Hermit Kingdom Alive With The Sound Of Laibach

The group, which usually wears identical gray uniforms and is often said to represent a kind of fascist sensibility, performed in front of 1,500 people at the capital’s Ponghwa Art Theater. According to the Daily Mail, Laibach was required to submit lyrics beforehand to North Korean censors, who reportedly made “severe cuts.”

The authorities also changed some of the visual elements of the show, including videos and stage sets. Nevertheless, the concert proved bizarre by any standards. Apparently, the audience was told not to stand up and dance during the performance, but remain quietly seated.

They could, however, clap “politely at intervals.” The material the group played included its own versions of several songs from “The Sound of Music” as well as a rendition of the beloved Korean folk song “Arirang.”

Media reported that NK supreme leader Kim Jong-un did not attend the show but diplomats from Cuba and Sweden did.

One member of the band, Ivan Novak, told the Mail after the show that the audience “treated us fantastically. They treated us with full respect.”

Novak explained that the band wanted to do the concerts “out of curiosity” and a belief that they should try to play any place that will have them. The manager of a tour company that brings foreigners to North Korea told the Mail, “It was very good. Just a weird atmosphere.” He added that Laibach “toned down” their usual industrial sound for the concert. Even though the audience looked “confused,” they “seemed to enjoy it.”

The show was filmed by Norwegian director Morten Traavik for a documentary. The filmmaker told the Mail that the dynamic of a nominally fascist band playing pop music in a totalitarian country was fascinating, though Novak played down that aspect.

“The most totalitarian successful system in the world is the rule of financial capitalism in the West,” he said. The group played a second concert at the same venue the next night before returning home.