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| ...Whatever That Means performs at Club FF last April 10. / Korea Times photo by Jon Dunbar |
By Daniel J. Springer
Eleven Korean punk bands perform 22 songs, one an original song and the other a famous cover. That's the jist of the "Them & Us" compilation series put out by DIY punk label World Domination, Inc. (WDI).
Picture pop-punk band Smoking Goose covering "Not Going Anywhere" by Israeli singer-songwriter Keren Ann, female-fronted ska-punk band TalkBats! playing WHAM's "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" and Green Flame Boys playing an eerily upbeat version of the Misfits' "Hybrid Moments," a song usually played in minor key but here rendered in major key instead.
That's some of what's on the latest compilation, "Them & Us 3: Korea's Punks at Binary Studios," to be released this Saturday but already out online. It's a great way to dive into the Korean punk scene and discover the bands through their introduction of the songs that influence them.
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| Ska-punk band TalkBats! / Courtesy of World Domination, Inc. |
"The point of any 'Them & Us' compilation is to take a snapshot of what's happening in the Korean punk scene at the time," Jeff Moses, WDI co-head and frontman of the punk band …Whatever That Means (WTM), which covered "Along the Way" by Bad Religion this time, told The Korea Times. "It obviously doesn't encompass everything that's going on, but is usually a pretty good picture of the bands we tend to work with."
WDI dropped its first "Them & Us" compilation back in 2011, recorded "live" using equipment at Club Spot, an underground live music venue next to Hongdae Playground that has since become a coin-operated K-pop karaoke place. The album was given out for free while WTM toured the U.S. for the first time, intended to generate interest in Korea's small, young but tenacious punk scene. They put out "Them & Us 2: Korea's Punks at Thunderhorse Studios" in 2016, to repeat this strategy for WTM's second U.S. tour, as well as for WDI band Full Garage's first tour.
Although there are no more international tours happening these days, WDI initially announced in December 2020 the third "Them & Us" to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the first. After some delay, it's finally coming out, with a sold-out release show this Saturday at Club FF featuring eight bands, seven of which appear on the album.
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| Smoking Goose / Courtesy of World Domination, Inc. |
Coming a year late ― just like the 2020 Tokyo Olympics held in 2021 ― the 10th-anniversary compilation is full of the same diversity in sound as the 2011 and 2016 outings, but with a couple of twists and notable differences.
Explaining some of the divergences to be found on this compilation, Moses noted, "The first difference is that 'Them & Us 3" wasn't recorded live like the others." Citing a lack of places to play due to you-know-what back in 2020 as the main culprit, there were also stylistic considerations at play for the WDI label heads. "We also liked the idea of releasing a compilation with high-quality studio recordings that were done in the more common track-by-track recording process," he explained.
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| Grunge-punk band Beacon / Courtesy of World Domination, Inc. |
Another difference with this edition will be the lack of hardcore bands, as there's usually been one or two groups in that genre doing their thing on these compilations along with the usual punk and ska crews. This is both a casualty of COVID-19 and certain bands from before kind of fading away or breaking up during the worst of the pandemic.
However, there is a faint light with that somewhat negative news, as Moses added, the first being that the lineup for "Them & Us 3" is as solid as ever. "It's a good showing of who has stayed the most active during the pandemic years, and I think that's pretty cool. It also allowed us to work with a few more new bands instead of the more established scene veterans," he said.
"During that time [of finishing the album] a few of the bands featured broke up or have been inactive due to COVID."
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| Green Flame Boys / Courtesy of World Domination, Inc. |
With all of this live music set to kick off as we start 2022, what's in store for WDI coming up this year? In short, the label will continue remaining very active, pandemic restrictions or not.
"We have lots of bands that are recording right now, so we're hoping for at least four to five albums coming out this year," Moses said.
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| Jonny'spark / Courtesy of World Domination, Inc. |
However, the main hope ― as it has been for some time for musicians all over Korea ― is the unrestricted return of live music.
"The other big hope is to bring back 'IT'S A FEST!' this summer," Moses noted. WDI's beach punk festival getaway hasn't been held on Muui Island since June 2019, but the label and roster are just waiting to see what's coming up with the seemingly eternal but forever-ending-soon COVID-19 crisis.
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| The front cover of "Them & Us 3: Korea's Punks at Binary Studios" / Courtesy of World Domination, Inc. |
The album release show this Saturday is sold out, with no walk-ins allowed due to COVID-19 restrictions. "Them & Us 3: Korea's Punks at Binary Studios" is available to stream exclusively via the WDI website.
Daniel J. Springer is the creator, producer, and host of "The Drop with Danno" on GFN based in Gwangju, broadcasting nightly from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.
