Scrawls & Bawls

This blog has moved...

2010-11-25T06:03:00.001Z

You can read regular posts from me at the new Scrawls and Bawls:

http://fbermingham.wordpress.com/

Please update your browsers accordingly!

IMDB 250 Challenge: #41: Taxi Driver

2010-11-13T00:07:00.004Z

Made: 1976

Starring: Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd

Director: Martin Scorsese

My Thoughts

Generally, watching a film once is enough for me; particularly in a short space of time. Of course, there are movies I've habitually watched at Christmas and seen a dozen times, but I prefer to watch something new, given the choice. With Taxi Driver, though, as soon as I watched it, I felt I could easily have pressed play again and sat right through another play. It's a subtle movie in many ways. It moves slowly and affords itself plenty of silences. There's plenty to think about. There are some hugely impactual scenes, but it's more moving as a piece (ironically, considering it has one of the most quoted lines of any movie).

When watching, I kept thinking back to a biography I read years ago of Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma Bomber. McVeigh had been a decorated soldier in the Gulf War #1. He struggled to readjust to society's trivialities afterwards and having been discarded by his government, soon became scornful and embittered towards all aspects of the federal state. We all know what happened to him. Travis (De Niro's character), having served in the Marine Corps, battles with what he perceives to be daily injustices. He bemoans the downward spiral of morality engulfing NYC and eventually, takes matters into his own hands. There are certainly parallels and I think Scorsese (and of course, writer Paul Schrader) have framed that frustration astutely. They can't have been short of research subjects in the fallout of the Vietnam War.

I was genuinely surprised by the ending. I won't spoil it, but I was certain it would conclude differently. For me, it made the movie. Up until that point I thought it was a good movie. The ending really seals it's status as a great one.

I wondered about the main character's insomnia. It's something I think about quite a bit, being a mild sufferer. Was he a bit tapped beforehand, or was it the lack of sleep that sent him over the age? It has a great track record for ruining people; but equally, some of the most revered creative minds have been sufferers (Proust, Van Gogh, Napoleon, Monroe, Edison, Dickens, B. Franklin).

The War on Drugs - Future Weather EP

2010-11-09T03:26:00.009Z

The War on Drugs’ excellent debut album, Wagonwheel Blues (2008), was a heady helping of roots rock that drew comparisons with Dylan, Springsteen and The Band. Since then, though, their success has been arguably eclipsed by that of one of their number. Lead guitarist Kurt Vile elaborated on the dusty Americana he’d been honing on his day job with the lo-fi, well received Childish Prodigy (2008).

A full length follow up to Wagonwheel Blues has been mooted for some time, but the fact that a lot of the material earmarked for it has wound up on Future Weather doesn’t augur well for the future endeavours of The War on Drugs, at least not in their current guise. In Vile and the mercurial Morrissey to his Marr Adam Granduciel, they have two huge talents jostling for primacy and on Future Weather, it seems that the latter has won out. Vile is a notable absentee and the biggest compliment I can pay this EP is that his presence isn’t missed at all.

The War on Drugs are at their best when embellishing on a classic template. Case in point: first track proper and set highlight ‘Baby Missiles’. Rhythmically and stylistically, it’s archetypal Boss. When you expect to hear a harmonica, there’s a harmonica. Where you imagine there might be a “whoop”, well, that’s exactly what you find. But fed through stratums and substratums of fuzz, reverb and organ it acquires a whole new identity. Strangely enough, it sounds fresh.

Similarly, ‘Comin’ Through’ is a sublime slice of textured mid-70s blues rock, reminiscent of that era’s Fleetwood Mac. It’s a thread darned throughout the EP, particularly on Brothers. The complexity of the pieces, however, and the immersive nature of the sound, belies such comparison, careering instead toward the most introspective, stoned moments of Urban Hymns (‘The History of Plastic’). And so it continues. The War on Drugs recall at one point or another, a dozen or more artists; but none tell the full story. Just when you you’re about to pin the tail on the donkey, it kicks you in the face.

Lyrically, there are some clues to Granduciel’s frame of mind at the time of writing. There are themes of loneliness, abandonment and severance. Whether he’s metaphorically mourning the departure of twelve ships (‘Comin’ Through’), wondering where all his mates have gone (‘Brothers’), or contemplating his friend who “rides all alone” (‘Baby Missiles’), it’s hard not to leap to conclusions. If that sounds a tad grim, then forgive me; for the record is anything but. Future Weather is one to get lost in and at times, it’s entirely joyous.

So used, as we are, to being pummeled with outtake, cover version and bootleg filled EPs, the expectancy has been substantially lowered. It’s rare to hear one as fully formed as Future Weather. Sure, they’ve used it as a platform to try new things – they are courting more experimental tangents than ever before – but they haven’t fired them all against the wall and waited to see what’s stuck. It has been arranged precisely, fluidly and coherently. I sincerely hope it isn’t, but if Future Weather is the last we hear from The War on Drugs, then it’s one hell of an epitaph.

Gwangju Sangmu 1-2 Ulsan Horangi-i

2010-11-09T03:23:00.002Z

Gwangju Sangmu Phoenix turned in yet another mediocre performance, as they tasted defeat in their final game of the season. But if truth be told, Sunday's effort was about par for the course on a season that's seen them win only 3 games from 28, scoring a paltry 17 goals and conceding a 43. Both sides came into the encounter with different reasons for needing the points. Ulsan, twice K-League champions, were looking to maintain the good form that has seen them take a place in the Asian Champions League play-off positions. Gwangju, on the other hand, were chasing a victory that would keep them off bottom position in the table; a feat they managed to "achieve" despite losing, with Daegu's inept showing at Chunnam Dragons (2-1) meaning they took this season's wooden spoon.

Gwangju started brightly enough, penning Ulsan back in their own half for the majority of the opening exchanges and their early endeavour was rewarded with the opening goal on only 12 minutes. Cho Yong-Tae rose to meet a cross and knocked it past Korean international goalkeeper Kim Young-Kwang. Gwangju's coach and supporters will have been disappointed that their team's impetus was maintained so briefly. Only 7 minutes later, Ulsan were level. Paraguayan striker Jose Maria Ortigoza (a promising attacker, on loan from Club Sol de America in his homeland and who made his international debut earlier this year), latched onto a forward ball, beat the defender and rifled in a shot from a narrow angle. Kim Jee-Hyuk, in the Gwangju goal, got his gloves, but only enough to parry it into his own net. It was a fortuitous goal, but highlighted the lethal form Ortigoza has been in of late. Second top scorer in the K-League for the season with 17 (as many as the entire Gwangju team have mustered), he finished the league season with 7 goals in his final 6 games.

Proceedings were scrappy up until half time, with neither side wanting to seize the initiative, a pattern that continued into the second period. In the 54th minute, though, Ortigoza pounced again for the goal of the game. Played in by a midfielder he received the ball at the edge of the area, held off a couple of Sangmu defenders, before firing low into the bottom corner of the hapless Kim's goal. At 2-1, it never looked as though Gwangju were going to get back into it. The players looked disinterested and demotivated and Ulsan were happy to knock it around, letting the soldiers chase their shadows. It was a disappointing end to what's ostensibly the club's final K-League season.

The newly formed Gwangju FC launched their website last month(http://www.gwangju-fc.com/ - Korean only) and an official foundation ceremony is mooted for December, at which stage they hope to be accepted into the K-League as the 16th member, competing as of 2011. It has been suggested that they will be allowed special dispensation (as Gangwon were a few years back) to select players from this year's draft to flesh out their squad. They were previously said to be adopting the moniker "Gwangju Rayers" (supposedly because "ray" suggests imagery of light beams - a futuristic image that correlates with the growing city of Gwangju, and of course relates to Gwangju being the City of Light), but this has been put back for review (apparently due to some controversy over a local ray fish delicacy and the propensity of Koreans outside of the province to refer to Jeolla natives in derogatory terms related to the ray fish).

54-year-old Choi Man-Hee has been appointed as head coach and there is optimism that Gwangju will be able to shed the label of "whipping boys". The prospect of a citizen team frees the coach to select the players he wants, not necessarily soldiers. It also creates the possibility of strengthening yearly and not building again from scratch once the players finish their military service. The potential to recruit international players, such as the hugely impressive Ortigoza, could also result in a welcome boost to attendances at the World Cup Stadium.

We will update with further notifications once information becomes available.

IMDB 250 Challenge: #104: Unforgiven

2010-11-07T04:13:00.010Z

Made: 1992

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman

Director: Clint Eastwood

My Thoughts

Watching this made me realize how much America and indeed the world has changed over the past 100 – 150 years; surely more than at any other point in human history. I have been thinking about this quite a bit and the barren footage in Unforgiven made me think more. In 1880, Los Angeles had a population of 11,200: smaller than my home town of Enniskillen. Now it is almost 4 million. Sure, the plains of Nebraska and Wyoming haven't come on as quickly as that, but I still find it quite disconcerting that the population boom in America is so huge (and continuing).

Clint Eastwood has done awfully well, considering his repertoire is so limited. I am not suggesting he is not talented: he has made and starred in some excellent movies. But he seems to play the naval-gazing hard man in almost each one. That said, I found his role in Unforgiven quite moving. His character, Will, struggles to come to terms with the ageing process, realizing he can't do all the things he once could. True to life?

The last movie I saw of Eastwood's was Gran Torino, which I thought was absolute rubbish. This one, however, is superb. It's beautifully shot, travels at a nice pace and has some great characters (reminds me of a McCarthy book/adaptation). One of the best Eastwood movies I've seen.

Gene Hackman is a great and underrated actor. His character, Little Bill, was my favourite. Looking at his filmography (Mississippi Burning, Poseidon Adventure, French Connection, Royal Tenenbaums), it's surprising that his name is not often mentioned amongst the greats. And he played one of the best baddies of all time in Lex Luther.

Clint Eastwood can't shout very loud. I would imagine it's quite frustrating for him. I would place him alongside Phil Mitchell in the inability to shout stakes. I remember feeling very frustrated at Phil's attempts to roar in Eastenders a few years back. There is a downside to having a husky, cowboy's growl.

Cowboys don't eat very much. This is one thing I always wondered about when watching Westerns, I felt it a bit of an anomaly. Surely in such a taxing line of work, they need to eat more than a tin of beans? I know it wouldn't make for a great movie if it was Clint, Morgan and Gene filling their faces for two hours, but an acknowledgement that they need regular nutrition would satisfy me.

Overall, a very impressive movie and one I'm happy to have checked off the list.

IMDB 250 Challenge

2010-11-07T04:03:00.003Z

In the six months I’ve been in Korea, there have been a few very notable changes in my lifestyle. One that disappointed me at first is that I don’t read nearly as much as I did before I came here. I think I’ve read four books in half a year. Before I came here, I was reading three or four each month. My habitual pendulum has swung wildly in favour of film. At first, I felt I would suffer in some way from this; that my mind wouldn’t be challenged as much as it was if I was reading. I guess that’s kind of true.

Well, it doesn’t look as though things are going to change anytime soon. I’m enjoying watching movies more than I ever have and whilst I’m not or never will be a film buff, I feel I’m learning more from them and deriving more benefit. I recently checked out the IMDB Top 250 rated movies out of curiosity, to see how many I’d watched. I got to 89, which I thought was a respectable figure, but when I looked at some of the “classics” I hadn’t seen, I was shocked!

Alien, Taxi Driver, Psycho…

Over the next six months, I will be trying to save a lot of money. I’ve decided to try making up for lost time and watch as many of these films as possible and to write a short blog on each one afterwards. These won’t be reviews, just my immediate thoughts, but perhaps some people will find them interesting. Here is the list, with the ones I’ve seen in bold.

1. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

2. The Godfather (1972)

3. The Godfather: Part II (1974)

4. Inception (2010)

5. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
6. Pulp Fiction (1994)
7. Schindler’s List (1993)

8.12 Angry Men (1957)

9. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)
10. Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back
11. The Dark Knight (2008)
12. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
13. Seven Samurai (1954)

14. Toy Story 3 (2010)

15. Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977)
16. Casablanca (1942)
17. Goodfellas (1990)
18. Fight Club (1999)

19. City of God (2002)

20. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
21. Rear Window (1954)
22. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
23. Psycho (1960)
24. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
25. The Usual Suspects (1995)

26. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

27. The Matrix (1999)
28. Se7en (1995)
29. Memento (2000)

30. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

31. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
32. Sunset Blvd. (1950)

33. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

34. Leon: The Professional (1994)
35. North by Northwest (1959)
36. Forrest Gump (1994)
37. Citizen Kane (1941)

38. Apocalypse Now (1979)

39. American History X (1998)
40. American Beauty (1999)
41. Taxi Driver (1976)

42. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

43. Vertigo (1958)
44. Alien (1979)

45. Saving Private Ryan (1998)

46. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

47. Amélie från Montmartre (2001)

48. WALL·E (2008)

49. The Shining (1980)
50. A Clockwork Orange (1971)

51. Paths of Glory (1957)

52. The Departed (2006)

53. The Pianist (2002)

54. Aliens (1986)
55. Spirited Away (2001)

56. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

57. M (1931)

58. The Lives of Others (2006)

59. Double Indemnity (1944)

60. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

61. Requiem for a Dream (2000)

62. Chinatown (1974)
63. Reservoir Dogs (1992)
64. L.A. Confidential (1997)

65. The Third Man (1949)

66. Das Boot (1981)

67. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

68. City Lights (1931)

69. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

70. Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
71. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
72. The Prestige (2006)

73. Back to the Future (1985)

74. Raging Bull (1980)
75. Life Is Beautiful (1997)
76. Modern Times (1936)

77. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

78. Inglourious Basterds (2009)
79. Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
80. Some Like It Hot (1959)

81. Full Metal Jacket (1987)

82. Amadeus (1984)

83. Downfall (2004)

84. Cinema Paradiso (1988)

85. Braveheart (1995)

86. The Green Mile (1999)
87. Up (2009) 110,055
88. Once Upon a Time in America (1984)

89. Rashomon (1950)

90. All About Eve (1950)

91. The Maltese Falcon (1941)

92. Metropolis (1927)

93. Gran Torino (2008)

94. The Elephant Man (1980)
95. The Great Dictator (1940)

96. Gladiator (2000)

97. The Apartment (1960)

98. Rebecca (1940)

99. Sin City (2005)

100. The Sting (1973)
101. The Great Escape (1963)

102. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade(1989)

103. Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
104. Unforgiven (1992)

105. Bicycle Thieves (1948)

106. Jaws (1975)
107. Batman Begins (2005)
108. Die Hard (1988)
109. Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
110. Oldboy (2003)
111. On the Waterfront (1954)

112. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

113. Blade Runner (1982)
114. Hotel Rwanda (2004)
115. Touch of Evil (1958)
116. The Seventh Seal (1957)

117. No Country for Old Men (2007)

118. Fargo (1996)
119. Princess Mononoke (1997)
120. For a Few Dollars More (1965)

121. Avatar (2009)

122. Heat (1995)
123. The Wizard of Oz (1939)

124. District 9 (2009)

125. Strangers on a Train (1951)
126. Cool Hand Luke (1967)
127. The Sixth Sense (1999)
128. Donnie Darko (2001)
129. High Noon (1952)
130. The Deer Hunter (1978)

131. Snatch. (2000)

132. The General (1926)

133. Notorious (1946)

134. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)

135. The Big Lebowski (1998)

136. Annie Hall (1977)

137. There Will Be Blood (2007)

138. Platoon (1986)
139. Yojimbo (1961)

140. The Manchurian Candidate (1962)

141. Ran (1985)

142. The Lion King (1994)

143. Into the Wild (2007)

144. Ben-Hur (1959)

145. The Big Sleep (1946)

146. Million Dollar Baby (2004)

147. Toy Story (1995)

148. The Wrestler (2008)

149. Witness for the Prosecution (1957)

150. It Happened One Night (1934)

151. Life of Brian (1979)

152. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
153. Wild Strawberries (1957)
154. Finding Nemo (2003)

155. The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

156. Trainspotting (1996)
157. Gone with the Wind (1939)
158. The Terminator (1984)
159. Scarface (1983)
160. Groundhog Day (1993)
161. Stand by Me (1986)
162.The Graduate (1967)
163. The Thing (1982)

164. The Secret in Their Eyes (2009)

165. Amores Perros (2000)

166. Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

167. The Wages of Fear (1953)

168. Gandhi (1982)

169. Grave of the Fireflies (1988)

170. Ratatouille (2007)

171. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998)

172. V for Vendetta (2006)
173. Star Trek (2009)

174. Twelve Monkeys (1995)

175. The Grapes of Wrath (1940)

176. Casino (1995)

177. The Gold Rush (1925)

178. 8½ (1963)

179. Diabolique (1955)

180. Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)

181. The Night of the Hunter (1955)

182. The Princess Bride (1987)

183. The Killing (1956)

184. How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

185. The Incredibles (2004)
186. The Wild Bunch (1969)

187. The Kid (1921)

188. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927)

189. Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)

190. The Exorcist (1973)

191. The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)

192. Kick-Ass (2010)

193. In Bruges (2008)

194. Children of Men (2006)
195. Dial M for Murder (1954)

196. Good Will Hunting (1997)

197. Nights of Cabiria (1957)

198. The Hustler (1961)

199. Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

200. Ed Wood (1994)

201. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)

202. Big Fish (2003)

203. Harvey (1950)

204. Rocky (1976)

205. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

206. King Kong (1933)

207. Sleuth (1972)

208. Let the Right One In (2008)
209. Magnolia (1999)

210. Network (1976)

211. Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004)
212. Mystic River (2003)

213. Stalag 17 (1953)

214. Letters from Iwo Jima (2006)

215. Shadow of a Doubt (1943)

216. Rope (1948)

217. The Battle of Algiers (1966)

218. Brief Encounter (1945)

219. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
220. The African Queen (1951)
221. The 400 Blows (1959)

222. Ikiru (1952)

223. Bonnie and Clyde (1967)

224. Crash (2004/I)

225. Duck Soup (1933)

226. Patton (1970)

227. The Truman Show (1998)

228. Toy Story 2 (1999)

229. Planet of the Apes (1968)
230. My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

231. Manhattan (1979)

232. La strada (1954)

233. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

234. The Conversation (1974)

235. Barry Lyndon (1975)

236. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)

237. Anatomy of a Murder (1959)

238. Roman Holiday (1953)

239. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

240. Monsters, Inc. (2001)

241. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

242. Spartacus (1960)

243. Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
244. Mulholland Dr. (2001)

245. Infernal Affairs (2002)

246. The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)

247. Rain Man (1988)

248. Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)

249. Changeling (2008)

250. Shaun of the Dead (2007)

Viral Videos of the Week Ending November 5

2010-11-04T06:56:00.005Z

Here are the videos spoken about on the Pete Ross M-Town Show this evening on GFN:

Chaplin's Time Traveler

Fainting Goat Kittens

People are Awesome

NSFW A Hunter Shoots A Bear

Take a trip to the DMZ

2010-11-04T06:51:00.007Z

Everybody comes to Korea with a list of things they want to do, see and accomplish as long as their arm. Taking in Asia seems to crop up on most of them, along with learning the language, taking up Taekwondo and, of course, saving money. But anybody with of a passing interest in history (or a slight penchant for voyeurism) is guaranteed to make a trip to the Demilitarized Zone that separates North and South. That it featured so highly on my own list is slightly worrying, but I’m happy to have checked it off and in the process of doing so, I had one of the most sobering, surreal experiences of my life.

There are various trips to choose from, each with their own selling points and packages. I was sold on Adventure Korea’s promise to take me off the beaten track. Rolling through the deserted countryside beyond the civilian control point that precedes the DMZ, I felt reassured that they had kept their side of the bargain, but a slight unease at the eeriness of the surroundings.

The once bustling metropolis of Cheorwan has long since been reduced to a ghost town. Stray machinery peppers the endless rows of rice paddies, conceivably abandoned at the outbreak of war, but more probably by the farmers who must leave the zone before their curfew. It amounts to a whole lot of suspense before we reach the first point of the tour, the Second Tunnel.

One hundred and forty five metres deep and 3.5 kilometres long, the tunnel was intercepted 1.1 kilometres in to South Korean territory in 1975 and had the power to transport 16,000 soldiers an hour under the border. The figure beggars belief. I have to crouch as I make my way down to its base, wondering how long it would’ve taken to carve this into the rock. The guide reveals, to gasps of astonishment, that there is an estimated twenty other tunnels like this yet to be unearthed, but that despite the recent decline in relations, they don’t anticipate an invasion. His words emphasize just how volatile the Korean situation is.

The centerpiece of the tour is a visit to the Cheorwan Observation Centre, situated a mere stone’s throw from the DMZ, with a bird’s eye view of North Korea. Of course, there is scant opportunity to see what life is actually like in the most secluded country on earth, but the little we can see is equal parts fascinating and shocking. On the South Korean side, the farmland is lush, the vegetation rich; a reflection of an age of prosperity. It’s in marked contrast with what we see on the other side.

On the entry point to North Korea, the thriving nature reserve that has been created by default in the DMZ comes to an abrupt halt. Everything living has been flattened, lest it provide camouflage for anyone attempting to escape across the border. There is a North Korean army base visible, looming disturbingly large on a hilltop. The smoke of a fire evidently lit by there soldiers rose towards the sky. Since I’ve been in Korea (actually, since long before it), I have wondered about the North and the peninsula’s situation. Being within such proximity was surreal and if truth be told, thrilling.

Traveling to the DMZ was a worthwhile experience: interesting and enlightening… and, yes, fun. However, it would be advisable to keep your expectations in check. You will not see anything you’re not supposed to, so be realistic… if you manage to do so, you’ll be in for a real treat.

Written for Say Kimchi News

Viral Videos of the Week - Week Ending October 29

2010-10-28T07:50:00.005+01:00

As discussed with Pete Ross on today's radio show, here are the viral videos of the week.

The Rent Is Too Damn High Party's Jimmy McMillan at the NY Governor Debate

HRP-4C Dance 1/2

It Gets Better, Google Employees

Wash Your Balls

Dance Move Fail

Korean Grand Prix Appraisal

2010-10-28T07:45:00.003+01:00

After all the build-up, all the excitement, all the naysaying and all the expectation, the Korean Grand Prix has been and went. Formula 1 has left Yeongam for another year and as the dust begin to settle, it’s becoming a bit clearer what conclusions we can draw from the occasion.

The first thing is the race itself. Rain caused huge problems. The track had blatantly not been tested enough in such conditions and caused difficulties with large amounts of spray coming from the cars, leading to long delays as the track dried up. It also resulted in the first 17 laps being raced behind a pace car and the race being completed amidst a darkening sky and poor visibility. The winner went to the Spanish driver Fernando Alonso, who leapfrogged Mark Webber (who retired early) into first position. But yes, it was exciting. The conditions made for a very unpredictable Grand Prix that is being hailed in the Western media as a “classic”.

The build-up had been mostly negative, with worries over the completion of the track and lack of facilities being to the fore. It was easy to see why at Yeongam on Sunday. The track was finished, but nothing else seemed fit for public consumption. The surrounding area was a building site. Mountains of rubble, piles of scaffolding and huge potholes greeted attendees as they caught an unfortunate first glimpse of Korean hospitality. It was a real shame that they couldn’t get their act together sooner and make the splendid venue the occasion deserved as it offers a tainted view of a country that really is a great place to live.

There was very little race information available at Yeongam. Nor was there anything to eat or drink. We managed to find one Family Mart, in a venue built to host 120,000 people. It’s a ridiculous statement. If they really wish to turn the Korea International Circuit into the “Las Vegas of Asia”, they have a long way to go. Perhaps focusing on the basics and learning to walk before they can run might be a good start, but there were plenty of hungry revelers bussing back to Mokpo, Gwangju and further afield after the race. On a related note, the transport links between the cities were abysmal too. There were shuttle buses leaving from Gwangju every hour in the build up to the race, but only one. One bus from the nearest big city is nothing short of a disgrace.

There were, however, some positives to report. The attendance was much larger than anticipated. Some forecasts had expected less than half the tickets to sell out, however from where we were sat, it looked like there were many more. People were in good spirits and the rain, which could have potentially dampen them, didn’t seem to have much effect at all. The race is finished now and after a while, that’s all people will remember. The Korean Grand Prix has a contract to continue in the area for seven years. This presents a huge opportunity for KAVO and the local and central governments to invest heavily in the infrastructure and transport links that have been universally slated. If they do so, then the Korean people will have a venue and an event to add to all of the other facets of their culture they are deeply proud of.

Written for Gwangju Blog

Korea's grand prix stutters to the start

2010-10-24T14:39:00.006+01:00

Written for Asia Times

GWANGJU - On the eve of the first Korean Grand Prix, organizers will be hoping the exhilaration of a five-way Formula 1 championship battle wrestles the spotlight from what has been a shambolic buildup.

Concerns over the readiness of the track, poor ticket sales, lack of local interest and the reluctance of local sponsors to support the event have all overshadowed the race, which was only rubber-stamped last week.

Organizers Korean Auto Valley Operation (KAVO) have admitted they have "not been well prepared" for the event, but there is some confusion as to why, particularly considering the country'shistory of hosting premier sporting events.

Despite publicly paying lip-service to the solidity of Korea's event, F1 chief executive officer Bernie Ecclestone waited until October 12 to officially give it the green light, amid rumors that circuits in Europe were being readied to step in. The grand prix will now, it seems, go ahead, but a nervous weekend awaits both KAVO and the sport's governing body, the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA).

Ostensibly, the main worry has been the huge delay in completing the Korean International Circuit, located in Yeongam the southwest of the country. Designed by Herman Tilke, it is considered to be one of the most extensive and high-tech racing complexes ever built. Along with the accepted difficulties that come with undertaking such a huge project, workers had to contend with an abnormally long monsoon season, including Typhoon Kompasu, which hit the peninsula in September.

While the weather has certainly caused havoc on the region (it is also being blamed for the current "kimchi crisis") it is doubtful that this alone could lead to the holdups. Yet it is the only concrete excuse being offered.

One alternative theory being proposed is that an attitudinal conflict exists between how Koreans engage in large-scale projects and how the West would prefer to see them completed. There's a prevalent mantra in Korea, particularly among the older and controlling generation, stating: "If we do it, it will work." It's an approach that has seen them through hosting global events in the past, but not without cost.

Case in point: the Seoul Summer Olympic Games, 1988. A leading Canadian peace-time disaster planner, who worked in conjunction with the Korean government from 1985-87, admits being "appalled by the construction practices used to throw up the Olympic venues". Despite being impressed by the speed with which the Koreans completed the venues, he warned that the poor planning processes and the general attitude of senior staff resulted in "inferior products, buildings and institutions".

On paper, it's certainly not a methodology that's compatible with an increasingly safety-conscious FIA; nor is it in keeping with the prestigious image projected. The world is a much smaller place now than 22 years ago and the microscope's focus is all the finer. While the Seoul Olympics are remembered fondly, Korea won't escape lightly where Formula 1 is involved. Success in this one field, Asia Times Online's source suggests, may prove elusive unless they start looking outward and embracing a more globally accepted approach.

The location of the grand prix itself has also been a bone of contention. Yeongam is a small county, some 400 kilometers from Seoul. Its province, Jeollonamdo, is the "breadbasket of Korea", reliant on agriculture and with relatively little other industry. Construction in such a rural area brings its own logistical problems. The immediate vicinity can only accommodate 38,000. With a race capacity of 120,000, a huge percentage will need to find lodgings in nearby Mokpo or Gwangju. If the plan is to build a city around the venue rather than vice versa, then it has yet to begin materializing.

There can be no arguing, however, with the potential an annual grand prix has to invigorate Jeollonamdo, also the country's poorest province. The deal signed with the FIA is for seven years, with the option to extend for an additional five. If all goes according to plan this weekend, KAVO and President Lee Myeong-bak's government will have a chance to ready the infrastructure for 2011. Whether the latter will commit more fully having assessed the benefits of the first grand prix remains to be seen, with local people currently seething at what's been perceived as "another snub for Jeollonamdo".

An agreement to stage a grand prix in the area was first reached between KAVO, the local government and Ecclestone in 2006. Anton Scholz, founder of Korea-Consult and a key figure in the development of the race, has spoken of how it took the central government another three years to formally agree to financially support part of it. Scholz says he "even had to hold a speech in Korean senate in Seoul" and describes how at one point, he "gave a personal presentation to President Lee Myeong-bak", before the Korea Grand Prix was acknowledged as having special significance to the country.

This alleged lack of support has only served to widen the schism between Seoul and the southwest. Moon Ho-sung, a student of Chonnam University in Gwangju, said: "Busan has many factories and Seoul has all the companies. Here we only have farmers. We are simply not valuable to the government. If Formula 1 was coming to one of the more glamorous parts of Korea, Lee Myeong-bak would have supported it straight away."

Should Pyeongchang, in the north of the country, be successful in their bid to host the 2018 Summer Olympic Games, it is envisaged that funding be released at once, as was the case with the football World Cup in 2002. It would create a situation comparable to the one criticized in the United Kingdom press this week by Ecclestone. He accused the British government of "wasting a fortune on the Olympics which will come and go, and be forgotten in a few weeks, when they could have supported Silverstone and made sure the British Grand Prix is there forever".

Seoul has also failed to provide significant public relations for the occasion. The grand prix has flown under the radar across the country and even locally, interest is low. There has been speculation all week as to how many tickets have been sold, with some sources estimating as little as half. Motor sport doesn't have the foothold here that it does in many other parts of the world, despite South Korea being the fifth-largest producer of automobiles in the world. The provincial streets are devoid of "petrol-heads", with mopeds being the vehicle of choice for young motorists.

Park Myeung-seop, a teacher from the outskirts of Gwangju, said there is no interest, simply because "Koreans find Formula One boring". Park also condemned ticket prices, saying: "They are much too expensive for normal people in the area. If they wanted to make it an occasion for the Korean people, they should have made the prices lower. Otherwise, it is not something the people can enjoy."

The prices dwarf even those at the established British Grand Prix at Silverstone. A three-day pass at Yeongam will cost you more than US$1,000, while the British equivalent will set you back just north of $600. While high ticket prices are certainly a deterrent, one wonders how different things would be if there was a Korean car or driver lining up on the grid?

The nation has taken to a wider interest sports in recent years with the success of figure skater Kim Yun-ah and swimmer Park Tae-hwan. The next circuits to debut, India (2011) and Russia (2014) are likely to have local competitors for the partisan crowd to roar on in the shape of the Force India team and Renault's Russian driver Vitaly Petrov. Whilst neither nation has a glorious history in Formula 1, a local interest is a reliable way to boost the sport's profile.

The country's largest car manufacturer Hyundai (also comprising Kia) has as good as ruled out entering a team in the championship and have also surprisingly not taken out any sponsorship on the event, saying that their "utmost priority is to boost brand image in Europe". It's a bizarre turn of events, and one that has left LG as the sole local sponsor, with some of the teams carrying out promotional activity in the region themselves. Subsequently, the profile of the event has remained relatively low, with most of the press in the run up to the event being negative.

The Korean Grand Prix isn't the first to experience teething problems. In this year's Turkish Grand Prix, organizers had to cover the grandstands with tarpaulin to disguise the fact that there was nobody there. The Abu Dhabi and Bahrain Grand Prix have also experienced low turnouts, but they have the excuse of small populations and have the funds of oil-rich patrons at their disposal. Many fans have pointed at Ecclestone, accusing him of chasing the money, ignoring true followers of the sport and spreading the F1 brand globally, but only in the geographical sense of the word.

For Korea, all will not be lost if KAVO and the government treat this year's disastrous run-up as a steep learning curve. The promise of at least another six grand prix could reap dividend, should the glaring deficiencies be addressed and in that respect, the rhetoric from KAVO's camp is positive. Kang Hyo-seok, director of the province's F1 Support stated: “We don't expect early returns, as this project needs long-term investment to turn this area into a regional leisure and tourism hub”.

A study into Formula 1 in Australia by Flinders University, Adelaide, estimated a profit of A$1 billion (US$944 million) could be recouped over 10 years. Alongside direct economic impact, there is huge benefit to be gained from employment, tourism and infrastructure. But if the Korean Grand Prix is to have realistic designs on success, organizers need to be sure they can steer, before they put the foot down.

Finbarr Bermingham is an independent journalist from Northern Ireland, living and working in Gwangju, South Korea.

Daejeon Rock Festival

2010-10-21T07:33:00.008+01:00

Written for Gwangju Blog

A day that was filled with promise turned into a case of what might have been. The first annual Daejeon Rock Festival guaranteed good music, world food and international beer. It barely delivered on any of the fronts. The festival was stopped at around 11pm (having been billed until 5am) due to complaints over noise pollution. The food fair was shoddily put together: three hundred advertised vendors shrunk drastically to about a dozen overpriced and confused (samosas come from Mexico? And is spaghetti a national dish of Spain?) fast-food retailers and the international beer and wine promised manifested itself as a shed-load of Cass. The sizeable Gwangju contingent that made the trip was certainly under-whelmed.

Nonetheless, it was beautiful to be able to bask in the last rays of sunlight before the onset of winter in the pleasant setting of the Daejeon Convention Centre. What survived of the music was a mixed bag, but for the most part enjoyable. One serious gripe, however, is that there were few announcements or little information on big screens to differentiate one band from the next. The whole thing had an amateurish feel about it… a shame, really, given the picturesque surroundings. The stage was thrust in amongst the apartment blocks and as the sunset, the backdrop was stunning. Hundreds of lanterns were raised to the sky and everybody was gearing up for a long night of music.

The first band was a shock to the system, proving that Screamcore is alive and well in Korea. Babies were wheeled bawling from the arena, locals wore concerned looks upon their faces and a general air of confusion reigned momentarily. They made way for an altogether more pleasing proposition, in ex-pats Dirty Gangneung. Rootsy, Black Keys style riffs were met by a tunefully wailing lead singer to wash the aural ruin of Act One from our ears. A crowd surfer and a spectacular firework display ensured that the visuals matched the audio, and the evening was ushered in, in fine style.

The third band to take the stage, Kickscotch, was arguably the most impressive. A female fronted quartet, they continued the brash rockiness of the precursors. The lead singer was reminiscent of PJ Harvey, head swirling and playing a flying V that completely dwarfed her. The music itself was more like an R-rated B-52s: call and response vocals, delivered over muscular riffs.

Kickscotch were followed on by the Seoul City Suicides, another riff heavy three-piece recalling Austin, Texas garage rockers White Denim. It was an enthusiastic, impressive set, but perhaps not as well-received as that of the ensuing act, Whatever That Means. Ignore the name; it wasn’t too hard to work out what was behind their music. They sounded like the fallout from Green Day’s Dookie personified and thrust onto a far-eastern stage. It was some tuneful refreshment to the heavy rock of the previous few bands and provided one of the highlights of the sadly curtailed evening.

A largely forgettable EMO ensemble were next up, followed by the strangely monikered, Skasucks. Apparently there is a healthy ska scene in Korea, and despite the irony of their name, they are surely one of the forerunners. They inspired moonstomping aplenty and by the end of their set, had filled the stage with crowd members hell-bent on replicating some of the Specials’ most video-friendly moments.

Shortly after, we realized there wouldn’t be anymore music. What was supposed to have gone on for eleven hours, lasted for around half that. Organizers had seemingly not fully considered the setting of the venue, in the midst of some large apartment buildings. Complaints over noise pollution resulted in the plug being pulled on an eventful, yet anti-climactic day in Daejeon.

Viral Videos of the Week - Week Ending October 22

2010-10-21T07:21:00.003+01:00

Here are the viral videos I talked about on today's Pete Ross show. Enjoy!

Dot. The World's Smallest Stop-Motion Animation Character

OK GO: White Knuckles

BP Spills Coffee

Bull Attacks Drunk Who Strolls Drunk Into Rodeo

Cecilia Cassini: The World's Most Precocious Kid

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

2010-10-15T10:50:00.003+01:00

I don’t do many book reviews on this blog, but when I finished The Road the other day, I felt compelled to write something about it. In any case, I don’t consider this to be a review. There are already hundreds of those online. The book was a runaway success and most of you will probably have seen the recent movie adaptation (I haven’t). No, these are more the thoughts seeping from my freshly blown mind. This book is stunning; probably the best I’ve read of McCarthy’s and certainly the most thought provoking.

What I enjoyed most about his writing in All The Pretty Horses, The Crossing, No Country for Old Men, is how much he makes from so little and how he makes that little work for him. He takes this to the next level here. When I was in journalism college, my lecturer constantly told me that every word has to earn its place on the page. I’ve yet to encounter an author that practices this as brilliantly as McCarthy. In the post-apocalyptic American setting of The Road, he squeezes so much from the bleakness of the landscape. He conjures up the most barren of imagery: dark and lonely, all the while being uber-economical with his language. In his previous books (particularly the Border Trilogy), he used this to positive effect. I wanted to experience the spaciousness and under-the-stars beauty of Southern America and Mexico. This time, he’s turned it on its head.

I love how McCarthy gradually feeds us lines of information… drip, drip and then suddenly, bang! He mentions nothing about how the earth found itself in this situation. He occasionally alludes to the past, but mostly in the form of memory. There is little historical information. It makes it all the more striking when he says, kind of in passing, that cows are extinct. Or when the boy is asks his father whether crows could fly high enough to see the sun, should they still exist. All the time, the reader is left to wonder what catastrophe could have befallen the planet, but such is McCarthy’s deftness of language, it never distracts from the actually story.

This, incidentally, focuses on the relationship between father and son in the most desperate of situations. They are traveling south… but why? To escape the cold? But what will they do when they get there? What hope do they have? They have no hope. They have nothing. Each is kept alive by the desire to maintain the other. At times, their plight is truly heartbreaking. Here is a little boy who has never had a friend. He doesn’t care if he dies or not, anesthetized as he is to human demise. McCarthy attempts to show just how inter-dependent father and son are on one another. The son will do anything the father says. He accepts anything he is told. The father does everything in his power to keep his son alive, despite the knowledge that they would both be better off dead.

No part of the book brings this home more forcefully than after a time they are confronted by one of the nomadic bands of cannibals. The father washes his son’s hair in a river, telling himself that he must wash the murderous brains he’s just blown from their assailant's head from his son because that is his job. He is the boy’s father and he must try to keep his hair clean. Simple, yet devastatingly effective and it sums up what, for me, is the meaning of The Road. Even in the most horrifying circumstances, parents are driven by an unbreakable bond at childbirth, the evolutionary desire to keep their offspring.

I had a conversation with a friend the other day about modern literature. We were wondering which contemporary writers would be viewed as “classic authors” one hundred years from now. Which authors will be studied by sixteen year old high school students? We both immediately suggested McCarthy. His books are the most wonderfully analogous I recall from modern literature. We can all learn a lot from them and particularly, The Road.

Viral Videos of the Week - Week Ending October 15th

2010-10-15T07:36:00.005+01:00

As mentioned on the Pete Ross M-Town Show on www.gfn.or.kr/index.jsp, here are the viral videos of the week!

The Simpsons Banksy Intro

John Lennon Google Doodle

Cebu Pacific Flight Attendants Dancing

The English Language in 24 Accents

Sesame Street Old Spice Parody

Gwangju Blog

2010-10-11T07:54:00.003+01:00

I've been asked to write for a local publication in Gwangju, the Gwangju Blog. It's a regular gig, I'll be writing four articles per month about sport in the area. I'll post them on this blog too... partly out of convenience for future collation, but also, because maybe some people at home might be interested in reading them.

You can read Gwangju Blog here: http://gwangjublog.com/

It contains updates, reports, directives and guides and is very useful for people in the area.

Gwangju Sangmu 1 - 1 Suwon Bluewings

2010-10-11T07:50:00.008+01:00

Written for Gwangju Blog

The World Cup Stadium in Gwangju isn’t full at the best of times, so you can almost understand the paucity of supporters for Gwangju Sangmu’s K-League game on Sunday against Suwon Bluewings. After all, before kick-off, Sangmu were lying second from bottom. They’d scored thirteen goals in twenty games and recorded a paltry 3 victories. Talk of a citizen team to replace the current military set-up will no doubt be welcomed, but for now, we must make do with the soldiers! But that’s not to say a trip to watch them in action isn’t worthwhile. For fans of “the beautiful game” in Gwangju, it’s a chance to see professional soccer at a decent level. For those yet to awaken to its splendor, it’s a nice day out, in comfortable surroundings.

Suwon arrived at the Guus Hiddink Stadium as strong favorites, seven places ahead of Sangmu in the league table and one of the traditional powerhouses of Korean soccer, having won the K-League four times and the Asian Champions League twice. The difference between the two sets of supporters was marked: the Suwon followers cheered as only those who have tasted success can, consistent and choreographed. In contrast, the Gwangju support was tame and non-expectant, although one section of the crowd was impressively vocal. However, the cagy way in which the visitors started Sunday’s game was no indication as to a bridge in quality. Indeed, Gwangju’s stifling tactics proved to be more than a match for Suwon for much of the first half.

The play was scrappy. Any form of attack was strictly of the Route One variety, over the top. But just when it looked as though the spoils were to be shared at half time, Hong Soon-Hak broke free of his marker and was fouled in the area, with Gwangju conceding a penalty in the forty third minute. Japanese international and former Boca Juniors and Eintracht Frankfurt striker Naohiro Takahara stepped up and made no mistake from twelve yards

With the deadlock broken, both teams emerged for the second period a little more adventurously. Gwangju’s captain Choi Sung-Kuk went close with a volley from just outside the box, which was a harbinger for more involvement in the game from the influential forward. Suwon pushed on looking for a second, leaving gaps at the back, gaps the Sangmu forward line failed to capitalize on until late on. Gwangju’s Korean World Cup star, Kim Jung-Woo had a quiet game, but it was his mazy run past a couple of Bluewings defenders that led to the equalizer, after he was felled in the area.

The referee didn’t hesitate in pointing to the spot, and up stepped that man Choi again to fire past the keeper, high into the roof of the net. It was a goal Gwangju’s second half performance arguably deserved, but the military team could have snatched the victory as the game crept towards stoppage time. Choi again made space for himself in the Suwon penalty area, but was closed down just as he was about to pull the trigger. A powerful header drew a great save from Kang-Jin Ha in the visitors’ goal, but they held on for a point.

A point, though, is of little use to Gwangju. They are still hovering a single place from the foot of the table in what has been a disappointing season. Here is hoping the talk of a citizen team comes to fruition. This city deserves a quality, committed soccer team.

The Michael Simning Benefit Concert

2010-10-09T06:19:00.001+01:00

Written for Gwangju News

The response to the Facebook campaign to find B- donors for Michael Simning was astonishing. Despite the fact that he’s arguably the most widely known member of the foreigner community and certainly one of the most loved, few could have anticipated just how quickly word spread and how great the response would be. The momentum continued on Saturday night. The turnout at A Fundraising Concert for Michael Simning at the GFN Concert Hall was phenomenal.

GFN radio host and Speakeasy Pub Quiz maestro Pete Ross was compère for the evening, offering watershed friendly quips throughout: a shock to the system of anyone who has heard him behind the mic on a Thursday night. The music of the night was of an impressively high standard. Local rockers Deserts kicked off, offering a more stripped down version of their stuff that the Gwangju public may have been used to. An accordion added to the ambience of the occasion, as Deserts showed they have versatility, too. Next up, was an artist known only as Herb, playing a number of enjoyable clarinet tunes.

Elton Laclare, a close friend of Michael, was next to take the stage. At pains to distance himself from the “slightly irksome piano music”, Elton’s open letter to Mike was both moving and amusing. He praised his renowned sense of humour, whilst also making reference to his repertoire of party tricks, the legend of which is growing by the hour. I get the feeling that Mike’s going to be a busy guy when he’s back in business.

A choreographed light display, spelling out messages to Michael was delivered by the staff of GFN and they were followed on by the barefoot Andrea and Trevor, who you may have seen playing on the city’s streets. Despite not being from Newfoundland, their first number is an ode to the Canadian province. Andrea’s first attempt at playing the tin flute on stage went according to plan and the pair’s harmonies were nothing short of sumptuous. The folkies’ second song was written for the occasion and so fresh, it’s yet to be christened, but its message of longing and hope was one that resonated with the well-wishers in attendance, delivered as it was in fine style.

A montage of photographs showing Mike with friends and families brought a chuckle from the crowd, leading into penultimate musical performance of the night. Caleb Frost, sat at the piano, has a voice reminiscent of Bob Dylan. His songs, all original, are thoughtfully written and impressively delivered and he was a welcome addition to the line-up. A vox-pop of greetings for Mike was shown, before the main event: a video message from the man himself. In a short, yet emotional recording, he thanked everyone for their contribution and reported good news on his treatment, which doctors say has been going even better than they expected. It brought the biggest ovation of the night, and one which even Pete Ross’ accompanied version of Stand By Me couldn’t trump.

All in, it was an excellent night’s entertainment, in aid of a good cause. I’m sure everyone will join me in wishing Michael all the best and a speedy recovery.

Viral Videos of the Week: Oct 1 - Oct 7

2010-10-07T05:24:00.006+01:00

As mentioned on the Pete Ross M-Town show, here are my Top 5 Viral Videos of the week.

1. Stairway to Heaven - Climbing Towers

2. Never Say No To Panda

3. Australia's Next Top Model Announce The Wrong Winner

4. A History of Rap (with Justin Timberlake, Jimmy Fallon and The Roots)

5. Guillaume Nery base jumping at Dean's Blue Hole

My Radio Debut

2010-10-07T05:03:00.003+01:00

This week I am appearing on the Pete Ross M-Town show, on GFN-FM 98.7. You can listen online at http://www.gfn.or.kr/index.jsp. I'll be talking about viral videos, chatting with Pete about the top 5 of the week. These are the videos you see everywhere online. Facebook, Twitter, in your inbox. They range from the sublime, to the ridiculous, to the downright nauseating. And then, of course, you have your cute animals.

Hopefully this will turn into a regular slot and I'll post the videos on the blog. The show airs from 2000-2200 Korean time, about 1200-1300 GMT. I've never done radio before, but have always been keen on it. Nonetheless, recording today was a bit nerve-wracking... I had to simultaneously think about what I was saying (something I'm not used to) and keep my accent under control - many people here have difficulty understanding what I'm saying, and that's just the Americans.

I've been told I'll grow into it.

Here's hoping.

Oh, and if anyone's seen any good videos, be sure to let me know.

Feed The Boats @ Speakeasy Bar

2010-09-30T07:46:00.006+01:00

Written for The Gwangju News

Hearing of a live rock band playing in Gwangju is a bit like seeing an oasis on the horizon after months of traipsing thirstily over scorched desert plains. Sure, the internet allows anybody with a modicum of know-how to keep up to date with whatever tickled their eardrums at home, but any active music fan begins to crave the sweat and grime of a ramshackle gig before long.

And so it was, on the weekend of Gwangju World Music Festival, that Speakeasy paid host to one of the most omnipotent bands in town, Feed The Boats. And the gods were seemingly on their side. With the weather ensuring the Festival was a washout, the boats were duly fed. Patrons streamed through the door in the shape of a one-fingered salute, directed at Festival organizers, who had chosen to overlook Speakeasy when selecting after-party venues for the event. Did somebody say karma?

In some respects, Feed The Boats couldn’t really fail tonight. A bunch of pie-eyed, gig-starved westerners are hardly the most difficult crowd to please, but credit where it’s due: they put on a good show. Their set list was well chosen: a mixture of crowd pleasers and what seemed to be personal favourites. The crowd, well oiled after a warm up set from Deserts, responded well to each number; dancing, singing along and hurling compliments toward the stage. The lead singer has an excellent voice: guttural and grungy, a refreshing take on Courtney Love or Brody Dalle. And so, it was no surprise when they launched into a rollicking Distillers number.

Likewise, their take on Mod classic A Town Called Malice is pleasing, but not wholly unanticipated, given the poker-faced Englishman in tow. Feed The Boats’ style is a well-worn brand of bar-rock; toying with alternative and EMO, before settling somewhere in the middle. The original numbers they play are greeted warmly, but it’s their versions of a couple of classics that will endure. The schism between The Crystals and The Replacements could never be overstated, so congratulations to Feed The Boats for going some way to bridge the gap, with an enjoyable rendition of And Then I Kissed Her and the Minneapolis outfit’s Bastards of Young, delivered in the only way it should be: loud, fast and rickety.

No, Feed The Boats won’t win any awards for originality, but they should be commended for providing what was certainly the most entertaining option on a Saturday night in Gwangju.

Video: The Replacements - Bastards of Young

DMZ Travel Piece for Irish News

2010-09-27T16:21:00.003+01:00

Woobang Tower Jump, Daegu

2010-08-30T07:57:00.004+01:00

Written for the Say Kimchi News

I’ve always been a bit of a coward, yet paradoxically, always been pretty keen on scaring the crap out of myself. I think I forget the first part until right before I’m about to do the second. Last week I had a couple of days off work, so I decided I’d go to Daegu to jump off a building. Daegu is

Korea

’s third city (if, like many, you consider Incheon to be part of Seoul) and home to Woobang Tower, the tallest tower in Asia. They’ve built an amusement park around it, WoobangTower Land, which seems similar in scale to Gwangju’s own Family Land: pretty small, but not bad for an afternoon if you’re at a loose end.

Woobang Tower is 202m high (312m in altitude) and is similar in structure to the CN Tower in Toronto, formerly the world’s tallest free-standing structure (553m) and one of the Seven Modern Wonders of the World. At the top of Woobang Tower is a revolving restaurant. There’s a 360° observation deck which gives you stunning, panoramic views of the city below which, incidentally, is huge. Coming from a small Irish town, Gwangju seemed sprawling to me (especially from the top of Mudeung Mountain), but Daegu is a massive step up in terms of scale. From the top of Woobang Tower, you really get an idea of how big it is.

We set off from Gwangju early in the morning and arrived around lunchtime. There were three of us, two jumpers and a photographer, and we met another friend in Daegu who jumped with us. We were all excited; laughing and joking without giving a moment’s consideration to what we were about to do. That was until the Tower became visible in the distance on the taxi ride to Woobang Land. It dominates the horizon. The closer we got, the taller it seemed and when we were within a few hundred metres of it, we saw a little gangway protruding from near the top. This was where we would fall from.

Feeling a little sheepish (and not a little sick) we made our way around the perimeter of the park until we reached the foot of the Tower. We paid (for three people, it was 100,000W, very reasonable) and got on the elevator for the 76^th floor. The laughing stopped. Suddenly, it wasn’t funny anymore. Looking at each other for some sort of comfort was futile; the others were either praying or holding their hands over their faces. Yikes. There was a teenage girl ahead of us in the queue so we could see exactly what we had let ourselves in for and as she shimmied closer to the edge of the “plank”, white as a ghost, I felt nothing but sympathy!

The jump itself is not a bungee, which I initially thought, but a sky-jump. It’s like base jumping, except you have a cable attached to your back. Kitted out in the finest race suits this size of Talladega Nights, we decided on which order we would jump in (I was second) and then waited. As with most adrenaline-based activities, this is by far the worst part. Every sort of eventuality runs through your head until eventually, you’ve thought of all of the worst things that can happen and an accepting calm descends over you; at least for a minute. When my turn came I was led out to walk the plank. They strapped a harness onto me and explained a few things to me about what was going to happen. The problem is, I don’t speak Korean. I just smiled and nodded, such has become my custom in this fine nation.

I stood at the edge of the gangway for about a minute, getting properly strapped in. Then, I leaned forward, looking at the ground beneath me... it seemed like miles away! The attendant told me to let go and just like that, I was in suspended animation, 132 metres above a sprawling Korean metropolis. Hanging there, horizontally, was one of the most surreal experiences I’ve had. I was trying to squeeze out a smile, as the Korean guy is taking pictures of me (as part of the package, you get some photos and a certificate). And after what seemed like minutes (maximum hang time: 30 seconds), I was falling. This part is not frightening. You drop at a leisurely speed to a target at the bottom, where you’re released from your harness and left to ponder your “achievement”. Breathless and a little befuddled, I was greeted at the bottom by my friends. What a rush! For only 33,000W, the Woobang Tower Sky Jump is highly recommended.

Korean Grand Prix Preview

2010-08-30T07:47:00.004+01:00

Written for the Gwangju News

On Sunday October 24^th of this year, a cacophonous drone emanating from a stretch of tarmac in Yeongam, just south of Gwangju, will chauffer in a new era in Korean spectator sport. The country will join an elite band of 18 others in paying host to a Formula One Grand Prix. It is testament to Korea’s growing presence on the international stage that they have convinced F1’s governing body of their capability to host such a high profile event. Some speculate that it may bring even greater rewards to the nation than the 2002 World Cup. Should that be the case, Korean sport is in for a serious boost.

The inaugural South Korean Grand Prix will attract a crowd of around 130,000 to the newly built Korea International Circuit and officials have been scrambling to find ways to accommodate the masses due to descend on South Jeolla. Car parks are under construction, hundreds of shuttle buses are to be laid on. This sleepy, rural community is about to get a whole lot louder, but a few days of autumnal madness will undoubtedly bode well for the region’s finances.

F1 has long since been tagged as a rich man’s sport, filled with charmers and playboys like Flavio Briatore ( former Benetton and Renault head honcho, former beau of Heidi Klum and larger than life impresario, now banned from the sport because of his part in the Crashgate scandal in 2008) and Eddie Irvine (straight talking and flamboyant Irishman, former Ferrari driver and once a squeeze of Pamela Anderson). Ticket prices are often condemned for being astronomical, unaffordable by locals in many venues. The South Korean Grand Prix will do well to avoid such criticism. The cheapest come in at around 165,000 Won. For the best seats, you can expect to pay upwards of 1.2 million. The locals may have to be content with a thunderous hum, rattling their windows. But the money invested in the area through tourism will more than make up for the racket.

Unsurprisingly considering it’s the world’s fifth largest producer of cars, this is not the first time Korea has attempted to host a GP. The government previously attempted to capitalize on the industry’s standing when they reached an agreement to host an event in 1998, although a lack of funding hindered the construction of a circuit. Malaysia won the race to host another F1 event in Asia and the blogosphere’s rumor mill is rife with allegations that F1 CEO Bernie Eccleston managed to keep the money originally paid to him by race promoters. Indeed, the 2010 race has not come to fruition without a few hitches, either. There were whispers right up until the beginning of the summer that it would not go ahead. Initially, doubts were harbored over whether the course would be ready in time. Promoters, Korea Auto Valley Operation (KAVO), however, were at pains to dispel such fears, announcing that the track would open on September 5^th. Perhaps of more serious concern to the survival of the race has been the recent unrest between North and South Korea. Political uncertainties on the Peninsula sparked rumors that the GP would be moved to a venue in Europe, with Magny Cours (France) and Motorland Aragon (Spain) mooted as potential replacements. But with the checkered flag looming ever nearer, it would seem the organizers have avoided such measures and that the event will go ahead as planned.

The deal the Korean committee has struck with the governing body will see the country host a Grand Prix every year for the next seven, with an option to extend the deal for another five. The course itself has been compared with another Spanish track, that of Valencia. Designed by Herman Tilke (the brains behind circuits in Abu Dhabi, Malaysia, Bahrain, Singapore, China and many other venues), it’s the second longest track on the calendar, trailing only Monza in Italy at 5.6 km per lap. Along with Turkey and Brazil, it’s the only track whose racing direction is counter-clockwise. The estimated average speed for an F1 car around the course is 212km/h, with a maximum speed of 320km/h, meaning the quickest cars should be getting around in about 1.5 minutes.

And with the race being number seventeen of nineteen, you can be sure that there won’t be any drivers holding back. After winning the Hungarian GP in Red Bull’s Mark Webber (Australia) is hoping to seal his first ever championship crown. He leads 2008’s champion Lewis Hamilton (McLaren, UK) by just four points, with his teammate Sebastian Vettel (Germany) trailing by a further six. The party travels to Belgium, Italy, Singapore and Japan before making its maiden voyage to Korea in October. The Japanese have traditionally put on a spectacular show and their Korean counterparts would no doubt be delighted to emulate them. All eyes will be on Yeongam on the weekend of the 22^nd to see if they can do exactly that.

What does the future hold for Gwangju Sangmu Phoenix?

2010-08-06T07:52:00.003+01:00

A recent article in the respected English football journal When Saturday Comes explored the direction taken by the Japanese Football Association in creating a successful professional league. Last year, the J-League drew an average crowd of 19,000, compared with the mean gate of 25,000 at an Italian Serie A game (Serie A being in the top 3 most vaunted leagues in the world). The author opined that part of the reason for this has been the healthy competition between the J-League and its Korean counterpart, the K-League. “What is interesting,” he mused, “is the way that the improvement of Japan and the J-League has also had a positive impact on the quality of the South Korean team and the K-League.”

There can be no disputing the progress made by South Korea’s national team over the past decade and the league as a whole has risen in profile and stature. But the news has seemingly yet to filter down to the people of Gwangju. The city’s local team, Gwangju Sangmu Phoenix, had an average attendance of 7,719 in 2009, the second lowest in the K-League. The figure is an absolute travesty when you consider the facilities the team boast at the Guus Hiddink World Cup Stadium, but a little more palatable when you consider some of the facts. Sangmu is the sporting division of the Military of South Korea and Phoenix is the professional football club. The playing staff is made up entirely of young Korean professional footballers serving their obligatory two years national service. Fifteen players sign for the team every season. They spend two seasons in Gwangju before returning to their previous professional club.

At a time when football is becoming ever more international, more glamorous and more colourful, the opportunity to watch eleven soldiers struggle to produce the desired level of cohesion and quality needed to challenge the big guns of Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma and Suwon Samsung Bluewings simply doesn’t register with the locals. Sangmu are not allowed to sign any foreign players because of their military status and as such, the side really doesn’t have the wow factor perhaps required to drag the punters away from the (erstwhile) successful baseball team Kia Tigers.

It’s particularly difficult when you consider the imports on show elsewhere. Ulsan Hyundai, for example, are lining up this season with Colombia internationals Juan Estiven Velez and Carmelo Valencia. Seongnam’s attack has been spearheaded by their compatriot Mauricio Molina. Montenegran striker Dejan Damjanović leads the line for FC Seoul and just about every other K-League outfit boasts players plucked from foreign leagues.

But that’s not to say a trip to the World Cup Stadium to support Sangmu isn’t worthwhile. Coming from Ireland, the local teams I grew up with could only dream of the amenities the faithful of Phoenix enjoy. The ground has a capacity of 44,118 and is an all-seater. Transport links are convenient and the fact that you can bring your own beers and do a quick food shop at the adjacent Lotte Mart means a Gwangju Sangmu home game makes for great day out: with a family or friends. Alas, the stadium doesn’t attract anything resembling a full house. I attended the K-League’s Round 11, when the visitors to Gwangju were Gangwon FC. The attendance was a paltry 2,367 (the stadium was under 5% full), but the quality of football on show was impressive, and the fervour of some of the fans that had attended was admirable. A troupe of bare-chested ultras led the chorus: banging out a steady rhythm on drums and chanting as though the stadium was heaving. For the most part though, the occasion was marked for its comfort and the mildness of the afternoon. Regular attendees of professional football would rarely describe their endeavours as pleasant, peaceful or tranquil, but the afternoon ticked all of those boxes.

Sangmu were in the driving seat for the most part and their dominance paid off when Kim Dong-Hyun broke the deadlock early in the second half. They held out for a narrow victory, although Gangwon rarely looked like troubling Seong Kyun-Il’s goal. The Sangmu line-up contained midfielder Kim Jung-Woo, who went on to impress in the World Cup in South Africa, playing in all four of ROK’s games. It pushed the side up to a respectable ninth position in the table, which would be their best showing for six seasons should they maintain it for the duration of the season.

The future of football in the city, though, is in the balance, with some interesting developments afoot. The city’s mayor has this year pledged his full support to a local citizen team to kick off in 2011. Such a move would certainly offer a lifeline to the beautiful game in Gwangju. Sure, they would be able to sign overseas players (although many argue that those willing to ply their trade in Korea are only doing so because they couldn’t cut the mustard elsewhere and are looking to make a quick buck), but the consequences run much deeper than this. One of the cornerstones of creating a solid fanbase is loyalty; amongst both fans and staff. With the current system, players can play a maximum of two years with Gwangju Sangmu before returning to their “parent clubs”. With an independent team, they could nurture their own youth players, cultivate cult heroes and produce players synonymous with the Gwangju brand: a feat that is impossible in their current guise. How gutting it must be for regular followers of the side to watch their best players getting shipped off season after season.

Player allegiance is another issue that could be rectified. It is a timeworn fact that players perform better where they are wanted and where they have chosen to be. Having been plucked from such an environment and placed in the line-up of the country’s military team, their performance levels are liable to drop. If Gwangju wish to be truly competitive in the K-League, the creation of an independent side is a necessity. And hopefully then the World Cup Stadium won’t cut the lonely figure of a white elephant on the Sangmu horizon.

Boryeong Mud Festival: Not all it's cracked up to be

2010-08-05T05:46:00.003+01:00

July was a busy month. It was always going to be. My girlfriend visited me and stayed the duration. Naturally, we wanted to make the most of it. I had spent May and June tossing ideas around, deliberating how to squeeze the absolute best from our weekends. My working schedule (3pm – 10pm) meant we couldn’t do much travelling during the week. That said, we still got plenty done. The life of an ESL teacher (particularly one employed in a hagwon) is a nocturnal existence. I must’ve had twenty suggestions or ideas about things to do on our four weekends together, but throughout that time, there was only one constant: Boryeong Mud Festival.

It’s been called “Asia’s Number One Festival”, and not just by the press releases. Every sinner we spoke to eulogized it. Nobody, it seemed had a bad word to say about it. Until now. July, especially the early part of the month, is monsoon season in Korea. It rains, heavily. It’s clammy and sticky, but not very sunny. We weren’t surprised to arise on the Saturday on which we were making our way north to Daecheon (the city where Boryeong beach is) to overcast skies. We weren’t even disappointed as the heavens opened above our train carriage. We were in excellent spirits, our whistles whetted by a couple of early morning beers en route.

But as soon as we touched down at the festival itself, we felt a tingle of discomfort. The atmosphere was one of anticipation, but not in a good way, more anxiety. As we made our way to the changing areas, people were jostling past, being unfriendly and rude. Skipping ahead in queues (and not just the ajumas – older ladies in Korea that seem to have rite of passage through even the busiest terminals) and generally throwing daggers from one end of the place to another. We got some food. There was a lot of hustle and bustle – nothing new in Korea – but a little more sinister.

This was not what I’ve come to expect from the country. Looking around me, it was pretty clear why: there were no Koreans there. The crowd was comprised of ESL teachers and GIs on vacation from one of the numerous bases scattered around the country. “What the hell…” we thought, tucking into a bottle of soju. "Everything will be alright when we get a roll in the mud.So we finished our food and soju and headed for the entrance. We were greeted by one of the poorest set ups at a festival I’ve ever seen.

What was billed as a Mud Festival was really just a load of people getting drunk on the beach. There was an area of mud-based activities; slides; baths; wrestling areas, but you had to queue for a long time to get near any of them. One person told me she’d been queuing for over an hour to go down ONE mud slide and they closed it when she got to the front of the line. No explanation, no justification, just rudeness and mismanagement. We attached our disgruntled bodies to the back of a seemingly never-ending line of mud-hungry westerners. After about 30 minutes, we had had enough and bailed (luckily, on our way back to the beach, we came across a small mud bath and went for a dip. This was to be our only mud-based experience at Boryeong Mud Festival 2010).

The rest of the day we spent swimming in the sea and drinking on the shore… not a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon, granted, but it was to a backdrop of GI aggression. Later that evening, we went into town to eat. We found ourselves a Korean tour guide who led us to a shellfish restaurant, ate his share of food and promptly scarpered before picking up his share of the tab. The owner continued to try ripping us off. We refused; one of my friends got his Korean girlfriend on the line, which put the willies up the owner: we were onto him. We watched some fireworks and returned to the beach, where we figured we’d spend the night drinking beer, singing songs and having fun. Predictably, it wasn’t to be.

After a late night skinny-dipping session, we fell asleep on the beach, awaking to find our bags gone. The next morning we found them a few hundred yards away, with the stuff strewn all over the beach. My Sony mp3 player was gone, as was my friend’s mobile phone… a fitting end to a pretty disastrous trip. Since I came to Korea the people have been honest, cordial and hospitable. These three sentiments went out the window at Boryeong Mud Festival. I don’t want to come across as a naysayer, because the internet is full of people blogging negatively about Korea.

I am not.

I love it here, which is why the festival was such a shock. To be robbed in Korea is virtually unheard of. Most people I’ve spoken to seem pretty sure it was a westerner that did it and I have to agree. It’s commonplace at home, but that doesn’t excuse it. The entire atmosphere at Boryeong was wrong. In future, I’ll be careful to avoid gatherings like this. I didn’t come 6,000 miles to experience the shoddier traits of the western world. This weekend was isolated and I hope to keep it that way.

I am finding it difficult...

2010-07-29T07:47:00.002+01:00

...to motivate myself to maintain this blog. I have had a great few months, but I really need to get the wheels turning over the next while. I hope to make my time in Korea work FOR my career, as well as have a great experience and save some money. I hope to get published more widely. I hope to get involved in the local English speaking radio station.

Hopefully there's more to come. In the meantime, here's a photo of me riding a scooter on an island in the Yellow Sea: Seon-yu Do. You may or may not read more about that trip sometime soon.

Rich Bennett - On Holiday

2010-07-16T09:38:00.003+01:00

Sometimes an album lands on your lap that completely baffles you. On rare, delightful occasions, you’re baffled in a wonderful way: knocked for six by the quality of the disc afore you. All too often though, it’s a miserable confusion: you wonder who on earth would possibly enjoy this and why the hell it has to be you.

Such is the case with On Holiday by Rich Bennett. The record is awash with tuneless singing, whistling and harmonies, woozy synths and far, far too much tremolo. From the first bars of Misty Valley, which sounds like a cast-off of Mike Flowers’, to the dull, instrumental outro of Green Memories On Holiday is truly nauseating. At times (see Peak) it sounds like the soundtrack to a carousel being channeled backwards and at best it comes over as a Lynchian nightmare. To be avoided with the same verve you might try and dodge the bubonic.

1/5

Written for The Skinny

World Cup 2010 - A Round Up

2010-07-05T12:37:00.004+01:00

Written for The Three Wise Monkeys

After four years of hyperbole and anticipation, the World Cup is almost over. Few months on the calendar command so much effort from the media and our livers. And if you support Korea or an English speaking nation, few reap so little reward. Maybe it’s because I’m Irish (neither North nor South qualified), or maybe it’s because the quality of the football on show has been so piss poor, but the previous sentiment rings particularly true for 2010’s edition. This has been the most tedious World Cup in living memory. Granted, it has improved slightly as it’s gone on, but at the beginning, it was less like pulling teeth, more like having your legs ripped off by a giant, vengeful spider.

From Italia 90, I remember the evergreen Roger Milla (whose passport was reported to have flattered him to the tune of ten years) pickpocketing the Argentine goalkeeper to send the reigning champions reeling in the first game. USA 94 evokes memories of Bebeto’s ‘baby cradle’ goal celebration for the champions elect Brazil (not to mention an abysmal penalty effort from Diana Ross in an opening ceremony, dripping with cheese). From France 98, Zinedine Zidane’s stellar performances, claiming a first title for the hosts whilst simultaneously announcing himself as the greatest player of his generation, stick out in the mind. Four years later, the over-performance of South Korea as well as Roy Keane’s infamous ‘toys from his pram’ routine will take some forgetting. 2006’s edition in Germany produced one of the greatest passing goals of all time, when Esteban Cambiasso put the finishing touches to a glorious lesson in fluidity that began 24 passes previously. Zidane also took the opportunity to remind us that his temper is almost as great as his talent, delivering a charge at Marco Materazzi in the final that wouldn’t have looked out of place on a goat farm (it’s worth noting that since Zidane’s retirement, France have failed to win a single game at an international tournament).

But this year has been bereft of quality and yet to produce any truly memorable moments. It says a lot when the main talking points have been the cacophonic drone of the vuvuzela and the failure of some of the “top” sides to even show up. This is the lowest scoring World Cup to date. There have been less red cards than four years ago and whilst aggression doesn’t always equal entertainment, I would happily trade some of the snore-fests we’ve had to endure for something even slightly resembling passion . Many will argue that France shouldn’t even have been at the finals, after the Hand of Gaul incident that sent the Irish crashing out last November and there’s little doubting Ireland would have put on a better show. As it is, a nation not famed for its temperament bickered their way through the tournament, limping out after finishing bottom of a group they were clear favorites to win. French Squad captain Thierry Henry has since met with Nicolas Sarkozy to find out what just went wrong. I imagine the pair are still huddled together, scratching their heads in a dimly lit corner of the Élysée Palace, trying to get to the bottom of things. Forgive me, but my Schadenfreude must be allowed to come up for breath occasionally.

The reigning champions Italy, meanwhile, also faced an inglorious exit. A group containing Paraguay, Slovakia and New Zealand was the easiest on paper and their showing was as much an indictment of Marcello Lippi’s refusal to waver from his triumphant squad of 2006 as it was the Azzuri’s much vaunted, yet universally loathed cattenaccio. A flaccid England side hobbled through to the second round, to be resolutely dispatched by an unfamiliar, flowing German outfit that will meet the impressive Argentines in the Quarter Final. The English media were quick to jump on the back of Fabio Capello: a coach who has won titles in every country he’s worked. In the aftermath of the 4-1 mauling, one clueless pundit was even brazen enough to suggest that not one of the German players would make the England team, which, he opined is “littered with world class players”.

Bullshit.

Whilst Capello did look a trifle clueless tactically (particularly in his replacement of Jermaine Defoe with the lumbering Emile Heskey when the team needed goals) and he fell under the curse of fitting square pegs in round holes that has plagued his predecessors, this “Golden Generation” has underachieved at international level for years. Like the French and the Italians, it’s time for a new approach. Perhaps this dismal showing has provided the kick up the arse required.

Pre-tournament favorites Spain were slow out of the traps, losing to Switzerland and struggling against Chile, but new Barcelona signing David Villa looks to be hitting top gear at just the right time. Worryingly for coach Vicente Del Bosque though, is the form of Fernando Torres. Villa’s strike partner has looked sluggish and off the pace, prompting speculation that he’s carrying an injury. There is more than capable backup on the bench, but the Spaniards’ progression may depend on whether Del Bosque is ruthless enough to sacrifice El Nino.

So, who has impressed? Well the Dutch have cruised through looking more like Germans, and vice versa. The pair will do well to displace the South American duo of Brazil and Argentina, though. 1994’s winning captain Dunga has built a team in his own image: tenacious, efficient and unspectacular. Of course, it is augmented with the flair of Kaka and Robinho, but this is a decidedly un-Brazilian team. The Argentines have (along with the Germans), been the most striking side so far.

Relying, as ever, on tippy-tappy, one touch football, with the genius of Lionel Messi primed to unlock any defence in the competition, they have sailed through to the Quarter Finals. But what makes them infinitely more likeable is the presence of footballing genius and all round mad bastard Diego Maradona at the helm. His last appearance at a World Cup was cut short by his failing a drug test. What odds a triumphant return? Well, having struggled through qualifying and insisting on playing four central defenders at the back, it would seem his tactical nous from the sideline doesn’t compete with his brilliance on the field; but a run to the final is certainly feasible.

Of the less glamorous sides, Paraguay have the joint honor of being responsible for the most boring ninety minutes of my life as they edged the Japanese on penalties in Round 2. I will never get that time back. Uruguay (completing an unprecedented quartet of South American countries in the Quarters), face an athletic Ghanaian side bidding to become the first African nation to reach a World Cup semi final. They may never have a better chance.

SHUT THE FUCK UP

And as for the Koreans? Well, they performed admirably: a side with few superstars, well-drilled and playing to their strengths. As demonstrated against Argentina in the Group Stage, when up against competent fire power, they have little answer. The adage also rang true against Uruguay in Round 2. Alas, for half a World Cup, I had a team to cheer for, which added a well needed element of spice. Now that they’re gone, I can go back to bitching about vuvuzelas and bemoaning the benign punditry on every channel I stream. And I can’t say I’ll miss the “Fighting Korea” adverts, either.

Here’s raising a well worn glass to the prospect of some decent entertainment. C’mon, it’s not too late.

Kele – The Boxer

2010-06-24T07:18:00.003+01:00

Bloc Party frontman struggles for consistency on debut solo set

A quick glance back over his tenure as lead singer of Bloc Party will tell you that Kele Okereke is not a man who fears change. After thrusting themselves into the national consciousness with their excellent debut Silent Alarm, they took the difficult option with its follow-up, A Weekend In The City.

Kele’s transformation on this occasion is equally (if not more) drastic. Except on The Boxer, his boldness doesn’t pay off half as well. The direction is very much towards the dancefloor – no change there – but with less emphasis on songs. Kele’s courting the electro crowd and occasionally (On The Lam, Rise) it sounds great. Too often, though, it sounds a little ill conceived. The vocals are tired and repetitive; the beats aren’t as polished as they might be. Okereke’s voice always had the potential to grate, and without the propeller-armed Matt Tong behind the drum-kit, it does exactly that.

2/5

Written for The Skinny

The Korean Penunsula Takes On The World

2010-06-22T08:04:00.003+01:00

World Cup preview piece written for The Impartial Reporter

At some point in the wee hours of November 19^th last year, my anger diffused. The nation, nay, the world had been outraged by the ‘Hand of Gaul’ incident that sent Ireland crashing from the World Cup Play Off. Calls for Henry’s head on a plate reverberated around the land. But in a moment of rare clarity, I decided that it wasn’t so bad after all. After all, come the time of the World Cup, I would be settling into my new home 6,000 miles away, in South Korea. And for the first time in history, both North and South sides of the peninsula have qualified. “This,” I thought to myself, “is not bad at all.”

Koreans, like many of their East Asian counterparts, don’t do things in half measures. They’re an emotional, patriotic and jingoistic nation on all fronts. Just as the current political and military showdown with North Korea has understandably awakened a fervent nationalism, the very mention of a World Cup is likely to send a Korean into raptures. There are discerning football fans in South Korea. Some are as devoted as those born on Old Trafford’s doorstep. And so, they when asked on their team’s chances in the tournament, they’ll consider it for a while and offer an intelligent opinion. Spain, Brazil and England are the usual suspects.

But for many, the opportunity to look no further than their own noses is too great. “Han-googo! Han-googo!” (“Korea! Korea!”) You see, baseball is king here. Kia Tigers, my local team, are dominant. My local professional football team is Gwangju Sangmu, the army team. They aren’t very good (eleven soldiers, employing a distasteful long ball approach is little match for the top dogs of Seoul) and so interest in football all year round is minimal. Last month I went to see a K League game in the Guus Hiddink World Cup Stadium, twenty minutes from my apartment. As the name suggests, it was constructed for the 2002 World Cup here and paid host to the Quarter Final between South Korea and Spain, which the home side won on penalties. But the game (a drab 1-0 home victory) was abject at best. The 44,000-seater stadium paid host to fewer than 2,000 and the whole thing had an anti-climactic feel to it and the stadium has the unwanted glow of a white elephant.

Accordingly, most peoples’ views on the beautiful game are a trifle warped. Park Ji Sung is the best player in the world. Bolton Wanderers star Lee Chung Yong isn’t far behind him. Unfortunately for them, it simply isn’t true. A Korean team is highly unlikely to lift the 2010 World Cup; North or South. North Korea is the most mysterious nation to have lined up at this, or any edition of FIFA’s top blue riband showpiece. Reports on their warm-up games have suggest that they will compete with an ultra-defensive mentality, in an attempt to stifle the opposition. By all accounts, they are a better side than expected. They will hope to frustrate, but a quick glance at their draw for the group stages suggests that’s about all they can hope for. Their draw of Portugal, Ivory Coast and Brazil is the toughest of the lot.

South Korea, on the other hand, has a little more cause for optimism. They reached the semi final stage in 2002 (albeit with some dubious and hotly contested referring decisions). They have got players, in the aforementioned Park and Lee, as well as 2002 hero Ahn Jung Hwan (formerly Perugia, Metz and Duisburg) and Park Chu Young (Monaco), with genuine European experience. The draw too has been kinder to them, pitting them against Nigeria, Greece and Argentina; second place is all to play for. A victory in the backyard of bitter rivals Japan in the run up to the tournament only heightened World Cup fever. A couple of wins in the tournament would see things reach boiling point.

But after the tournament, things will more than likely return to normal. Any Western game featuring a Korean will be big news, but most other football will play second fiddle to baseball. The profile of the game here has certainly risen since 2002, but perhaps not to the level the local FA and FIFA would have hoped. Despite this, the government has launched an ambitious bid to host the 2022 event on their own. There’s no doubting that they have the infrastructure in place. 2002’s tournament was spread thinly over eleven cities here, each with brand new stadiums; and that was only as a co-host! With worries over South Africa’s readiness for this year’s Cup and Brazil’s capability to network the vast country for 2014’s, FIFA could do a lot worse than to look once more to the Hermit Kingdom. It boasts the fastest train system in the world and is easily navigable. Perhaps it would finally give the game the final push it needs to become top dog.

For the moment, though, the focus is on the here and now. If, after the miserable failure of Northern and Republic of Ireland, you’re looking for a late horse to back, look no further than the Korean duo. You never know, you might be surprised!

Gwangju? Because Not All Roads Lead to Seoul...

2010-06-08T09:14:00.003+01:00

My first piece for The Three Wise Monkeys zine. I've really been neglecting this blog, but there is a lot of decent stuff to come, both published and unpublished. I just need to get my finger out...

Coming to Gwangju: The Road Less Traveled

I’m going to level with you from the outset: twelve months ago, I’d never even heard of Gwangju. My geographical knowledge of the peninsula was sketchy at best and I was as guilty as every other naval-gazing Westerner in assuming South Korea began and ended in Seoul. So I’ll forgive those of you who have yet to be awakened to the undoubted charms of this parochial southern city. A year down the line, my eyes are open. I’ve lived and breathed Gwangju for a month now and as the novelty wears off, it’s being replaced by something new: a warm, quiet air of contentment. Gwangju will never rival Seoul or Busan for variety of nightlife. Nor will it ever lay claim to being a truly international city. But it has charm in abundance, a rich and shocking history and a friendliness I’ve experienced nowhere else in the world.

Admittedly, I came to Gwangju on a whim. I could’ve gone to Seoul and had offers elsewhere, but on the limited information available to me, I plumped for this one. If, like mine was, your knowledge of the city is based solely on the obligatory Wikipedia article, forum posts and blog comments, you could be excused for thinking it was a rural backwater – an outpost of civilization housing hicks and rednecks. This notion was dispelled as soon as I rolled into the bus station. Perhaps it’s because I’m Irish (Dublin, our largest city, has a population of only one million), but to me, Gwangju is a huge city. With that comes the usual facilities, infrastructure and places to go. As with much of Korea, Gwangju looks as though it was dropped randomly to the earth, landing, as it is, in a huge ravine, flanked on each side by lush, green mountains.

For a budding hiker, Mudeung Mountain offers the greatest challenge. At over 1,200 feet, it’s one of the biggest summits in Jeollanam-do. The view from the top is spectacular and it’s worth setting a day aside to climb it. But you can’t help but feel you’ve cheated a little when greeted by a carpeted trail towards the top… perhaps it won’t appeal to the more intrepid climber, it’s not exactly off the beaten track. For added spice, try trekking up it in 85 degrees after a heavy night on the soju. Crash helmet, recommended.

A few years back, the Korean government afforded Gwangju the status “A Cultural Hub City of Asia”. Until 2023, they will pump about $1.8 billion into a project that is an attempt at rebalancing the culture of South Korea. Previously so much resource was ploughed into Seoul, with the rest of the country being left behind. Already the regeneration projects are visible. Some areas of the cities have been transformed. Gwangju is gradually being pulled into the 21st Century. Since the city’s nickname is The City Of Light, light is the loose theme of the project. The centerpiece of the project, a Forest of Light, looks stunning! The chances are I won’t be in Gwangju until 2023 and won’t reap most of the benefit. But the future looks bright for the culture of the city.

It’s another feather in the cap of the locals, who consider themselves to be pioneering in their beliefs and the guardians of Korean democracy. Last month (May 2010) was the thirtieth anniversary of the Gwangju Democratization Movement, a popular rebellion led by students in the city, which lasted for over a week and was protesting against the newly installed military government. The students took up arms and took over the city, bestowing civil rule upon it for days. Famously though, they were crushed by the Korean Army. The number of people killed is disputed, although people here confidently predict that it ran into the late hundreds. Some people are still unaccounted for, thirty years on. In fact, the uprising was billed as a Communist movement during the propaganda hit 1980s. But the past month has been an eye opener. The people of Gwangju are proud and they took the anniversary as an opportunity to celebrate and commemorate. There was music, speeches, dancing, drumming and plenty of drinking. The same streets that had been dashed with blood three decades ago were now streaming with soju, makgeolli and tears of the veterans.

One man who had been injured in the crushing of the rebellion was at pains to convey to me the depth of emotion the people felt. “Every time I look at this building,” he said pointing at a large, nondescript structure, “I remember that time. I have flashbacks and become frightened.” His tale is common here. The celebratory efforts and mood is admirable, coming from a nation of civil unrest I can empathize. The character and steely determination of the Gwangju people is palpable. The city’s makeover will give their home a shiny new face, but the locals are certain that it won’t banish the ghosts of thirty years ago. They won’t allow that to happen.

After only one month in Gwangju, I have learned a lot about Korean people, with the anniversary acting as a window to their souls. The city courts modernity whilst having its roots firmly based in tradition. This hybrid, I feel, is an excellent model in learning about Koreans and their culture. Come see it for yourselves.

We're not in Kansas anymore: Notes from the Korean Peninsula

2010-05-08T00:46:00.008+01:00

"I shall make that trip. I shall go to Korea."

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Okay, so I came here under slightly different circumstances, but the past week has been one of the most wonderfully bizarre of my life. I even had to read the title of this post again. I did make this trip: last Friday, I flew from Heathrow airport, via Dubai, arriving in Incheon Airport just outside Seoul at 10pm. A four hour bus journey later and I was in the city that will act as my home for the coming year, Gwangju.

You can try to prepare yourself for something like this. I read a lot of literature, books and online articles. I thought I had a decent grasp of Korean culture and its people before I left. I was wrong and I am truly delighted I am. So far, this country has been overwhelming in every respect: the food, the friendliness of the people, the weather, the LIGHTS! The journey from the airport, driving the length of the country's coastline was my first eye-opener. It was the wee hours of a Sunday morning, yet the place was lit up like a Christmas tree... everywhere. Even the crosses on top of the churches are in neon.

Next day, I went exploring, taking in the sounds, smells and sounds of an alien culture: struggling to grasp the reality... this isn't a holiday. I live and work here for twelve months. It took a while for this to sink in. In fact, I still don't think it fully has. There's a real normality about my days that makes the experience utterly surreal. One minute I'm in my apartment eating cereal, listening to We Were Promised Jetpacks, the next, I step out my door into an Oriental street market.

Yesterday, I woke up early to watch the Election 2010 online. I slipped into a Dimbleby induced comfort zone. The next thing, the onion cart rolls by (the onion vendor who drives around the streets at silly o'clock selling his wares, complete with a loud speaker fixed on top of his pickup, playing pre-recorded advertising-yell in Korean. It's a bit creepy, actually. Slightly Orwellian). My thoughts turned to Mogwai: "Yes! I am a long way from home."

My days are structured (get up, go to work, go for dinner, yadda yadda), which I think adds to the surrealism. Coupled with crippling jetlag (four hours sleep a night: max. And I thought it made you sleepy?), the first week has been a struggle, but I've enjoyed it nonetheless. This year will be an amazing experience. There are people at home I will miss. They know who they are, but I have to make the most of it.

I'm having a tough time deciding what to do with this blog. There isn't much by the way of live music in Gwangju (although I will take every attempt to see what I can. Actually, I am going to see a band called Angry Bear tonight, update to come later), so I guess it has morphed into something of a travel journal. An online account of one ginger man's attempt to get to grips with a culture as alien to him as any in the world. I will also keep the blog updated with published work (I will be writing for a number of Korean publications and probably some at home).

But now, if you'll excuse me, it's 20+ degrees outside. The sun is shining, and I've got a mountain climb.

Video - Mogwai: Yes I Am A Long Way From Home

The New Statesmen: The New Statesmen: The National Talk High Violet

2010-05-08T00:34:00.003+01:00

My interview with The National for The Skinny

Cool, calm and collected: The National cut refined figures amongst the indie fraternity. The Brooklyn quintet's principal songwriters Matt Berninger and Aaron Dessner talk humble beginnings and reveal how accurate a depiction that really is

It’s almost two months before The National unleash their fifth album, High Violet. Matt Berninger and Aaron Dessner have been fielding questions in their homeland for over a week, but as they touch down in London to confront the UK press, you could never tell. The pair are gracious, enthusiastic and unerringly polite. “We worked on the record for a year and a half so we’re happy to talk about it now,” explains front man Berninger, his trademark baritone registering only slightly north of 8Hz. But The National didn’t get to where they are today through any lack of patience. Their formative years were spent moving from town to town, playing to handfuls of punters, living in squalor.

“I remember staying in a really nasty hostel in Glasgow in 2001,” says multi-instrumentalist Dessner. “We came back from our show to find all these drunken backpackers and one of them had put all their wet underwear on Matt’s pillow. We didn’t sleep much that night. I don’t know that we would do that again, but we earned our success one fan at a time. It taught us to convert whoever was in the room, even though there were often more people in the band than in the crowd.”

Berninger laughs when he’s reminded of those times. “It was a means to an end,” he says. And from humble beginnings great things come: these days, The National are the hottest ticket in town. High Violet is the must-hear indie release of the year, and it doesn’t disappoint. The band have produced another stonewall classic – on their terms – and both Berninger and Dessner are confident that it’s the most accomplished record in their canon.

“I think it’s completely unlike anything we’ve ever done,” Berninger assures, “which is what we want to do. It’s definitely our most ornate, layered and complicated piece; the weaving of the horn and string in and out of the ugly fuzzy guitar tones gives a delicate friction and balance and it was our intention to try to marry these to see what kind of alchemy it would create. I think we were more confident to try things we’ve never done before. Anyone’s Ghost is our first real pop song and a lot of the songs have more of a pop feel than what we’ve done previously. In the past, anything that sounded like a pop song, we just threw it away. This time we followed our impulses and weren’t so worried about being cool. I definitely think it’s our best record.”

The confidence the band are imbued with is fully justified. Having announced themselves on the scene with the underrated Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers in 2003, the Cincinnati via Brooklyn five-piece made a huge splash with 2005’s Alligator, an acclaimed album high on emotion and rich in melody. Commercial success followed, too, with 2007’s Boxer, a more restrained, but no less enjoyable record. High Violet, bound to be deemed the most accessible of their releases to date, is unlikely to result in superstardom, but firmly establishes The National as one of the most upwardly consistent bands of their time.

“You can see that what we’re doing in terms of trajectory is not completely random,” says Berninger when asked whether he sees a pattern in their discography. “It weaves one way and then back the other way, all the while moving generally forward; forward to the right, forward to the left. Boxer is very different from Alligator and in some ways we went the opposite direction. Boxer was circumspect and Alligator had lots of screaming. That was intentional; we didn’t want to back ourselves into a corner of being the band with the guy screaming over the top of everything. We cautiously tried to undo our identity at least on that level. This time – I think by doing that – we broke the mould of what people’s idea of what we were was. We diluted it enough so that we could do whatever we wanted. It gave us the freedom to do things like a pop song and have some ugly, jerky sounds and not have everything so pristine and stately as it was on Boxer.”

Their success is all the more remarkable when you consider that Berninger, whose voice – along with the idiosyncratic drumming of Bryan Devendorf – is the most distinctive asset in the band’s armoury, didn’t even realise he could sing until he was in his late twenties. But as any fan of the band will tell you, they broke the mould when they made The National. They tend not to conform to any Rock God stereotype, either musically or personally.

Much of the new album is built upon complex arrangements, layers of keys and guitars augmented with lush, yet unpretentious orchestration. Dessner puts it best when he admits: “We don’t start out thinking ‘This is going to be a sophisticated rock record’ – it’s just the way it goes.” There’s a perceived effortlessness to The National’s sound which places them head and shoulders above many of their peers, seeing them straightforwardly depicted as elder statesmen: wise, unruffled and judicious. Lyrically, too, their songs stand apart from indie rock standards. Berninger’s inkwell is habitually filled with paradoxes: abstract, yet vitriolic; remote, but evocative.

“I don’t write songs line by line,” he explains. “I just write about whatever feels important or the things I’m obsessing over. Sometimes I’m delving into the same dark corners that I have in the past. I don’t say, ‘I want a song about restaurants in the Mid West’. I don’t think that way. I don’t say, ‘I want a song that talks about the rain in England’. I never try to make a clear narrative, it’s more a very blurry train of thought and they can be very hard to connect. Sometimes I wonder if it’s better not to connect them.”

In conversation, too, both Dessner and Berninger have an air of seemliness that many in their profession can’t begin to emanate. Their responses are well-considered and conclusive; they are passionate about what they do and give the impression that they’d happily talk all day about it. But they casually dismiss any notions we have that they are overly refined. “I’m good at the drinking but don’t have a significant palate. I just have a powerful thirst,” says Matt, when it’s suggested he recommend The Skinny a good Merlot. “When I go to a restaurant I pretend to know what I’m doing but I usually order the least expensive. There’s the classic thing that everyone does in ordering the second least expensive bottle on the menu, but that’s where they put the wine they’re trying to get rid of, so I go for the least expensive. It’s mostly better than the other one. People are embarrassed by ordering the cheapest, but it’s usually better than you think.”

The National have come a long way since taking fetid digs in Glasgow, a sentiment highlighted by a recent show at the Royal Albert Hall. But their progress, their excellence and their increasing popularity are tempered with a modesty that’s begotten from a gradual ascent. “Our lives are a lot more comfortable and we’re lucky to be able to survive completely off what we want to do,” says Dessner. “But I could never forget those early days and how tough it was, probably not even if I tried.”

Original photograph by Ross Trevail

Band of Horses - Infinite Arms Album Review

2010-05-08T00:25:00.002+01:00

Band of Horses’ second LP – Cease to Begin – was largely billed as a response to their changing circumstances; the band had left Seattle to settle in South Carolina and the migration spawned a batch of more spacious, Southern Rock infused songs. The glow surrounding Infinite Arms suggests Ben Bridwell's gang found their feet pretty quickly. An uplifting mood is ushered in by the swooning strings of opener Factory and it’s never more dominant than on lead single Compliments – a bouncing, philosophical ditty. The capriciousness continues on Older, and while it’s harsh to suggest the album suffers at the hands of jollity, it's slightly stifled by an overriding sense of reservation and light-heartedness. Evening Kitchen provides a few moments of stark beauty and Laredo could have been lifted from at stellar second album, but tracks like On My Way Back Home embody a comfort-induced coma which suggests Band of Horses might need a little shot of adrenaline.

3/5

Written for The Skinny

Video: Band of Horses: Compliments and Factory, Live on Jools Holland

Phosphorescent - Here's to Taking it Easy Album Review

2010-04-29T14:56:00.003+01:00

Those familiar with the music of Matthew Houck, aka Phosphorescent, won’t be surprised by the title of his first batch of original songs since 2007’s exemplary Pride. They may, however, be thrown slightly off guard by the opening track; a rollicking, horn-led ode to Alabama. But Houck hasn’t completely forsaken the lazy, introspective Americana that earned him comparisons to Will Oldham and Neil Young. It’s more like he’s got half a cheek slouched on the couch, the other attempting a drunken waltz on his porch – case in point: penultimate track, Heaven Sitting Down.

Here's To Taking It Easy is more buoyant than almost anything Houck’s released before, but the highlights occur when he reverts to type, like on the meditative Hej, Me I’m Light and album highlight and closer, Los Angeles. Ultimately, Here's to Taking it Easy struggles for an identity: unsure whether it should embrace the light or slump down into the melodious murk once again.

3/5

Written for The Skinny

National Anthems

2010-04-28T17:29:00.003+01:00

From their formative days in Cincinnati to the dizzy heights of Bloodbuzz Ohio, here's a chronological guide to The National's catalogue to date.

The National (2001)

Their self-titled debut rippled the consciousness of few, but for those who heard it, boded well for the Cincinnati outfit. It showcases an Americana influence not revisited substantially on any of the band's successive releases. It’s comparably inconsistent and the lyrics don’t visit the same depths of Berninger’s more recent work, though it boasts promise amongst a few notable tracks.

Choice Cut: Theory of the Crows

Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers (2003)

This excellent second album was the beginning of their fruitful relationship with producer Peter Katis and the first to rubber-stamp The National’s trademark sound. All at once funny, paranoid and self-deprecating, Sad Songs… is perhaps the most immediate album the band have released to date.

Choice Cut: Fashion Coat

Alligator (2005)

The album that brought The National to our attention, Alligator stands up as one of the most intricate, beautiful and compelling indie releases of our time. Matt Berninger’s abstract yet poetic snippets, sometimes screamed, sometimes crooned, are like daggers through the layered, almost symphonic arrangements of his band.

Choice Cut: Daughters of the Soho Riots

Boxer (2007)

We were worried about how they would follow up Alligator, but there really was no need; more restrained, but arguably more musically sophisticated, Boxer is a lavish, self-contained masterpiece. As with most of their work, this one requires patience, but the rewards are bountiful. Boxer’s critical praise was reflected in its commercial success. Having played Nice 'n' Sleazy when they were last in town, suddenly they were selling out the ABC.

Choice Cut: Fake Empire

High Violet (2010)

It seems criminal to attempt an appraisal of High Violet so early, but even after a month in its company, it’s abundantly clear that this is every bit as brilliant as any of its predecessors. The hooks are stronger, arrangements denser and lyrics as elegantly opaque as ever. Once again, The National have seen our expectations and raised them.

Choice Cut: Bloodbuzz Ohio

S&B Spotify Playlist: April 2010

2010-04-25T18:32:00.004+01:00

This is the last one of these I'm able to do. Next week I am moving to South Korea for a year. I'm going to be living in Gwangju. Spotify doesn't extend to Korea, but they do have the fastest broadband connection in the world. I think I can get around to learning how to upload mp3s! It's obviously a massive change in every way for me, but one area I hadn't really considered until now is musically. I don't think I'll be doing as much music journalism as I do now. The city is pretty parochial by Korean standards, so I doubt there will be the opportunity to attend many gigs. I guess I'll be reliant on the blogs and websites I read for updates and hints on what to listen to!

The past month has been a really busy one, with organizing my departure, but I have been working my way through some great music. I've been really enjoying the new album by Three Blind Wolves, the new band of Ross Clark. I loved his debut album with The Scarfs Go Missing but I think he's taken it on to another level with this one. The track I've put on the playlist isn't even on the album and it's brilliant - there's real substance to this guy's talent.

I've not seen the movie The Road but I have been listening to the soundtrack. The opening track on this set is a beautiful number. Cave and Ellis seem to be getting better and more productive with age. The other new(ish) tracks are from Caribou, Ali Farka Touré and Tindersticks, all of which I've been loving. Looking at the rest, I can't help but think I've become a little predictable in my listening. Lots of guys with guitars, Americana and twangy guitars. Maybe the coming year is a chance for me to diversify a little. I'll be sure to give an update.

S&B Spotify Playlist April 2010

1. Nick Cave & Warren Ellis - The Road
2. Gillian Welch - Everything is Free
3. Deer Tick - Ashamed
4. Withered Hand _ No Cigarettes
5. Megafaun - Kaufman's Ballad
6. Three Blind Wolves - Sex is for Losers
7. The Mountain Goats - Wild Sage
8. Sun Kil Moon - Carry Me Ohio
9. Kath Bloom - Is This Called Living
10. Tyler Ramsey - Lost Girls
11. David Bazan - Please, Baby, Please
12. Neutral Milk Hotel - Oh, Comely
13. The Jayhawks - Over My Shoulder
14. Delorean - The Biggest Lie
15. R.E.M. - Laughing
16. Whiskeytown - Dancing With The Women At The Bar
17. Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabaté - Doudou
18. Lightning Dust - Antonia Jane
19. Tindersticks - Harmony Around My Table
20. Band of Horses - Plans (Grizzly Bear Cover)
21. The Lemonheads - Rudderless
22. Okkervil River - Black
23. Calexico - Victor Jara's Hands
24. Caribou - Odessa

My Most Listened to Albums of This Year Are...

2010-04-23T11:56:00.004+01:00

1. The National - High Violet
2. Deer Tick - War Elephant
3. Clogs - The Creatures in the Garden Of Lady Walton
4. Galaxie 500 - On Fire
5. Band of Horses - Infinite Arms
6. Phosphorescent - Here's To Taking It Easy
7. Midlake - The Trials of Van Occupanther
8. Townes Van Zandt - Anthology
9. Horse Feathers - Words Are Dead
10. Real Estate - Real Estate

Okay, this is a pretty strange list. I admit, it's also pretty inaccurate. It's aggregated using Last FM and is based on the tracks scrobbled from each album. Thing is, this year I've been listening to a hell of a lot of music on Spotify, not to mention on my mp3 player. Honestly though, The National's new album is undoubtedly the one I've listened to the most. If it were to include everything else, I think you'd find some Jo Newsom, Kath Bloom and David Thomas Broughton.

It would be interesting to hear what other people have been listening to the most?

jj - jj n° 3 Album Review

2010-04-22T11:37:00.002+01:00

Last year, Swedish dream-pop outfit jj scored a critical hit with the imaginatively titled n° 2. n° 3 follows quickly on its heels and unsurprisingly treads similar territory. There are breathy, soulful vocals (My Life), sun-kissed rhythms (lead single and album highlight Let Go) and recurring chill-out mantras in abundance; the stoned mood even seeps into the song titles, (see Golden Virginia). jj do what they do very well, meaning you will emerge on the other side feeling relaxed and tranquil. There are hooks aplenty and an infectious number will be ingrained in your psyche for days. But it’s difficult to stay excited about an album this laid back. Occasionally, as on Voi Paralte, Lo Giocco, n° 3 is let down by a lack of vitality and it cries out for direction. The odd injection of adrenaline could easily have elevated this from merely a good record to something far greater.

3/5

Written for The Skinny

The Peryls - I Have Not Slept One Wink EP Review

2010-04-20T19:02:00.002+01:00

Average English folksy type fail to capitalise on potential.

I Have Not Slept One Wink is as quintessentially English as pork pies, cricket and red post boxes. It’s quaint, cutesy and whimsical, taking influence from Revolver era Beatles and Bowie circa Hunky Dory. There’s a Dickensian quality to it that Oregonian Anglophiles The Decemberists spent a few years perfecting. The trouble is, The Peryls don’t do it half as well. Of the seven tracks here, four are disposable. It’s a frustrating statistic, as when they get it right, like on the melodious She Cried All Night Long, they reveal bags of potential. Too often, though, they are as tame and forgettable as afternoon tea.

2/5

Written for The Skinny

Clogs - The Creatures in the Garden of Lady Walton Album Review

2010-04-18T14:31:00.002+01:00

Not only would it be unfair to call Clogs a National side project, it’d be inaccurate too, since they predate them and are arguably a larger influence on The National’s music than the other way around. The fifth album by Bryce Dessner and Padma Newsome (he behind their orchestral arrangements), is a wonderful, beautiful brew of neo-classical, chamber pop, Mediaeval folk and post-rock. It’s tempting to sit back and hurl adjectives at it, but few would do it justice. Sure, it’s lavish, but it’s tasteful too. Okay, it’s ornate and opulent, but it certainly isn’t alienating. Woven amongst the guest vocalists (Shara Morden of My Brightest Diamond appears on half the tracks, and Matt Berninger) are subtle touches of woodwind, brushes of percussion and lilting string plucks that continue to reveal themselves, spin after spin. Clogs have produced a veritable masterpiece, an album to immerse yourself and hope to get lost inside.

Three Blind Wolves - Sound of the Storm Album Review

2010-04-15T17:56:00.003+01:00

Ross Clark’s first album You Brought Evil (2009) was one of significant promise: a spacious, nebulous record, built around the Glaswegian singer’s distinctive voice. On Sound of the Storm – from Clark’s new band Three Blind Wolves – his voice is again to the fore, but this time it’s the centrepiece of a multi-pronged, country rock outpouring. The promise of his debut is realised in full; the tracks which have been recycled from it are more rounded and polished, revitalised by a fuller sound. From the gorgeous, tender Emily Rose, to the spring-stepped Hotel and the epic eponymous track, his full song writing canon is on display here, and it sounds mightily impressive. That Ross Clark is doing a better Jim James turn than the My Morning Jacket frontman can muster these days should be cause for the Kentucky native’s concern, but one for just about everyone else to celebrate.

4/5

Elmore Leonard's Ten Rules of Writing

2010-04-13T01:10:00.003+01:00

I've read quite a few writing guides, for both fiction and non-fiction. Most of them have raised some interesting points and ideas, but few have been as comprehensive and as accurate as I'd like. This one from Elmore Leonard pretty much hits the nail on the head. It's due to be published as a short book quite soon, although I'm not sure why anyone would buy it given that it's readily available online. It is definitely worth a read though.

Most of it can be used homogenously, across genres. Some points I'm particularly keen on are:

5. Keep your exclamation points under control.

and

10. Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip.

I realised recently how much of a novel I scan over. They say every word has to earn its place on the page and this is true. Getting bogged down in meandering narratives and descriptions is really off-putting. I am going to try and take these pointers on board in future.

Elmore Leonard's Ten Rules of Writing

Easy on the Adverbs, Exclamation Points and Especially Hooptedoodle

from the New York Times, Writers on Writing Series.

By ELMORE LEONARD

These are rules I’ve picked up along the way to help me remain invisible when I’m writing a book, to help me show rather than tell what’s taking place in the story. If you have a facility for language and imagery and the sound of your voice pleases you, invisibility is not what you are after, and you can skip the rules. Still, you might look them over.

1. Never open a book with weather.

If it's only to create atmosphere, and not a character's reaction to the weather, you don't want to go on too long. The reader is apt to leaf ahead looking for people. There are exceptions. If you happen to be Barry Lopez, who has more ways to describe ice and snow than an Eskimo, you can do all the weather reporting you want.

2. Avoid prologues.

They can be annoying, especially a prologue following an introduction that comes after a foreword. But these are ordinarily found in nonfiction. A prologue in a novel is backstory, and you can drop it in anywhere you want.

There is a prologue in John Steinbeck's ''Sweet Thursday,'' but it's O.K. because a character in the book makes the point of what my rules are all about. He says: ''I like a lot of talk in a book and I don't like to have nobody tell me what the guy that's talking looks like. I want to figure out what he looks like from the way he talks. . . . figure out what the guy's thinking from what he says. I like some description but not too much of that. . . . Sometimes I want a book to break loose with a bunch of hooptedoodle. . . . Spin up some pretty words maybe or sing a little song with language. That's nice. But I wish it was set aside so I don't have to read it. I don't want hooptedoodle to get mixed up with the story.''

3. Never use a verb other than ''said'' to carry dialogue.

The line of dialogue belongs to the character; the verb is the writer sticking his nose in. But said is far less intrusive than grumbled, gasped, cautioned, lied. I once noticed Mary McCarthy ending a line of dialogue with ''she asseverated,'' and had to stop reading to get the dictionary.

4. Never use an adverb to modify the verb ''said'' . . .

. . . he admonished gravely. To use an adverb this way (or almost any way) is a mortal sin. The writer is now exposing himself in earnest, using a word that distracts and can interrupt the rhythm of the exchange. I have a character in one of my books tell how she used to write historical romances ''full of rape and adverbs.''

5. Keep your exclamation points under control.

You are allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose. If you have the knack of playing with exclaimers the way Tom Wolfe does, you can throw them in by the handful.

6. Never use the words ''suddenly'' or ''all hell broke loose.''

This rule doesn't require an explanation. I have noticed that writers who use ''suddenly'' tend to exercise less control in the application of exclamation points.

7. Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly.

Once you start spelling words in dialogue phonetically and loading the page with apostrophes, you won't be able to stop. Notice the way Annie Proulx captures the flavor of Wyoming voices in her book of short stories ''Close Range.''

8. Avoid detailed descriptions of characters.

Which Steinbeck covered. In Ernest Hemingway's ''Hills Like White Elephants'' what do the ''American and the girl with him'' look like? ''She had taken off her hat and put it on the table.'' That's the only reference to a physical description in the story, and yet we see the couple and know them by their tones of voice, with not one adverb in sight.

9. Don't go into great detail describing places and things.

Unless you're Margaret Atwood and can paint scenes with language or write landscapes in the style of Jim Harrison. But even if you're good at it, you don't want descriptions that bring the action, the flow of the story, to a standstill.

And finally:

10. Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip.

A rule that came to mind in 1983. Think of what you skip reading a novel: thick paragraphs of prose you can see have too many words in them. What the writer is doing, he's writing, perpetrating hooptedoodle, perhaps taking another shot at the weather, or has gone into the character's head, and the reader either knows what the guy's thinking or doesn't care. I'll bet you don't skip dialogue.

My most important rule is one that sums up the 10.

If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.

Or, if proper usage gets in the way, it may have to go. I can't allow what we learned in English composition to disrupt the sound and rhythm of the narrative. It's my attempt to remain invisible, not distract the reader from the story with obvious writing. (Joseph Conrad said something about words getting in the way of what you want to say.)

If I write in scenes and always from the point of view of a particular character -- the one whose view best brings the scene to life -- I'm able to concentrate on the voices of the characters telling you who they are and how they feel about what they see and what's going on, and I'm nowhere in sight.

What Steinbeck did in ''Sweet Thursday'' was title his chapters as an indication, though obscure, of what they cover. ''Whom the Gods Love They Drive Nuts'' is one, ''Lousy Wednesday'' another. The third chapter is titled ''Hooptedoodle 1'' and the 38th chapter ''Hooptedoodle 2'' as warnings to the reader, as if Steinbeck is saying: ''Here's where you'll see me taking flights of fancy with my writing, and it won't get in the way of the story. Skip them if you want.''

''Sweet Thursday'' came out in 1954, when I was just beginning to be published, and I've never forgotten that prologue.

Did I read the hooptedoodle chapters? Every word.

Music Quiz #4

2010-04-12T14:19:00.004+01:00

I haven't posted one of these in a while, then again, I haven't posted anything in a while. I've been pretty busy traveling cross-country and sorting stuff out for my move. This one is a movie-themed music quiz... if you reckon you're good enough - email the answers to finbarr.bermingham@gmail.com

Good luck!

Who produced the soundtrack to the movie Natural Born Killers?
Brian Eno and eighties rockers Toto produced the soundtrack to which David Lynch movie?
Hakuna Matata, a song from the Lion King soundtrack, is a Swahili phrase that means what in English?
Which 2003 movie soundtrack features songs from My Bloody Valentine, Squarepusher, The Jesus and Mary Chain and Bill Murray?
Which French duo scored the film soundtrack to Sofia Coppola's Virgin Suicides?
Which former member of Pop Will Eat Itself scored the soundtrack to Requiem For A Dream and The Hole?
Which film features appearances from both Jools Holland and Meatloaf?
Starsky and Hutch, The Basketball Diaries and Kalifornia are all part of which female front woman's filmography?
Which of the following did not appear on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack:

Kool and the Gang

Funkadelic

KC and the Sunshine Band?

Portuguese singer Seu Jorge covered the songs of whom for a large part of the movie The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou?
Which hip hop star was one of the producers of the soundtrack to Kill Bill: Volume One?
Which movie currently holds the Academy Award for Best Original Score?
And which song is the current holder of the Best Original Song Oscar?
Which Tyneside musician has appeared in The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and, um, Ally McBeal?
Dracula, Mystery Men and Wristcutters: A Love Story all feature appearances from which veteran music man?
Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds, It Was A Very Good Year and Mr Tambourine Man were all covered by which much maligned actor cum singer on his 1968 album The Transformed Man?
Which Italian American composer has collaborated with David Lynch on Blue Velvet, Twin Peaks and Mullholland Drive?
Which American actor appeared in the video to Fatboy Slim's 2001 hit Weapon Of Choice?
Hollywood legends James Dean, Martin Sheen and Steve McQueen are name checked in which REM song, from the New Adventures In Hi-Fi album?
Which fictional band, taken from a Roddy Doyle novel, featured Deco Cuffe as lead vocalist, Outspan Foster on guitar and were managed by Jimmy Rabbitte?

La Folie – Risus Sardonicus Album Review

2010-03-31T12:48:00.002+01:00

The success enjoyed by Gogol Bordello over the past decade has inspired a sizeable amount of inferior impersonators. The incorporation of “gulag” instrumentation (organ, accordion etc) into standard rock band format doesn’t necessarily indicate sophistication or cleverness. In many cases, it’s quite the opposite. Take La Folie’s debut album as a case in point. They’ve fully embraced the gypsy punk aesthetic, perhaps expectant of distinguishing themselves from more conventional peers, but end up sounding trite, tired and annoying. No track encapsulates what is awful about Risus Sardonicus (a symptom of tetanus that causes the sufferers face to spasm into a grin, something you won’t do much of whilst listening to La Folie) better than the album closer, Madame Palm. The jam finishes on the nine minute mark, about eight minutes after it should have. In trying to instil a carnival-like atmosphere, La Folie end up sounding clownish. Sitting through eleven tracks of this is hard, exhausting work.

1/5

S&B Spotify Playlist: March 2010

2010-03-24T13:40:00.011Z

It's been a bi-polar kind of month for me, half of which was spent in Manchester, superconnected and the other half, cut-off from the rest of the world in an wi-fi-free Fermanagh (also without my hard drive). It's funny how quickly I've become reliant on my computer and the internet for music. I guess it's sad, really. I've fallen out of the habit of buying cds, granted for financial reasons, but if I were to make a quarter year resolution, then it would be to start up again.

Quarter of a year. It's not long passing. And this year, I think, has been exceptionally top-loaded with great albums and it's only going to get better. I had the privilege of interviewing The National yesterday for The Skinny. It's ahead of the new album, High Violet, which is excellent. I think it's too early to say whether it's as good as Alligator or Boxer, given that they were both immensely slow-burning albums, but so far so good. In anticipation, I've included Fake Empire from their 2007 classic.

I've also been hammering David Thomas Broughton's album, The Complete Guide to Insufficiency, pretty hard. I see it as a halfway house between Panda Bear and Nick Drake. His subject matter tends to be a tad maudlin, but his voice is overflowing with emotion - as powerful as Antony Hegarty's. What amazes me is that his debut set was recorded in one take. If you listen to it, you'll know what I mean. It was recorded in a church, which I think adds a sense of potency or reverence to the sound quality that's even palpable without knowing where it was laid down. The Complete Guide is five years old now and he's due to follow it up this year.

I'd never heard of Kath Bloom before this month, when I saw her recommended on a message board, but she's been releasing records since the 70s. My personal highlight from her new album is here. When I heard this track, I fell in love with her voice. It reminds me of Johnny Cash's the older he got, in the sense that it's weary, slightly out of tune at times, but somehow conveys infinite wisdom.

In keeping with the comeback, I've included my own highlight from Gil Scott-Heron's return, the title track from I'm New Here. It's a cover of a Smog song and when I first heard he was doing that, I was confused and wary: I'm a huge Bill Callahan fan. But it sounds great, and when Gil sings the chorus, his voice doesn't sound a million miles away from Callahan's.

Since I've spent half the month cut off, I've had to make do with the contents of my mp3 player (it's not very big). I've been listening to lots of Electrelane and their first two albums in particular. I think it's fair to say they got more accessible as they went along. The Valleys, from the Power Out, is the best thing they've ever recorded. It's an operatic choral number that kinda comes out of nowhere. What impresses me most, is how the girls from the band manage to hold their own with the choir. I always thought the vocals on Electrelane tracks were relatively weak. How wrong I was.

There are a few newish tracks here, but most of it is mined from the archives. I wrote about the tragic death of Mark Linkous earlier this month so I won't do it again. I've included a few of my favourite Sparklehorse tracks in the mix too.

Enjoy: Scrawls & Bawls March 2010 Playlist

1. David Thomas Broughton - Unmarked Grave
2. Sparklehorse - Eyepennies
3. Kath Bloom - Like This
4. Jason Lytle - Yours Truly, The Commuter
5. Tindersticks - The Organist Entertains
6. The Unwinding Hours - Solstice
7. Sam Amidon - 1842
8. J. Tillman - Steel on Steel
9. Sparklehorse - Saturday
10. The National - Fake Empire
11. Gil Scott-Heron - I'm New Here
12. Owen Pallett - Lewis Takes Action
13. The Mountain Goats - This Year
14. Uncle Tupelo - Screen Door
15. Local Natives - Wide Eyes
16. Electrelane - The Valleys
17. Sparklehorse - Wish You Were Here