Gaeko of Dynamic Duo. (Amoeba Culture)Rap star Gaeko of Dynamic Duo is gearing up to break out of his shell with the release of his first full-length solo album this month, according to a press release from the group’s agency, Amoeba Culture, on Wednesday. The rapper is slated to unveil “Redingray” sometime in mid-October, making this his first official solo release in nearly two years since his single “Rhythm is Life.” “With this album, Dynamic Duo’s Gaeko will be on his own, showcasing his per

As many as a hundred people gather ― each with their own musical instrument and own musical world ― to create harmony. There will mostly likely be some drama.It’s the conductor who must put aside whatever discord that members may have, make them work like organs of the human body, and in the end present harmonious music. Conductor Kim Bong-mee says the beauty of orchestral music is right there in that moment. “So many different people with different musical instruments and colors come together f

An ensemble with the mission to spread the joy of music will launch next week with a debut concert at Seoul Arts Center. The orchestra ― the Herald Philharmonic Orchestra ― was established by media group Herald Corp., the publisher of The Korea Herald, as part of its efforts to give back to society. Directed and conducted by Kim Bong-mee, it is comprised of about 70 mostly young musicians who were educated at some of the finest music institutions in Korea and abroad. It aims to expand the reache

NEW YORK (AFP) ― As the funky bass quiets down near the start of one of Prince’s two new albums, a soothing female voice informs that medication has put him in “suspended animation” for 45 years.Is the 56-year-old megastar speaking of his own career, or does the song imagine his body being frozen? No matter ― the voice explains that he is now “in a place that does not require time.”The themes of science fiction and timelessness ― as well as plenty of sex ― run throughout the album “Art Official

To say that Suh Yeree has a versatile voice is an understatement. In one stage, the soprano was the living messenger of Handel, dressed like women found in 17th-century European paintings and singing church music with a crystal clear voice and all the right spirituality. Then in another, she was a whip-wielding cop in a leather outfit, the embodiment of the satirical wit in the music of 21st-century composer Gorge Ligeti. Not only does she cross back and forth between two very different territor

alt-J returns with beautiful, baffling LPalt-J“This Is All Yours” (Atlantic)The new album from alt-J isn’t supposed to exist. Nobody, we’re told, wants to hear this kind of stuff anymore. The album ― and especially this artsy kind of album ― is dead.Yet here is “This Is All Yours”: weird, complex, goofy, sublime, baffling and completely unlike anything else out so far this year. You might say the album has arrived just in time, spicing up a bland year with something of a puzzle for listeners who

Barbra Streisand sets record in U.S. music history with new album

The cover of Ailee’s “Magazine.” (YMC Entertainment)Singer Ailee released her third EP “Magazine” on Thursday on major Korean music portals. The new EP includes “Don’t Touch Me,” a Britpop rock song as the title track with a powerful piano loop line and drum beat. The album is the collaboration of Ailee and composer Kim Do-hoon, who also composed “I’ll Show You” on the singer’s first album, as well as Korean hip-hop group Dynamic Duo.The 25-year-old singer, born and raised in Colorado, U.S., mad

9 Muses. (Star Empire Entertainment)Prior to their debut in 2010, 9 Muses teamed up with famous Korean film director Lee Hark-joon for a year to film a behind-the-scenes documentary on the K-pop industry, while chronicling the group’s every move.The documentary, titled “9 Muses of Star Empire,” is finally slated to make its Korean premiere on Thursday, after being shown at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam in 2012, as well as being invited to 12 other international film festi

ATLANTA (AP) ― With a picture of his mother on a large screen behind him, Doug E Fresh struggled to complete his sentence. The rapper dubbed “The Human Beat Box” choked up and shed tears as he received the “I Am Hip-Hop Award” at the ninth BET Hip-Hop Awards on Saturday.Fresh eventually told the crowd that his mother, who had Alzheimer’s disease, died five months ago.“I have to acknowledge her,” Fresh said at the taped award show at the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center. “I want to thank t

29 Korean acts chosen for music showcase

ROME (AFP) ― Italian conductor Riccardo Muti has thrown in the towel as the primary conductor of the Rome Opera after six years, amid funding problems and strikes, Italy’s media reported Sunday.“The conditions are lacking to ensure the necessary serenity to my leading successful productions,” Muti said in a letter published by the media, which said he had pulled out of planned productions of Verdi’s “Aida” and Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro.”The 73-year-old said he made the decision to pull ou

Hollywood actor Jack Black, best known for his role as Dewey Finn in the blockbuster hit “School of Rock,” will be in Seoul this winter for a concert with his notoriously humorous band, Tenacious D. Tenacious D, with Black on lead vocals and guitar and his long-time friend Kyle Gass on guitar, is slated to perform two live shows at Seoul Olympic Park’s Olympic Hall on Dec. 5 and 6. It will be the American rock duo’s first performance in Korea. The two formed the band in Los Angeles in 1994, but