[Herald Review] Big Bang kicks off world tour with a nod to Seoul fans

“B, to the I, to the?” “Bang! Bang!”YG Entertainment’s iconic boy group Big Bang lit up the Olympic Gymnastics Arena at Seoul Olympic Park on Sunday, the second day of the Seoul concert that kicks off their long-awaited group comeback. The 13,000 seats were packed strong with VIPs (as Big Bang’s fans are called) as the five members dominated the stage, freely moving around onstage and relocating ramps to interact with the audience. “I’m not as nervous as I was yesterday,” rapper T.O.P said, refe

April 27, 2015

Lim Kim keeps ‘Simple Mind’ in third EP

In her third EP, Lim Kim has grown up, and learned to approach life with a “Simple Mind.” “It’s an album about looking at things as simply as possible,” Kim said at a press showcase at Lezhin Comics V-Hall in Mapo-gu, Seoul on Monday.Newly blonde and dressed in a studded black leather jacket, Kim sang three songs from the seven-track album ― the playful and daring “Awoo,” which was prereleased on April 22, the addictive title track “Love Game,” and the poetic “Barama,” originally performed with

April 27, 2015

[Up & Coming] Art meets technology

Up & Coming is a series of interviews with emerging artists in various fields of arts and entertainment. ― Ed. Art has no boundaries ― especially when it comes to digital media art.Young media artist Nam Hye-yeon describes her work as a “true collaborative art form.”It requires the skills and talents of many people from diverse fields ranging from computer science and engineering to business and art to create something unimaginable, yet with a social meaning that can help break down social barri

April 26, 2015

Summer fests to burst K-pop bubble

Young K-pop boy and girl groups may take center stage in Korea’s music industry, but the Korea Creative Content Agency is looking to expand K-pop’s scope by promoting a number of emerging small-label artists to the world.The state-run content agency will host the “K-pop Night Out” at music events in Canada, Singapore and Cannes, France.“We hope to introduce global audiences to a wider variety of Korean music,” Song Sung-gak, president of KOCCA, said at a recent press conference.“We also aim to p

April 26, 2015

Eyelike: Brian Wilson, Calexico, Cama Incendiada

Brian Wilson is back with evocative albumBrian Wilson“No Pier Pressure”(Capitol)Brian Wilson‘s “No Pier Pressure” offers ample reason to celebrate the extended solo career that has followed his Beach Boys’ journey. 　 His 11th solo studio offering opens with “This Beautiful Day,” a short track that captures all of Wilson‘s yearning and desire in the simplest, most direct way, offset by lovely harmonies and some fine trumpet work. 　 Of course, the entire CD does not reach that level, and some of t

April 24, 2015

Barbed wires become canvas for art

PAJU, Gyeonggi Province ― Just a few kilometers south of the Demilitarized Zone runs a long line of barbed wire fences, separating the rice fields in the south and no-man’s land in the north. Imjingang River also crosses the world’s most fortified border between South and North Korea. It is a tense and hostile area, with a man shot to death trying to cross to the Nouth in September 2013. In this area, a white signpost reads “Hello” in Korean on both sides. Looking alien in its surroundings, the

April 23, 2015

Namolla Family bringing more than just laughter with ‘Hot Show 2’

The saying “laughter is the best medicine” may just be an old adage to some, but to entertainers Kim Kyoung-wook, Kim Tae-hwan and Ko Jang-whan of comedy trio Namolla Family, it’s a line that sums up their philosophy of life. In fact, they go even further to say that “a world without laughter is a world not worth living.”Following the success of “Namolla Family Hot Show 1,” a live variety show held in the trendy performance hot spot of Seoul’s Daehangno last year, the comedians are back with the

April 23, 2015

Soprano Hong Hei-kyung to return to local opera stage

Having enjoyed more than three decades at the top of the international opera scene, New York Metropolitan Opera veteran and local soprano icon Hong Hei-kyung has her eyes set on Mozart, rather than retirement. After debuting with Mozart’s “The Clemency of Titus” at the Met in 1984, Hong is making her return to the Korean operatic stage for the first time in a decade, tackling another Mozart classic, “The Marriage of Figaro,” as the Countess Rosina Almaviva. “Unlike performing a recital, an opera

April 21, 2015

[Herald Interview] U.K. piano prodigy Grosvenor to hold first concert in Korea

Benjamin Grosvenor is one of the rising stars in today’s international piano scene, but his playing is not like that of any of his contemporary competitors. Called by some the “Golden Age” pianist for his admiration of the 20th-century piano greats, the British musician has publicly displayed his disillusionment with how today’s piano virtuosi play. Benjamin Grosvenor (Decca/Sophie Wright)“The wonderful thing about that (Golden Age) era of pianists is their individuality,” Grosvenor, 22, told Th

April 21, 2015

Ivan Fischer conducts RCO in homage to Beethoven

Pianist-turned-renowned conductor Ivan Fischer has retaken the helm of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam, returning to Seoul to showcase his four-day homage to the symphonies of Ludwig van Beethoven. Noted as one of the most prominent Hungarian conductors of his generation, Fischer is guest conducting the historic RCO, now in its 127th year, for four consecutive nights in Seoul starting Monday at the Seoul Arts Center.  Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. (Simon Van Boxtel/Vincero)“It’s bee

April 20, 2015

Jo to make West End debut

Musical actor Jo Sang-woong has been cast for the part of Thuy in the West End musical “Miss Saigon.”According to Cameron Mackintosh, the production company behind the musical’s London revival, Jo will be replacing Korean actor Hong Kwang-ho for the part starting May 11. He will be a member of the new cast for the production’s second year at the Prince Edward Theatre in West End. Jo Sang-woong. (Project H)“Miss Saigon” is one of the world’s most successful musicals. It is an adaptation of Puccin

April 20, 2015

With or without Jobs, Mark Rothko strikes a chord with Koreans

At the Mark Rothko retrospective currently underway in Seoul, Steve Jobs shares the spotlight with the American abstract painter. The introduction wall to the exhibition displays a photo of Rothko (1903-1970) alongside that of the Apple founder (1955-2011), each supplemented by quotes apparently selected to serve a purpose ― linking the spiritual worlds of the two whose life had never crossed. In advertisements and leaflets, Rothko’s paintings are billed as “the paintings that Steve Jobs loved.”

April 19, 2015

[Weekender] LP designer puts new spin on analog music

The vinyl market in South Korea died out long ago with the emergence of compact discs in the mid-1980s and digital music in the 1990s. Now, music listeners can simply download any song in 10 seconds for a dollar. Still, avid LP record collectors can find jazz greats such as Us3, Herbie Hancock and The John Scofield Band with the phrases “Printed in Korea.” They are designed by a little-known local firm called Khiov Music, headed by an LP addict, Sur Bo-ik, 41.“I felt sad that many good albums ha

April 17, 2015

Eyelike: Reba McEntire, Randy Bachman, Halestorm

Reba McEntire shines on ‘Love Somebody’Reba McEntire“Love Somebody” (Starstruck/Nash Icon/Big Machine)“Love Somebody” is Reba McEntire’s best album of the 21st century because it draws on her strengths: That is, subtly and powerfully interpreting substantial story songs about adult relationships set to contemporary country music.At 60, the performer remains a remarkable vocalist, capable of stunning ferocity and dramatic nuance. She’s one of the great traditional country singers of her time, but

April 17, 2015

Venice features emerging Korean artists

The 56th Venice Biennale will begin its seven-month run next month, bringing some of the world’s greatest artists and emerging names to the floating city. More than ever before, this year’s biennale will see a large number of Korean artists displaying their works. In the main exhibition, to be curated by Nigerian biennale director Okwui Enwezor, works by three emerging Korean artists will be included ― the first Korean representation in six years.  Artist Moon Kyung-won (left) and Jeon Joon-ho.

April 15, 2015

Lim Hun-joung’s new challenge

“Things that do not change are dead.” Conductor Lim Hun-joung said this in passing during a rehearsal last Friday, but it may well be a line that best summarizes his life as a musician and approach to music. The celebrated maestro is known for trying rigorous, forward-looking repertories, including a complete cycle of Mahler symphonies back in 1999, an unprecedented achievement at that time. Now at 61, Lim, who has been trained in Western music composition and conducted orchestras for nearly thr

April 13, 2015