What’s going on with all the smutty English in K-pop these days? First we had Rain’s comeback, where he sang “30 Sexy.” But, really, it sounded much more like “dirty sexy.”
Then Ga-in had her excellent new single “F*** You”. Great song, fascinating video … but still it is strange to be in a convenience store and hear this lovely voice telling me to fuck off.
And now Park Ji-yoon is back at her disco-y best (and, let’s face it, disco Park is an amazing look) with the “Soul Train”-fused video for “Beep.” It’s a fun song and Park looks amazing in it. HOWEVER, in the middle of the song, she suddenly sings “What what what what” about 50 times in quick succession, and with each iteration, the “T” increasing elides with the next words and starts to sound like “twat”. I swear, I’m not just being a perve.
The “what” part kicks in at the 1:40 mark. Anyhow, it’s an amazing video and good song, so you should check it out. You won’t be disappointed.
Since I’m mentioning music, you should also listen to the totally-not-dirty song “Paint It Gold” by Glen Check. It is just a fun, amazing tune … with a bit of MGMT, some Two Door Cinema Club, maybe some OK Go and some Daft Punk. Whatever its provence, it’s one of their best.
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:
UPDATE: My article about Kpop and Korean exports to emerging markets is up on Foreign Policy now. Please check it out.
ORIGINAL: Hard to believe that it was just three weeks ago I was amazed by Psy’s “Gangnam Style” hitting 100 million Youtube views. Because checking out Youtube today, it has now topped 290 million, and I guess will be hitting 300 million soon.
Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe” (which most of us assumed would be the big summer hit) is at 270 million.
But more important than just Youtube views (after all, “Charlie Bit My Finger” has 483 million views) is that Psy is now getting sales and radio airplay. The song is now at No. 11No. 2 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and No. 1 on Apple’s iTunes singles chart — well, it is down to No. 2 in the US after spending a few days at No. 1, but it is still No. 1 in Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, and Portugal.
Thanks to that surprise success, there is going to be a host of articles on Psy and K-pop coming out very soon, including a couple by myself. I’ll link to them as they appear. As someone who has been writing professionally about Korean pop music since around 2000, it’s all a bit overwhelming. But it is also fascinating to see who much our world is changing, and how Korea is changing with it.
More to come soon…
Btw, if you are looking for a great new Korean tune to dance to, I highly recommend the retro-disco of Glen Check’s “84”:
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.
