Wired Cola

The usual suspects have been pretty incensed about a recent concert by the NY Philharmonic in North Korea, and I sympathize with the idea that such a pseudo-detente with a crazyocracy like the DPRK has real dangers, both in what it might signal (properly or falsely) to the Dear Leader, and what it might signal to the rest of the world, too.

That said, when the musicians of the Philharmonic themselves, shown pretty much the best time the North Koreans can muster, end up publishing stories like this compelling travelogue, it's hard to argue this was a PR windfall for the government of the DPRK.

Meanwhile, the LA Times music critic chooses to publish a review of the concert which suggests an alternative program of music. I can't tell whether he is half-joking, all-joking, or merely quarter-joking, but his proposal seems to have the same problem that Vice TV's correspondent had when he sang "Anarchy in the UK" at a North Korean karaoke bar: the North Koreans have no cultural reference points for the ideas you are presenting. (I recommend the other 13 parts of that documentary as well).

And digging into my archives, I remind you that as bizarre and shabby as Pyonyang sounds in these various accounts, it is the only part of the country that counts as functional. Hyok Kang grew up in rural DPRK, and lived to tell about it.