BK: How did you become a band?
Tul: Some of us were already in a student band at Silapakorn University. Back then, it was just me, Tor and Ton. Then Pop, Toon and Art joined later. We just played for fun.

BK: Why did you choose this name?
Pop: We were going to play at the university but didn’t have a name yet. I told my friends, who came to rehearse at my house, that it used to have a lot of planil (tilapias). They liked the name.
Tul: When Pop saw us all crammed into his tiny room, with our instruments and all, he said, “Planil tem ban.” [The house is full of tilapias]. We liked it right away.

BK: When did you first get noticed?
Tul: After playing at the Silpakorn Music Awards, we entered the Net Design Love Song Contest and a song that I had written, “Naliga,” turned out to be the winner. I didn’t want to write the usual song like “I love you, I dump you, I have a crush on you.” Mine was about the timing for two people to meet and love each other.

BK: So things really picked up after that?
Tul: Not really, we were still working day jobs to earn a living. We had a tough time and asked each other, “Do we want to stop?” But no one did, so we kept going. My dad also talked to me and said, “What if you can’t play guitar in your next life? You can play in this life, so why don’t you do it?”
Tul: Then, I wrote a song about doing your best, called “Kid Dee Dee” which climbed to #6 on FAT Radio 40’s Charts. Later, we won a FAT award, for the Bedroom of the Year [for home-recorded music] and went on FAT’s 10-year anniversary concert and the FAT north tour where everyone was singing our songs. That was brilliant. But we still don’t have much time to go on tour because everyone still has their day jobs.

BK: What are your day jobs?
Tul: I work as a graphic designer.
Pop: I am a musician and playing music by night.
Ton: Mathematics tutor.
Toon: I have my own business, called Doller, producing resin dolls that are copies of real people. Most of my customers do it as a gift for someone.
Tor: I do handmade drums.
Tul: He’s a rare drum maker in Thailand!
Art: I am a guitar teacher for music academies.

:phunk is a visual band. In our quartet, everyone collaborates in a style akin to playing a musical instrument, and adds a certain layer to the projects we are working on at that moment.

Our history pretty much revolves around music, be it working with local musicians to create cover art for their sleeves, or designing band tees for Depeche Mode and Rolling Stones. Even our work studio is surrounded by music-inspired paraphernalia like our Kraftwerk-inspired statues.

The four of us do think that we are Kiss. I am certain much of it stems from being a failed band; we were such bad musicians and decided that it would be better if we expressed ourselves through the visual medium.

The Mafia, that’s how we work. Our bonds are much thicker than simply a working relationship; we have been hanging out since our LaSalle days and have grown into a family. We usually avoid tiffs because we have an intuitive, psychic-like understanding of each other’s personality, we pre-empt before the implosion and that’s how we manage ourselves. We have been together for 16 years and I have to say that we have different personalities; but our aesthetic consciousness and visualization is frighteningly similar.

This sounds like an old boring cliché but travel inspires us. We travel a lot and enjoy meeting people in places like Berlin and Japan. From them, we learn more about the creative process and find out what really makes them tick.

We’re not sure where that is going to lead us to.

Dreams are important to us. We’d rather burn out than fade out. I guess we will still be energetic as we get older; great role models for us are graphic designer Milton Glaser (famed for his I ♥ NY logo) and Japanese fashion guru Yohji Yamamoto. They might be dinosaurs in terms of age but they still bowl us over with awe inspiring work.

As much as I admire and respect Norman Foster, I don’t think that the Parliament House is well-designed for its location, I mean the edgy dome would fit a mountainous region in Peru, but it’s just so out in our city.

The other gripe I have is the design of the gigantic cruise ship perched on Marina Bay Sands. For f**k’s sake, it should at least be even.

Conceited folks get on my nerves. No one is too good, even famous people are humble.

Telling chicks that you were a graphic designer in the ‘90s at Zouk’s Mambo Jambo on Wednesday nights would have gotten you laid. I am assuming it just sounded cooler than working in the engineering or IT industry.

Those were our wild heydays but we are all about maturity now and are in stable, long-term relationships. I guess none of us are going to be like Ronnie Wood snagging hot young chicks.

Dream On. I wouldn’t have passed my 2.4km run during National Service, if I didn’t sing that Aerosmith song while running— something that I really f**king suck in.

How has your year been so far?
I've been so busy touring around the world and working in the studio with many different projects. Hopefully you'll be able to listen to them very soon.

What are you currently busy with?
I'm finishing my new single, Danny Marquez’s "Conchi" and another crazy project with a 15-year-old guy from Miami, Julian Sacheli. He is working hard making some music for clubs when he cannot enter any of those until he turns 21. It's an experience that gives me a fresh point of view.

You started DJ-ing in Barcelona, how has that shaped you as a DJ?
By the time I started playing in Barcelona, the house music culture wasn’t there yet apart from Ibiza. So I moved to Ibiza to take the influence I needed. Some years later, Barcelona became one of the most interesting places to be and play.

If you weren’t a DJ what do you think you’ll be doing now?
I studied to be a chef but I never felt this job to be my profession. I can't imagine myself not involved in club culture.

What is it about house music that appeals to you?
There are many different sides of house music that captures my attention. The fact is that each of the tracks has its perfect moment.

Where were some of your most memorable sets?
It's difficult to choose a few sets; there have been so many. Most of them took place in Ibiza. You can find a few places like Pacha, Space Ibiza, Liv Miami or Zouk, which is one of my favorite clubs in the world.

What are some of the worst things you’ve ever seen in a club?
Whatever happens in a club stays in a club.

Many DJs prefer to play long hours, what’s your preferred DJ set?
I either like to do a two-hour crazy set with lots of energy, or a very long eight hour set to take the crowd on a journey.

Name three of your favorite tracks.
Martin Solveig's "Hello"—I've been friend of Martin for many years and every time he surprises me with something amazing. Also my collaboration with djB on the Oniwaye EP. Plus "One Look" by David Tort featuring Gosha.

What can we expect from your gig at Zouk?
Expect the best from me, as I have been waiting for this moment since the last record I played here. It's going to be a great night!

Danny Marquez plays Mar 25, 10pm. Zouk, 17 Jiak Kim St., 6738-2988. $25-30 includes two drinks.

You’re an accomplished trumpeter. Was music always a part of you growing up?
It’s in my genes and in New Orleans. My brother took me under his wing and he was influenced by my grandfather. Here, music is the heartbeat, and at one point everyone in New Orleans was playing some kind of instrument and everyone’s driven by music. If I grew up anywhere else I wouldn’t be playing the same music.

There’ll be some in the audience who haven’t heard your music before. What do you want to tell them?
It’s a collective experience of music from New Orleans, a combo of strong influences from hip hop and jazz. Just go to the show and check it out. People should just come out and see what happens and pass the experience to someone else.

You covered Allen Toussaint’s “On Your Way Down.” Why?
I wanted to cover someone from New Orleans and he’s one of the greatest songwriters from the city. I wanted to do a song with a good message in it more than anything, and I wanted to make it modern. I felt relieved when he said he enjoyed our cover, because we completely stripped the song down and made it our own.

If you had to give up either the trombone or the trumpet, which would it be?
Trumpet if I had to. The trombone is one of the hardest instruments more than anything else, the guitar, bass, keyboard; you can press your finger to a note. With a trombone it’s a slide so you have to be really accurate. I like the musical challenge that it presents.

We can’t wait to have you in town. What should we bring to the party?
Expect high energy music and bring your dancing shoes. I hope there won’t be any chairs, because we’re going to bring the funk from New Orleans!

Timbre Rock & Roots Music Festival is on Apr 15-16, 6pm at the Marina Promenade, F1 track behind the Singapore Flyer, 6338-8277. $70-200 from Sistic.

You had very little accompaniment at your show last year. Can we expect the same at Rock & Roots?
I’m bringing a different setup with me this time. Someone will be playing the drums and the guitar, and there’s this lady called Daisy who plays the cello. It’s amazing what three people can do on stage.

You mentioned before that you were going to work with a voting system so your Singaporean fans can get to hear their favorite songs. How’s that going?
It’s been quite a successful system so far. We can’t do anything like get a local musician on stage now because we’re on tour and there’s no time for practicing and all. So that won’t happen. But it’ll still be great.

What are the songs that everybody seems to want to hear?
“Hide and Seek” and “Speeding Cars” are always up there on the list. Close after it is “First Train Home” which is really nice. “Just For Now” too, but not the one that people hear on the record. They’ve seen the performance that I did for a radio station many years ago, which is up on the web. When fans vote for “Just For Now,” they’re thinking that version, not the studio recorded version, which I think is nice.

Describe your songwriting process.
When I’m working on a song, I often don’t have a clue what I want it to sound like. But I will have its dynamics, personality and character. I’ll know what colors it needs to be and whether it’s got teeth or big puppy dog eyes. When I sit in the studio, I listen to the whispering in my head very intently and go through all the different manifestations of what I think it should be, before the song realizes itself.

Timbre Rock & Roots Music Festival is on Apr 15-16, 6pm at the Marina Promenade, F1 track behind the Singapore Flyer, 6338-8277. $70-200 from Sistic.

Describe what you do.
I busk to earn money. Rain or shine, I’m still busking on the street. I start from 6pm to 11pm and stand and play. If there aren’t many people I put a chair and sit down and find some new melody.

How did you get started?
I used to work in an oil rig, but when the job was completed and the ship left, I had no job. Since I’m 50, they’re not going to employ me because they employ so many foreigners, and they pay me very little. So I better do my hobby but I’m still looking for a day job.

Is this your usual spot?
Yes. I like it here because some of the passers-by stay in the condo here and they love me. If I don’t turn up one day, they will go to another busker and say, “Eh, where’s the other guy? He’s better than you.”

How do you choose what to play?
So many cultures pass by and when I see them, I know what they want. When I see Americans, I play American music. Chinese people, I play Chinese music. I can play Malay and Japanese songs too. They appreciate it and they’re happy.

How does the audience respond?
Someone once told me that I’m the best busker. Some dance and request for more songs, giving good tips. Some say they’re sorry they don’t have cash. I said to them not to mind, just give me their credit card. In America, the buskers use a battery-operated credit card machine. Sometimes at night when you see drunkards, they will say, “Ah this guy no good, he cannot play my song.” In busking, you have to take all the s***, good or bad, as long as they don’t touch me.

Any memorable strangers?
There was a girl from China who wanted to learn how to play the guitar. I told her to buy a classical guitar and she did and came back to the bridge. I gave an hour’s lesson and she came back the next week. It’s better under the bridge because of acoustics, the sound goes and bounces back so the student learns faster. When you go to the riverside or out in the open, the sound doesn’t go in.

Any strange requests?
A lot of people ask if I come from India and request Indian songs. Once, a drunk Bangladeshi worker dared me to play him a Hindi song. He wanted to test me! So I said, okay, I’ll play, if you put two dollars in the bag. He said okay. So I played him a song, then the fella only gave one dollar! I told myself next time a Bangladeshi worker comes with a request I won’t play for them, ha!

Find K Rego daily from 6-11pm under Elgin Bridge, Boat Quay. Or book his services for private functions on 9197-3946.

Every office should have food (junk, preferably), alcohol in copious amounts, music, games and Razer gear. Coincidentally, you’ll find all five at our offices—free lunches all day, an open bar and LAN and console game stations.

A good office should also nurture culture, friendship, competition, creativity and accomplishment. I won’t bother going into specifics. If you don’t get it, you never will.

The kind of games people play don’t say much about their character and personality. Unless you play Farmville. That means you have a Freudian complex for cows and tractors. Really.

Twenty years from now, gaming will become so real that it’ll be virtually indistinguishable from real life—and it will totally kick ass. You’ll not just kick back on the couch and play Halo; you’ll actually charge through alien spacecraft, drive Warthogs, smell napalm in the air and feel plasma cannons sizzle. We’re not going to be in Kansas anymore.

Razer will be everywhere. We will be the world’s biggest brand. We will be a religion.

You don’t develop a passion for gaming and technology— you’re born into it; it’s primal; it’s innate. I didn’t develop a passion for gaming or technology—I was born into it.

I’m a fun advocate. Life’s short; it’s too short for stuff like “synergistic collaborations,” “buy-ins,” “value-creation” and all that kind of corporate bulls**t. F**k all that.

I’ve absolutely no idea what makes a good leader. I’m trying to figure it out every single day at Razer.

I don’t believe in wasting time—not mine nor the people who work at Razer. We want to make a difference to the world, make a mark in history, a ripple in the universe or die trying.

Life is a lot simpler when you don’t have a lot of wardrobe choices.

I like to win. And I like to win at work and at play. Come to think of it, I can’t remember the last time I lost at anything.

I don’t get stressed.

One of my biggest pet peeves is people who go through life like zombies, take jobs they aren’t passionate about and do a half-arsed job. Sometimes, I feel like taking a baseball bat to people who don’t give a damn about their work. Life is short and you should spend it being phenomenal in everything you set out to do.

I don’t maintain work-life balance. If you want to achieve greatness, it requires all your attention and a single-minded pursuit of success. My life pretty much revolves around work but I enjoy it so I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Applying for a job with us? Know who we are, what we stand for and what we want to achieve. Be yourself. You don’t need to seek to impress us because if you’re any good, you will. And if you’re not, we’ll find out sooner or later.

Perfection can be achieved. It’s just a little more difficult and that extra bit of work usually turns people off.

Can you tell us about this event?
On March 18th and 19th, we will host a celebration of Liu Xiaobo, the imprisoned Chinese writer and activist who won the Nobel Prize last year. The event features performances by Thai musicians, poets, DJs, painters and filmmakers who want to stand in solidarity with Liu and other persecuted artists around the world. Liu is currently serving an 11-year prison sentence for calling for greater freedoms and human rights in China.

How did you get involved?
In addition to being a poet, I’m an editor with the Pirogue Collective, a Senegal-based arts organization. We were approached by Internationales Literaturefestival berlin to organize and promote an event in New York. Since I now live and write in Bangkok, I wanted to put together an event here.

What is your contribution to the event?
Almost all of the performers are Thai, though the readings will be a mix of Thai- and English-language poetry. Each night I’ll read a few English translations of Liu’s poems. On Saturday, I’ll also read some of my own poems inspired by Liu.

What are some of the highlights we shouldn’t miss?
On Friday, Vasan Sitthiket and Kwanchai Lichaikul will create original, “live” paintings while DJ Maft Sai of the ZudRangMa Radio Show spins records. On Saturday, Tul and Pump of indie rock band Apartment Khun Pa will play their own songs, and provide instrumental accompaniment for Zakariya Amataya, winner of the 2010 SEA Write Award, and several other exciting young Thai poets.
Read the full interview online at http://tinyurl.com/5s39y3r

What’s the story behind this show?
It was inspired by my trip to attend the funeral of an upcountry relative. I had a chance to help the locals do the dishes in the temple kitchen, which reminded me of my childhood. When I was younger, I used to follow my grandma to the temple and we would meet a lot of mae krua [female cooks]. That’s how it got started.

How did you get to direct it?
I’m already a member of B-Floor. We have a tradition of taking turns doing things, from directing and acting to managing. I pitched this project to the group and got the nod from everyone.

Is there a story in Taste of Curry?
There’s really no plot. The show tries to capture the different periods of one’s life where food plays a part.

How is Taste of Curry different from B-Floor’s previous performances?
You know how a projector has always been an integral part of our productions? Well, we’re not using it this time around. The show focuses more on the dialogue, which will be in Thai, English, Spanish and French. It’s also olfactory because the characters will also be cooking on stage.

B-Floor has a reputation of producing abstract theater. Is that the case here?
If you come to see the show expecting to see a nang ek (leading female character) and phra ek (leading male actor) like in a soap opera, you will be disappointed. My advice is to come with an open mind, go with what’s happening on the stage and you’ll eventually enjoy it.

Keeping up with Jaarunan Phantachat at Taste of Curry

What are the differences in the way whisky is viewed in Asia compared to Scotland?
In Scotland, you won’t find people putting ice in their single malt very often, it’s just not something that has been traditionally acceptable. I don’t think that means that drinking your single malt on the rocks (as most Asians do) is wrong. It’s simply a response to the climate you live in.

The initial wave of interest regarding single malt Scotch whiskies here was about sampling whiskies from different regions, and the next wave involved discovering single-cask bottlings and whiskies matured in special casks. What do you think is up next in the world of whisky?
Gosh, if I was able to predict the trends in the world of whisky I would be a much wealthier man than I am! I think that drinkers will continue to explore single cask bottlings but also start to understand and appreciate extra matured and wood-finished whiskies such as the Glenmorangie Extra Matured range. Hopefully as the market for single malts in Singapore grows, you will see more and more interesting expressions being imported to the country.

You’re well known for your expertise and knowledge when it comes to single malt Scotch whiskies. Tell us a bit more about your tasting process; how does one get the most out of each glass of whisky?
I keep it simple. A good, tulip shaped nosing glass is essential to get the most aromas and flavors out of your single malt. I will always sample the whisky neat, direct from the bottle—nosing and tasting it and noting the various flavors and aromas. I will then add a drop of room temperature bottled water and repeat the process of nosing and tasting. Water acts on the whisky to open up the range of aromas and flavors, and amplify the floral perfumed notes in particular.