Diaspora & Saphy Vong : Oknha Stamina — Neo Geodesia’s Sonic Clash Between Pradal Serey and Punk Fury

Editorial team
3 hours ago
2 min read

Neo Geodesia, aka Saphy Vong, hits hard with Oknha Stamina, an album merging traditional Khmer pradal serey music and punk “powerviolence” in a bold sonic experiment.

A Reimagined Martial Tribute

Inspired by the vong pleng pradal — the Khmer boxing orchestra depicted in Angkor’s bas-reliefs — the album transforms the frenetic rhythms of the roneat (bamboo xylophone) into violent electronic assaults.The eponymous track, Oknha Stamina, as the artist explains, evokes the elite Cambodian honorary title, a metaphor for a spectacle of power where sport and politics dance a violent tango — from street rings to global arenas.Vong, a Franco-Cambodian refugee based in Brighton, channels both his Nancy roots and his anger over the anti-immigration riots of 2024.

Battle-Trance Tracks

The 12-track list pulses like combat itself: Phalanx Bodies fuses royal pinpeat with hardcore metal to denounce far-right divisions; Tropaion (feat. Alon Etimis) recalls digitalized conflicts, from Gaza to Thai–Khmer skirmishes, through a minimalist wave soundscape.Dream Team of Preah Khan, an epic ambient piece accompanied by a hallucinatory 3D video, narrates the reconquest of the sacred sword Preah Khan Reach by a team of female athletes — a symbol of resilience challenging patriarchal taboos and modern labor exploitation.

The album culminates with Decapitation, Eau de Parfum, referencing 1990s fighting games like Fatal Fury, blending rave euphoria and post–Khmer Rouge mourning.

From Kep to the Global Stage

Composed during a stay in Kep — a once-imagined colonial seaside retreat — Oknha Stamina extends the sonic world of 2562 Neon Flames (2021), a vibrant collage praised by NPR and The Quietus.Neo Geodesia, a founding figure of Chinabot (the experimental Asian collective), has ignited Tate Modern and Pitchfork Festival, proving Khmer heritage can roar within the underground club scene.A record for lovers of cultural trance — where a raised fist meets abrasive electronica.

Chinabot: Asian Experimental Crucible

Founded in 2017 in London, Chinabot is a multidisciplinary collective redefining the discourse on Asian music by promoting adventurous sounds from across the diaspora — from Uyghur free jazz to Japanese minyo footwork.At once label, design agency, event promoter (Café Oto, MAO Turin), and radio platform (NTS, Radio Alhara), Chinabot counts over 56 releases across 22 countries, acclaimed by Pitchfork, The Wire, and Resident Advisor.As it gears up for its 10th anniversary in 2027, Chinabot continues to distribute vinyls, cassettes, and digital releases worldwide — uniting the Asian avant-garde beyond the mainstream.