So I Moved to Korea...

Interview I did with cool guy super-producer diplo

Sat, 08 Dec 2012 12:50:17 +0900

Interview I did with cool guy super-producer diplo: check it!

45 McDonald’s Items Not Available In The U.S. That Should Be

Fri, 07 Dec 2012 00:40:53 +0900

45 McDonald’s Items Not Available In The U.S. That Should Be: Unsurprisingly, Japan is well...

So, this is going to be really awkward. But i just wanted to tell you that, regarding the topic of the law which states that any person who insults the king will get arrested in Thailand, I don't think the King agree with it. He pretty much said so in a speech he gave six years ago. But he doesn't have the power to change it, he just pardons them afterwards. And really, I'm Thai, and I don't like the King because I was forced. I like him because he's done A LOT of great things for this country

Fri, 07 Dec 2012 00:38:52 +0900

Hey, Thanks for the message. It’s nice to hear from some different perspectives every once in...

man brings virtual girlfriend to a wedding. his own wedding.

Tue, 27 Nov 2012 00:57:56 +0900

man brings virtual girlfriend to a wedding. his own wedding.

Singapore ranks as most unemotional country in the world. Korea not far behind

Fri, 23 Nov 2012 12:17:59 +0900

Singapore ranks as most unemotional country in the world. Korea not far behind: Korea is the 21st...

Nash Ang's Pyongyang Adventure

Mon, 19 Nov 2012 10:46:00 +0900

Nash Ang's Pyongyang Adventure: Lengthy article I wrote about Nash Ang’s bizarre experience at...

After an exhausting two-year campaign, the Obama’s have...

Thu, 08 Nov 2012 11:24:00 +0900

After an exhausting two-year campaign, the Obama’s have taken a much needed vacation. Here they are post reelection, looking regal on Japan’s highly respected Take2.

That’s right people, not only does ~~tiny racist Japanese~~ Obama possess oratory/political magic, but he can do actual magic too. Let’s hope he can use it in his second term to get past the gridlock in congress.

Or, at very least, turn Karl Rove into a rabbit.

the rabbit must be burned.

Spirits are running pretty high right now in Asia.

Thu, 08 Nov 2012 11:06:00 +0900

Spirits are running pretty high right now in Asia.

Yamagata Tweakster is disco magic. Generally seen performing in...

Sat, 03 Nov 2012 12:21:00 +0900

Yamagata Tweakster is disco magic.

Generally seen performing in rhinestone suits, with a troupe of amorous back-up dancers to canned background music, Yamagata is one of the most ridiculous and enjoyable acts in Seoul.

A few weeks ago I got the chance to see him perform for the Zandari festa (a SXSW-style two-day shindig in Hongdae), and I don’t think I’ve ever danced so hard at a live show. Best of all was when, during his final song, he ran out of the venue (headphone mic still attached) singing the chorus as the entire crowd followed him down the street. While the show’s audience jogged past confused pedestrians (all the while chanting in unison), Yamagata Tweakster was forever cemented in my mind as a rock god.

Check out the above video for “paejanbyoung cheolmo meonji ssayeo gazigo ilsa hootoe.”

Halloween in Seoul was a curious site. While most foreigners...

Tue, 30 Oct 2012 20:13:00 +0900

Halloween in Seoul was a curious site.

While most foreigners went all-out, Koreans (who, unlike Japan, have no accepted costume-wearing subculture) favored more a cute ears/headband approach. Korean men overwhelmingly wore masks or painted blood suggestively onto the corner of their mouths. Girls dressed as sexy cats, policewomen, nurses; or simply as Halloween mascots (complete with black dress, orange accents, and a halloween themed headband).

Of course, I wasn’t much better. Though I dressed up as The Fresh Prince (at least in theory), I ended up looking more like MC Miker.

Better luck next year…

For Koreans, hiking is serious business. The trekking poles,...

Mon, 29 Oct 2012 20:45:00 +0900

For Koreans, hiking is serious business.

The trekking poles, the base-layers, the hiking boots with Nylon injection-molded arch shanks (that give you solid arch support and a natural forefoot flex!); their love of hiking paraphernalia is downright fetishistic.

Yesterday, I drove to Bukhan Mountain on the outskirts of Seoul to check out the autumn leaves and was amazed by the dedication people had to looking ‘the part’. Considering the locale however, maybe I shouldn’t have been.

While Koreans don’t have the same cultural obsession with autumn foliage as the Japanese, the mountain, with its dazzling collection of trails, was still pretty packed w/ walkers—the majority of whom were 60+.

Check out my photos of peak season (above) and bask in its multicolored brilliance.

This weekend, my neighborhood (Hongdae) was overtaken by not...

Sun, 21 Oct 2012 18:10:00 +0900

This weekend, my neighborhood (Hongdae) was overtaken by not one, but two music festivals.

While, I tend to always be a bit skeptical when it comes to Korean “alternative” music—kind of a guilty until proven innocent thing—I was totally blown away by the local talent on display.

Headlining was one of my Korean favorites, Seoul’s “위댄스” (Wedance in English).

Not only do Wedance rock (in a Yeah Yeah Yeahs meets Talking Heads kind of way), but true to the name of the band, the goup’s front-woman has some of the best moves in the game.

Here’s a video for 준비됐나 from last night’s show. Even with some obvious technical difficulties at the end, they kill it.

The Great Price Comparison: Korea vs. Japan

Fri, 19 Oct 2012 15:42:00 +0900

During the last 18 months, I’ve lived in both Seoul, South Korea and Osaka, Japan. I’ve...

Ya’ll like murals? Hongik University, Seoul.

Tue, 16 Oct 2012 17:43:00 +0900

Ya’ll like murals?

Hongik University, Seoul.

If there’s one thing the Japanese hate, it’s being a...

Tue, 16 Oct 2012 11:19:00 +0900

If there’s one thing the Japanese hate, it’s being a bother. Relying on others for charity, inconveniencing one’s family, (or even worse, having an outsider look you after you) in your old age, all are inconceivable.

So what happens when 21% of the population becomes over 65 (some 25 million seniors), making Japan the oldest country in the world?

Well, robots obviously.

The video above is of Paro, a therapy robot. Designed after a Harp Seal pup, Paro responds to his name (or can learn new names), has temperature controls to seem more lifelike, and loves to be touched.

Apparantly, this really helps, having a similar effect for the elderly as playing with a puppy or a small child.

Of course it isn’t only therapy that robots provide in Japan, more essential services can be rendered as well. There are bathing robots, feeding robots, and even robot legs that when placed over the legs of a senior provide a boost to inefficient-walkers.

Now, you’re probably thinking to yourself ‘that’s pretty messed up’, and I can definitely see your point. There is something disturbing about the thought of robots looking after our nanas and papas.

But when a population gets so old, and due to xenophobic immigration laws, outside help is not permitted (In response to the growing care-crisis in Japan, The Japanese government allowed only 20 extra Filipino workers to enter the country last year), the solution must be found in technology.

In the distant past this might have led to ”Ubasute”. Ubasute (literally: granny disposal) was the practice of carrying an elderly relative to a mountain, and leaving them there to die, either by dehydration, starvation, or exposure. The practice was allegedly most common during times of drought and famine, and was sometimes mandated by feudal officials.

It was never widely practiced, and indeed, there is some debate whether ever happened at all, but there is no question it has left its mark on Japanese folklore.

In one Buddhist allegory, a son carries his mother up a mountain on his back. During the journey, she stretches out her arms, catching the twigs and scattering them in their wake, so that her son will be able to find the way home.

A poem commemorates the story:

In the depths of the mountains,

Who was it for the aged mother snapped

One twig after another?

Heedless of herself

She did so For the sake of her son

Suddenly the thought of my grandmother being assisted by a 6 foot, break-dancing pandabot seems surprisngly humane.

high speed filmmaking returns to seoul

Tue, 09 Oct 2012 23:39:00 +0900

high speed filmmaking returns to seoul: I wrote an article about a really cool film festival...

Fall approaching. Hongdae still crazy.

Sat, 06 Oct 2012 15:57:00 +0900

Fall approaching.

Hongdae still crazy.

Sometimes, when you live in Korea, you have to do things you...

Sat, 06 Oct 2012 15:14:00 +0900

Sometimes, when you live in Korea, you have to do things you don’t like.

For me it happened two nights ago, when—strictly, for purposes of documentation-I went to see PSY in concert.

For those who have been living under a rock for the past four months, PSY is the chubby, horse-dancing singer behind Gangnam Style, the most watched youtube video of all time with 360,000,000 views.

In order to celebrate his status as the biggest singer in the world, the Korean government organized a free outdoor concert at Seoul City Hall on Thursday Oct, 4th. Naturally, I was there with my camera and several cans of Hite.

Now, I’ve marched at the G20 protests (also for purposes of documentation), the Gay Pride parade in Toronto, the Otaku parade in Osaka, and a whole range of big music festivals, but nothing came close to the electricity of this particular crowd.

All in all, nearly 100,000 people that showed up for the two hour set.

Here are my observations:

1. Psy is a bonafied national hero in Korea. In the past few months, Psy has risen to heights of international success the likes of which an Asian entertainer has never before seen. This has made him a very popular man in Korea. While, he has been making music for over 12 years, thanks to Gangnam Style, Psy exists in a position of rarified air. People of all ages and economic backgrounds came out to see him during the festival, and each of them seemed truly proud of the self-described “clown.”

Which brings me to my next point…

2. Lots of old people came, and they were super aggressive: This probably deserves a post of its own, but yeah, the elderly in Korea are terrifying. While anyone who has lived in Korea knows all about Ajuma (married ladies 50 and older who follow no one’s rule but their own), the violence of elderly Koreans never really sunk in for me until Thursday. While most people use finesse when trying to move through a massive crowd, Ajuma and their male counterpart Ajushi, simple bulled their way through the dense, sardine can that was city hall. A few times, I almost fell over as a 5 foot tank of a granny pushed by my legs.

In a country, where respect for elders is paramount however, I just took it like everybody else.

3. Psy’s music is really, really bad: As Carles wrote on his recent rant about the Death of Indie, Psy is nothing more than a glorified meme. And, the thing about meme’s is, “they are interesting to watch, cover, ‘think piece’ about, and gawk at, but at the end of the day, the resonate more for being an active internet participants than they do for the alleged ‘art/commerce’ that they are promoting.”

This pretty much covers my feelings about Psy’s music. Although it is undeniably fun and the videos he makes are amazing (but don’t those things describe all of K-pop?), there isn’t much ‘there’ to really enjoy musically.

Over the course of his two hour set, I heard the national anthem, some traditional Korean folk songs, and a variety of “hits” spanning his entire career. Unfortunately, none of them were really satisfying as rap, and none of them delivered the kind of senses-shattering, hands-in-the-air euphoria that’s the defining marker of great pop. In short, minus Gangnam Style, Psy’s music sounded like cheesy, dated, throwaway Black Eyed Peas. Almost show-tunesy at times (reminding me of another awful music listening experience I’ve had in my 20s, when I was forced to sit through the musical Priscilla Queen of the Damned in theatre).

Not once could I pick out a real instrument, or hear anything unexpected in a song. There were no special guests, I was too far to really make out the dancing, and he was surprisingly long-winded with his between-song banter. Put all this together, and you get a pretty weak concert experience.

Just another dose of vacuous, superannuated, drivel from far East of the border.

Imagine listening to this without the video and you’ll get my point. Its fun to cheer for K-pop to succeed to in America, and the videos are always great, but that doesn’t mean that the music is always good. Or even bearable.

Sometimes it just sounds like Psy.

Chalk this up as another triumph for Korean indie rock. Although...

Mon, 24 Sep 2012 00:38:00 +0900

Chalk this up as another triumph for Korean indie rock.

Although I hadn’t heard of the band before today, it seems my roommate is good friends with them. Such good friends in fact, that apparently, the singer gave him our microwave.

So there you go, my microwave is a source of hipster credibility.

Props to Yuki H for the find.

Artist’s rendition of what this blog’s author’s microwave might look like.

gun battle erupts over "gangnam style" dance competition

Sat, 22 Sep 2012 20:00:20 +0900

gun battle erupts over "gangnam style" dance competition: coming apocolypse trots ever closer.