There really are two punk scenes in Korea. Never mind all that hardcore vs punk crap. I mean the Koreans and the foreigners. We all go to the same club, we drink in the same alley, we watch the bands, but sometimes we¡¯re totally oblivious of each other.

Foreigners associate with foreigners and Koreans associate with Koreans, and there¡¯s comparatively little crossover. It¡¯s disturbing to those of us who¡¯ve been around for a few years, because we remember the days when we¡¯d be the only foreigners at shows, and we¡¯d always go out drinking with the Koreans after. There was a language barrier but it just meant we needed to be patient. Nowadays the foreigners go off in a separate direction from Koreans after shows.

¡°95% of the reason is language barrier,¡± says Jesse, an American stationed in Yongsan who has supported Skunk Hell for a few years. ¡°The other 5% might be cultural differences, but I think very few people would let that effect (or is that affect?) them.¡±

¡°I believe that there is an invisible barrier between most groups of people based on a variety of things such as class, religion, race, etc,¡± Mike, an American in the air force.¡±It¡¯s human nature to gravitate towards familiar groups and that¡¯s what is happening here. Also there are a lot of foreigners who come and go so it may be hard for Koreans to accept them as a permenant part of the scene (just like we used to do when some oddball came walking up the hill).¡±

Ultimately, foreigners are welcomed at shows, moreso than ever.

¡°I generally feel welcomed and have never felt as if though I didn¡¯t belong,¡± says Mike.

¡°Of course I am very thankful of it,¡± says Chulhwan, lead singer of Suck Stuff and promoter for Skunk Hell. ¡°Everybody is so helpful with everything, like supporting, purchasing our CDs or merchandise, good manners too. Really I am thankful for it.¡±

Mike, who recently returned to Korea after a twoyear absence, was surprised by the boom in the foreigner population. ¡°I went to 7/11 [across the street from Skunk] and there were about 15 people in the store...and only two of them were Korean and happened to be working there. Even though I obviously contributed to the imbalance I didn¡¯t like it at all!¡±

And that¡¯s the irony. By our presence we¡¯re continuing to the overcrowding of foreigners in the Korean punk scene. There is no solution to this Gordian Knot we¡¯ve tied. The more zines we write, photoblogs we post, websites we make, the more foreigners there will be. We¡¯re certainly not going to stop doing what we¡¯re doing.

That leads to a question. Is this a problem worth worrying about?

¡°Nope,¡± says Chulhwan, ¡°but...if it¡¯s a foreigner that is new at Skunk...yes sometimes here are problems with manners and stuff, but the foreingers that come to skunk often have good manners so I really like them.¡±

¡°I think every foreigner deserves to be here or there,¡± says Boram, the bassist of Samchung. ¡°If they ?t here, there¡¯s no problem. If they don¡¯t, they¡¯ll go somewhere else.¡±

¡°Within our circle (past and present) I believe we make an effort to appreciate the music and people in the scene,¡± says Mike. ¡°Then there are the people who try to prove how punk they are by either spraying beer on everybody or by standing back knowing that they are more ¡®punk¡¯ than the Koreans could ever be and talking amongst their little group. I wish the latter group would just fucking stay away.¡±

Occasionally, there is a problem caused by foreigners at shows. Of course, Koreans cause their own problems as well. ¡°I don¡¯t like drunken foreigners,¡± admits Boram, ¡°but I hate drunken Koreans too.¡±

When a foreigner is being rude at a show, there are plenty of other foreigners around to correct them.

Recently Jesse witnessed two foreigners drag another foreigner violently out of a show in Spot. He ?rst thought it was a ¡°petty 3am bar-room brawl,¡± but soon found out the foreigner had been groping girls in the show.

People who didn¡¯t know what was going on were concerned, and Jaeseok from Gukdo tried to cool things down. The two ejectors, Paul and Jonathan, showed restraint. ¡°Paul could have booted his head through the pavement while he was laying prostrate on the street,¡± Jonathan recalls, ¡°and I could have easily broken his neck while I was carrying him up the stairs by said neck. The point is, nobody had to get their ass kicked because we were in complete control of the situation the entire time, and it was executed quickly, without chest thumping or debate, and it happened so quickly that his friends didn¡¯t have a chance to react or psych themselves up.¡±

You can see foreigners who are being rude and bothering Koreans. You can also see foreigners who are respectful and ?t in well. Foreigners have their own corner in the Korean punk scene. But what I would like is to return to the days of one unity. Is it possible to bring everyone closer together?

¡°Yep, but foreigners should understand Confucian ideas in Korean culture,¡± says Boram.

¡°There is alot of possibility,¡± says Chulhwan. ¡°If there is good manners between them nothing is a problem to get closer.¡±

¡°Punk in Korea is fairly young (obviously) and I¡¯m guessing the bulk of foreigners have come through in the last two to three years,¡± Mike observes. ¡°Hopefully as the punks become more familiar with each other the walls will come down.¡±

For now, we have an understanding between each other. Although we don¡¯t spend enough time together, we are aware of each other¡¯s existence. ¡°I consider any Korean punk I have met as an aquaintance for the most part with one or two exceptions,¡± says Mike. ¡°We chit chat and what not, but I don¡¯t feel as if I can bring any personal problem to any of them or con?de in them because of the obvious communication barriers. I¡¯m not saying it can¡¯t happen, just that it hasn¡¯t happened yet. But then again I¡¯d back up any punk if i thought they were in the right and I¡¯m hoping they¡¯d do the same for me.¡±

Or, you know, we could all enroll in Korean classes.