“Brave New Sound,” band Silica Gel The band ‘Silica Gel’ is comprised of four members: Kim Hanjoo (keyboard/vocal), Kim Chunchu (guitar/vocal), Kim Geonjay (drums), and Choi Woonghee (bass). Their unique blend of psychedelia, built on a colorful spectrum, alongside their explosive live performances, have positioned them as the newest, most courageous sound-producing band, ‘Silica Gel’.
If you’re curious about the potential of Silica Gel, the answer lies in their music. It’s unheard of because no one has attempted it before; thus, it’s new and unfamiliar. As the saying goes, the weirder the better, for it brings novelty the more you delve into it.
Members:
- Kim Hanjoo (keyboard/vocal)
- Kim Chunchu (guitar/vocal)
- Kim Geonjay (drums)
- Choi Woonghee (bass)
Could you please introduce the members of the band?
Chunchu: Hi, I’m Chunchu.
Hanjoo: Greetings to the readers of K-Crush. I’m Kim Hanjoo from Silica Gel.
Woonghee: Hello, I’m Choi Woonghee, the one with the beard.
Geonjay: Greetings! I’m Geonjay from Silica Gel.
Can you explain the music style and vision that Silica Gel pursues?
Chunchu: We focus intently on creating interesting music and sounds. We have stories to share and sounds we’re eager to play for you. When we gather, we contemplate how to craft music that embodies these concepts. Our goal is to continue sharing such music with you.
Could you introduce your recent album “POWER ANDRE 99”?
Hanjoo: “POWER ANDRE 99” is an album by Silica Gel, released on December 20, 2023. It encapsulates the various textures we’ve explored and concludes stories that have emerged in our world.
You have received high praise, such as “genius” and “a unique band from Korea”. Do you acknowledge this recognition?
Woonghee: Personally, I find Silica Gel to be the most fun band in Korea. However, I wouldn’t consider us geniuses. We’ve invested a lot of effort into doing things that others wouldn’t, but that doesn’t necessarily elevate our music to better or genius status. It’s simply what we enjoy, according to our tastes.
Each song and music video has its own meaning, yet you often leave them open to interpretation. Have you considered hosting a session to explain your music?
Chunchu: While I understand people’s curiosity about the meanings, I somehow don’t want to dispel it too quickly by explaining in detail. Words aren’t always the best medium for explanation. I encourage you to keep listening and imagine for yourself, as there are no definitive answers.
Hanjoo: Even among us, there are varying interpretations of the meaning, which adds to the excitement of Silica Gel. This diversity inspired us to launch an open webpage. While hosting explanation sessions itself could be quite fun, we’d prefer to attend as listeners, eager to hear others’ interpretations than as musicians.
Woonghee: I enjoy sharing some of the explanation about our videos when possible. It’s fascinating to hear how people interpret our work, so I’d rather not diminish that by providing explanations upfront.
Geonjay: It’s not that our work does not have a basis or origin. We believe we’ve adequately expressed it through visual language. The core message expands as it passes through each member and contributor. I love hosting explanation sessions, if fans want. It could be insightful, but it might end up like exploring different parts of an elephant blindfolded… each person perceives a different aspect, but it’s all the same elephant. (Laughs)
Who is responsible for your music videos? Do you always work with the same director?
Woonghee: For our music videos, we’ve collaborated closely with director MELTMIRROR, who has a unique ability to visualize our music, starting with the title track ‘9’ from our debut album. He has a visionary eye. Occasionally, other directors add our stories as well. Recently, Director Choi Woonghee has been producing some intriguing videos as well.
What are the band members’ favorite movie genres?
Chunchu: I haven’t had much time for movies lately, but I’ve always been drawn to occult and thriller genres. I enjoy the eerie atmospheres they create.
Hanjoo: I’m not sure about a favorite genre, but I admire directors like Andrei Tarkovsky and Leos Carax. Lately, I’ve been exploring Agnès Varda’s films.
Woonghee: “End of Evangelion” was recently released in theaters in Korea. I’m a fan of animated movies.
Geonjay: I enjoy documentaries, thrillers, horror, and science fiction films. My tastes are quite broad, including admiration for directors like Clint Eastwood, Ridley Scott, and Martin Scorsese. I also like the works of Stephen Chow’s gang since the 1990s, and I also like the works of former killers, former special forces, and former mafia.
What are your thoughts on the impact of lyrics in popular music and on listeners?
Geonjay: Lyrics hold a unique power through their visual representation. They are an essential tool that can convey messages effectively, beyond mere phonetics, rhythm, and melody. For instance, “In the late hours after midnight, the sound of weary shoes approaches, clicking a couple of times in the shoe rack, the rustling of a bag, and then, without even going to the bathroom, the footsteps halt at the bed.” You can picture it just from this sentence, right? However, it could also be condensed into “The father came home after working late.” Before defining it as “the father’s situation,” it could be about a lover, or a sibling. That’s why I believe lyrics are such an important tool. They deliver messages directly.
Thus, with a 200% personal preference, I hope that lyrics can become a medium that has a more positive impact on people. When writing creates an image, it inevitably infiltrates into people’s lives. It’s not that I’m saying we should only talk about good things all the time; I just always hope that it’s not written thoughtlessly.
What do you hope listeners feel through Silica Gel’s music? What impact do you wish to have?
Chunchu: There’s no specific expectation. It would be great if listeners find our music enjoyable, even if they don’t fully understand it. As you know, we all have different thoughts. The aim is to provoke thought or emotion, symbolized by question marks or exclamation points, when people hear our music.
Hanjoo: Rather than expecting a specific sensation, I hope for resonance at any point. I don’t think we are people who express things in a flat manner. When something happens within the person receiving it, if it even slightly touches upon a specific point of the harmonics we are outputting, wouldn’t that be considered a success?
Woonghee: As I mentioned briefly in the music video, it seems that our music evokes a wide range of emotions in listeners. Therefore, we’d like the impact to be determined by the listeners themselves.
Geonjay: Lately, I don’t carry around any grand lessons or profound impressions. I just hope that the time spent listening to our music or watching our performances doesn’t feel like a waste to our audience and lives up to their expectations. The routine of waking up, showering, changing clothes, and so on, becomes a day, and these days turn into the concept of time. I just guess that the act of appreciating something is just one of those small things existing between routines. Becoming one of those small entities and adding a subtle color to the monotony would be quite nice.
Apart from rock, what are your favorite music genres?
Chunchu: Classical, folk, hypnagogic pop.
Hanjoo: I like all kinds of music (though I’m not sure what defines music). It might be clearer to approach this through a process of elimination. I’m interested in exploring traditional music from around the world and religious music, as I don’t know much about them yet. Recently, I’ve been listening a lot to Forrest Fang, who integrates Eastern sounds with avant-garde and ambient music, and has participated in several records as a violinist.
Woonghee: While I primarily enjoy rock, I also listen to folk music. Kim Mok-in is an artist I admire.
Geonjay: My music taste is quite eclectic. Lately, I’ve been into French touch and house music genres in general. I’ve listened a lot to Dead Can Dance and the Japanese musician Official髭男dism. Last year, I think I listened to a lot of folk.
How did you decide to combine hard rock and VJing in your concept?
Hanjoo: While I’m not sure if it’s appropriate to call it hard rock, but the initial idea came about because drummer Kim Geonnjay was taking a media art course in college, which naturally led to forming such an organization. Geonnjay organized a performance set based on guys he found interesting, and that experience led to the formation of Silica Gel, including members responsible for video. Performing music live, the conditions of the venue greatly influence us, and it was nice to create ‘our own space’ in harmony with VJs, from the interior to the arrangement of furniture.
As musicians, how do you manage your work-life balance?
Chunchu: 100(work):0(life). I’m currently striving for a better balance, as it’s heavily skewed towards work at the moment.
Hanjoo: 0(work):0(life). For me, there’s no distinction between work and life at all.
Woonghee: 10(work):0(life)The balance fluctuates daily; sometimes, work feels like relaxation, and other times, it’s just like all-work.
Geonjay: I don’t like to quantify life in numbers. Still, I try to go out in the morning and come back in the evening to eat. Deep down, I always hope to maintain a 5:5 balance. After working, I want to rest, and after resting, I naturally want to work again. We all feel like that, don’t we? (laughs)
Did you always know you wanted to be musicians? How did you prepare from a young age?
Chunchu: I didn’t prepare to become a musician; it just happened that music became my main occupation. Since childhood, I’ve been learning instruments, and suddenly, I wanted to try the guitar, which led me to want to attend a music high school, and naturally, I decided to pursue music.
Hanjoo: My path as a musician was decided quite early, but rather than attaching any particular story, music has been an uninterrupted part of my life. It’s not just about daily life; all my thoughts are connected to music circuits, and continuous imagination has been nourishing not only my childhood but also my continuous ‘preparation process’ up to now.
Woonghee: Listening to a wide variety of music and engaging with interesting people are key. Seeking enjoyable experiences is also crucial.
Geonjay: I dreamed and fantasized music in my childhood, but unlike other performing arts prodigies, I wasn’t in an environment that prepared me from a young age. Listening to various kinds of music was a great experience. Discovering different music and exploring the information that comes with it (like recorded labels, places, performers, directors, cover art, etc.) made me thrilled and happy. Honestly, I don’t consider myself significant enough to say, ‘I am a musician.’ I’m still dreaming of becoming a great musician and studying.
If you weren’t musicians, what would you be doing?
Chunchu: It’s hard to imagine, but I’ve admired people who cook for a living, so maybe that would have been cool.
Hanjoo: Without music, I might have ended up unemployed and despondent.
Woonghee: I could see myself working with cameras or aspiring to be a soccer player, but I’m terrible at soccer.
Geonjay: Given my intense curiosity and my tendency to get annoyed by the effort required to finish tasks once they pass a certain efficiency-cost threshold, I might have ended up as a messy and self-employed person or a jack-of-all-trades.
What do you consider the unique features or charms of Korean culture?
Chunchu: This is the first time I’ve received such a question, so it’s challenging, but I think the concept of ‘us’ is relatively significant. It might be good or bad. The language and communication aspects are also unique among East Asian languages, which makes me feel that there’s a greater interest in foreign languages. That’s what I think! (laughs)
Hanjoo: From an insider’s perspective, it’s challenging to pinpoint the positives of Korean culture. It’s not a cynical answer about society, but it’s hard to view Korea omnisciently from within. Still, with K-POP leading the way, Korea seems to be a promising hub for Asian culture. The continuous development of a unique culture exported from Korea is charming, and I admire the drive to keep generating such dynamics.
Woonghee: Korea boasts an array of delicious dining options and fascinating cafes. If you come to Seoul, there are many restaurants I’d like to recommend.
Geonjay: I’d say all the characteristics of Korea are concentrated in Seoul. With all infrastructure focused in Seoul, it’s somewhat chaotic but allows for almost all experiences. Other regions are relatively uncrowded and quiet but have depth. It’s charming that you can lightly taste the allure of all Korean regions in Seoul before heading to the local areas of other regions. Did that appeal as a charm?
For international visitors to Korea, what are some must-see places or experiences?
Chunchu: Visiting a rock festival in Korea could be fun. While there’s no traditional Korean food at festivals, you might feel the energy from the easy-going food and good atmosphere of the people. You might also get to listen to domestic live music and possibly see Silica Gel!
Hanjoo: I’ve seen visitors to Korea trying challenging foods like Pyongyang cold noodles and fermented skate. It may seem cliché, but it’s undeniably fun. Personally, I’d recommend ‘Eulmildae’ for Pyongyang cold noodles, ‘Hongeohanmari’ in Seogyo-dong for fermented skate, my favorite vegan restaurant ‘Ferments’ in Yongsan and many more!
Woonghee: I recommend ‘Pildong Myeonok,’ a place I currently want to visit the most. I’d like to introduce cold noodles, and it’s my favorite cold noodle restaurant. Just thinking about it makes me hungry.
Geonjay: I’d like to recommend Seochon, where stylish people actively move around, and Bukchon Hanok Village, where the past and present mysteriously blend. Additionally, I love ‘Soulville,’ a listening bar near Gyeongbokgung Station, and ‘Lazy Burger Club’ in Buam-dong.
We would like to thank Silica Gel for their interview and much continued success.
—-Jiyoung Lee
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