Thai rock songs to learn Thai
Thai rock took off in the 1980s with bands like Carabao and boomed again in the mid-1990s with alternative bands like Modern Dog and Loso, whose 1998 album Entertainment, with Som San, sold more than two million copies. Later hits include Bodyslam's Love, Getsunova's How Far Is Close? and LABANOON's Magic Rope, and Paper Planes' pop-punk Bad Boy (2022) had children all over Thailand singing along.
Most of the songs below are love songs, full of the words Thais use for feelings, and their lines teach useful patterns such as "however much… just as much" and "even if". Each pick explains its key lines with romanization and English, the grammar behind them and the words worth learning.
B1 Love ความรัก Bodyslam · 2010 A rock ballad about a love that ended: he still loves her as much as ever and regrets nothing, but life has to go on. Its chorus holds one of the most useful patterns in Thai, however much… just as much, plus used to, once, until, even though, and if I could turn back time. Meaning and key lines 
B1 How Far Is Close? ไกลแค่ไหน คือ ใกล้ Getsunova · 2012 The band's breakthrough, a love song about distance, not between two places but between two hearts: however hard he tries, he never gets any closer to her. Its lines teach how much farther?, until, at last and that's all, and its title plays on two words that differ only in their tone: far and near. Meaning and key lines 
B1 Magic Rope เชือกวิเศษ LABANOON · 2015 One of the most-watched Thai music videos ever: a man who has tried everything to keep his girlfriend realises that even a magic rope could only hold her body, not her heart, and lets her go with a blessing. Its lines teach even if, may you…, you don't have to, don't worry, thanks for…, sorry that…, and the heart words Thai uses for feelings. Meaning and key lines 
B1 Som San ซมซาน Loso · 1998 A rock classic from the album that made Loso the country's number one rock band: a shy guy meets his crush every night in his dreams and is worn down by waiting for her to say something. Its lines teach never in my life, every time, won't (refuse to), walk up to someone and make (someone) wait, plus a few poetic song words. Meaning and key lines 
A2 Bad Boy ทรงอย่างแบด Paper Planes · 2022 A pop-punk earworm that every Thai kid can shout along to, about a guy who looks like a bad boy but gets his heart broken all the time. It is a crash course in the English loanwords young Thais use every day (bad, sad, in, like, story, type), wrapped around simple, useful sentences. Meaning and key lines
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