We asked Phu Pham the organiser of Sonic Moon (who also just so happens to be the co-founder of Hanoi Rock City, the man behind the DJ alias Dee.f and a XAI member) to tell us why he got the talent represented at this electronic music festival to Hanoi. 
Words Phu Pham
I first heard FM3V and their Buddha Machine 2 years ago at Hanoi Rock City. It was a gig organised by the Onion Cellar. Coincidently, I met Christiaan Virant (one half of FM3) again at a festival I played in Bangkok. His set was slotted between mine and the closing set, both of which were straight techno, loud and impulsive. And Christiaan was just sat at a table, his legs crossed meditating style and he pretty much hypnotised everyone with his beautiful tranquil sound. It was just like discovering a quiet spot right in the middle of a noisy street.
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He inspires me with his DIY ideas and his stories about interactive sound and visuals. I always love the act of creating unstructured, unmeasured parameters with art work, and to me Arnont’s work is organic and expresses exactly that feeling. His work is conceptual, it’s interactive, the sound is electrical circuit pop, or destructive like putting plastic bottles on a spinning fan.
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He is one of the pioneers of Vietnamese electronic music. He works with high frequency and harsh noise. I occasionally have the chance to play with Vu Nhat Tan during some great jamming and improvising sessions. Recently we did a piece together with contemporary dancer Doan Minh Hoan and his composition and sounds took me on a great sonic journey.
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Luong Hue Trinh
We played together at a festival last year. Trinh was the only female artist in the line up, and probably is still the only woman in Vietnamese electronic music. All the boys were getting very excited about their big sounds, their beats and that and none of us were expecting this lady to outplay us with her huge wall of sub sonic station complete with artifacts panning and moving. But really it was her signature traditional Vietnamese sound she so cleverly weaves into her composition that blew everyone away.
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Space360
Benz represents the second generation of electronic musicians from Thailand. I met Benz about four years ago, and I was incredibly curious about his music, and the Thailand music scene in general. I visited his Delicate Lab in Chiang Mai, and we had a conversation about live electronic music. We have played together on many occasions since then. He keeps it evil. Whenever I play with Benz there is not a single moment where I take my mind of his music. It moves you.
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I got introduced to Dadahack by Christiaan who runs a live electronic club night in Hong Kong with James (one half of Dadahack). I listened to his sound, and his production and it just wowed me. No wonder he is the first call all the big names in the music industry make. I had a conversation with Christiaan over a Phở Xào just this week and found out that James was also involved in remixing the production for a not so famous English avant-garde synth-pop group called Art of Noise, whose single Peter Gunn won a Grammy Award in 1986 .
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Tri Minh
Along with the first generation of Vietnamese electronic musicians, Tri Minh was instrumental in bringing electronic music to the Vietnamese pop industry. I met Tri Minh when we first opened Hanoi Rock City in 2010. He came dressed in a floral print shirt, and I remember him explaining to me how to set up the balance for my speakers. Simple yet reflective and certainly leaving a great impression.
Recently I asked him about the history of Vietnamese electronic music. We sat a the reception of Nikko hotel that afternoon and he was the first person who properly explained to me just how it all happened. He shared his thoughts on the origin of Vina House, a genre that despite being prone to ridicule has to be credited as a trail blazer as it was the first Vietnamese electronic music ever produced.
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Dan Henneberry
Dan Henneberry performing at EXPERIMEN.TET 2013 – Photo by Lizo Glennard
Dan would come into Hanoi Rock City with his guitar, his pedals, an MD player and the odd Casio. Dan has been a part of the Hanoi electronic music scene from the start. His sound is bigger than his beard. There was one night at Hanoi Rock City, where he brought a magic touch to the music and made everyone sit on the floor, and he looked up, perhaps dreaming or confused, but enjoying the path that he was taking us all on. The most recent set of his I heard featured a lot of sub and evolving ambiance.
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ZKIII
I was outside drinking after finishing my set at EESE festival, and I remember walking back into the venue and this beat immediately caught my attention. Was it a 3/4 , a 4/4? I did not know and I did not want to work it out, but at that moment, I was simply soaked in Mark’s sound. I felt present and like this 10 minute tune could last forever. I wanted it to be played on repeat from every speaker I would pass on the way back to the hotel. These were pure gold electronic beats. I wanted to hear them again from yet another speaker in my hometown and so I simply invited Mark to come play at Sonic Moon.
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JRG_ONE
There are so many moments with Jackson when I feel the music he plays carries an incredibly strong and high energy. Both in the low sub or the tightly compressed kick drums that punch you in the chest. I remember during one of the EXPERIMEN.TET events a few years back, his set was the last one, and I think there was a misunderstanding with the audience who thought they were at a somewhat different kind of gig and kept asking for Ricky Martin tunes. Jackson started his set off with the sound of a siren, and it was so incredibly loud that he caught everyone’s attention and set their energy to max. The set finished with a long scream that made everyone stand up and clap. The Ricky Martin’s request had stopped not long into his set.
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DMN SLYR
Dan is probably one of the hottest beat makers in Saigon. I haven’t seen many artists with such talent who dabble both in music and painting. He’s influential and Vespa didn’t just give him a free bike for no reason. It’s a nice one too! The first time I saw Dan play live was during his Sound & Vision tour through Asia. He had this hand move while playing the keys that made me think playing live electronic music is just so hip right now. Recently, I was lucky enough to be in Saigon for one night during a transit from Bangkok to Hanoi. Dan said to me: “Let’s do some jamming”, and we put the drum machine, the keys and the samplers together, and the sounds that resulted were simply ruuude!
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XAI
XAI’s debut show at Quest Festival 2014 – Photo by Thủy Tiên Nguyễn
A group of youngsters with an attitude. If you thought a headache couldn’t be fun, think again. The sound of XAI is original and poetic in its lyrics, melody, rhythm and beats. I am working with this group of five young musicians and artists on creating something quite different. The music speaks for every member’s story. Their stories turn into XAI’s stories, and that’s how XAI makes their music. It is moments of thick high pitch trumpet mixed mid air with a punch key and solid baseline. The electronic kick drums are forceful and groovy while the acoustic percussion sits on top. And the mesmerising vocal drives the tracks with its artistic creative meaning and its quirky twitches!
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