ABSTRACT
Since its birth in 1964, Korean rock has kept the delicate balance between the global (or inter - national) and the local (or domestic) dynamics surrounding this particular popular musical genre. Korean rock has long been part of “a global ‘mediascape’, transmitting diverse meanings” in the form of “either as an imitation of imported styles or as a stimulus to the creation of hybrid styles, in which musicians blend elements from local musical traditions and add native language lyrics” (Ferreira and Mendoza 2002, 106). There is sizeable literature on the ethnic, national, and local varieties of rock music, including the recent discussion of “aesthetic cosmopolitanism” of ethno-national pop-rock (Regev 2013). Korean rock may not be a special case among many ethnic variants, but the recent global ascendance of Korean pop music warrants close attention to this particular genre, which has widely influenced other music genres and even non-musical forms of popular culture.
