Daily Archives: April 27, 2009

Noraebang Nights

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Sunday was a noraebang night. Noraebang is the Korean word for Karaoke room and is a national pastime here. Entire TV channels are dedicated to this style of singing.  We hadn’t been to one in a while, so after another veranda picnic with MyeongHee’s friends at our house we all piled in the cars and headed into town.

Big screens and disco lights with plenty of room for dancing are common Noraebang traits
Big screens and disco lights with plenty of room for dancing are common Noraebang traits

Noraebangs can be, although not always, a family affair. Sometimes, like yesterday evening, whole families and friends make a night of it. Sometimes, after a night of drinking in the bars and nightclubs adults like to go out and sing. And sometimes, single men go to the underground noraebangs where “helper” girls will sit and sing with the customers and for a few 10k notes let a guy feel them up.

We did the family noraebang. With nine of us, it was a challenge to find one with an empty room big enough to accommodate us all.

MyeongHee loves to sing.
MyeongHee loves to sing.
She can really belt one out there. Koreans are generally not shy about performing once inside a singing room.
She can really belt one out there. Koreans are generally not shy about performing once inside a singing room.
DongHyun is a pretty good singer. He stayed with the recent K-pop hits but the older ladies liked his singing so well they made him sing some old warbly standards
DongHyun is a pretty good singer. He stayed with the recent K-pop hits but the older ladies liked his singing so well they made him sing some old warbly standards

Even little SohIn gets into it, singing a Korean girl-group hit.
Even little Soh-In gets into it, singing a Korean girl-group hit.
Even SaTang gets to come. She tried singing, too. Usually after a sing was over she wanted to pipe in and sing, so she'd bark three or four times until the reverbs and echos (another noraebang trait to hide bad singing) scared her
Even SaTang gets to come. She tried singing, too. Usually after a song was over she wanted to pipe in and sing, so she'd bark three or four times until the reverbs and echos (another noraebang fixture to hide bad singing) scared her

I have a few songs I regularly sing when at the noraebangs. They have a smattering of western pop songs in their songbooks, mostly the big hits, including some oldies. I usually sing “Love Potion Number 9” which seems to be in everyone’s book and most Koreans know. I do “Under the Boardwalk” when I can find it, which is not often. The Beatles always get the Koreans dancing while I sing. Joe Cocker’s “The Letter” gives me a change to growl.  I can’t tell if the Koreans like my singing or are just being polite.

Just a side note here – MyeongHee was worried about her hair when we come to America in two weeks. She usually straightens her hair with an iron (similar to a curling iron, but flat) every morning. When I told her she couldn’t bring it (different power/plugs here) she had a mild panic attack. No iron? How will I fix my hair? She solved the problem by giving herself a perm. Just a few waves, but enough not to have to deal with ironing her hair.