Classical music forayed into one of Seoul’s trendiest nightspots Thursday, as the Yellow Lounge project invited The Philharmonics ensemble and DJ Pascal Dior to present their interpretations of classical music at Club Octagon in southern Seoul. The Philharmonics, consisting of members of the Berlin and Vienna philharmonic orchestras, played refined, but reworked scores. Under the bluish and pink lighting with flamboyant LED displays as the backdrop, the ensemble gave a modern and somewhat Jewish

Trio starts new label, releases ‘Cure’

Chants of “I got soul, but I’m not a soldier,” filled the Olympic Hall on Saturday night with thousands of rock fans singing along in unison with the chorus line of The Killers’ hit single, “All These Things that I’ve Done.”In the band’s first ever performance in Korea, the Las Vegas natives Brandon Flowers, Dave Keuning, Mark Stoermer and Ronnie Vannucci Jr. rocked Seoul during their live concert over the weekend. Although getting off to a bit of a late start, keeping the audience waiting anxio

Find healing with ‘The Cure’Drunken Tiger, Yoon Mi-rae, Bizzy“The Cure” (Universal Music) “The Cure” is the first album churned out by FeelGhood Music, a label founded by Drunken Tiger, including fellow hip-hop artists Yoon Mi-rae and Bizzy. Unlike the recent “dissing” mood in the current hip-hop scene, the trio have compiled an album filled with hope for a better future. The album starts with “Beautiful Life,” a hip-hop and pop hybrid about realizing that life is beautiful despite any pain and

Technically dazzling and emotionally gripping, “Gravity” is a space-age science fiction thriller grounded in something pretty close to reality.A space shuttle / space junk accident picture, Alfonso Cuaron’s movie gives us Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, space-walkers whose ship is wrecked, forcing them to face the ultimate human fear.No one wants to die alone. There is no place lonelier than the cold, silent and airless vacuum of space.Filmed in a stunning “How’d they DO that?” 3-D, we meet c

 RushOpens Oct. 9Action. Drama. Directed by Ron Howard. Based on a true story, race-car drivers James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and Austrian Niki Lauda are young and talented, and both are looking to win it big. After a Formula Three race in 1970 at the Crystal Palace circuit in England, where both their cars spin out-of-control but Hunt ultimately wins the race, the two begin to view each other as rivals. A rivalry that first began on the track grows into off-track drama, and the pair experiences

NEW YORK (AP) ― While Miley Cyrus has a batch of critics, there is a group rallying behind her and praising her as a vital talent: rappers.Pharrell produced several songs on Cyrus’ new album. She has been featured on the latest albums from Snoop Lion and will.i.am. Big Sean requested her as the star of his “Fire” music video. And to top it off, Kanye West invited her to appear on the remix to “Black Skinhead,” his anti-racism rant from his eerie and dark “Yeezus” album. Cyrus’ album “Bangerz,” o

Filmmaker Im Kwon-taek announced Friday that his 102nd movie would be a film adaption of author Kim Hoon’s 2004 award-winning short story “Hwajang.” Actor Ahn Sung-ki, who previously starred in a total of six films by Im, has been cast in the leading role. Kim’s short story, which won the prestigious Yi Sang Literary Award in 2004, is about a middle-aged man who spends most of his life working for a cosmetics company, and his wife, who is dying of cancer. The devoted and patient husband also has

South Korea’s top actors and celebrities on Thursday attended the 18th annual Busan International Film Festival, one of the major film festivals in Asia, attracting media coverage. In particular, actresses were flooded by camera flashes when they walked the red carpet to enter the opening ceremony. A growing number of female celebrities are going for bold, revealing outfits to steal the spotlight at film festivals. BIFF will run through Oct. 12 in Busan Cinema Center.By Im Woo-jung, Intern r

Korea’s biggest film festival to screen 301 films from 70 countries

The 10th annual Asia Song Festival is getting ready to kick off its music-filled festivities with a night of energetic K-pop performances as well as a sprinkling of international flavor by a number of popular trending acts from other parts of Asia. This year’s Asia Song Festival, to be held at the Jamsil Olympic Main Stadium on Oct. 9, will partner with the annual global music conference MU:CON to highlight a number of international acts including Japanese pop singer Aoyama Thelma; girl group 7i

Top South Korean actors attended the “Korea Drama Awards” on Wednesday in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province.The annual event, organized by Korea Drama Festival, honors notable actors who have stood out on the local small screen in the past year.  Actress Lee Bo-young won the top prize for her role in “My Daughter Seo-young” and “I Can hear Your Voice.”  Second-place awards went to Lee Jung-jin, Jung Woong-in and Jo Yoon-hee.   Lee Bo-young is now enjoying the highest popularity of her career, w