Daegu CD Launches

I am sure my friends back home wonder how on earth I have barely been to CD launches in South Africa, but can get VIP seating at album launches in Korea. Well, friends... Come to Korea and I'll show you things ;)

Okay. silly intro aside- a church friend has been here in Korea for almost a year now and has spent his time here writing and recording his own music. Brad Henry is his name and his new album is titled Daegu Sessions. He did all the recordings in his little Korean apartment, using the only the equipment available to him- I'm guessing a mic and a MacBook were it. Many of us had already gotten a copy of his Canopies which was recorded before he came to Korea from the States. We love his vibe, and had to get a second dose. 

On one breezy, Friday, summer's eve, I made my way downtown to a lovely spot called Cafe Te. The spot is on the 4th floor of the building and opens its rooftop area for a really different feel of the busy downtown area. Brad performed with his wife, Sarah, and a small band which included some of his friends. 

The weather was perfect, the music soothing, and the atmosphere bubbly enough to leave me with an unsure sense of where I was for a few hours. Just beautiful. 

The Henry's doing their lovely harmony thang :)

Keeping ourselves busy during the break.

Hahaha! So Brad and Sarah are expecting a baby soon. This is what Stephen thinks about that.

Rene- winner of the lucky draw. Free beer! (no, that's ice cream in her hand)

The next few pics I took on my way out. The place is just awesome. I'd call it a well-kept secret.

Vinyl collection decorating the stairway.

The area downstairs.

You can check out Brad's music on reverbnation- I promise you'll love it! 

University Festivities

You could call me a real liker of things. Why? I have nooo idea what the title for this post should be, since I have no idea what the occasion of the event was. All I know, is that last year, I was cozy in my bed when I heard a good time happening behind my back at the uni across my apartment. A spring festival of sorts, I was told. Whatever it was, I had to make sure that I got to it this year. 

Korean students are subject to academic slavery so much that it gives me goosebumps of joy when I see them loosening up and enjoying there youth as they should. 

So a few Fridays back, Laurentia, Phumi, Raquel and I made a night of dinner and snooping around on the Kyungpook National University campus to get some of the spring action. It was packed- world food stalls serving their traditional cuisine, DJs, faculties selling food to raise funds, fireworks, stages graced by the presence of bands and comedians and just a whole lot more than we could understand. 

That's really all I can tell you about it, since I had no idea what the purpose of the event was. All I knew was that it was HUGE and I needed to check it out :) 

The highlight of the evening was a band called Coffee Machine (true story) and the chubbiest and most adorable little Vietnamese kid you've ever seen. 

Here's what I could capture before my camera took a long break. 

Ladies always looking for a shopping opportunity. 

Students getting their business on.

 Don't ask me what the sign says, I dunno either.

 That sign says something about banana and strawberry banana being 2000Won. Hmmm, like R14? Perhaps a smoothie.

I don't understand the sign behind them. Thought taking a pic might help me figure it out.

 These kids played cool music. So cool that I couldn't even got a decent pic.

Fine! I'll snap a pic of your boombox gadget thingy then. I like it better anyway.

Coffee Machine in action. 3 guitarists (some also doing vocals, I think), a drummer, a mo-hawked lead singer and the highlight- a guy on the trombone. Such an awesome sound!

Phumi's life fave- FIREWORKS!

 and then we bumped into the boys. Andy and Thai deciding whether or not to buy drinks.

Then my battery died. I promise. We didn't get any drinks here, so stop right there if you think a JAGAR Bomb is what 'killed' my battery. Ha! Seriously though. My battery died, we had yummy wraps from the Turkish stand, then headed home.

I love days like these.