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| VRC Cafe in Kuala Lumpur, where I first began chronicling the music of cafes |
I was sitting in VCR in Kuala Lumpur when I first heard Birdy’s voice sing Skinny Love. I'm sure the song was playing all over the U.S., but I wouldn’t have heard it if I had not been in VCR at that moment. Years ago, I would have asked a staff member at the café what song they were playing, or I would have walked away never knowing it. But it’s 2015 and thanks to the wonderful apps, Kazaa and Shazam, I was able to learn the name of the song without having to ask anyone. Since then, I began to take note of all the beautiful songs I heard in cafes throughout Asia. Here are 27 of my favorite songs. I picked the number 27 because of my age, and each song was selected because it represented a certain mood and feeling in each place I visited.
- Birdy – Skinny Love: VCR, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
- Sophia Zelmani – Free Now: Comma Coffee, Vientiane
- Jasmine Thompson – When I was Your Man: Piccolo Café, Kuching, Malaysia
- A Fine Frenzy – Borrowed Time: V Café, Mandalay, Myanmar
- Nina Simone – Love Me, Leave Me: Naked Espresso, Vientiane, Laos
- Sultan Khan – Tarana: Hanoi Social Club, Hanoi, Vietnam
- Emily Wells – Symphony 1 in the Barrel of A Gun: Cong Caphe, Hanoi, Vietnam
- Slackwax – Dying Day: Saffron Café, Luang Prabang, Laos
- Air – All I need: L’Usine, Saigon, Vietnam
- Devotchka – Lunnaya Pogonka, Boon Bar, Yangon, Myanmar
- Radiohead – Reckoner, Java Café, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
- Bruce Brubaker – Metamorphosis: Metamorphosis Four, Quest, Bangkok, Thailand
- Cinnamon Chasers – Sabalia, Dolcetto Café, Chiang Mai, Thailand
- Michael Nyman – The Heart Asks Pleasure First, Marble Arch, Chiang Mai
- Feist – Honey, Honey: Full Stop, Bangkok, Thailand
- Kimbra – Settle Down, Starbucks, Saigon, Vietnam
- Elizabeth Ziman – Mistake, Toby’s Estate, Singapore
- Wax Tailor – Say Yes, Café Genius, Yangon, Myanmar
- Nouvelle Vague – In A Manner of Speaking, Brown Café, Phone Penh, Cambodia
- Boy Tedson – Killing Time, New Leaf Book Café, Siem Reap, Cambodia
- State of Bengal - Chittagong Chill, Kafe Roubaix, Chiang Mai
- London Grammer – Wasting my Young Years, The Bar, Chiang Mai, Thailand
- Dillon - Thirteen Thirtyfive, LoCal Café, Chiang Mai, Thailand
- Princess Chelsea – The Cigarette Duet, Doma Café, Luang Prabang, Laos
- Yuna – Stay, Three Little Birds, Seniman’s, Ubud, Bali
- Ingrid Michaelson – You and I, ChanNueng Café, Chiang Mai, Thailand
- B. Fleischmann - A Letter from Home, Artisan, Chiang Mai, Thailand
