[Album Review] The groove’s still the thing for Paul Simon

Paul Simon　“Stranger to Stranger” 　(Concord)　No ’60s folkie has written more great music for dancing than Paul Simon, and at 74 he still wants us to feel the beat. “Stranger to Stranger” showcases Rhymin’ Paul’s polyrhythms in new, exotic combinations by employing custom-made instruments with microtonal tunings created by 20th century composer and theorist Harry Partch.　It sounds better than that sounds. Along with Partch’s instruments, Simon uses doorbells, clapping, Italian EDM, Flamenco and A

PerformanceJune 3, 2016

EXID tops iTunes in Asian countries

K-pop girl group EXID’s first full-length studio album “Street,” released on Wednesday, has slayed charts at home and abroad.　Its lead song “L.I.E” topped domestic music charts Mnet, Genie, Bugs, Olleh Music and Soribada. A still from the music video of “L.I.E,” the lead song of EXID’s first studio album “Street” (Banana Culture)　The album was also released on iTunes on Tuesday and garnered attention in Asia. In Hong Kong, the album topped the K-pop albums chart and the lead song also topped the

PerformanceJune 3, 2016

Make this delicious strawberry sauce

One of my long-standing problems in the kitchen is ambition versus execution.That dilemma always comes up during strawberry season.Strawberries are such a fleeting crop. And so, I never pass up an opportunity to bring home quarts and buckets and flats of berries.I try to put up jars of strawberry jam; regular, low sugar and no sugar. I try to make batches of old-fashioned strawberry preserves, where the berries are suspended in sauce. The preserves are so beautiful and make great holiday gifts.

FoodJune 3, 2016

High-end mocha, aged cold-brewed coffee at new roaster-cafe

Coffee M Works, a roaster-cafe that opened in Cheongdam-dong this April, merges a hip, snap-worthy interior with solid, artisanal brews.Helmed by head roaster and CEO Moon Jong-chul, the 50-seat, neo-industrial hangout serves up coffee that reflects its owner’s penchant for fragrant brews.   Head roaster and CEO Moon Jong-chul focuses on pour-over coffee, cold-brewed coffee and espresso-based drinks at his new roaster-cafe. (Lee Sang-sub/The Korea Herald)The shop’s cold-brewed coffee is crafted

FoodJune 3, 2016

[Travel Bits] Round up of travel news from around the world

Busan Sea FestivalThe annual Busan Sea Festival is gearing up for its 21st year, kicking off this year’s weeklong festivities on Aug. 1. The festival was launched 20 years ago in an effort to promote the harbor city of Busan as a port-side tourist destination and was Korea’s first general ocean festival. However, now the event has grown to be one of the city’s biggest festivals, offering visitors of all ages the opportunity to view and experience various cultural programs and performances. The f

TravelJune 3, 2016

[Around the hotels] Round up of hotel events and news

Beat the summer heat at Sheraton Grande WalkerhillSheraton Grande Walkerhill presents its seasonal bingsu promotion “Frozen Sweet” at the lobby lounge The Pavilion until Sept. 11.The promotion offers a selection of bingsu, including the hotel’s signature Milk Patbingsu with red bean paste and organic condensed milk, and Konggaru Bingsu with bean powder. Visitors can select fruit toppings from among apple mangos or blueberries.All the bingsu items use smooth and sweet iced-milk for well-balanced

TravelJune 3, 2016

Beyond Cannery Row: Exploring Monterey, without the crowds

MONTEREY, California -- “So imagine this filled with tables and people, there’s mariachi music from the stage, the wine is flowing,” explained Michael D. Green, a park ranger and enthusiastic tour guide, waving his arm across the flower-filled Memory Garden in the courtyard behind California’s first Custom House.　Green is describing “La Merienda,” the annual Monterey History and Art Association event that re-creates a fiesta from the romantic pre-Gold Rush era, when California belonged to Mexico

TravelJune 3, 2016

[Box Office] Latest movie releases

The Handmaiden(Korea)Opened June 1Thriller, Drama. Directed by Park Chan-wookHorror Stories III(Korea)Opened June 1 Horror. Directed by Min Kyu-dong, Kim Gok, Kim Sun, Baek Seung-binIn a futuristic universe, a girl arrives on a planet ruled by machines and begins to tell an omnibus story of horror-filled experiences involving human beings (Lim Seul-ong, Park Jung-min, Kyung Soo-jin) and why she had to escape.Me Before You(U.S.)Opened June 1Romance, Drama. Directed by Thea SharrockA small town En

FilmJune 3, 2016

Absurd ‘Lobster’ resonates despite its weirdness

In his movies, Greek writer-director Yorgos Lanthimos sets up surreal, outlandish premises and then pulls you inside, so the nonsensical takes on weighty, emotional import. In 2007’s Oscar-nominated “Dogtooth,” the lives of the members of a screwed-up family served as an exploration of misbegotten parenting and the perils of strict idealism. In 2011’s “Alps,” a group of eccentrics hired themselves out to people mourning the recent death of a loved one, examining the ways in which we all sometime

FilmJune 3, 2016

‘Korea, a culture of desires’: Le Clezio

According to Nobel laureate Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio, it is significant that the Korean word for “desire” -- “baram” -- is also a homonym of the word for “wind.” 　“Like the wind, desire is rough, intense and sudden, but it also provides useful inspiration. Isn’t this what all literature attempts to show?” posed the French-Mauritian writer and Nobel laureate at a lecture titled “Korea, a Culture of Desires” in Seoul on Wednesday. 　“Literature has traditionally depicted diverse forms of desire

BooksJune 2, 2016

EXO to drop new album ‘EX’ACT’ next week

Boy band EXO will release a new album titled “EX’ACT,” featuring two contrasting lead singles, next week, its agency said Thursday.“Monster” is a dance track noted for its nose-smashing percussion. It is produced by Kenzie and LDN Noise and has straightforward lyrics about a man frustrated with the end of a relationship, S.M. Entertainment said.Kim Min-seok, who goes by the stage name Xiumin, of EXO (S.M. Entertainment)“Lucky One,” the other main song, fuses R&B, punk and dance music and explore

PerformanceJune 2, 2016

Live streaming of Park Hae-jin’s Chinese show prep hits 1m views

More than a million people watched the behind-the-scenes footage of Korean actor Park Hae-jin’s appearance on a Chinese entertainment show, his publicist said Thursday.Park’s every word and gesture was broadcast live on the Chinese social media website Weibo in the run-up to the pre-recorded session of “Jing’s Talk Show” last Friday, HNS HQ said.The video racked up 1.34 million views as of Tuesday, with the episode to air on Chongqing TV on June 16. Park Hae-jin appears on Chinese entertainment

PeopleJune 2, 2016

Korean culture under spotlight during K-Culture Week in France

A variety of events that highlight Korean traditional and contemporary culture, ranging from traditional dance to K-pop, are taking place this month in France.　“K-Culture Week,” from June 1-7, was designated by the Korean and French governments. Its highlights include dance performances, exhibitions, food events and a literature event.  Dancers perform at the biennial French dance competition Danse Elargie. (2015-16 Korea-France Year)　It seeks to boost the ongoing two-year-long series of cultura

CultureJune 2, 2016

Proust‘s personal archives sell at auction for $1.3m

PARIS (AFP) - Intimate letters, personal photographs and rare manuscripts that once belonged to French writer Marcel Proust have sold at auction for 1.2 million euros ($1.3 million).The sale at Sotheby‘s in Paris on Tuesday far exceeded expert estimates for the collection of 520,000 to 740,000 euros. The trove of about 120 documents was sold by the writer’s 41-year-old great-grand-niece Patricia Mante-Proust and included a hand-corrected proof of one of Proust’s well-known works.The collection a

CultureJune 2, 2016