaps the most anxiety-inducing track we’ve heard in quite some time.
Travis/ Magnificent Time
If you recall the kind of overzealous joy generated by Pharrell Williams’ indelible earworm Happy, Travis’ latest single Magnificent Time aims to achieve exactly that. “No regret/Don’t you forget/This magnificent time,” frontman Fran Healy yelps merrily over the twee rock melody. Footloose and fancy-free, this is a great pick-me-up song when life (or the world at large) gets you down, although the hardcore cynics among us may scoff out loud at the idealist attitude.
DARK/ Curvy
We’ve seen some pretty interesting collaborations of late (Coldplay and Beyonce, anyone?), but we have to say this is probably the most unexpected one so far. The Smiths bassist Andy Rourke, The Cranberries frontwoman Dolores O’Riordan and New York producer-songwriter Ole Koretsky have joined forces to form a new supergroup called DARK. Here, they’ve shared with us their lead single Curvy, a new wave track that pitches O’Riordan’s signature croon against swirling synths, crunchy guitars and disco loops. DARK’s debut album Science Agrees is due out later next month.
Raleigh Ritchie/ Cowards
The last time we wrote about Raleigh Ritchie (real name Jacob Anderson), it was basically about the fact that he was the same person who played Grey Worm on Game of Thrones and how much we adored his single The Greatest. Now, with his debut LP You’re A Man Now, Boy finally out in the world, we have the pleasure of hearing another gem from the guy. Cowards is a smooth R&B jam with quirky flourishes laid on top. “Never mind the power/Never mind the games/You and me, we’re cowards/Never mind the shame,” he sings in the chorus which immediately inspires a sing-along.
Clock Opera/ In Memory
London rock four-piece Clock Opera have been on the quiet front since the release of their debut studio album, 2012’s Ways to Forget. After last year’s Changeling, the lads are back with an introspective follow-up. Taken from their crowdfunded, yet-to-be-titled sophomore record, In Memory is centred on the ebb and flow of ghostly samples layered with the sort of melancholy-slash-ethereal qualities of their previous singles Belongings and Once and for All. “Do you want me as I am?/Do you want me as I was/Do I still do things that made you fall in love/Oh ’cause I won’t ever change,” Guy Connelly pleads in his dreamy falsetto.
This source first appeared on Bangkok Post Lifestyle.