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atkmagazine · 4 years

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Contest: Win two tickets to see Hyukoh!

Contest: Win two tickets to see Hyukoh in Toronto! #contest #Hyukoh #Toronto

Hyukoh is coming back to Toronto this June for what’s sure to be another fabulous show. I was lucky enough to see them in 2017 and it was definitely a fun concert filled with great music. This year’s show is bound to be amazing, especially with as they have new music to perform. Luckily, we have two tickets to giveaway to the show. Keep reading to find out how to win them!

And just in case you…

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atkmagazine · 4 years

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Contest: Win a Parasite Blu-ray

Contest: Win a Parasite Blu-ray #Koreanfilm #Parasite #contest

Last night Parasite (기생충) made history and won four Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director for Bong Joon Ho (봉준호). And we have two Parasite Blu-rays to give to two lucky winners (one to each winner of course). I’m a huge fan of Bong Joon Ho’s films, from The Host (괴물) to Snowpiercer (설국열차) and we’re excited to give you the chance to own the film. Parasite not only won four Oscars, but…

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atkmagazine · 4 years

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Reel Asian Interview: Samuel Kiehoon Lee, Director of GYOPO

Reel Asian Interview: Samuel Kiehoon Lee, Director of GYOPO #Gyopo #ReelAsian

Korean-Canadian director Samuel Kiehoon Lee’s first feature film had its world premiere at the 23rd annual Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival (Reel Asian) last month. The film, follows a bunch of 20 and 30-something gyopos as they go about their lives in Seoul. Many of the stories and characters intersect as they are woven together into a fascinating film about love, life and finding…

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atkmagazine · 4 years

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Reel Asian Interview: Joseph Juhn, Director of JERONIMO

Reel Asian Interview: Joseph Juhn, Director of JERONIMO #ReelAsian23

One of the films screening at the 23rd edition of the Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival is Jeronimo, a documentary by Joseph Juhn that grew from a conversation with was his airport taxi driver, a Korean-Cuban woman, during a backpacking trip to Cuba. The documentary follows his journey of discovery about the story of Jeronimo Lim, a Korean-Cuban was involved in the Cuban Revolution…

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#Jeronimo #Joseph Juhn #Korean Diaspora #Korean-American film #Reel Asian #Reel Asian 2019 #Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival

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atkmagazine · 5 years

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SXSW 2019 - Korean Musicians (Round Two & Three)

SXSW 2019 - Korean Musicians (Round Two) #SXSW #SXSW19

A bit belated but South by Southwest (SXSW) has announced more Korean artists in their second and third round of announcements. And of course, we want to give you the scoop on the artists who will be playing the festival. For more information on all those announced in the last two waves, click here for round two and click here for round three.

If you missed our preview of the Korean artists in…

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#South by Southwest #SXSW #SXSW 2019

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atkmagazine · 5 years

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I had the chance to sit down for a coffee and chat with PAKK near their practice studio during Zandari Festa last month. PAKK is a band that I’ve been listening pretty much since they formed as I was a fan of Apollo 18 (and even saw them live in Toronto), which was one of Kim Daeinn’s previous bands. So I was happy to learn more about PAKK so I could share the interview with you.

If you’re not familiar with PAKK, they are a hard rock trio whose energy, power and music will grab your attention from the first song you hear. If you haven’t already, check out their album, 살풀이Salpuri, as it’s well worth a listen or three. I definitely recommend checking them out (and have included a few songs/videos below to make it easy for you to do so).

In addition to chatting with them, I also had the chance to catch their show at Zandari Festa (more on that later). Keep reading to hear what they had to say about what inspires their music, what their plans are and which songs they recommend you check out.

PAKK at Zandari Festa 2018

Interview with PAKK

Hello, can you please introduce yourselves to our readers?

Dae-inn: We are South Korean heavy rock band, PAKK. I play guitar and sing. My name is Kim Dae-inn.

Hyun-seok: I play bass. My name is Park Hyun-seok.

Dae-inn: He’s today’s special drummer. Our drummer is a little sick so he’s in the hospital. Today’s drummer’s name is Park Ssun-kyo from the band, Monotheism, a post-rock band.

Nice to meet everyone.

Dae-inn: Nice to meet you.

When did you meet and form PAKK?

Dae-inn: We met in 2014.

Hyun-Seok: Four years ago.

Why did you decide to form PAKK?

Dae-inn: Actually my former band, I wanted to make a third album. So I contacted him [indicating Hyuk-seok] and contacted drummer and said ‘I want to work together but okay, it is shit so we make a new band, how about that?’ Everybody was okay and we started.

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If someone was new to your music, which of your songs would you recommend they listen to first?

Dae-inn: Actually our first album’s title song “살”, English name is “Cursing Ritual” and “재”, English name is “Re-“.

Hyun-seok: “협”

Dae-inn: English name is “Collabo”

And as a follow up question, which of your songs is your favourite to play live and why?

Dae-inn: I like “재”. Every show we play lots of songs, “재” feels like deeply in your mind somewhere, something explodes. [laughter]

Hyun-seok: Maybe “협”. It feels strongly…

Dae-inn: He feels it is softly and strongly something.

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What’s your songwriting process?

Dae-inn: Actually we play jams, every practice time we jam. During jams, some sounds or some rifs or some cords or some rhythms we feel ‘oh, that’s good’ so we record it and play it again. And repeat. Every week, repeat, more and more to make it larger. Then someday we finish one song.

What inspires your music?

Dae-inn: I like movies so in the movies, something, some story might inspire. Or comic book. Or old pop or classic. [looking at Hyun-seok] He don’t feel anything. [laughter] Recording jam sessions inspires us he feels.

PAKK at Zandari Festa 2018

You’ve played Zandari Festa before, why is it important to play this festival?

Dae-inn: Difficult question. Because I think drink beer, so much beer, and can make new friends. And there are many shows at a cheap price. And some bands have a chance to make contacts or do shows out of Korea so I think Zandari Festa is most important festival in Korea.

Speaking of performing, what can audiences expect from your shows?

Dae-inn: I think audience should come to our show and watch and enjoy. That’s enough. Just come and watch.

PAKK at Zandari Festa 2018

This is a fun question, which do you prefer – beer or soju?

Dae-inn: Mix.

So-maek?

Dae-inn: Every time we start drinking, we mix so-maek.

Hyun-seok: I’m so-maek master.

Dae-inn: He makes it really well.

Hyun-seok: Actually I like soju more than beer.

And our last question, what’s next for PAKK?

Dae-inn: Our drummer getting better and getting out from the hospital. Rebuilding the band. And we will start to make a new album. I don’t know yet an EP or full-length but we will start next year.

Final Thoughts

It was lovely chatting with PAKK and catching their show at Zandari Festa. I appreciate that they took the time to chat with me (and thanks for the coffee). They are amazing live so if you ever have the chance, go see one of their shows. And while we’re waiting for new music from them, give a listen to their first album, 살풀이 Salpuri and their EP, 발 A Wail – both are worth checking out. I’ll leave you with some photos from their showcase at Zandari Festa.

PAKK at Zandari Festa 2018

Zandari Festa Interview: PAKK #Koreanmusic #PAKK #ZandariFesta I had the chance to sit down for a coffee and chat with PAKK near their practice studio during Zandari Festa last month.

#Korean music #PAKK #Zandari Festa #Zandari Festa 2018

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atkmagazine · 5 years

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Interviews are always interesting and often a lot of fun too. I read them because they are a glimpse inside a musician or band that I might not have had the chance to see otherwise. That’s why I love conducting them as well, and it’s especially true when I have the pleasure to chat with a band I’m personally a fan of. I had the opportunity to sit down with Billy Carter, a blues-rock trio that blends several genres of music into their own unique sound, after their showcase at Zandari Festa. We had a bit of an adventure finding a quiet place for the interview as the venue closed earlier than expected but that just added to the fun. I even got a marriage proposal out of it (jokingly of course).

If you’re not listening to Billy Carter, you really should be. I recommend starting with their The Orange EP (my personal fav) but you can’t go wrong with any of their music. Keep reading to find out which songs they recommend you listen to, how they started as a band, and lots more.

Billy Carter at Zandari Festa 2018

The Interview with Billy Carter

Hello, my name is Cindy and I’m from ATK Magazine, which is an online magazine based in Toronto, Canada

Jiwon: I love Canada!

Jina: I love it too!

Me too. Can you please introduce yourselves and your band, Billy Carter?

Jiwon: We’re Billy Carter, I’m the vocalist Jiwon Kim. And this is…

Jina: I’m the guitarist, Jina.

Hyun Joon: I’m the drummer, Hyun Joon.

Can you tell our readers about when and how you started Billy Carter?

Jiwon: Actually Billy Carter used to be a two-piece acoustic duo, just me and the guitarist Jina. We chose acoustic because we wanted to travel around and play, like busking, so we spent a year in Europe, just playing around together. Then we came back to Korea and met Hyun Joon who is the drummer. We became this formation in 2013 or 14? [looking at her fellow band members]

Hyun Joon: Maybe 13.

Jiwon: Yeah, we became this formation in 2013.

What does your band name mean? Did you know someone named Billy Carter?

Jiwon: Actually it means nothing because we wanted to make people confused. Like, whatever you think, it won’t be us. [laughter]

Okay. If someone was new to your music, which of your songs would you recommend they listen to first?

Jina: “You Ate My Brain”

Jiwon: For me, can I make it two songs. Usually I recommend two songs, one is “You Ate My Brain” and the other one is “We Can Fight”. “You Ate My Brain” represents our chaotic sound and “We Can Fight” is about what we think. So yeah, those two songs.

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Which of your songs is your favourite to perform live and why?

Jiwon: Wow, this is really difficult.

Jina: “You Ate My Brain” for me because I really love to make this wiper sound, just once in it. I really get excited playing it.

Jiwon: I like to play the melodica, so tunes with melodica are so fun for me.

Jina [looking at Hyun Joon]: Solo time?

Hyun Joon: Maybe, yeah.

Jiwon: Yeah, in “Never Cry Again” he’s got an unlimited solo time.

Hyun Joon: It’s my type. [laughter]

Billy Carter at Zandari Festa 2018

You’ve played a lot in the UK, how is it different from playing in Korea?

Jiwon: In Korea we don’t actually have to bring our own gear like amps, monitors and mic stands because almost every venue already has that kind of gear. In the UK, we needed someone who can help us because we didn’t have gear. I think the atmosphere is different too. In Korea, I can see so many people are concentrating on the stage, their eyes are stuck on the stage. And they really try to communicate with the band. But in the UK, I felt like music was so natural.

Jina: They’re loud. Talk, talk, talk.

Jiwon: Yeah, we can be just a part of their life, so we’re going to like sneak inside their life. Yeah, it feels like that.

I read that you’re involved with trying to change the culture at live gigs in Korea to make them safer for women. Can you tell us about it?

Jiwon: Yeah, of course. You know, in Korea, nowadays… I really have a lot of things to talk about in Korean but it’s harder in English. These days, it has started, the feminism act, for a while but I think it’s not enough. I think most of all female musicians think the same. So we’re trying to make it more positive for women.

Jina: Yeah, yeah.

Jiwon: I mean, not only musicians but also the audience. In Korea, so many people in the audience, the percentage of the audience, are women. And I really want to make a good environment for them so they feel safe in the gigs and they don’t have to afraid of whatever they want to do. And there are so many good, talented female musicians in Korea but actually for a long time, every society and every industry was dominated by men. It’s East Asia, we have a history. We’re trying really hard to make a step, a small step.

Jina: Step by step, slowly.

Good luck, I think it’s wonderful.

Jiwon: Thank you.

Billy Carter at Zandari Festa 2018

You’ve played Zandari Festa before, why is it important for you to play this festival?

Jiwon: Because of the free booze. [laughter] I’m not kidding but it’s only a part of the reason. You know that we’ve already been to some other countries, we’ve met some good people through Zandari. We’ve made some good connections to do things overseas so it’s really important for people who play music and want to play somewhere else.

I hope sometime you can come to Canada.

Jina: We hope too.

Jiwon: I want to live there, I really want to live there.

Jina: We really hope to come. I think about immigration things.

Jiwon: Can you marry me? [lots of laughter]

Let’s talk a bit more about your music. You have released four (4) EPs, in addition to a full length album, and each of the EPs is named after a colour – The Yellow, The Red, The Green, and The Orange. What is the reason for using colours for the EPs’ names?

Jina: Because we like it

Jiwon: It’s a feeling. The atmosphere. It’s impossible to explain why we chose the colour because the colour came, it sounds so psychic but we chose the colour because that was right. The Red, the music felt just like red. And the other ones the same.

Jina: We wanted a different colour series.

I really liked The Orange, they’re all good but I really liked The Orange.

Jiwon: Thank you. Everything is good. [laughter]

Last question, what’s next for Billy Carter?

Jina: We want to make new songs.

Jiwon: Yeah, of course. In the close future, actually we talked about the feminism act. We’re making two shows which are about female acts. It’s about showing how many good and talented females there are in this scene. Some female musicians or bands from different scenes, we’re going to make two series of shows and then we’re going to make a compilation album. So this year we’re going to make two shows and next year, we’re going to make some more shows, and finally we’re going to make a compilation album.

Jina: We hope, we wish that.

Jiwon: Yeah, with the message of us, the women.

That sounds amazing, I look forward to that.

Jiwon: Thank you.

And thank you so much for your time.

Jina: Thank you.

Hyun Joon: Thank you.

Jiwon: Thank you so much.

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Final Thoughts

It was lovely chatting with Billy Carter at Zandari Festa and I do hope that you check out their music. They played a fantastic set which was the last one I saw on the Friday of Zandari Festa and I really can’t state strongly enough how much I recommend you check them out live if you have the chance. The energy and sheer positive vibes they bring to the stage, coupled with their music, was the perfect way to end the night. But if you can’t, check out their music!

Billy Carter at Zandari Festa 2018

Zandari Festa Interview: Billy Carter #music #Koreanmusic #BillyCarter #interview #ZandariFesta Interviews are always interesting and often a lot of fun too. I read them because they are a glimpse inside a musician or band that I might not have had the chance to see otherwise.

#Billy Carter #Korean music #music interview #Zandari Festa

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atkmagazine · 6 years

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SXSW 2019 - Korean Musicians (Round One)

SXSW 2019 – Korean Musicians (Round One)

It’s always fun to see which artists and bands are going to be playing South by Southwest (SXSW) and as it usually has the largest amount of Korean musicians of any music festival in North American, we like to keep you informed of who will be playing the festival. They recently released their first round of artist announcements and it included four Korean musicians/groups, all of which I’m…

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#Big Phony #DBGC #Jambinai #Say Sue Me #South by Southwest #SXSW #SXSW 2019

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atkmagazine · 6 years

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Zandari Festa: When Reality Exceeds Your Imagination

Zandari Festa: When Reality Exceeds Your Imagination #music #Koreanmusic #Zandarifesta

Note: this is the first of my Zandari Festa recap/review articles

Did you ever want to attend something so badly that you planned a three-week vacation around it? For me, it was Zandari Festa. I love live music – I really, really love live music. So music festivals hold a special place in my heart because they allow you to see a variety of live music in a short period of time, all for one price.…

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#Korean music #Korean musicians #music festival #Zandari Festa

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atkmagazine · 6 years

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Editorial: Burnout, a Hiatus and Rejuvenation

This has been one of the most difficult articles I’ve ever written but I felt that I owed ATK Magazine’s readers an explanation for the lack of articles recently, especially from me, as well as the lack of updates here and on our social media channel. For those of you that don’t know me, I started ATK Magazine as a personal blog about Korea at a time when very few people were writing about…

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#editorial #writing

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atkmagazine · 6 years

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Zandari Festa, a Showcase of Korean and International Music

Since 2012, Zandari Festa has been an annual music showcase festival which showcases both Korean and international artist each fall. It happens in Seoul’s Hongdae area, the perfect place to explore the country’s indie music scene. One wristband is all you need to access to all of Zandari Festa’s shows at a different venues around Hongdae. It’s a music festival and conference you won’t want to…

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#music festival #Zandari #Zandari Festa

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atkmagazine · 6 years

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Preview: Korean Films at TIFF 2018

Preview: Korean Films at TIFF 2018 #Koreanfilms #TIFF #TIFF18

**Please note: this article will be updated if anything changes.**

The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) is just around the corner and individual tickets go on sale soon so it’s time to start planning which Korean films you want to see. Unfortunately, there are only three Korea films this year which is quite disappointing, although better than last year when there was only two. However,…

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#Korean film #Korean films #TIFF #TIFF 2018 #Toronto International Film Festival

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atkmagazine · 6 years

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Preview: 2018 Toronto Korean Film Festival

Preview: 2018 Toronto Korean Film Festival #TKFF #TKFF18 #Koreanfilm #Toronto

Full disclosure: I’m the chair of the board of directors for the Toronto Korean Film Festival so I’m definitely predisposed to say good things about it. That being said, I wouldn’t be involved with the festival if I didn’t think it was a good one. The views expressed in the preview (and all my articles) are mine and mine alone.

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It’s that time of year again, time for my preview article of…

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#Korean film #Korean film festival #TKFF #TKFF 2018 #Toronto Korean Film Festival

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atkmagazine · 6 years

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Hot Docs Interview: Malene Choi Jensen (The Return)

At the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival (Hot Docs) I had the opportunity to sit down with director Malene Choi Jensen and talk about her docu-drama, The Return. The Returnis a fascinating film, not just because of the subject matter – transnational adoption, specifically from South Korea – which is interesting in its own right, but also because of how it was filmed, as a…

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#Hot Docs #Korean adoptees #Malene Choi Jensen #The Return

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atkmagazine · 6 years

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Preview: Korean Musicians at SXSW 2018

It’s that time of year again… time for our preview of all the Korean content – musicians, films and more – at South by Southwest (SXSW) this year. SXSW runs from March 9-18, with the music festival portion running from March 12-18. Of course, we have you covered with all the info on which Korean artists are coming, and when they’ll be playing; along with info on Korean-American artists and films…

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#Korean musicians #South by Southwest #SXSW #SXSW 2018

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atkmagazine · 6 years

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Interview with CIFIKA

Interview with CIFIKA #Koreanmusic #CIFIKA #SXSW

I’ll be the first to admit that I hadn’t heard of CIFIKA (씨피카) until she was announced as one of the Korean artists going to South by Southwest (SXSW) this year but about that same time, I read an article about her being one of “the rising female musicians of Seoul’s underground scene” and I knew I had to check out her music. And was I happy that I did. Just as I was getting hooked on her music,…

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#CIFIKA #Korean musicians #prism #SXSW #SXSW 2018

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atkmagazine · 6 years

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My Favourite Korean Songs of 2017

When I first started writing this article, I thought I was going to be apologizing for not writing a “best of 2017” article and simply starting 2018 with an article about the music I had been listening to (which I thought was older music I already owned & loved). Mostly because I hadn’t reviewed as much new music as I normally do so I assumed I hadn’t listened to enough new music in 2017 to write…

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#best of 2017 #K-pop #Korean hip hop #Korean indie music #Korean music

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