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January 2010 Live Music
Hongdae’s V-Hall is a spectacular venue, all the more so because organizer SuperColorSuper, represented by Sean Maylone and Christine Cho, chose it to host American indie electro-poppers YACHT and psychedelic dreamscaper White Rainbow. Both of these Portland, Oregon (USA) groups visited Korea after touring in mainland China. Seeing YACHT is like seeing James Brown reincarnated as two skinny kids dancing like crazy. Jona Bechtolt, the male lead, shimmies in ways that would make Marvin Gaye proud. In a white suit, shirt, and sneakers, his impersonation of generic TV evangelists is brilliantly rehearsed and yet utterly spontaneous. Joining him is the black catsuited Claire L. Evans, who assumes yogic poses before a video projection of hieroglyphs pulsing in time to the music. It’s impossible to sit still at this show.
Earlier in the evening, local electronic duo Sighborg (of which Sean is a member) performed, creating ravaging, feverish carnival guitar soundscapes. After their set, I spoke to Sean and Christine, who, as SuperColorSuper, have made it their mission to bring independent acts to Korea. As White Rainbow performs in the background, Sean lays out the inspiration behind SuperColorSuper. “I started this because my band was big enough to tour around Korea and garner attention,” Sean says,
adding that this is proof that bands from Korea can garner attention abroad. As for the future of indie music in Seoul, he is optimistic, offering the example of SuperColorSuper’s Round Robin series, which promotes and supports local acts. There’s good reason to be optimistic. Judging by the number of bands coming together in recent months and the crowds at the venues, it seems as though Seoul’s underground scene is coming up for a breath of fresh air.
adding that this is proof that bands from Korea can garner attention abroad. As for the future of indie music in Seoul, he is optimistic, offering the example of SuperColorSuper’s Round Robin series, which promotes and supports local acts. There’s good reason to be optimistic. Judging by the number of bands coming together in recent months and the crowds at the venues, it seems as though Seoul’s underground scene is coming up for a breath of fresh air.
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