‘Nam Ton Dam’ is a sun-soaked amalgamation of groove-trenched reggae & traditional Thai molam essence

Tapping into the plethora of indigenous sounds that Thailand has to offer, ‘Nam Ton Tad’ by Apichat Pakwan is the latest and ninth release by fusion-focused label Animist Records.

Translating to ‘waterfall’, ‘Nam Ton Dam’ is a sun-soaked amalgamation of groove-trenched reggae and traditional Thai molam essence. Rooted with Laotian origins from the Isan region of northern Thailand, this contemporary interpretation of ancient folk melody is both lush and intriguing.

Animist Records label founder Olivier Schreuder who’s based between Amsterdam and Khon Kaen in Isan tells us more about the label’s history and mission, “We bring outernational music from the Southeast Asian diaspora to the world, from contemporary electronic experiments to dubbed-out grooves with roots in animistic cultures.”

The new single is a follow up to Apichat Pakwan’s 2019 debut album ‘Esantronics’ which took the crown for Best Asian Album that year by World Music Central from Thailand, coupled with international appraise.

The label has always focused on maintaining a balance of the traditional and the obscure, and Apichat Pakwan fits right in to the evolution of sounds the region has been producing.

Olivier tells us more, “We wanted to show the diversity of the talented young musicians of the group by releasing a fine example of their unique sound on one side, with an obscure molam melody played on modular synthesizer, and the other side of the record dedicated to their experimental, improvisation side.”

Apichat Pakwan ‘Nam Ton Tad’ is out now on Animist Records. Check it out below.