Things are happening. The world......man! I'll be home in a couple weeks and I haven't had a second to think about it. It's probably better this way. I'll descend upon Migook fresh, with no expectations and ready for reverse culture shock. Actually, I've been experiencing what I've termed "KMS" or "that Korean time of the month" lately. This is where very trivial inconvenience annoys me and I hear myself saying things like, "Damn, why can't Koreans properly form a line," or "I want to crush all those stupid sun umbrellas! It's just the sun, don't hide from it," or simply, "STOP STARING AT ME!!!" It's the same stuff that always happens and is usually brushed off without a thought but it's been too long since my last trip home and my patience is gone. Oh well, all this will be OK soon...
On the bright side, my band HajiMaMa is nearly finished with our first EP. Produced by our bassist, we've put together a mix of 8 original tracks poking fun at the experience of being white in Korea, and one disco-cover of Lou Reed's "Perfect Day." I'm especially proud of this because I've been front row to many foreign bands here, most of them being much better than us. But, they don't play originals and they certainly don't have a CD of their own tunes. This might move us out of The Basement (our home bar) and open up some doors for us to gig. And the timing couldn't be better because
I spent last week plugging the CD on national TV as a contestant in a week-long Reality Documentary. CMB channel paraded me around Korea on a tour bus with 9 other musicians from all over the world for an International singing contest/show. It was one of those special experiences that I doubt I could get back home. A half Filipino/half American buddy got me on the show and I joined professional contest winners from Uzbekistan, Russia, India, Columbia, China, etc. to have our lives taped, to find out what happens when people stop being real and start being fake!
Oh, and how fake I was! At every opportunity, I would answer some infantile question like, "Daniel, how feel today?" with some apocalyptic, meaningless rant like, "Well, that's the thing about time, it rolls on, immeasurable really, and we can try to pin it down and ourselves, but we'll all be in that void some time or another." The camera men couldn't speak English, so they'd just smile and say thanks, waiting till their translator goes over the footage. ha ha. Maybe all my musings will end up on the cutting floor, but I wasn't going to waste my chance by saying the nonsense they wanted me to say. I'd rather say the nonsense I want to say.
The TV show paid for and filmed all our meals. They took us on cultural tours each day to learn and traditional music and and the art of covering your body with mud. We went to a coal museum, saw some beautiful gardens, and danced like crazy in mud. At about 10pm each night, we were free. This is when we got really candid and the best footage was shot. Myself and two other acoustic guitar crooners would gather the camera men and security and take over bars, beaches and street corners with hours of jams. I've been doing this busking business since I got here, but these sessions were special. "Nothing attracts a crowd like a crowd," and we brought one with us everywhere we went. When an old drunk man tried to ruin our fun by shooting street fireworks in our face, security would pounce on him and the show would go on. And we earned some dough too. Through it all, the TV show would still insist on paying and not allow us to touch our wallets. Ah, the good life...
All this was leading up to our singing performance at Korea's famous Boryeong Mud Festival Friday night. We spent all day Friday side-stage, doing make-up, costumes and TV stations from all our stuck cameras in our face and asked how nervous we were. There was a lot at stake, 3,000 for 1st, 2,000 for 2nd and 1,000 for 3rd. But the others were the real deal; professional singers contacted through their embassies and flown here. So I wasn't nervous, just hoping I could put on a good show in front of a large crowd and television. Due to my eccentric interviews, they decided I had an "electric personality" and should perform first. Finally, as I walked alone to the mic, I was as nervous as a 12yr old on the 1st day of middle school. I envisioned Dave Strackany next to me as we prepared to wet high school cheeks with "Imagine," many years ago.
That's how I started, after a brief but comical speech in Korean about my love for their country and how nervous I was. "Imagine there's no countries..." Midway through, I segued into my original Korean we-love-our-country work cup anthem and started working the crowd to clap and sing along. Bart, my boy, was in the front row conducting everyone. It was magical! I had them and I could've taken it further but I already felt too lucky, so I went back into "Imagine" and finished before I got carried away. The crowd's response was overwhelming and I left the stage as high as Dennis Hopper in the 60s.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Thursday, July 24, 2008
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