My publisher was nice enough to send me a few photos from the book launch party on Tuesday — not a lot, but hopefully it gives you a taste of the evening.
Here I am talking to Eric Oey, the publisher of Tuttle:
(Honestly, it was fairly crowded at the event. More than it looks in these photos).
You can’t have a book event without signing some copies:
Here I am with Brad Moore of Busker Busker, apparently having a smirking contest:
Both Daniel Tudor and I have new books on the way from Tuttle, coming in January:
Oh, and you can buy the new Busker Busker on iTunes.
A bit hard to read (dodgy translation and the English version is missing some information), but interesting interview with senior TV actors about Korean TV biz. Those interviewed include Lee Soon-jae, Choi Bool-am, and I think the Vice-Minister of Culture Ryu Jin-ryong. (DongA Ilbo)
Revitalizing old roads, factories in Korea by turning them into cycling paths, museum (Korea JoongAng Daily)
A look at the ugly culture of off-track gambling in Korea (Korea JoongAng Daily)
Face Reader topped 8 million admissions yesterday. Our Sunhee topped 50,000 (KOBIS).
Four days after Busker Busker’s second album was released, it is still dominating the local music charts. Pretty impressive, considering all the competition these days, from K-pop and whatnot.
Here is a screen capture of Busker Busker with all three top songs on the Melon real-time streaming chart. Certainly all the coffee shops in my neighborhood seem to be playing the album heavily.
Last year was a great one for Korean pop music, but it was also excellent for indie music and other non-pop stuff in Korea. I only spent a couple of weeks in Korea this year, but it was clear from the shows I went to and people I talked with how vibrant the scene is these days (not to mention the music I downloaded and listened to). Back in 2008, when I started the Korea Gig Guide, I had this feeling that the indie scene was growing and getting stronger, like it was in the late 1990s. These days it is stronger still, continuing to grow bigger and more interesting.
Sadly, though, I don’t have a big list of my favorite new releases. For yet another year, I focused my energies in older Korean music, thanks to a huge batch of old records a friend digitized for me. I’m pretty proud of my collection of Korean rock, folk, and pop from the 1960s and ’70s now (thanks mysterious friend!). A related highlight of my year was meeting the great singer Kim Choo-ja. She and her husband nicely opened their home to me, and so I was able to absorb several hours of stories and good stuff.
As for new releases, the best of the year was probably Jambinai’s first full-length release, Différance (iTunes, Amazon). While not a fan of their more hardcore-tinged experiments with electric guitar, their core sound — driving postrock played on Korean traditional instruments — was as great as ever.
There was plenty of fun electro-based music last year, such as Glen Check (I particularly liked the single “84”) and Neon Bunny (her new EP Happy End was all quite fun). Love X Stereo is pretty good, too.
I am not a huge Telepathy fan, but their new version of “Flying White Pillow,” recorded for Fred Perry, was really intriguing, showing signs of growing into something more (a live show I saw of theirs in May backed up that impression).
And there were new released by 3rd Line Butterfly, Galaxy Express, and other big names.
But, as I said, I spent more time listening to old music, so I’m sure I missed a lot.
One of the coolest stories in 2012 was definitely Busker Busker, the Cheonan trio that appeared on an American Idol-esque TV music contest and somehow overcame all the producers’ preconceived notions of how the program was supposed to run, becoming perhaps the most popular group of the year. Yes, K-pop still dominates Korea, but the success of Busker Busker — a real band, playing real music — was one of the brightest rays of sunlight to shine through the bubblegum clouds in a long time.
(Not that there is anything wrong with bubblegum … I just value diversity).
Much more authoritative than my opinions, though, are the smart folks at Weiv, Korea’s longtime online music publication. They have put together another solid (and eclectic) list of the year’s top Korean music:
Jeong Tae-chun, Park Eun-ok – 바다로 가는 시내버스 (City Bus Going to the Sea)
G-Dragon – One of a Kind
Pure Kim – ㅇ (Ieung)
Hwang Bo Ryeong=Smacksoft – Follow Your Heart
Various Artists – 블루스 더 (Blues)
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.
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.
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.
