Some thoughts on the recently announced and rather dubious Flower Power Peace Festival over on my other blog, Korea Gig Guide. The part that makes it more media related is that the organizer is apparently the Gangwon Broadcasting Network, the company that bought MK Pictures late last year.
Category: Korean music (Page 8 of 11)
The New York Philharmonic Orchestra played in Pyongyang this evening. Amazingly, this did not cause free nations around the region to fall thanks to the “propaganda coup” the show provided Kim Jong-il.
But the show was broadcast live on North Korea’s television and radio, and it was the first time an American orchestra had played in North Korea. The Philharmonic played Dvorak’s “New World” Symphony, Bernstein’s overture to “Candide,” some Wagner and Arirang.
Most telling about the logic behind the concert were conductor Loren Maazel’s quotes about the Boston Symphony performance in the Soviet Union in 1956 and the New York Philharmonic’s show there in 1959:
It showed Soviet citizens that they could have relations with foreign organizations and these organizations could come in the country freely. But what the Soviets didn’t realize was, this was a two-edged sword.
And:
By allowing interactions between people from outside the country with people inside, eventually the people found themselves out of power.
Sure, he then played down the comparisons to North Korea today (must be a polite guest), but the parallels were clear.
Andrei Lankov expressed the same logic when I talked to him about the concert last year (as I wrote about here).
Anyhow, I am sure we will all wake up tomorrow and find North Korea to be the same as ever. But I hope the event will in some small way help change a few minds, if only a little bit.
(Note: I “borrowed” that pic from the New York Times website. Credit to Chang Lee, with thanks).
Over at Korea Gig Guide, I talk a bit about last Sunday’s Sanullim tribute show at Club Badabie. Very good show, btw. Hope to have photos soon, too (but not yet).
Thanks to Indieful ROK for pointing out that Baik Hyun-jhin is about to release his first solo album in March. Baik is the main guy behind UH UH BOO PROJECT BAND, one of the more interesting Korean indie bands of the late 1990s. Their mini-album SONIKBUNKIJEOM (Break Even Point?) is generally considered a classic, with its miserable ajeossi/Tom Waits vibe (although Baik dislikes being compared to Waits, I think there are obvious reasons people do so). But for my money, the best UH UH BOO song was “Eohang Sok-ui Dabang – Gaejugeum,” from their second album, DOG, LUCKY STAR.
(Cross-posted at Korea Gig Guide)
Okay, so it looks like I am ready to go public with one of those projects that I have been talking about for the past couple of weeks. It is the KOREA GIG GUIDE, and it is a small attempt at getting out more information about the Korean live music scene.
The idea is simple enough — I think there is a lot of good live music around Korea these days, but can be surprisingly hard to find. Even for Koreans — most live venues have terrible websites and publicity. And despite the overabundance of movie magazines, there is much less out there about music.
I am hoping that by making it easier to learn about the gigs and who the best bands are that more people might be able to go and enjoy them. And, if I am really dreaming, maybe better turnout might encourage those bands and lead to more.
It is still early, and I am not entirely sure how this thing is going to unfold. For the moment, though, I intend on listing as many live shows as I can find on the KGG’s Concert Calendar.
I am thinking of doing more, too. I might blog about music, too (and may or may not cross-post here). I might add a wiki or some sort of database like that.
Of course, a lot depends on the feedback I get from others. If there is a good gig coming and you want people to know about it, send me an email and I will try to add it. If there is demand, I could add concerts happening in other parts of Korea (and maps or whatever). I do like to make a concert guide as useful as possible to as many people as possible.
So, please drop by, take a look. Feel free to give me feedback, positive or negative.
(PS: Obviously, I am cribbing much of this idea from the Tokyo Gig Guide. Long been a favorite of mine… even if every time I go to Japan, it seems to be two days after some band I love has played there).
Still not many blog updates while I work on some other things.
In the meantime, I have been really impressed at the interest in Korea’s (real) music scene out there in the blog world. Reminds me of the interest in the movie scene around 8-10 years ago.
Indieful ROK
Koreapop
Stuck With Free Music
KOA Zine
While at Koreapop.org, I found a very interesting link to this page, which is basically a big list of old Asian rock and pop album covers from the 1960s. Mostly Singapore stuff, with some other tidbits throw in. You have got to love the funky stylings of that era. I am so jealous of that guy’s collection.
I just checked out a show by the all-female band Juck Juck Haeseo Grunge (적적해서 그런지). And while they probably are not the band I enjoy the most these days, I would call them the best band in Korea.
How to describe them? A little Sonic Youth, a little PJ Harvey, a little Patti Smith, a little Led Zepplin… and a whole lotta’ rock. Lots of distortion and tempo changes, but a heavier, slightly more metal sound than Sonic Youth. They told me that they have been around since April-ish, so I guess they are still a fairly young group. No idea if their sound is still evolving or what.
Even rarer for the Hongdae scene, Juck Juck has stage presence. Between songs, they don’t just tune their instruments or blather on endlessly, they keep things hopping. And the just FEEL like rock stars, dammit.
They mostly play at the small club Badabie, but on Feb. 10 they will be playing at Club FF, which I think will be a much better setting for a band like this.
After a bit of a dull stretch of film, Hong had a comeback of sorts with WOMAN ON THE BEACH, which I quite liked. Advance word on NIGHT AND DAY is pretty good so far… even though it clocks in at an intimidating 2 hours 24 minutes.
I am especially looking forward to NIGHT AND DAY because the wonderful and talented Chun Sun-young worked on it as Assistant Director. Sun-young was nominated for a BAFTA award back in 2002 for her short film GOOD NIGHT.
I say this is interesting because anyone who knows Korea’s online gaming world will recognize that business model.
E.A.’s most recent experiment with free online games began two years ago in South Korea, the world’s most fervent gaming culture. In 2006, the company introduced a free version of its FIFA soccer game there, and Gerhard Florin, E.A.’s executive vice president for publishing in the Americas and Europe, said it has signed up more than five million Korean users and generates more than $1 million in monthly in-game sales.
Kind of cool. Although, to be honest, a little frustrating, too. Back in 2004-ish, I was talking with EA for months about writing a major feature about this business model and how EA was using the Korean method of online gaming and trying to take it global. But EA kept delaying and delaying and eventually the story kind of fell apart. So close…
Jan. 23 – Club FB – Point Zero Three (Yukie’s jam band from Japan)
Jan. 25 – Club Yogiga – Organic Music Concert. And more Point Zero Three.
Jan. 27 – Club Yogiga – Bulgasari (4pm)
I was rummaging through a local music shop a couple of days ago and what did I find? Why Shin Joong-hyun’s very first album, when he was in the band ADD 4 (actually “Edeu Hwo,” in the transcribed Korean), from the album called BISOK-UI YEOIN. Pony Canyon was nice enough to reissue the CD just a few weeks ago.
The songs are quite interesting. Not nearly as “psychedelic” as the Shin Joong-hyun’s post-Pearl Sisters stuff. Must more of a pre-Beatles sound (as you would expect in a record coming out in the early 1960s).
Most interesting to me, though, is how many of the songs on this album would turn up later. Including the huge hit of 1968, ONE CUP OF COFFEE (“Keopi Hanjan”), although on this album it bears the name NAESOGEUL TAEUNEUN GURYEO. BADATGA also turned up on a Key Boys album, and Seo Yun-seok would sing SOYA EOSEO GAJA.
Anyhow, it is a piece of history and well worth picking up.
Have I mentioned the Shin Joong-hyun box set that is on the way? If not, I should write about that soon.
Sorry this post is late. Meant to write it on Wednesday or so but got distracted.
Anyhow, we are now in December, and like most Decembers in Korea, there are a whole bunch of interesting live shows going on. Linkin Park was last night, for example.
Today we have a couple of noteworthy shows. Down in Chungmuro (in the subway station, of all places) at 6pm there is the Never Right Show, with a bunch of fun bands (you can see them listed in the ad below).
And then in Shinchon at 8pm, everybody’s favorite Japanese rocker Sato Yukie is having an acoustic show at Yardbirds.
Next Saturday, the experimental techno folks at Relay will be having a show at Club Hong… which is close to Rolling Hall, on the south side of Hongdae. Show is around 8pm (before the all-night techno fest, I guess).
Young-hee and the Pullocho
Young-hee stumbles into a magical world, where the fairy stories of her childhood are real and all the frustrations of her everyday life fade away — until her little brother is kidnapped by a goblin. The only way Young-hee can save him is by finding a magical plant called a pullocho, but little does she realize the fate of a whole world hangs in the balance.
On sale now at:
Amazon
Pop Goes Korea
Pop Goes Korea: Behind the Revolution in Movies, Music and Internet Culture (2nd edition) is the only English-language book to examine the whole of Korea's entertainment industry and how it became such a powerhouse over the past 20 years. With profiles of many of Korea's top stars (including Lee Byung-hun and Rain), Pop Goes Korea features chapters on movies, music, television, comic books, the Internet, and more.
On sale now at:
Amazon.com
Kobo eBooks
And hopefully more ebooks stores very soon.
The original edition of Pop Goes Korea is now out of print.
K-Pop Now!
K-Pop Now! takes a fun look at Korea’s high-energy pop music, and is written for its growing legions of fans. It features all the famous groups and singers, and takes an insider’s look at how they have made it to the top.
You can buy at:
Amazon.com
Chapters Indigo
Tuttle (my publisher)
Kyobo Books (in Korea)
Goodreads (not for buying, but still a good link)