i am headed there in a few weeks, despite the fact that i phrased that like a question!
― marcg, Tuesday, 23 March 2010 02:29 (fourteen years ago) link
Try to see a performance by water puppets.
― _Rudipherous_, Tuesday, 23 March 2010 02:36 (fourteen years ago) link
i have a dozen killer sublime frequencies-esque videos i uploaded somewhere, will look tomorrow.
― ✌.✰|ʘ‿ʘ|✰.✌ (Steve Shasta), Tuesday, 23 March 2010 06:13 (fourteen years ago) link
nice, thanks steve. i will check out the water puppets...and am also looking forward to the FOOD!
― marcg, Tuesday, 23 March 2010 18:25 (fourteen years ago) link
yeah sorry to turn every thread to food, but c'mon the food is so awesome. it's an incredible fusion of se asian (hmong-cambo-lao), chinese, and french. even the touristy restaurants in Saigon (eg, Quan An Ngon) are frequented by locals and my hosts were honestly tickled pink to go there.
i think i preferred the food in central VN to the north and the south as it's more regional and refined, but it's honestly a culinary paradise, esp for the $.
water puppet zither thing is pretty nutso, i will continue to look for vids. i think there's a little snippet of music on this vid (turn your vol up!!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbURp_LISK0
can't remember where i u/l'd the music ones too, vimeo i think? i'll keep looking...
― ✌.✰|ʘ‿ʘ|✰.✌ (Steve Shasta), Tuesday, 23 March 2010 21:07 (fourteen years ago) link
There are lots of Vietnamese restaurants in the DC area, but musically all I have seen advertised (and heard being played in shops)have been cheesy Vietnamese disco acts.
The Smithsonian folklife fest once featured this awesome Cambodian guy who was blind, wore Ray Charles like glasses, and strummed this traditional guitar-like instrument.
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 23 March 2010 22:43 (fourteen years ago) link
Spoilers:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3fpqy_hanoi-s-world-famous-water-puppet-t_travel
― _Rudipherous_, Tuesday, 23 March 2010 22:50 (fourteen years ago) link
http://www.ocweekly.com/music/reviving-the-history-of-vietnamese-new-wave-in-oc-6945289
― 龜, Friday, 12 February 2016 02:23 (eight years ago) link
Happy Tet. Wow, never knew about that scene
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 13 February 2016 17:34 (eight years ago) link
Not the happiest reason for a revive, but musician Mai Khôi has been in the news for protesting against internet censorship, after her music was virtually banned in her home country.
Mai Khôi has had an unusual career – she started as an acoustic singer-songwriter, most famous for her patriotic song "Việt Nam", and then a Gagaesque ironic trash-pop phase, with the timeless single "Selfie Orgasm". She was getting more interested in social issues and practising Buddhism, and her music became highly politicized when she witnessed police violence against protesters in Vietnam.
She's been threatened and harrassed by the government, and her performances have been shut down by police. When she won the Václav Havel Prize in Norway, the news was censored in Vietnam.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfWpYdjjmcQ
"Em thành của anh rồi" ("I am yours now") features the plucked instrument the dinh goong:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veT96rjZyo8
― sbahnhof, Tuesday, 8 January 2019 06:50 (five years ago) link
Her band, Chém Gió, are good too:
"Quyen Thien Dac has been described as Vietnam’s only jazz musician."
.......quite a boast.
― sbahnhof, Tuesday, 8 January 2019 06:51 (five years ago) link
And because you need your rap music, HERE IT IS:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4cQcpOLjxE
Suboi was in the news too, come to think of it
- https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/11/vietnam-rap-queen-traditional-society-changing-voice-181120045210675.html
― sbahnhof, Tuesday, 8 January 2019 06:52 (five years ago) link
You'll notice the heavy use of English language and translations by both artists in these links, even though their songs are primarily for Vietnamese audiences. You can even read Mai Khôi and Chém Gió's weekly schedule at the Phù Sa Lab in Hanoi, the only venue in Vietnam they can play currently. Maybe it'll report it if they get shut down again! It's a lot easier to get this info than before, when that stuff was unfindable or the response was "I don't think there's a music scene"... But despite the extra accessibility now, it doesn't seem like it's broken down the insular attitudes in a lot of places.
― sbahnhof, Tuesday, 8 January 2019 06:53 (five years ago) link
Pop-rap single from Suboi, "Cho Không"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gERJjsDhe0g
"can I be the CEO of your company", her stock is rising, god, financial metaphors are awful
Suboi also did an interview, including about the Vietnamese language, along with a performance on MTV Asia (below). Her key release afaik is her 2014 RUN E.P., which is straight fire, except for the title track which is hilarious and should be used on all TV sport shows
- http://www.mtvasia.com/news/5lqk0p/suboi-on-her-nations-rising-hip-hop-scene-yo-mtv-raps-exclusive-interview
Mai Khôi has just announced some new music, with high praise for her collaborator: "I am recording a new album with musician Ngoc Dai, he is the most talented musician in Vietnam. This is so exciting!"Ngọc Đại has had trouble with the government and censorship too. Song titles like "Khuyến mại tình dục" ("Sex promotion"), it's very shocking
― sbahnhof, Sunday, 11 August 2019 00:25 (four years ago) link
“Cho Không" is very good. The lyrics are a lot more interesting than what that “let me be your CEO” interlude would suggest.
― breastcrawl, Sunday, 11 August 2019 01:19 (four years ago) link
this one is sick
https://youtu.be/Z4cQcpOLjxE
― Simon H., Thursday, 22 August 2019 18:24 (four years ago) link
Not sure where else to post this but I love this vietnamese track, thought folks here might enjoy.
― Will (kruezer2), Tuesday, 30 July 2019 19:02
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sU4s65RAAKQTóc Tiên - "Không Ai Hơn Em Đâu Anh (KAHEDA)" Official Dance Version
Apparently the title means, "No one is better than you (NOIBTY)"
Tóc Tiên is one of the '5 to watch' on your new favourite website, lodyhelp.com:
- https://lodyhelp.com/vietnamese-pop-singers-and-2019-hits
"Toc Tien now is one of the top Vietnamese pop singers who own a huge number of fans in the country."
^ It's all like that
― sbahnhof, Sunday, 1 September 2019 05:06 (four years ago) link
Strange that article doesn't mention Sơn Tùng MTP, who must be the biggest Vietnamese pop singer of the past few years by far. Pulls a lot musically and aesthetically from k-pop, did a song with Snoop Dogg recently. I really like this track of his from a few years ago:
https://youtu.be/Llw9Q6akRo4
― Vinnie, Sunday, 1 September 2019 09:38 (four years ago) link
Folks on twitter love a Son Tung M-TP song/ video featuring Snoop Dogg
― curmudgeon, Sunday, 1 September 2019 12:47 (four years ago) link
Folks on twitter wouldn't steer us wrong
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knW7-x7Y7RE
xp Vinnie, thanks for posting the other track "Lạc Trôi" :-)
― sbahnhof, Monday, 23 December 2019 10:42 (four years ago) link
Suboi's new track and video are wonderful
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZfaxFmAdTI
― sbahnhof, Monday, 23 December 2019 10:43 (four years ago) link
There's now a Mai Khôi movie documentary – Mai Khoi and the Dissidents, it premiered last month at DOC NYC in the States.
The director talks a little about her and the difficulties in filming in Vietnam, but more about the lack of freedom of speech in the country:
DOC/NYC spotlight: Mai Khoi and the Dissidents, Director Joe Piscatella- https://filmschoolradio.com/november-18-mai-khoi-and-the-dissidents-director-joe-piscatella-
Not sure if it's just a case of "all I want for Xmas is gentleness", but the Lodyhelp-approved balladeer Vũ Cát Tường sounds pretty good this week. She seems like such a talented musician, even if I don't love all the songs. Her latest album was recorded in Los Angeles, and her Wikipedia page is a hoot:
"At the beginning of August, one of Vũ Cát Tường's songs named "Vết mưa" was accused of plagiarism from a Japanese pianist's music. This created a huge scandal and big arguments between different fan-bases as many anti-fans used this chance to voice their opinions online to bring her down. Vũ Cát Tường hereself however, chosed to stay out of all these fan-wars and staying level-headed despite all the harsh words and criticism sent her way from both the media and the anti-fans."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtdM7A0KzUI
― sbahnhof, Monday, 23 December 2019 10:44 (four years ago) link
Wow, Suboi is really good huh. “Bet On Me” is fantastic. Love the video too.
― breastcrawl, Monday, 23 December 2019 22:16 (four years ago) link
Also loving the Sơn Tùng MTPs.
― breastcrawl, Monday, 23 December 2019 22:56 (four years ago) link
Yeah I'm a fan of Vũ Cát Tường as well. Not every song certainly, but stuff like Mơ https://youtu.be/lrh7Z_yQK2g that isn't just a straightforward piano ballad or kpop rip is nice to hear when going out
― Vinnie, Tuesday, 24 December 2019 11:15 (four years ago) link
https://nypost.com/2020/03/04/coronavirus-spawns-viral-tiktok-dance-about-washing-your-hands/
Vietnamese coronavirus Tim-tok Dance with song
― curmudgeon, Friday, 6 March 2020 18:25 (four years ago) link
Til-tok
Oh autocorrect
Yes, I saw that on the Newsround website, thx El Tomboto
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/51792971
"The song was made by singer Khac Hun and Vietnam's National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health and is based on a popular pop song Ghen."
The original tune - this video is pretty F'd up
"Ghen" - KHẮC HƯNG x MIN x ERIKhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vk8_0QaJr3I
^ NONE of this is medically recommended behaviour
― sbahnhof, Friday, 13 March 2020 04:57 (four years ago) link
Wow
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 19 March 2020 04:32 (four years ago) link
This one’s for forks:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6t-MjBazs3oSơn Tùng M-TP • Có chắc yêu là đây (or simply ‘CCYLD’ of course)
― No mean feat. DaBaby (breastcrawl), Friday, 10 July 2020 20:48 (three years ago) link
(once more, this time without diacritics, in case anyone wants to do a search: Son Tung M-TP • Co chac yeu la day)
― No mean feat. DaBaby (breastcrawl), Friday, 10 July 2020 20:52 (three years ago) link
Autotuning really wreaks havoc on understanding a tonal language, huh?
― rb (soda), Friday, 10 July 2020 23:59 (three years ago) link
Pretty good song. More than autotune, I think singing itself makes tonal languages pretty difficult to understand. Most Vietnamese songs will try to have the tones of the words match the melody - uptone word when the melody goes up, downtone word when the melody goes down - but it's no guarantee, and the other tones don't map onto melody cleanly. I've heard some songs where that was completely ignored and it's the equivalent of Katy Perry singing "unCONdiTIONally". Big pet peeve for my wife
― Vinnie, Saturday, 11 July 2020 01:12 (three years ago) link
Here's one I've been playing a lot lately, maybe influenced by Jack U. This is one of the more successful pairings of traditional Viet music with modern sounds for me
https://youtu.be/JAhdeizXpaQ
― Vinnie, Friday, 4 September 2020 11:54 (three years ago) link
lemme label that:
Hoàng Thuỳ Linh • Để Mị Nói Cho Mà Nghe
― No mean feat. DaBaby (breastcrawl), Friday, 4 September 2020 12:25 (three years ago) link
and if that doesn't come up in Search:
Hoang Thuy Linh • De Mị Noi Cho Ma Nghe
― No mean feat. DaBaby (breastcrawl), Friday, 4 September 2020 12:27 (three years ago) link
argh, Mị should have become Mi - all this work for nothing!
― No mean feat. DaBaby (breastcrawl), Friday, 4 September 2020 12:32 (three years ago) link
But thanks for the effort!
― Vinnie, Friday, 4 September 2020 12:40 (three years ago) link
On Facebook I saw a posting on her page encouraging people to vote for Hoàng Thuỳ Linh in the VTv awards
Also a reference to a movie she is in on Netflix
― curmudgeon, Friday, 4 September 2020 15:14 (three years ago) link
new Son Tung M-TP:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psZ1g9fMfeoSơn Tùng M-TP • Chúng ta của hiện tại
...but don't let the movie distract you from the song
(the guy obviously has a budget, so it's possible he hired Kenny G to do the "My, My, My"-like sax)
― obsessed with quality over quantity or the need to produce tracks (breastcrawl), Saturday, 26 December 2020 11:13 (three years ago) link
oh, and I just found out that this, from earlier this year:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kU7u9rhAt94Pháo ft. Wack • 2 Phút hơn
(or maybe this was the first version?)
...is currently the world's most shazam'ed song in this remixed version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZGpRd-t7jgPháo • 2 Phút hơn (KAIZ remix)
― obsessed with quality over quantity or the need to produce tracks (breastcrawl), Saturday, 26 December 2020 14:45 (three years ago) link
(it's TikTok-related, of course)
― obsessed with quality over quantity or the need to produce tracks (breastcrawl), Saturday, 26 December 2020 14:46 (three years ago) link
a sign of life from Suboi:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AvpUbnDbv0Rhymastic ft. Suboi • Cả Ngàn Lời Chúc
― partyin' maskless with Rudy G. and Vanilla Ice, it's a gas gas gas (breastcrawl), Wednesday, 13 January 2021 08:53 (three years ago) link
Sơn Tùng M-TP just released his first English language song, "There's No One at All". The video depicted someone committing suicide, which got him in major trouble with the Ministry of Culture here. They made him delete the video from all platforms, including outside of Vietnam, and gave him a $3,000 fine (lol). I did happen to hear the song before it was removed - not one of his better ones
― Vinnie, Saturday, 7 May 2022 14:55 (two years ago) link