Photo zine explores Korean heavy metal
Michael O’Dwyer sells copies of his photo zine “Bleeding Kimchi: Soju, Metal, Korea” at GBN Live House in Seoul last Saturday. / Courtesy of Michael O’Dwyer
By Jon Dunbar
As U.S. expat Michael O’Dwyer nears the end of his stay in Korea, he looks for ways to memorialize his time here. The cheerful bald-headed metalhead appeared at a metal show in GBN Live House in Mullae-dong, southwestern Seoul, last Saturday, selling copies of his photo zine “Bleeding Kimchi: Soju, Metal, Korea.”
“Books and zines about music or music scenes are attempts to make a snapshot of a time and place, and hopefully convey the emotions and community that is happening at that time,” he told The Korea Times.
“It really frustrates me that the Korean metal scene is so underground and unknown. I think there are some many highly skilled and talented bands that are toiling in total obscurity that I would love to shine a light on and share their experiences with others.”
Heavy metal came to Korea in the late 1980s as government control over youth culture weakened. Metal bands such as Crash, seen on page 3 of O’Dwyer’s zine, achieved early popularity among young people discovering a newly unlocked world of music. As K-pop grew, metal became relegated to the underground.
“This whole scene was born out of a release from censorship and this interest in rebellious music and now its existence is entirely a rebellion from K-pop and the image it promotes,” O’Dwyer said.
“But the Korea scene is becoming known as the home of grindcore in Asia and I think that's entirely because of K-pop. These musicians want to make the opposite of the clean, sugary pop music that's everywhere and they're producing these incredibly fast, brutal songs and imagery.”
His 18-page book shares some of this imagery, including local and international touring metal bands as well as other underground bands he’s seen, as well as his stories about seeing these bands. The front cover shows Kalte, the vocalist of black metal band Kryphos, adorned in corpsepaint with a black cross on her forehead, standing in front of an abandoned apartment complex in Taebaek where O’Dwyer lives.
“All these guys in black clothes screaming about murder in a dark room and then we all go out together and end the night in hugs,” O’Dwyer says of Korea’s metal scene. “I would compare Korean metal to soju if I described it to a stranger. It's rough and bitter but you will love it.”
O’Dwyer is also working with a friend on a documentary about Korean heavy metal, titled “K-Pop Killers,” which he hopes will be finished by summer. Visit
facebook.com/michaelodwyerphotos
for more information, or message the page to ask for a copy.
The cover of Michael O’Dwyer’s photo zine on Korean heavy metal. Image courtesy of Michael O’Dwyer