Currently watching: Korean indie bands on Youtube

When I was a student, I’d read Melody Maker looking for any new unknown bands I might like and I’d look through the CD singles on sale at the local record shop for any b-sides that seemed like they might be a lost great song. It was a hit and miss affair, but when I did find a forgotten piece of musical joy it was all worth it.

With the internet, of course, finding obscure songs has never been easier and recently I’ve been wandering through youtube, clicking on the suggestions at the side of the screen, and I’ve found a few channels that have videos of Korean indie bands playing live/acoustic versions of their songs. They have the right mix of lo-fi charm and good production standards, and Indie 2 Go’s videos in particular are very nicely shot (screengrabs for this post come from their videos for Mystery Curtain and Soran).

The other two channels I keep an eye on are Dark Tranquillity and cppark’s. Obviously there’s going to be some dross among the decent stuff, but that’s music for you. I admit it’s nice to watch a video that’s only had a few hundred hits but you can still be confident it’ll be well-made and worth watching. It feels a bit exclusive. I’ve already discovered Raspberry Field and Haein Yoo as well as the two acts I mentioned before, and I get the feeling there’s more to come.