Pisitakun // KUANTALAENG TAPE

This is a cassette released by Pisitakun, a political electronic artist from Bangkok, Thailand, from Chinabot, a British label specializing in Asian artists, in November 2023.

Contains 8 psychedelic strange beats - post-new age exotica songs.Out of print.

*If you would like a digital sound source, please feel free to contact us.

Below is a commentary by the label.

" says Pisitakun, recalling the local festivals that bring together small towns in his native Thailand. After moving from Bangkok to Porto in 2021 and eventually settling in Berlin, his new album, released on Chinabot, It is a wild, dizzying, and homesick work that takes you through Thailand.

Kuantalaeng, his third solo release from Chinabot, is a Thai translation of his last name [ควรแถลง].As reflected in the playful tracklist and album art, he imagines this album as a recreation of his homeland, showing a wistful longing while also capturing a rustic vision of Thailand as it is understood in his new homeland of Europe. secretly making fun of him.

``When I think of Thailand, I think of food and travel.''When I talk to friends from other countries, we often talk about Thai food and travel.In Europe, there are Thai restaurants everywhere. But what's on my mind is politics.''Thailand's strong tourism industry has recently been challenged by democratically elected political parties in the upper house of the monarchy and the military. It also works to cover up the harsh political reality that his government is blocked by his allies.

Kuantalaeng attempts to balance these perceptions, celebrating Thailand's regional culture while confronting its never-ending political issues head-on.With food stalls, religious ceremonies, huge colorful trucks blasting traditional แตรวง (a type of brass band) and รถแห่ (rod har) music to the accompaniment of dancers, this album captures the merrymaking of local and suburban festivals. It captures the spirit.

Opening song Khao Soi, named after the bright orange spicy soup, captures the sensory overload of such celebrations, while at the same time highlighting the dark and twisted currents that lie beneath: It captures a political reality that cannot be fully expressed.As with much of this album, the pressure to stay quiet and the pressure to make a statement collide into a noisy palimpsest of pole rabbit, techno, and experimental noise.
The spooky party continues on Gaeng Som, where intricate, bouncy electronics dance around a speaker-fried luk tun beat.By contrast, the meditative track "Pad Siew" samples the pimon, a traditional Thai reed instrument, with a plaintive, winding call that sounds like wood smoke over a soft guitar. Float.
“What reminds me most of Thailand is the food and the sounds,” Kuantalen says.Food and sound participate in many rituals.Food and sound bring people together and make them feel like they're back home."

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Includes DL code. Cassette in norelco case. 

Tracklist:

1. Khao Soi 04:30
2. Gaeng Massaman Gai 03:46
3. Pad Siew 02:53
4. Gaeng Som 03:41
5. Khanom Jeen nam Ngiaw 04:16
6. Pla Nueng Manow 01:57
7. SomTom 02:59
8. Pad Kra Pao Moo 02:44

Chinabot:

"'When you hear the sound system in the morning and smell a big hit from the chili and fish sauce, it means we have a ceremony happening,' says Pisitakun Kuantalaeng, remembering the local festivals that bring together every small town in his home country, Thailand. After moving from Bangkok to Porto in 2021, before eventually settling in Berlin, his new album on Chinabot acts as a wild, vertiginous, homesick ride through Thailand, as intensely flavored as any of the food each track is named after.

This album “Kuantalaeng”, his third solo release on Chinabot, riffs on the Thai-language translation of his last name [ควรแถลง], which means “should make a statement”. As reflected in the playful tracklisting and album art, he imagines the album as a recreation of his homeland, showing real wistful longing while making a sly dig at the naive vision of Thailand as it's understood in his new home in Europe.

“The image of Thailand is the food and the traveling,” he says. “Many times, when you have a conversation with your friend in another country, they will mention the food or the travels from Thailand. There are Thai restaurants everywhere in Europe that present this Thai image. But the thing that is in my mind is politics.” Thailand's powerful tourism industry also works to eclipse its grim political reality, which recently saw a democratically elected political party get blocked from power by allies of the monarchy and military in the Senate.

“Kuantalaeng” seeks to balance this perception, facing its seemingly endless political problems head on while celebrating regional Thai culture. The album captures the joyful spirit of rural and suburban festivals, where you'll find food stalls, religious ceremonies, traditional แตรวง, a kind of brass band, and huge, colorful trucks blasting รถแห่ “rod hare” music accompanied by dancers.

Opener Khao Soi, named after the bright orange spicy soup, captures the sensory overload of these celebrations, as well as the dark, distorted current below, a political reality which, by law, cannot be publicly spoken about fully. Like much of the album , the conflicting pressures to stay quiet and to “make a statement” collide into a noisy palimpsest of rod hare, techno and experimental noise.
The uncanny party continues in Gaeng Som, in which complex, springy electronics dance around a speaker-fried luk thung beat. In contrast, the contemplative track Pad Siew uses a sample of a pi mon, a reed instrument used in traditional Thai music, building a mournful, winding call drifting like woodsmoke over the soft guitar.
'The thing that reminds me of Thailand the most is the food and the sounds,' Kuantalaeng says. 'Food and sound participate in many ceremonies. Food and sound gather people together and make you feel like home again.'"

Artist: Pisitakun

Label: Chinabot