When three childhood friends, including a pair of siblings, started the band Biffy Clyro over 10 years ago in Kilmarnock, Scotland, they strived to make music that was “as weird as possible.” “That’s what we thought was good,” said Simon Neil, the group’s lead vocalist, guitarist and songwriter, in an interview. The band, which is also made up of twin brothers drummer James Johnston and bassist...

Though Tegan and Sara Quin of pop duo Tegan and Sara, identical twins and both openly gay, are prominent advocates for the LGBT movement, they’re also aware that “people in other countries don’t always understand.” “We try to be very sensitive to social and religious norms in other countries,” Tegan said at an interview before their first Korean performance at the Jisan Valley Rock Music & Arts ...

ICHEON, Gyeonggi Province -- With a precocious melancholic voice and a shy demeanor that, in her words, “doesn’t give too much away,” British singer-songwriter Birdy might be best described as the antithesis to chirpy K-pop girl groups. “For me, it’s always been a bit darker,” the 20-year-old replied when asked if she would ever take on a “cutesier” style, before her performance Saturday at the ...

On April 29, 1992, South Korea’s top intelligence agency arrested dozens of activists for plotting to overthrow the government by building underground socialist organizations. The authorities described the groups as the biggest antistate entity ever established in the country’s modern history. One of those arrested was Baik Tae-ung, who served as leader of the South Korean Socialist Coalition of...

JEJU -- Economic power is shifting to Asia and Africa, with technology challenging every sector. Add to these changes, ageing populations and more people feeling left behind, unhappy and even angry at society. Korea, which depends on global consumers to drive economic growth, must understand these worldwide changes and respond quickly to them, said Dominic Barton, a global managing director of c...

Wolfgang‘s Steakhouse in Seoul is an unusually large restaurant, especially for the upscale Cheongdam-dong area of Seoul. Step inside and walk past the mahogany reception desk, and the main dining hall seems to spread out endlessly, countless tables covered in white tablecloths floating above wooden floors. Overhead, private dining rooms line the second floor. “Our Seoul branch is about twice th...

Memebox is a relatively new face in the South Korean beauty industry which is largely dominated by cosmetics giants such as Amorepacific, Estee Lauder and MAC. Entering a market occupied by such established corporations poses challenges for any newcomer. But Memebox saw an opportunity in what seemed an already crowded market. It jumped into the sector as a cosmetics subscription and delivery se...

The kings of the Joseon era (1392-1910) tucked into a total of seven meals daily and each one involved meticulous planning. The day would begin with a medicinal herbal soup early in the morning, followed by breakfast, lunch and dinner with light meals and snacks between the three meals. All the meals were carefully planned and prepared by court doctors and kitchen staff, who regarded King’s foo...

Economic challenges in China such as slow growth, market restructuring and an aging population, are expected to hurt the Korean economy in the mid to short term, according to Brian Jackson, a senior economist at IHS, a global business analytics provider. “China’s slowing growth by itself is a negative for Korea, given Korea is exposed to Chinese domestic demand, supply chains, and the same globa...

The members of indie duo Kim Sawol X Kim Haewon were nearly complete strangers when they recorded their award-winning album “Secret” back in the summer of 2014 in a cramped studio in Seoul. At first, it was “intensely awkward” to be cooped up together, writing songs and recording for long hours that often stretched into dawn, the band told The Korea Herald in an interview last week at a café in ...

When U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump started accusing Seoul of getting a “free-ride” from Washington for its defense, many South Koreans reacted angrily, since they collectively pay nearly 1 trillion won ($865 million) each year for the upkeep of U.S. troops here. There were also concerns about the future of the security alliance. For Kim Jong-wook, the chairman of the KATUSA...

While the thought of jazz may conjure up images and sounds of Miles Davis on the trumpet and John Coltrane on the saxophone, it’s a safe bet to say few would ever consider, or know of, a jazz violinist. The jazz scene is dominated by the uniquely free-styled sounds of brass, woodwinds and percussion. Up-and-coming Korean jazz violinist Park Yoo-jin is looking to slowly tear away at this genre st...

Korea Inc. is in a generational transition. From Lee Kun-hee to Lee Jae-yong at Samsung and from Chung Mong-koo to Chung Eui-sun over at Hyundai Motor , Korea’s top business groups are preparing for father-to-son transfers of ownership and managerial control. This, according to corporate-governance expert Kim Woo-chan, poses a greater risk to global investors considering Korean stocks. The...

Once a wasteland, the Busan-Jinhae Free Economic Zone in South Gyeongsang Province is now closer to its goal of becoming a global business and logistics hub, a top official said. With a land area of 51.2 square kilometers, Busan-Jinhae FEZ is a specially designated region to attract foreign investment in order to strengthen competition for businesses by supporting regional development and improv...

GWANGJU -- The name of the Seoul-based artist duo Kimchi and Chips pretty much tells where the artists are from. Korean-British artist duo Mimi Son and Elliot Woods formed an art studio in 2009, adopting the quirky name. Since then, the two have been creating installations that challenge people’s perception of light and space and presenting them at museums and galleries throughout the world. On...