Happy Vinyl Day: 9 vinyl shops in Asia pick their favourite record

We've taken a virtual trip around Asia's leading record stores to bring back conversations to life, pre-pandemic. We had the pleasure of getting to know which track was their favourite and why — and sharing them with the world today, on Vinyl Day — just made sense. Going around from the Philippines, India, Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan and Japan — let’s take today to discover and share the handpicked tunes that keep our dance floors moving...even from home.

Title: VST and Company Vol 1
Artist: VST and Company

“In our view as a record shop and as individuals (Manolet Dario, Jason Soong, Abdel Aziz, Angelo de Dios, Dee Dario and Sky Dominique) the best local record (and considered to be a timeless piece) would be VST & Co. A sure time capsule that will give you a view into the past of our early years in the dance music culture. Search their songs on YouTube and you’ll be on a ride back to the 70s when disco ruled the airwaves. VST & Co. definitely made a huge dent in the dance culture of Manila. There are other notable artists who gave life to disco in our side of Asia (Hotdog would be another notable one, but that’s another story). So yes, give VST & Co. a good listen, and you’ll know exactly what we mean.”

Follow Play Record Stop here

Title: The Ecstatic
Artist: Mos Def

“Picking a favourite was not easy. But, we finally decided to go with Mos Def's 2009 album The Ecstatic. This album was no less than resurrection for Yasiin. We saw him collaborating with Stones Throw staples Oh No and Madlib and other producers like Mr. Flash and the Neptunes, resulting in a sonically globe-trotting hip-hop project. Madlib’s contribution from ‘Movie Finale’ on Auditorium featuring Slick Rick especially hits home for us with its ‘Do Jhoot Jiye Ek Sach Ke Liye Lata Mangeshkar’ and ‘Shankar Jaikishan’ sample.”

“Moreover the lyrical efforts add to the socially conscious narrative addressing topics Bey holds in high regard including the politics of war, black liberation, pan-Islamic ideas, justice and peace above all. From the Killer of Sheep album cover to referencing Victor LaValle The Ecstatic (2002), Mos Def brought in everything that inspired him and put it out like a potluck to share with his fans and the world.”

Follow On The Jungle Floor here

Title: Pressworks Sound Color 12
Artist: Chiman

“Chiman's Pressworks Sound Color 12, which was released by Dive Records recently. He was a dancer and has been working as a DJ for a long time with a positive impact on the scene. Recently, they just released their debut EP after a long time coming. Both A and B sides are deep house tracks with good sounds, dynamics, grooves and a composition faithful to their role on the dance floor. Among them, the originality of the sound of the A-side Hawaii is particularly impressive.”

Follow Sloth on Instagram here

Title: Suphanburi Soul
Artist: Kwanjit Sriprajan

“This is one of our favourite records & genres (Lae Music), most of the time when people think of Thai music, genres such as Thai Funk / Luk Thung & Molam would come across but Lae music style is little known outside the country. Lae is traditionally played during religious ceremonies in temples across Thailand, and these 70s recordings of the Kwanjit Sriprajan (Thailand National Artist) are one the funkiest Lae sounds around. Backed by military and police groups formed by the legendary producer of the genre Porn Pirom, who created an uneven mix of traditional arrangements coupled with elements of R'n'B and Latin percussion. Such flourishes were not so surprising for luk thung, but less common for lae, which tended to be played on Thai percussion and wind instruments. This compilation features our favourite selection of Kwanjit's work previously released on a handful of now very rare LPs and 45's. Also, it is the first time ever to be reissued in almost 50 years.”

Follow Zudrangma on Instagram here

Title: Komputer Muzik
Artist: Fran (1984)

“We chose this as our favourite because this record was the earliest Malay album that includes synth while using the Oberheim DMX drum machine on a lot of the tracks. They also include Lewis Pragasam on drums and Michael Veerapen on keyboards — both legendary Malaysian musicians in the 80s.”

Follow Sputnik on Instagram here

Title: Ceria
Artist: Chaseiro

“Our favourite vinyl is Chaseiro, a group from Indonesia led by Candra Darusman. Particularly we enjoy the track Waktu Kian Berarti in 1982, this disco tune includes a groovy and funky beat that could heat up the dancefloor!”

Follow Peels Records on Instagram here

Title: Metamorphosis
Artist: Dusa Naga

“Dusa Naga, electronic music producer/hip hop beatmaker, just released an LP in 2021 for his debut album Metamorphosis mixing elements of future bass, house and chill trap. It's a good album of course and most importantly it’s still rare to see electronic music albums released on vinyl in Taiwan.”

Follow M@M here

Title: Blow Up
Artist: Isao Suzuki Quartet

“The popular vinyl record by Isao Suzuki Quartet called 'Blow Up' was produced by a Japanese iconic independent jazz label Three Blind Mice. featuring the most talented Japanese Jazz musicians such as Kunihiko Sugano (piano), George Otsuka (drums), Takashi Mizuhashi (bass) starred. 'Aqua Marine', well known for being the sample of 'Human Power Plant' by Buddha Brand is also included.”

Title: Tales They Told Me LP
Artist: Chok Kerong

“It’s our to go to ‘sip on a good whisky’ and lay back after a long day’s work at the cafe. Just straight with that down in the basement chill jazz band vibe that you wanna unwind to. Lay back and let it loosen you up. Nothin crazy. Just nice.”

Follow Choice Cuts on Instagram here