Love Camp will be making its return today (October 30) at Obeg (500) in Hongdae. The very cool Love Camp Psychedelic Flower Music Festival ran for seven years at a beautiful forest location in Hong Chon, Kangwon-do. There was no ticket charge for Love Camp, and food and drink were also provided for free.
BULGASARI COLLECTIVE AT LOVE CAMP 2009 PHOTO BY KOICHI HANAFUSA
The last Love Camp took place in the summer of 2009. The land used for the fest’s site was sold after that, so Love Camp didn’t take place in 2010. Sadly the events founder, Hong Jong-su, passed away in January of this year.
Despite the festival being moved indoors, today’s show will follow Jong-su’s Love Camp vision. Entrance is free and there will be complimentary food and drinks. The show starts at 6 pm and there will be a dozen acts and DJs performing. While no time schedule has been released, this is the playing order according to the Love Camp poster: Adam Zlattner, Gwaeng, Googolplex, MukiMuki Manmansu, The Alligators, SuriSuri Mahasuri, Kim Ban Jang (from Windy City) and Earth Party, Soul Steady Rockers, Telepathy, Apollo 18, Special guest, and the Bulgasari collective.
Check out photos from Love Camp 2008 here and Love Camp 2009 here.
A lot of venues are going to be competing for the best Halloween party this year. However, my money’s on Club Spot, who are hosting the third annual Still Alive Halloween Punk Party. If you show up in costume, it’s only 10 000 won.
Though according to Jeff, the promoter and lead vocalist of …Whatever That Means, “wearing a Misfits Jack-O-Lantern t-shirt, name tag with someone else’s name on it, writing “BOOK” across your face, and other lame crap like that…..these are not costumes.”
Outside, there will be events loosely connected with the show. There should be pumpkin carving, and members of the Jungang Hansik tour will present the Andong Soju Taste Challenge, where you can compare quality Andong Soju with the convenience store stuff (while supplies last).
The laid-back electronica group Byul has a new album coming out — with the great title Secret Stories Heard From a Girl in an Opium Den — and to promote that release, they are holding a release concert-performance-party this Saturday (Oct. 22). Along with Byul, there will be Baik Hyunjhin and Kuang Program playing, and the deejays Sulki & Min, Sticky Monster Lab, Work Room, Lowrise, and Jang Woochul. That’s a fairly impressive lineup for 25,000 won.
Byul, of course, first rose to fame with the soundtrack to the quirky and wonderful film Take Care of My Cat. But since then, the group has added members and grown, and put out a whole series of abstract design magazines called Monthly Vampire, and done plenty of other funky stuff. You can get a great overview of the band at The Creators Project.
It’s an early show, though, beginning at 5pm (doors open at 4:30) at Theater Zero in Hongdae. Theater Zero is a bit hard to find these days, and the old URL does not seem to be working anymore, so I linked to a Google map for it. But the theater is on a tiny, winding backstreet in the heart of Hongdae, not far from the bustling Hongdae Park.
Oh, and I linked to Byul’s “Pacific” once before, but I quite like it, so here it is again:
Btw, this is looking like a great weekend for music in Korea. In addition to Byul, we have shows by traditional-postrock Jambinai (at Sangsang Madang on Thursday), the Grand Mint Festival in Olympic Park, Evergreen Festival at Hangang Park, the second Seoul Night concert series at clubs all over Hongdae on Friday, and a screening of the old film Nosferatu with a live orchestra playing the score (at Platoon Kunsthalle at 7pm on Saturday). So many fun choices….
Broke in Korea is Korea’s longest-running English-language zine (as well as a defunct, related message board). With a couple issues out every year, it showcases what’s going on in the underground.
This issue features more bilingual content, with interviews with Rux, Billy Carter, Find the Spot, Hong9, NoControl, Vad Hahn of Yamagata Tweakster/Amature Amplifier/Stretching Journey, Midnight Smokin’ Drive, and Scumraid. As well, there are CD reviews, comics, and a travel diary of a voyage through Korea’s heartland by some of Korea’s most absurd foreigners, as part of a food tour.
This time, the zine is being released at Club Crack this Saturday at 7pm, where eight of Korea’s best underground bands will take the stage. Among the acts are Billy Carter, Midnight Smokin’ Drive, Find the Spot, and Hong9 (drummer of Captain Bootbois), who you can read about in the zine. They’re also joined by the Patients, Skasucks, Shellback, and Black Leather Lagoon.
RSVP here. Stop by, pick up a zine, listen to the bands, and drink until the subways open.
I know this post is somewhat late now, but if you skip by the first few entries I think you’ll get a good idea of some of the bigger shows coming up in Korea this month.
I recently started working for the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and as part of my job I compiled this list of shows for October.
Go forth, and if you find it helpful or have anything to add/quibble about/correct, please let me know. It was more work than I was expecting, and if I get enough support I’d consider making it a monthly feature.
There are tons of shows missing, but this is intended as kind of the biggest shows of the month. Full disclosure, I’m putting on a show this month that didn’t make the list, so don’t bother looking for any sorts of biases of self interest.
UPDATE (by Mark): Jon’s list is great, but I just wanted to add that this weekend is the Ulsan World Music Festival. There is a lot of good stuff on the playbill, all worth watching, but I really have to point out Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 — I saw them a few months ago in Spain and they were just excellent. Very much in the spirit of Seun’s amazing father Fela Kuti, with a host of great performers. Highly recommended.
The 13th annual Ssamzie Sound Festival takes place this Sunday (October 2). After last fall’s scaled down event at V-Hall in Hongade, this year Ssamzie Sound Festival is returning to being a proper outdoor outing and will take place at Namyangju Sports & Culture Center (near Donong Station on the Jungang Line).
The lineup boasts nearly two dozen acts. Here’s everyone that will be playing: Te’, Chang Kiha and the Faces, Bamseom Pirates, Gogo Star, Dongmulwon Soran, Hong Sun Kwan and wHool, Goonamguayeoridingstella, Windy City, Yellow Monsters, Sugar Donut, LeeSsang, Galaxy Express, Han Young-ae, Yamagata Tweakster, The Koxx, 24 Hours, Black Bag, Fantastic Drug Store, Four Brothers, and Peacock Green. The latter five acts on the roster were the lucky finalists of the Ssamzie Sound Festival audition contest that was held in late summer.
While there is plenty of top-notch talent on the bill, the band I’m most excited about seeing is Tokyo’s Te’. The instrumental rockers formed in 2004 and issued their debut full-length in 2005. They’ve gone on to release three more scorching albums, but sadly only one of those (2008’s “Mashite. Kokoro To Gokan Ga Icchi Suru Nara Subete Saijou No [ongaku] ni Henzuru.”) has been licensed in South Korea.
Te’ have toured internationally in the US, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Ssamzie Sound Festival will be the quartet’s first time to play in South Korea. When asked why they’ve waited so long to come, guitarist Kono offers a simple answer.
“We’ve released a CD in Korea, but no one has invited us to tour there before now.”
Kono says Te’ will have some copies of 2010’s excellent “Aete, Rikai wo Nozomi Motsure Tsuku Onsei ya Moji no Wakugai de no ‘Yakusoku’ wo” (all of the act’s discs have ridicously long titles) to sell at Namyangju Sports & Culture Center. There’s a review of the record here. Te’ are currently working on tracks for their next album. It will be their first effort with new bassist Matsuda, who joined the band this past January. However, none of the new material will be previewed during their Ssamzie Sound Festival set.
“This time we only have 30 minutes to play, so we don’t have enough time for any new songs,” explains Kono. “We hope we can come back and play them another time.”
Known for their high energy gigs, Te’ are really excited to finally have the chance to share their music with a South Korean audience. Hopeful that folks at the Ssamzie Sound Festival with be able to match their intensity, Kono has one small request for the crowd.
“Please listen to our music and riot.”
The Ssamzie Sound Festival starts at 1 pm on Sunday. Tickets are 25,000 won at the gate. Namyangju Sports & Culture Center is located near Donong Station on the Jungang Line. Or you can get there by taking bus #1000 from Jamsil Station exit 9.
This long weekend, Picture My Face Bookings is launching a three-day music festival, The Cheonan After Dark Indiefest, which is certain to build some momentum in the Cheonan live music scene and show the local club owners that there is money to be made in live music. The first night of the festival is at Banana Bar, and the last two nights are in Dolce, which is convenient to Cheonan Station.
The first day features an eclectic array of bands, covering genres such as blues, power pop, and hardcore punk. One band worth checking out is Billy Carter, who despite their name are a duo of Korean punk girls who sing folk and blues music. You can hear them reinterpret “Personality Crisis” by the New York Dolls here. You can also see Things We Say in lead singer Victor Ha’s hometown, as well as the Essence, a newish band who are introducing Korea to power-pop (video here).
Things We Say, partly from Cheonan
The second night features the biggest bands, with Seoul’s most experienced bands coming down for the night, as well as 13 Steps, a hardcore band from nearby Cheongju. Low Deal is a new Cheonan band. The highlight may be Black Leather Lagoon, a hysterical side project of Seoul punk band the Tremors featuring members dressed in drag and singing Cramps covers.
Black Leather Lagoon
The third and final night of the festival has several bands I’ve never heard of, including some whose Korean names were difficult for me to translate. Genius is from Busan, but I can’t find information on the remaining four bands. There are likely to be a few surprises on this night, and don’t forget that Monday is a holiday.
Okay, so I’m rather late to the party … but I just realized that is another festival going on this weekend — the Wonder Breeze Music Festa, happening in Yongmun (Yangpyeong), Gyeonggi Province. It’s a pretty full line-up, all Korean, with artists as diverse as Crying Nut and 2am. Seriously. But I guess that has been the big trend this year, combining more K-pop with Korean indie festivals (which, if it brings out the crowds, is fine with me).
Anyhow, Wonder Breeze goes from Saturday to Monday, with tickets costing 77,000 won for one day or 143,000 won for three days. Yongmun Sports & Culture Center is located pretty close to Yongmun Station (the very last stop on subway line No. 3), so you should be able to find it without too many problems. Interpark is selling tickets, but not on their English sub-site … but if you can maneuver the Korean site, that’s an option.
Oh, and as long as I am talking about festivals, it is worth pointing out that this year’s Grand Mint Festival is nearly all sold out already. Great to know the festival is doing well, but disappointing if you were hoping to crash the festival at the last minute.
UPDATE: I just realized that I also totally overlooked the Jarasum Jazz Festival this year. It also runs Oct. 1-3, and it also is nearly totally sold out. At the moment there are some tickets available for Monday.
Sato Yukie is holding a weekend-long residency at Strange Fruit in Hongdae in support of his new album with Kopchangjeongol, “Dance With Me.” Fronted by long-time Seoul resident Sato, the Japanese act’s 1999 “Annyoung Hashi-mu-nika?” debut was the first album to be released by a Japanese rock band in South Korea.
Issued by local imprint Beatball Records, “Dance With Me” is Kopchangjeongol’s second full-length effort. Written from 2000 to 2005, the disc’s seven excellent psychedelic and classic rock songs were recorded in South Korea in 2008 and 2009. While “Annyoung Hashi-mu-nika?” included a mix of Korean covers and original cuts, “Dance with Me” was written solely by Sato.
“Dance With Me” is dedicated to former Kopchangjeongol bassist Shibato Koichiro and to Hong Jong-su, the organizer of the amazing Love Camp festival (photos here and here). Both men sadly passed away because of cancer. Shibato died in June 2010 and Hong this past January.
“Shibato-san was diagnosed with cancer in 2008,” shares Sato. “He lived for two more years after that. We wanted to finish the album before he died. ‘Dance With Me’ is the last album he played on.
“Hong Jong-su really liked psychedelic music and was a big supporter of our band. He and I chose what songs should go on ‘Dance With Me.’ We feel that this album belongs to him and Kopchangjeongol.”
There are some great photos of Shibato and Hong with Kopchangjeongol and friends inside “Dance With Me.” My personal favourite was taken by a talented photographer, and a very good friend of mine, named Koichi Hanafusa at the last Love Camp in 2009. It shows Hong dancing during Kopchangjeongol’s set, and he, Shibato, Sato, and drummer Ito Koki all have big smiles on their faces.
Since Ito (who also drums in well-respected Japanese rock band Soul Flower Union) and current Kopchangjeongol bassist Akai Kojiro both live in Japan, tonight’s (September 17) and Sunday’s shows will feature only Yukie. I went to Strange Fruit for last night’s gig and it was good fun. The always entertaining Sato played a mix of tracks from “Dance With Me” and his 2009 solo effort, “Sarangseureoun Geudae.” Gwangju’s Badak Project opened the concert and backed Yukie on several numbers as well.
Tonight’s and Sunday’s shows both start at 8 pm. The cover charge for each is 10,000 won. Indian Soonie will open tonight and Second Session will do the same tomorrow.
“Indian Soonie is a very good female acid folk singer and Second Session are a funky rock band,” says Sato. “They will both play some songs with me. I’ll play acoustic on Saturday, but on Sunday I’ll do acoustic and electric stuff. The song lists for each night will be different. I’ll be singing songs from ‘Dance With Me’ and lots of other songs, too!”
Sato will play Korean gigs with Kopchangjeongol this fall. We’ll post the concert info in our calendar as soon as the dates are announced.
Badabie is a long-running live club in Hongdae, putting on shows regularly since 2004. Honestly, I cannot remember the first time I crept down those dingy steps to check out a show… Maybe it was for a Bulgasari experimental showcase on a Sunday afternoon? Or perhaps it was to meet a friend who was confident he had found the next hot band in Hongdae. But I do remember that feeling of curiosity, walking past the front door and seeing cheap posters plastered on and around the door, hearing the clanging and noise bubbling up from below.
Badabie was located by the bridge over the train tracks (well, the former train tracks now), in a quiet part of Donggyo-dong. Although the gentrification and coffee-ification of Hongdae has now spread pretty much all the way to Shinchon, back in 2004 Badabi’s location was a real dead zone, and it was to overlook. It is not the nicest venue in town or the biggest, but over the years a lot of great bands passed through there.
Sadly, though, Badabie’s owner was recently diagnosed with some kind of brain tumor and needed some expensive surgery — not the sort of thing a Hongdae club owner usually budgets for. The surgery appears to have gone well, but now there are a lot of bills to pay, not to mention having to deal with the continual rent hikes of Hongdae these days (I think he hasn’t paid his rent in quite a few months).
So in a great show of solidarity, 137 indie bands and eight clubs are getting together for 10 days of shows to help out Badabie, in a series called “Badabie Will Never Die“. Most of the top indie bands in Korea will be playing, often in venues much smaller than you would ordinarily find them, so it is a great chance to catch a lot of music … not to mention help out a good guy and Hongdae institution.
Tickets go on sale Sept. 8 and cost 20,000 won (I don’t know if that’s per show, per day, or what exactly… but I’m trying to find out).
Fri., Sept. 16
Badabie – 7pm Flat Out, Electric Eel, Bamseom Pirates, 99 Anger, National Pigeon Unity, Ankle Attack, Apollo 18 C Cloud – 7pm
Becks And Josh, Seokjoon, Green Face, The Finn, The Freaks, Nabimat, Rubin
Sat., Sept. 17
C Cloud – 4pm
Jang Folk, Hado, Timirho, Beautiful Days, 9 and the Numbers C Cloud – 7pm Line 9 Interchange, Kim Mok-in, Jeff Park, Victor View, Sogyumo Acacia Band, 3rd Line Butterfly
Sun., Sept. 18
Yri Cafe – 5pm Yang Chang-geun, Solsolbuneun Bombaram, Hajji and Seoul Seagull, Sohee, Manggakhwa AOR – 6pm Swimming Doll, Murmur’s Loom, Tenderlign, The Quip, Daydream, Vidulgi Ooyoo
Tues., Sept. 20
Rolling Hall – 7pm
Midnight Smoking Drive, Oh Ji-eun, Joaseohaneun Band, Kafka, Huckleberry Finn, Telepathy, Gate Flowers Badabie – 8pm
Hawaii, Modeun Gayageum Jeong Mina, Hi Mr. Memory, Jang Jaein
Wed., Sept. 21
Club Ta – 7pm
Black Bag, YNot, Kim Master, Choi Go Eun, Que Bosta, Jokkareul Rose, Chang Kiha and the Faces Badabie – 7:30pm
Kim Sujin, Surisurimahasuri, Mujeungryeok Sonyeon, Yozoh, Uju Hippy, Son Ji-yeon
Thurs., Sept. 22
Badabie – 7pm
Devil E So Marco, Baekja, Nangman Yurang Akdan, Jo Taejoon, Big Baby Driver, Selli Selli Sellinneu, Jeong Mina and Haegeum Yogiga – 7pm
Dorin, Namu Band, Hoegidong Danpeonseon, Anakin Project, Sai, Sato Yukie, Taehiyeon
Fri., Sept 23
Badabie – 7:30pm Number Nine, Javo Island, Siberian Husky, The Moon, Tacapi, Ally Spears C Cloud – 7pm
Raccoon, Shin Jae Jin, Scarfish, Neutbom, Oh Soyoung, Lee Janghyuk
Sun., Sept. 25
Club Auteur – 4pm
Unique Shadow, Citi M, DK, Soul, Lee Han-choul Club Auteur – 7pm Seo Yeong-do Band, Ha Hyeon-yong Band, Renata Suicide, Jae, New York Fish Badabie – 6pm
Dringe Augh, Desert Dolphin, Ironic Hue, Brocolli You Too, and more Yogiga – 6pm
Slow Baby, FE, Guten Birds, Pavlov, The United 93, No Control, Pigbit5
You can learn more about the shows at Badabie’s website. And if you understand Korean, there is this video to explain more:
