One of Thailand’s hot, new pop-rock bands, The Note, whose single “Love Lost” recently hit #5 on Fat Radio, were slated to share the LED stage with Abuse the Youth as of press time. Here we chat with one of the three brothers, Purinat “Oliver” Kanchanawat, about growing up in America, returning to Thailand, and about the Thai music biz.

BK: How did you end up forming a band with your brothers?
When I was ten, my older brother got signed to a Thai record label, but just after signing the papers, he passed away. I’m fulfilling his legacy. My two brothers and I had always been musically inclined and we would always talk about forming a band, so when we were all old enough, we decided to pay respect to my brother by making an album for him called Fulfill The Dream. The band’s name is actually his name, which is Note.

BK: What did you do before you formed the band?
I was actually a parking valet in California, where I grew up. I’m from Temucula, which is right between Los Angeles and San Diego. My job as a valet let me drive some cars that I could only dream of. I also had to drive some real POS every now and then, but overall it was fantastic money, and it allowed me some free time to do my own thing. In a way, I really wouldn’t be here without it.

BK: So what was growing up in California like?
I was actually born in Hawaii. My father was the first real DJ at NARZ, DJ NOP. He moved to Hawaii after a stint as a DJ in Bangkok and started a successful career as DJ Kea Aloha. My mother owned restaurants in Hawaii and Los Angeles, so eventually we moved to the LA area. I absolutely love LA. It was all beaches all the time, with a little surfing, boogey boarding and fishing thrown in.

BK: So what brought you back to Thailand?
I always wanted to come back ever since I was young. Unfortunately I had a knack for going too fast in my Charger SRT-8, and I guess some people considered it street racing. One thing led to another and I decided that the time had come to make the move. I speak Thai at home, but I feel like a baby because I still can’t read or write it. It’s still a new place even though it’s in my blood. I love it here. I really haven’t thought about going back to the USA. Maybe one day, but for now everything I need is right here.

BK: What do you think about the Thai scene? What are you bringing to the table?
Thai music is awesome, but it might be afraid to change, because from what I’ve heard, this “popular Thai formula” has been around for ages. It is changing for sure, but it’s happening slowly. It seems there are a few companies who hold the reigns to the industry. What we’re bringing is American pop rock that’s produced and played by Thais. You have a lot of international artists that can make it to the Billboard, so why not Thais? I’m sure we can do it too.

BK: What will we see next? What’s in the works?
This new album is a different side of The Note. You’re going to see a matured sound with more thought being put into the conceptual side of things. I really think this album could take us somewhere. I wrote all the songs and I put a lot of thought into the arrangement. This should have been the album that we first came out with, but we had to start somewhere and we had to grow.

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