Maft Sai and Studio Lam: Building a Living World Around Thai Music

This is when it became bigger than music.

After the records, the parties, and the band, Maft Sai created a permanent home for the scene: Studio Lam.

Opened in 2014 on Sukhumvit 51, it’s a small bar with a custom tube sound system, walls lined with vinyl, and ya dong cocktails. It quickly became the heartbeat of Bangkok’s underground. One night molam would drift into dub, the next into Ghanaian highlife or disco. Always changing, always rooted in deep listening.

But his vision didn’t stop at nightlife. Just down the street, he opened SaNgaa Beef Noodles, a halal restaurant serving his family’s 60-year-old recipe from Mahachai. And even here, he thought about the soundtrack, Thai-Muslim songs from the south played in the background, weaving food and music into one story.

And he’s still pushing forward. With projects like The Isan Clan, he’s mixing molam with horns, didgeridoo, electronics, dragging the tradition into the future.

From crates of vinyl nobody wanted, to compilations, parties, a band, a bar, and even a noodle shop, Maft Sai didn’t just revive Thai music. He built a living world around it.

And when I stepped into his record store on my way home from Thailand, after saying goodbye to my mum, I realized this was a world I needed to follow too.

And it’s still growing.

→ Kaphrao Nua Tun (Braised beef with basil & chili) recipe

→ Maft Sai & The Isan Clan — Molam World — Wonderfruit 2024

→ HOT PLATES: Maft Sai - SaNgaa Mix