# The 6 Best Cambodian Rock Tracks of All Time

Phnom Penh in the years before 1975, where Khmer vocal ornament met surf guitar, garage organ and Latin rhythms heard on American Forces radio. Almost every musician on this list was murdered by the Khmer Rouge.

- **Origin:** Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 1968
- **Tempo:** 90–150 BPM
- **Also known as:** khmer rock, cambodian psych, phnom penh sound
- **Tracks:** 6
- **Updated:** 2026-08-31
- **Canonical page:** https://waxonia.com/genre/cambodian-rock/

## The list

### 1. [Ros Serey Sothea](https://waxonia.com/artist/ros-serey-sothea/) — [Chnam Oun Dop-Pram Muy](https://waxonia.com/track/ros-serey-sothea--chnam-oun-dop-pram-muy/)

*1970*

"I'm Sixteen." A voice of extraordinary clarity over a garage band, and the most widely heard Cambodian record of the era. She disappeared under the Khmer Rouge and no grave is known.

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Ros%20Serey%20Sothea%20Chnam%20Oun%20Dop-Pram%20Muy) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=_h8DUTKH6qg)

### 2. [Sinn Sisamouth](https://waxonia.com/artist/sinn-sisamouth/) — [Jam 10 Kai Theit](https://waxonia.com/track/sinn-sisamouth--jam-10-kai-theit/)

*1972*

The King of Khmer Music, who recorded hundreds of songs and whose death in 1975 or 1976 is undocumented. A crooner's phrasing over a rock rhythm section.

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Sinn%20Sisamouth%20Jam%2010%20Kai%20Theit) · [Search YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/search?q=Sinn%20Sisamouth%20Jam%2010%20Kai%20Theit)

### 3. [Yol Aularong](https://waxonia.com/artist/yol-aularong/) — [Cyclo](https://waxonia.com/track/yol-aularong--cyclo/)

*1974*

The scene's punk, snarling about layabouts over a garage riff. Rougher than anything else here and audibly aware that time was running out.

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Yol%20Aularong%20Cyclo) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=MKLZSC9ib14)

### 4. [Pan Ron](https://waxonia.com/artist/pan-ron/) — [Old Pot Still Cooks Good Rice](https://waxonia.com/track/pan-ron--old-pot-still-cooks-good-rice/)

*1973*

Pan Ron sang the risqué material Ros Serey Sothea would not, with a raspier delivery and a wicked sense of timing. Also killed.

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Pan%20Ron%20Old%20Pot%20Still%20Cooks%20Good%20Rice) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=GGM4pIwAWs8)

### 5. [Ros Serey Sothea](https://waxonia.com/artist/ros-serey-sothea/) — [Have You Seen My Boyfriend](https://waxonia.com/track/ros-serey-sothea--have-you-seen-my-boyfriend/)

*1972*

A go-go rhythm, a farfisa, and a melody that would sit comfortably in a Khmer wedding song. The synthesis working at its most effortless.

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Ros%20Serey%20Sothea%20Have%20You%20Seen%20My%20Boyfriend) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=_h8DUTKH6qg)

### 6. [Sinn Sisamouth](https://waxonia.com/artist/sinn-sisamouth/) — [Kingdom of Cambodia](https://waxonia.com/track/sinn-sisamouth--kingdom-of-cambodia/)

*1969*

Recorded when the country was still at peace and the scene was the best in Southeast Asia. Hearing it now is not a neutral experience.

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Sinn%20Sisamouth%20Kingdom%20of%20Cambodia) · [Search YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/search?q=Sinn%20Sisamouth%20Kingdom%20of%20Cambodia)

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