Hitchhiker 히치하이커 - 11

Something is going on in South Korea. Hitchhiker's '11' is like a video you'd expect Major Lazer to do. It's fascinating, bizarre and totally compelling. Trap, bass, baby samples and Sims-like animations. It's useless trying to make sense of this, but it is outstanding in its originality and for that alone, you should check this out.

잠비나이(Jambinai) - 소멸의 시간(Time Of extinction)

Korean post-rock? Whatever, we need more of this and less K-Pop.

PSY - GANGNAM STYLE (강남스타일) M/V

70 million views and counting and this was only uploaded just over a month ago. There are of course 50 million people in South Korea alone of course. Psy is Park Jae-Song, a 34-year old K-Pop star who has been around for over a decade. Gangnam is a prosperous & glamorous district in Seoul, in which Psy parodies the lifestyles of the rich & famous, appropriately, at a time when there have been some high-profile cases of misconduct & embezzlement by the corporate super-wealthy.

K-Pop stars don't delve into this sort of satire, but rather, focus on songs of love & heartbreak with synchronized dance routines. But Psy is part of a caste of performers called 'Gwang-dae'; often associated with Royal households, but viewed as jester-like. Consider a parallel like the Lonely Island, but in Korea, they are given equal status with other pop performers and sell just as many records & concert tickets.