Song Sohee‘s career is one of the longest I’ve ever seen for her age. Her Bugs page shows that she started in 2014 and consistently released music every year. With her focus on Korean traditional music, GANGGANGSULLAE is a big step in a growing genre.
Korean traditional music mixed with rock and metal grows year-over-year with established bands like JAMBINAI creating a foundation and other acts presenting their interpretations and adding to the variety.
This first EP of her new chapter is both balanced and unbalanced. I think Song Sohee is experimenting with the depths and practice of molding two genres to her whims. She has a powerful voice and the instrumentals prop up her ideas. The EP goes in many directions and I think she’s found a good general style to build on.
“Dear My Lover” begins as an indie folk song, building layers on each verse. And then when Song Sohee brings the traditional singing into the track, it takes an ethereal tone. This might be the transition between her past and the welcoming of her future.
The single, “GANGGANGSULLAE,” reminds me of Cacophony and YAYA in its free interpretation and manipulation of sound. “GANGANGSULLAE” is the result of what Lim Kim has been trying to produce over multiple singles. I can imagine that this single is incredible live.
“Against the Dark Ocean” is Song Sohee’s voyage in indie and electronic music. It’s not a deep dive but she glances at the surface to produce a “nighttime swim” track with the moon reflecting on the water. It’s a solid song that shows off another side of her artistry.
Closing out GANGGANGSULLAE is Song Sohee’s pop single, “Forest Spirit.” It’s essentially Korean traditional music with a pop wrapper. It works really well to transition listeners between genres but it’s too safe for me.
This EP has a lot of work and talent behind it. Song Sohee is a singer with an insane amount of experience in Korean traditional music. Now that she’s exploring the intersection of Korean traditional and modern music, I can imagine after another EP and full length, she’s going to be near the top.
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Written by Chris P for Korean Indie.