K-RoK Song of the Day: Buzz - Jingle Bell Rock

One last Christmas song before the holiday is over. I had to throw this song in there because I love Buzz and I think they produced the only version of Jingle Bell Rock that actually has a ROCK sound. Buzz formed back in 2003 and were generally thought to have broken up, but then POOF this year they released a new album. I think people that live here believe if a band is inactive for a few years that automatically means they are no longer together and are finished. But they forget to take into consideration that they're mostly guys and that means they have to serve their 2 year military service. SO, things get put on hold for awhile for many bands (and idol groups.) But, Buzz came back as good as ever. ;) This song itself was released in 2004, not long after their debut. I love it. But, then again, I love Christmas music, and Korean rock, so put them together and I'm a happy girl. Merry Merry Christmas!

Love, Kamala-Chan ;)

B-JBR by K-RoKer

Festive Friday: Final! Yoon Do Hyun - Silver Bells

Last Festive Friday! This time with a little Yoon Do-Hyun! Merry Christmas blog friends! Hope you have a wonderful holiday if you DO celebrate it - otherwise just have a good day!

YDH-SB by K-RoKer

Tour Info: Galaxy Express

Galaxy Express is coming to Canada! They will be the first Korean band to play at the Canadian Music fest from March 9-13 in Toronto. I'm toying with the idea of going. If I could find someone to go with or stay there with I would probably do it. I know that the article says they're planning a US movie and music tour, but I don't know how far that will stretch, and Minnesota and Canada are neighbors! Anyway, if you live in Canada and can get to this concert, I highly recommend it. Galaxy Express are very enthusiastic live performers, to say the least. GO GO GO! 

More info at the official festival website HERE.

K-RoK Song of the Day: Nemesis - Gee

I'm doing something a little new today. I'm going to post a band doing a cover song, live. AND it's a pop song! Yep, Nemesis did cover a couple popular K-Pop (was that redundant?) during one of their live shows and we were lucky enough to have someone record it and upload it to YouTube. I, for one, enjoy this version even more. Obviously, I'm a rock fan, but I do enjoy K-Pop too. Gee was just too much for me, they overplayed and over promoted the hell out of that song and only now can I appreciate it again.

Nemesis - Gee








Nemesis has been around for about 10 years now, rocking a post-modern-gothic-visual-glam-rock style. The albums vary from really orchestral and haunting songs to fun up-beat pop-rock tracks. I enjoy their diversity and willingness to just have fun with their music. The band has had a few line-up changes but consists of:
Noh Seung-Ho: Vocals
Ha Se-Bin: Piano/Guitar
Cheon Kwi-Sung: Guitar
Choi Seung-woo: Bass
Jung Euy-Seok: Drums

Check out their albums La Rose de Versailles and Lovesick - remember to support the artists! :)

K-RoK Song of the Day: Guckkasten - Manicure

Guckkasten is back with their most recent EP release Tagtraume. Guckkasten (German for Zograscope) debuted in 2008 with a self-titled digital single. Then, in 2009 they returned with a full-length album with the same name. Then in 2010 they re-recorded the album with rock-label Mirror Ball Music.  I'm happy that they are on such a great label with so many great artists. Guckkasten is a great blend of metal, punk, screamo and electonic. They are one of those bands that I have a hard time pinning one single tag onto.
Band members are:
Ha Hyun-Woo on Vocals and guitar
Lee Jung-Gil on drums
Jun Gyuho - guitar as well
Kim Gibum -on bass

Guckkasten - Manicure (Performance Version)

K-RoK & YAM-Mag Exclusive!

As promised, my interview with Choi Jae-Hyuck of Yellow Monsters is posted up now over at YAM-Mag. Please click through to hear my thoughts on the band and the music, as well as a few questions I was lucky enough to ask Jae-Hyuck! :)

/

YAMs

Are tasty and important. No, just kidding. YAM stands for Yet Another Magazine. And yet, it's not. Because it features people from all over the world writing about the things they are most passionate about. Music, Movies, Television and more. With a team of 14 writers (still growing) they cover everything from big U.S. blockbusters, to quiet and obscure art house films. From K-Pop to a lovely interview with Diane Warren, their music scene spans genres and countries in an easy and seamless manor. Check them out for great reviews, information and recommendations! :)

Random Extra: Art of Parties - Live At Mnet PUB

MNET HAS A PUB????
 That aside, I want to see these guys live SO BAD! This will have to suffice for now. :/

K-RoK Song of the Day: Ibadi - Walk

Ibadi is back with a new single; Walk.  This track released a few days ago and the emotion in it caught my attention right off the bat. Ibadi is a three member, indie band that formed in 2008. They've had mild success, being featured on several soundtracks as well as MBC's La La La Live compilations. The three member group with Horan (of Clazziquai fame) on vocals, Kim Jung-Min on bass and guitar, Im Geo-Jung on drums and guitar create relaxing melodies and emotional lyrics. Check out the video for Walk here:

Festive Friday: Part 3: The Swimming Fish - All I Want For Christmas Is You

The Swimming Fish are actually pretty well know in the Korean Pop circle. I think it's because they have a female lead singer and their beats are pretty cheerful for the most part. But, they are at their core, a rock band. They formed in 2003, but didn't put out their first EP until 2006 which was titled Go Away. The band released their first full-length album in 2007, Happy And'Ling. I'll admit, I found them first later in the year with the release of their Christmas album Rockin' Christmas. Obviously it appealed to my senses since I'm obsessed with Christmas music and Korean rock. They were pretty quiet for awhile,but came out on the God of Study OST earlier this year and released an EP this summer as well. They're definitely worth a listen.

For a little Christmas cheer, here is Swimming Fish with a cover of Mariah Carey's  All I Want For Christmas Is You:

SF - AIWFCIY by K-RoKer

K-RoK Song of the Day: Deli Spice - 항상 엔진을 켜둘게

From Deli Spice's fourth album DRRRR!, is 항상 엔진을 켜둘게 or Always Keep The Engine Running. Deli Spice was formed in 1995 and has released a total of 6 full length albums as well as a few other tid-bits here and there. The style of this band leans a little more towards the indie-side of things. But I still enjoy them because they do have a harder edge to them. The most current line-up includes Kim Min-Gyu singing vocals, Yoon Joon-Ho on the bass and guitar with Choi Jae-Hyuck (sound familiar?) on drums. They're currently on an indefinite hiatus, but are not actually broken up.

Watch for Jae-Hyuck at about 3:08!  And stay tuned for my interview with him coming up!



I found lyrics too! :

항상 엔진을 켜둘께
Always Keep the Engine Running
휴일을 앞둔 밤에
Night before the weekend
아무도 없는 새벽
Early morning with no one around
도로를 질주해서 바닷가에
Dash down the road, to the beach
아직은 어두운 하늘
Sky is yet dark
천평궁은 빛나고
Libra is shining
차안으로 스며드는 찬 공기들
Cold air seeps into the car
기다릴게
I'll be waiting
언제라도 출발할 수 있도록
So we can leave no matter when
항상 엔진을 켜둘께
I'll always keep the engine running
너와 만난 시간보다 많은 시간이 흐르고
After more time than the time I spent with you passed
그 바닷가에 다시 또 찾아와 만약 그대가 온다면
I visit that beach again, and if you come too,
항상 듣던 스미스를 들으며
Listening to Smith that we always listened to,
저 멀리로 떠나자
Let's run far far away.
기다릴게
I'll be waiting
언제라도 출발할 수 있도록
So we can leave no matter when
항상 엔진을 켜둘께
I'll always keep the engine running
기다릴게
I'll be waiting
언제라도 출발할 수 있도록
So we can leave no matter when
항상 엔진을 켜둘께
I'll always keep the engine running
돌아오지 않더라도
Even if you don't return
난 여기에 서 있겠지
I will probably stand here
아마 엔진을 켜둔채
Probably leaving the engine running
기다릴게
I'll be waiting
언제라도 출발할 수 있도록
So we can leave no matter when
항상 엔진을 켜둘께
I'll always keep the engine running
돌아오지 않더라도
Even if you don't return
난 여기에 서 있겠지
I will probably stand here
아마 엔진을 켜둔채
Probably leaving the engine running

K-RoK Song of the Day: Yellow Monsters - Destruction

SOMEONE'S favorite Yellow Monsters song. Hint: Not mine!


Yellow Monsters - Desctruction

K-RoK Song of the Day: Romantic Punch - Midnight Cinderella

Romantic Punch made their debut last year with their self-titled EP "Romantic Punch." They just released their full-length debut album back in June with "Midnight Cinderella" I picked the title track, it's my favorite off the album. They mix things up really well, from a more jazzy sound on 좋은날이 올거야 (Acoustic Version) that utilizes their advantage of having a male and female vocalist, to the edgier sounds of Right Now, I'm really impressed with the newbie band and their great sense of musical style. If I had more information on them, I would share it, but some of these bands just aren't followed much by English fans and there is little information available on them. I'm working on picking up the Korean alphabet, so someday I'll be able to read things and translate them for myself.

Here is Romantic Punch with Midnight Cinderella

RP - MC by K-RoKer

And a lovely live video of it too:

K-RoK Song of the Day: Story Seller - Ole (feat. Love Cubic)

I'm going to apologize ahead of time, because this song will get stuck in your head. I've talked about Story Seller before, I'd like to feature them on a song of the day though. The band has been around their debut in 2005. Originally named Bloody Cookie, they released a single and EP under that name, changing to Story Seller for their 2008 single: My Dear. The band consists of *SHOCK* four women!
On Vocals we have Binna. I love her voice - it's very powerful and beautiful. AND you gotta love a woman who can rock the purple hair!
Drummer,  Sky stars in the other video I posted for Super Girl.
We've got Noji on the guitar - and she's one tough lookin chick!
To round it out, Pumpkin (Hobak) rocks the bass!
I think they're the hardest rocking female fronted band, I'm glad to be a fan. Hope to see them in concert one day! :)



Not gonna lie, I don't really know who Love Cubic is, but they added a little pop hook into Story Sellers' music. Really like this collaboration that came out during/for the World Cup. Korea sure knows how to cheer for their country!

Random Extra: No Min-Woo - Heartbeat Drum Solo

No Min-Woo (sometimes romanized as Noh) is an ex member of The Trax and is making a big name for himself in the drama world. He already has 8 dramas and a film under his belt. He hasn't forgotten his musical roots, however and releases some self-produced videos of him jamming out. I'm glad he's starring in Rock Rock Rock and not someone who has no knowledge of the rock world!
Here is a hot drum-cover of 2PM's Heartbeat:


Thanks to PinKellyphant for the tip!

K-RoK Song of the Day: YB

Tonight is gonna be a double whammy. I actually couldn't decide between these two. I had a rough night tonight and these two songs helped me through. The first song; Dream Girl two (꿈꾸는 소녀 two) is off of their last full-length album Co-Existence.  Something about this song just puts me at ease.

YB - 꿈꾸는 소녀 two by K-RoKer

The next song. Flying Butterfly is composed by Tae-Hee, the bassist and is one of my favorite YB songs of all time. It's been released in an English version, but that version is mixed by RRM, and as much as I love them and that version, I want to share the original form of it. The lyrics inspire me every time I hear it.

In a video!


I hope this cheered anyone up who was having a rough time. I know a little YB always helps me out!

K-RoK Song of the Day: Boohwal - Thinking

After posting about Rock Rock Rock, I couldn't help but want to post a Boohwal song. Boohwal has been around for awhile, had many changes in line-up, but never fails to come back stronger than ever. The changes are too much for me to wrap my head around, and I'm not even gonna try, so I'll slap this link HERE for you. Let's just say that leader and guitarist Kim Tae-Won is the only one who has never changed.  If you just want a nice rock ballad click the video below! (this one has subs! yay!)

Rock Rock Rock

The new mini-series on KBS titled Rock Rock Rock is about to air, and I'm pretty dang excited. Not only does it tell the life story of Kim Tae-Won, the guitarist of legendary Korean rock band Boo-Hwal, it stars Devin Lee of Dr. Core 911 too!
This guy:

Well, maybe "stars" is a little strong, but he's going to be in it, and I'm excited to get to see him act. He was just recently in Rock of Ages in the Korean production (yes, Shawols, alongside Onew) and I was curious to know how he did in that. Noh Min-Woo (former Trax member, now a member of 24/7) stars as Tae-Won. there is a great cast for this drama. I'm hoping that Noh Min-Woo is a big enough draw to get someone to sub this. Let's go, rock! I think rock is getting more and more popular in Korea - or am I wrong?

Video Teaser (courtesy of HanCinema)

Picture Spam!:

OMG - that hair!! 

K-RoK Song of the Day: Pearl's Day - 괜찮아, 괜찮아, 괜찮아

OR - Okay, Okay, Okay if you translate it. Pearl's day, formed in 2001, is made up of 2 male and 2 female members. Happily, the lead vocalist is a girl - Son Min-Jeong also plays guitar. Kwon Hyon-Woo on guitar as well. Kim Seong-Hyun on the drums and rounding it out is Ijin-Won on the bass. Their freshman album, 1st Birthday was released in 2006, followed by a few EP's and songs on soundtracks. The lastest EP 괜찮아, 괜찮아, 괜찮아 contains 3 tracks. 괜찮아, 괜찮아, 괜찮아; Why, Why, Why, & Everybody Needs Somebody. I just love the hard rock sounds matched with a female vocalist. That's usually pretty hard to find. It's typically impossible and they band tends to fade out and have more of an indie feel. Not Pearl's Day - they rock it out! Enjoy!

PD-OOO by K-RoKer

K-RoK Song of the Day: Broken Valentine - Answer Me

Broken Valentine is an awesome five member band. They've only got a couple EP's out - the first one is obnoxiously hard to find. But they have such an awesome vibe to their music. It's hard core Emo/Punk/Alternative. I think they're having a hard time staying signed to a label for whatever reason. But they are very active in live shows. There are all kinds of live performance videos on youtube for them.

Here is Broken Valentine with Answer Me of of their "Calling You" EP that came out earlier this year.
BV-AM by K-RoKer

K-RoK Song of the Day: EVE - Ghost School

If you're following along, you probably saw my mini-blurb of a post about EVE. They are, in fact, one of my ABSOLUTE favorite Korean rock bands. Between them and Wiretap In My Ear (Prana) they're the closest things to Visual Kei Korea has. They started out in 1998, so they've been around for awhile! Their self-titled first album came out that year, containing the single "Whenever You Feel". Kinda emo, but, that's kind of par for the course with glam-rock bands, isn't it? They re-released this song with a new version on their sEVEnth Evening album - with better vocals than before even. I like that they take the time to rework things and make them better.  It's a sign of a great musician when they are never quite finished with a song. Many of the greatest musicians I know of continually manipulate and re-create their songs. (Gackt, YB) EVE has released 8 full length albums in total. The 8th album, Play Me was made the year of their disbandment. They have since re-connected and have started putting out a couple of mini-albums. The first of these was EVE - Guy In Revolution. (There was a single that came out in 2009, with only 1 track too) And most recently, Gloria, which happily contained a re-visited version of their single "Don't Say Goodbye." On and on, I could go! But I won't, I'll just introduce them to you!

 Kim Se-Hyeon (김세헌) (born June 2, 1973) (or sometimes Kim Young) covers main vocals, guitar and composing. Really, he IS the band considering he's really the only part remaining of the original band.
They've shuffled through a few members over the years some of the most notorious being G. Gorilla, and Ha Sebin of Nemesis.
The other current members include Choi Kiho the guitarist, who is on twitter! :) (check out my twitter list to follow)
Kim Seung-Jue on Bass
Hwa Jeong-Yu on..."other" which I usually take to mean keyboard. :/


Ghost School is the song that really pulled me into fan-girl status. I love it! :)
It's off their 6th album Welcome to Planet Eve

I hope you enjoy! :) Thoughts? Leave a comment - I love hearing from people!

Festive Friday!

Hey there, I know some of you don't care for Christmas music. But, I love it. I actually have Korean rock Christmas music.
Remember these guys?

They sing one of my favorite versions of Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer. Lots of screaming and fun: 

Schizo - Rudolph by K-RoKer





Another good song that actually just makes me laugh is Do They Know It's Christmas? by MC the Max, Wax, J-Walk, Rumble Fish and The Name

VA - DTKIC by K-RoKer

I hope you enjoy this little bit of Christmas cheer! Don't worry - there are only a few weeks of this! :)

K-RoK Song of the Day: The Rock Tigers - Cry Baby

Who's hungry? How about a little "Kimchibilly" to whet your appetite? If that sounds good to you, then you should check out The Rock Tigers. They're a Korean rockabilly band formed in Seoul in 2001. If you are unfamiliar with rockabilly it's a jazzy, upbeat form of rock dating back to the 1950's. I think The Rock Tigers have cornered the market in Korea for this genre, but they well deserve it for their swinging songs! The current line up features Velvet Geena on vocals and guitar, Tiger doing the same, Roy handling the double bass and back-up vocals, Jack "the knife" on drums, and Eddie Tarantula on lead guitar.

Check out their single Cry Baby from the EP Taste the Kimchibilly released in 2008.

K-RoK Song of the Day: A'ccel In A Story - Epilogue

One of my absolute favorites is A'ccel In A Story. The band formed in 2000, touring festivals in and around Hongdae for awhile, until they produced their demo CD. In 2006 they got a record deal and released Story of the A'ccel, an eight track EP. They released Episode of the A'ccel in 2007 and most recently we were treated to Antinomy earlier this year. Epilogue is one of the tracks off of this particular EP. I find their music to be a pleasant mix of hard rock, and soothing melody. I could listen to them all day, it's just too bad they haven't released enough music to do that yet.

Here is A'ccel In A Story with Epilogue

AiaS-E by K-RoKer

K-RoK Song of the Day: Kim Sa Rang - Snob

Someone asked me if I knew about Kim Sa Rang (김사랑 )the other day, and I had to shuffle back through my collection to pick out a favorite. So to be honest and warn you, I probably will throw a few songs in here. He is such a diverse musician that it was hard to pick a song, especially since the song that interested them was a slower ballad. Yes, he does ballads amazingly well, and to be perfectly honest, when he sings them, he reminds me very much of Yoon Do-Hyun. Which, is why they sing such great harmony in their duet on Yoon Do-Hyun's Love Letter back in the day:

This was the song that caught someones' interest.  Yes. He does lovely ballads, but the man can rock too! He debuted in 1999, with the album titled I Am 18 Years Old. It was such a solid album, ranging from hard core rock, to soft ballads, even a little rap/r&b/hip-hop feel to a couple songs. For whatever reason, he decided to take a few years off away from the music business, not to release an album until 2001 with Nanotime. Another great album. In fact, his entire discography is mind blowing, considering he does all of the composition on his own. I picked Snob as the song of the day, because it displays his talent in rocking out, as well as his powerful voice. I'm going to maybe throw you for a loop, by not using Sound Cloud, but my minutes are running low, and since this song is conveniently available on YT I'm gonna use it:


I also love the rock ballad 괜찮아 (Kwenchana-Ok) off of his third album, U-Turn. And A+ from Behind the Melody is a pretty amazing track as well, I like that he mixed in a little Indian instrument flavor.

KSR-A+ by K-RoKer
In short, it's too hard to pin-point him and just pick ONE song. You need to get his entire discography, because it is just too good to miss out on.

OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG. (did I say, OMG?)

So, I'm minding my own business on twitter tonight, when one of my followers and soon to be editor just mentioned how much she enjoyed the Yellow Monsters after my little pimp post about them. Jae-Hyuck, one of the band members is on twitter (and follows me.) We were jabbering back and forth (YAMmag and I) and lo and behold: I'm gonna be interviewing him now. I think I squirmed and squealed like no one's business. Anyway, I'm sure there is lots of arranging to do for this, but just know that it is on the way. AND THAT I'M SO EXCITED.

K-RoK Song of the Day: No Brain - We Wish You A Merry Christmas

At the moment, I'm not feeling all that "cheerful," but I was a day or two ago, when I thought of posting this song.  I only have a few weeks to post these types of songs anyway, so I'm going to take advantage of it. I've gotten you all at least a little acquainted with No Brain (노브레인) . After someone mentioned it to me, I realized I forgot to tell you that they were, in fact, the band that collaborated with Big Bang for "Oh My Friend." That video is actually one of my favorite Big Bang videos. Yes, contrary to popular belief, I do enjoy some K-Pop.  Just don't expect me to say I'm a huge Orange Caramel fan, because that's SO not happening! Anyway, No Brain released this song on it's own as a digital single last year, much to my delight. I'm usually "little miss Holiday cheer," but having some stress issues right now that I hope will go away and not ruin Christmas for me. Without further ado, here is No Brain with We Wish You A Merry Christmas

NB - WWYAMC by K-RoKer

I'm so HYPED!

I know I have little chance of seeing this in theaters, as I'm sure it won't reach even independent theaters here in the United States, but I have high hopes that it will release on DVD eventually. (Hopefully with subtitles) For those of you who didn't know, YB is releasing a documentary on December 1st. The film is centered on their VANS Warped Tour stint from last year. (If I had known in time/had the money I would have gone. Now, I'm kicking myself and crying for not being able to see them live.) I'm really happy they decided to do this and are working towards putting Korean rock into the spotlight where it belongs. I just hope enough people go see it. I'll be interested to know the sales numbers. Here are the teaser trailers so far:




When the one above released, I hadn't heard anything about it before and I squeeled like a little girl and danced around and cried. Hahaha. I'm such a YB nerd!

Number 2: (Main)


Full Flying Butterfly song version. (I love that they mixed the Korean and English lyrics in this version)

K-RoK Song of the Day: Schizo - Blue Monday

In honor of Sung-Min of Schizo tweeting me today, I decided to feature them. :) They're a metal/screamo/punk/little bit of everything band that debuted in 2003. Also - they have a female guitarist! How hot is that? (She's hot too, look! ) I picked their cover of Blue Monday because I kind of thought it would be a neat idea to start a cover feature every once in awhile too. Blue Monday, of course was originally released in 1982 by the British band, New Order and covered by Orgy in 1998. There have been countless covers, but I, of course, am partial to this Korean one. I hope you enjoy it as much as me.

(Note: I would have tried to pick a "thankful" song today, since it's Thanksgiving and all, I was, actually.  Then, Sung-Min tweeted to me and all bets were off! Happy Thanksgiving! )


S - BM by K-RoKer

K-RoK Song of the Day: Biuret - Mama

Another great female fronted band, Biuret was formed in 2002, but made their debut in 2005. They have two full albums out: Be Full of Spirit - their debut album in 2005, and Dreams Come True which released last year. Aside from those two they have a handful of singles and EP's out as well. Band members are:
Moon Hye-Won (leader, vocals, main song writer)
Ahn Jae-Hyun (bass)
Lee Gyo-Won (guitar)
The drummer isn't credited, so I assume they kind of filter through drummers. :P They've actually opened for Oasis before. :)

This live version of Mama is them presenting at the '09 Pan Asian awards (which they won!)



B-Mama by K-RoKer

Who has a new album out? EVE has a new album out!

Ok, it's just an EP, but still. EVE is back again! I hope they put out a video for this one! The album is called Gloria, and contains 4 tracks:
1) Gloria
2) Stay Alive
3) Don't Say Goodbye (2010 Vers.)
4) Butterfly City

 It's nice to have them back after such a long break/break-up/trip to military duty (?)!

Free preview! :D (go look for the album, srsly, it's readily available) 

Man, Kim Young's vocals are just as on-point as always. *jams out to Gloria*

E-DSG(2010) by K-RoKer

K-RoK Song of the Day: YB - Oh Pilseung Korea

In honor of the lives lost in the skirmish with North Korea November 22, 2010. I post "Oh Pil Seung Korea." YB released this song in 2002 for the World Cup and it skyrocketed them into fame.  They had been pretty well known in Korea previous to this, but they became a household name after this. "Oh! Pil Seung Korea" roughly translates into Go! Korea! And is one of my many happy Dae Han Min Guk songs. The video I found for it has poor audio quality and has "dong-hae??" instead of Pil-Seung in the chorus. Not sure what it means, as I'm sadly not fluent in Korean yet, but you get the gist of the song.




And here is the audio version. It's a shortened version - but really the song get's a little repetitive with it's OH!!! Pil-Seung KO RE A!!! anyway!~
YB - 오! 필승 봉순영 by K-RoKer

HEHE! Just found this version of it too, on YT from the 2006 World Cup in France:

K-RoK Song of the Day: Guyz - Faraway

Good evening good K-RoKers. Are we ready to jam? I thought so.

Tonight I have for you Guyz. A quartet that debuted in 2005. Their first single was Crazy and contained 4 songs. They moved on to release their first full album in 2006 with "Diary." They proceeded to release a series of singles until their sophomore album Like a Movie in 2008. Last year we were blessed with an EP and a single too. Their single this year "New Stage" garnered some attention here amongst some of the K-Pop fans, as they performed on MNET Rookies alongside some of the idols. They're also reaching out into the Japanese market, having release New Stage in Japanese as well. They also sang one of the Korean theme songs for Bleach. I think they're a little more mainstream than some of the other bands I've featured, but I just love them. Especially the bassist Ki-Hyeon. He's too cute!

Without further ado, here is (are?) Guyz with Faraway (Track 9 off their first album: Diary)

G - F by K-RoKer

 They've kind of floated under the radar, but the awesome folk over at KoME got them to do a short intro of themselves. (Watch how cute Ki-Hyeon is! OMG!)

K-RoK Song of the Day: Wiretap In My Ear - Festival

I know that I requested this one on Asian Pop Addict awhile ago, so some of you may have heard it already. But, it's still one of my favorite songs by Wiretap In My Ear AKA: Prana. Wiretap in My Ear is a rock band from Korea. They’re musical styles vary from punk, to a more eccentric style more similar to Japanese Visual Kei than anything. The members are Lee Hyuck (vocals), Jung Jae-Hoon (drums), Hwang Ui-Jung (bass), Kim Tae-Jin (guitar). They’ve released 4 studio albums and several digialt singles and have contributed to soundtracks as well. Their 4th album, Observation contained a collaboration with YB frontman Yoon Do-Hyun as well. They're really one of my favorites and I plan on doing a profile on them soon. for now, enjoy Festival! :) 

WIME - Festival by K-RoKer

K-RoK Song of the Day: The Trax - Are You Ready?

For you to stop caving in to pressure to be pop artists and go back to being rock-stars? YES. I am ready. For those of you who have not heard of The Trax (who sometimes DROP their "the" and come out as simply "Trax") They are actually an SME group who used to be really good rock musicians. Nowadays they spend their time among CN Blue and FT Island basking in the idol glow. I dunno about you, but I kind of miss the old days. When they looked like this:

And sounded like this: 

T-AYR by K-RoKer

Versus this:

K-RoK Song of the Day: Dr. Core 911 - Radamuba

Ok, I love Dr. Core 911. They're a fusion band. Some say nu-metal, some say rapcore. Whatevs. They're awesome.  The band formed in 1998 but didn't make their debut until 2000 with their first album 비정산조. They've been featured on Life magazine's website before. I'll write even more about them in the future. I have a profile coming up on them. :) Enjoy!

Off their 1.5 EP Oh Rock Go Rock! Here is the kinda lulzy, but rock-tastic Rabamuba:

01-Rabamuba by K-RoKer

Bonus song of the day!

Since it's officially the 1 week anniversary of this blog, and I know metal isn't everyones cup of tea, I thought I'd throw another one out at you that I was really enjoying at work today. It's hard to categorize Super Kidd. They're a rock band, but they have a rapper/mc. They play to clubs, but are also featured on music shows. Sometimes they sound hip-hop, sometimes like hard core rockers and in the case of this track - very FUNKY. I LOVE their versatility. Of course, if you pay attention to my favorites, you'll find that's true about most of the bands I really enjoy - they know how to mix things up.

LOL - they're such dorks. But, I love them for it. :)

Here is Super Kidd singing: Dance With Rock:

SK - DwR by K-RoKer

There's a not-so-good quality video of them performing this live here:

K-RoK Song of the Day: Crash - Crashday

I asked for genre suggestions on twitter and someone asked for metal. SO here we go: Crash is a metal band formed 1991. They like to experiment with the different sub-genres of metal and therefore shirk the titles bestowed on them such as "Thrash Metal" "Black Metal" and the like. They were the first band in Korea to start stage diving! LOL. If you're familiar with Seo Taiji they've done some collaborations too. They've had some member changes throughout the years, but have continued to come on strong. This is the video for their most recent release of the album Paragon of Animals (available on iTunes!) http://itunes.apple.com/album/the-par...


As always - ENJOY! (Comments? Suggestions? Requests?)




01 Crashday by K-RoKer

K-RoK Song of the Day: Sugar Donut - I'm Sorry

Today I'm picking another punk/alternative band that I really enjoy. You'll be hard pressed to find this album ANYWHERE else. It doesn't exist. I had to buy it myself - glad I get to share it though. If you're interested about someone ALWAYS feel free to ask for more. :) This song is a good little punk ballad off their most recent album Say Yes released in October. The 7 track EP is a great addition to their almost 10 years together.

Enjoy! (Comments?)






SD - SY by K-RoKer

This just in: (insert tv news bulletin music here)

YB (Yoon Do-Hyun Band) is releasing a 15 years "Best Of" album...THIS WEEK. What? They sure haven't promoted this AT ALL. I mean, I follow the web site, the blog, the facebook fan page and all of them on twitter and still..NOTHING. I was looking on YesAsia for something completely different and saw this:

And I was like this:

This was JUST THIS MORNING mind you. I'm on my way to pre-order it now. It's a 2 disc collection of their best hits in live performances. I assume it's because they have the documentary coming out in a couple of weeks. Go get it! :D

K-RoK Song of the Day: Pt:5 No Brain - You're Stuck On Me (feat. Tiger JK)

Today's choice is the premiere punk band of Korea - No Brain. I think they paved the way for a lot of the newer punk bands that are popping up around the RoK. This song was kind of their break out song. It features Tiger JK on the album track, for whatever reason, the video does NOT. I, of course prefer the album version since I'm also a Tiger JK fan. :) Other people might no like Sung-Woo's voice. It's a bit on the rough side, I will admit, but I adore him anyway. They've been on a bit of a hiatus lately, and since the news on Korean rockers is undoubtedly hard to come by I'm not sure why. I always tend to assume that it means some of the members are currently serving their term in the armed forces. They did put out a song on this summers Into The K-League though, so I have high hopes that they come back soon! :) You should also check out the movie Radio Star in which the whole band play a part.


Without further ado, I give you No Brain (feat. Tiger JK) with  You're Stuck On Me
From their 2005 album: Boys, Be Ambitious


NB - YSOM by K-RoKer

Annnnnd, the video:

K-RoK Song of the Day: Pt:3 달빛요정역전만루홈런 - 361 타고 집에 간다

That translates roughly to: Moonlight Nymph Grand Slam Reversal OR Moonlight Fairy's Come Back With a Grand Slam Home Run. LOL, we just call them Moonlight Nymph for short over here. I'm posting this song in memory of Lee Jin-Won the lead vocals of the band who passed away on November 6th. He suffered from a cerebral hemmoraghe on November 1st and struggled to survive in the ICU until his death on November 6th. He was a very avid baseball fan, as evident in the band's name as well as the album titles (Infield Fly, Sophomore Jinx, Goodbye Aluminum) The album art of the albums are also all baseball themed. In fact, his last tweet was about him watching the World Series. Rest in peace Mr. Moonlight Nymph - you will be missed.

I picked 361 타고 집에 간다 (Take 361 - Going Home) because it's a beautiful song. It's generally telling a story about a journey home, which kind of rings true at this time.

361 타고 집에 간다 by K-RoKer


Here is alive fan-cam performance of the song - it's fun to watch, but the audio doesn't do the song justice.




Song lyrics! (if you can translate, I'd welcome it! :) I had to use Google translate, and well..that sucks)언제나 이 시간만 되면 막히는 이 길
난 그동안 군대도 다녀 왔고
내가 태어났을 때보다
짜장면은 열배나 비싸졌다는데
짬통같은 버스가 뒤굴뒤굴 굴러다니는 이 길은
보기좋게 선심써서
두배쯤은 좋아졌다, 두배쯤은 넓어졌다
나머지는 어디에 흘렸나

언제나 이 시간만 되면 울리는 전화
오늘은 또 어디서 날 부르나
처음 술을 배울 때처럼
술값따윈 아직도 만만하기만해
그래서 사람들은 벌컥벌컥 마셔대는 건가보다
그래 오늘 기분이다
내가 한번 쏴줄테다
어디 한번 맞아봐라, 천국으로 보내주마 행복하게

달려라 날아라 하늘 끝까지
밟아라 엔진이 불타 터져버릴 때까지
말 좀 해다오 시내버스야
내 갈 곳이 어딘지 좀 말해다오

언제쯤 되야 내 차를 가질 수 있을까
오래전에 면허는 따놨는데
어쩜 까먹었을지 몰라
오락실에 들러서 점검해봐야지
옛날처럼 똑같이 두근두근 내 마음은 설레지만
정말 예전과는 달라
몇천 배는 좋아졌다, 몇만 배는 복잡하다
'제비우스, 갤러그, 엑스리온'

달려라 날아라 하늘 끝까지
밟아라 엔진이 불타 터져버릴 때까지
말 좀 해다오 시내버스야
내 갈 곳이 어딘지 좀 말해다오

이제는 집에 다 왔다, 나는 내릴꺼다
바퀴벌레만 나를 반기는 곳
그 곳으로 나는 향한다
그 녀석들과 함께 티비를 볼꺼다
여기저기 빨래가 나뒹구는 방에서 한판 자주고
내일 아침 다시 보자
구질구질한 세상아, 버스에서 다시 보자
그 때에는 어딘지 좀 알려다오

달려라 날아라 하늘끝까지
밟아라 엔진이 불타 터져버릴때까지
말좀 해다오 시내버스야
말좀 해다오 시내버스야
내 갈곳이 어딘지 좀 말해다오

제발 말해줘

P.S. Comments would be lovely. Does anyone even listen yet?

K-RoK Song of the Day: Pt:2 TransFixion - Never Say Goodbye

I'm going to post another recent release. This time, the newest single/video from TransFixion. A band that has been around for 10 years now, they've continued to transform themselves and keep up with the ever changing face of rock, without losing their original flavor. I love their punk feel, but they know how to mix things up. That's what I love about Korean rock -they don't put out an album that sounds like the same song just with different lyrics. You all might recognize them from this summer - they put out a re-vamped version of their Shouts Of Reds song for this summers World Cup. And no, the lead singer is not foreign. Sometimes even Korean's are fooled and they even think the band is foreign, but these guys are just another little Korean jem! Enjoy!




Also, if you don't want to watch the video here is the song on it's own:
01 Never Say Goodbye by K-RoKer

K-RoK Song of the Day: Pt. 1: Yellow Monsters - Late

I'm still working on my YB post - it's taking longer because I have so much love for/information on them I want to do it properly. But, I also have people asking for new songs. So, here goes.

Yellow Monsters debuted this year. I first heard them on a compilation album from this summer and was immediately intrigued. They have a good range of sound on the debut album, ranging from punk to emo and basically, just a lot of awesome rockness. :) Here is their debut single: Late


 I'll try this out - just posting a snippet of info and  a song daily, then do reviews/profiles when I can. Does that sound good? What say, good K-RoKers?

OMG~! Just found this!

Look! Buzz is coming back! They broke up a few years ago stating musical differences but it looks like they are making a come-back. SWEET.

I'm working on my epic YB post still but I wanted to drop this here since someone mentioned it in the comments of the first post. The band is now called Story Seller, but they were formally known as Bloodie Cookie. I can see why they might have changed it, probably hoping to seem a little friendlier to the audiences. I liked Bloodie Cookie - it gave them an edge right from the start, but oh well. Here is their single from earlier this year: Super Girl
SG by K-RoKer

There's a music video for it too:

Finally!

Hi there! I'm Kamala-Chan. I've been lurking around the internet for awhile now, pulling all kinds of information from the depths and bowels of the interwebs about a ton of amazing rock musicians from Korea. I've decided to create a whole new universe separate from my other blogs and start this little piece of Korean music heaven, devoted exclusively to K-RoK! (a play on the Republic of Korea.) Follow along and learn about the greats of Korea! :) I'm going to try and find a good way to give you sample tracks to listen to while we go along too. Because really, what is a music blog without the music?


To start off - My absolute favorite, that I will probably be posting a lot about YB (Yoon Do-Hyun Band) with one of my favorites: HaruSari:

YB-HRSI by K-RoKer

P.S. - If you are unfamiliar w/SoundCloud be alert that the songs play a little loud and there is no volume button - so be sure to turn the volume down on your compy if you want to listen! (Or UP if you have it low and want to ROCK OUT!)