Đen Tình Đen Nhạc brought together a tightly curated lineup, with Cờ Lê, Bedlam Royals, and 9xactly setting the stage for France’s Celeste. Held on a rainy weekday, the show unfolded with a slower, more immersive pacing that leaned into atmosphere over chaos. By the end of the night, it was clear the focus wasn’t on spectacle, but on being fully pulled into the sound.
Ethos Collective and Úm Ba La are launching Scene Incubator, a recurring Sunday series built around Saigon’s original acts. Starting May 17, every other Sunday brings two to three bands to a professional stage with an affordable flat fee and a drink included. First lineup: Lulaby, Route 59, and ChipPunks.
Mish.Rec, the bassist behind Nha Trang’s 7/4 Surfers, steps out solo with debut album Undercurrent, trading jam energy for layered synths, dream pop drift, and psychedelic loops. Produced alongside his band’s drummer, it’s a DIY record that moves like a motorbike through Vietnam’s alleys and opens like the beach at dusk.
Kobe Town’s newly relocated District 2 space opened its doors to its first proper heavy show, with District 105 wrapping up their Cycle of Violence Asian tour alongside Mikey Rotten, Kamiyada+, Under Pressure, I’m Not Sure, and Sixxk Boy.
Saigon post-metal project Bedlam Royals surface with their debut single “Ode To Not A King,” a rework of a song born during frontman Viktor’s time with Serbian act LEER, now rebuilt into something new. Mastered by Cult of Luna’s Magnus Lindberg, it’s a precise and deliberate first move ahead of their debut album “The Gap.”
Saigon alternative rock band Thangca have released 100 Ngày (100 Days), a slow-burn single written during the COVID-19 lockdown and out now via Gió Đông. Built around the suffocating stillness of a city under quarantine, it is one of the more considered releases to come out of that period.
