Here's your music fix for the week
Peggy Gou. Pic/Jungwook Mok
South Korea has been reaping the fruits of its soft power diplomacy ever since the seeds of it were first sown when the Seoul Olympics were hosted in 1988. Consider how the country's TV dramas and films have infiltrated screens across the Far East.
Or, look at the global domination of K-pop, with bands like BTS flooring audiences in Europe and the US. Yet, not all cultural imports from there are the outcome of careful political planning. Some artistes simply happen to be from Korea, while embodying western sensibilities as much as Big B embodied the angry young man in the '70s. And one such person is Peggy Gou, a Korean native based in Berlin, who will play a gig this weekend.
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Gou plays a highly infectious brand of house, acid and techno that drags you gently to the dance floor, as if the music is a supportive friend coaxing a shy child to join others at break time in school. Even when she samples anthemic club tracks such as Shakedown's At Night, she sticks to this teasing quality, without any over-
emphasised "drop" in the music, dumbing it down to the depths of infantile EDM.
But it's in her originals that the 27-year-old shows shades of her roots, often singing in her native tongue and using instruments indigenous to Korea, despite the overall sonic character of the track remaining decidedly western. In fact, she says, "Every time I play, there are always Asian people [in the audience]. They're giving me high fives on every track and I'm like, 'You know what? I love the fact that you're on my dance floor.
I'm proud!" And that's why her songs serve as a great lesson for any Indian DJ looking to appropriate the West, while still keeping in mind the interests of a desi audience. But for others, the sheer dance-worthiness of her tracks should be enough to make it a memorable gig.
ON: June 15, 10 pm onwards
AT: Kitty Su, The Lalit, Marol, Andheri East.
CALL: 61043553
COST: Rs 1,000
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