'Run River North' flows to new territory

Run River North is finding an increasing following for its sound, which ranges from melancholic to huge wall-of-sound choruses backed by propulsive drums and bass. / Courtesy of Run River North

By Kim Young-jin

Run River North’s 2012 performance on Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show lit up the Internet, and not just because of the circumstances by which the southern Californian band ended up there.

The group, then an obscure indie folk-rock outfit called Monsters Calling Home, had learned they’d be playing the show only hours prior. Honda, the carmaker, had organized the surprise gig ― but more on that later.

As the band kicked into their bluegrassy anthem “Fight to Keep,” there was another element at play ― something obvious to see but more complicated to discuss. The musicians were all Asian-Americans of Korean decent.

It was a rare, if not unprecedented sight: a group of talented young Asian-Americans emoting on national television with great verve.

Several months earlier, a basketball player named Jeremy Lin turned the world on its head with an inspired stretch of play for the New York Knicks. Many celebrated the moment because Lin, a Taiwanese-American, was shattering stereotypes by treading where few with his background had.

Run River North, on a different scale, was doing the same.

Run River North’s self-titled album

Fast forward a couple years and the musicians are showing they’re more than viral sensations. They recently took a big step by releasing their self-titled debut album, an uplifting collection that pairs earthy folk tones with driving choruses.

Race and cultural background don’t define Run River North, who will tour with the Goo Goo Dolls this month. But Alex Hwang, the band’s singer-songwriter, believes they are part of a larger discussion.

“Conversations of race come up all the time,” Hwang said in an email. “At times, it can seem to steer the conversation away from the music, so we try our best to bring the focus back to who we are: musicians.

“I think as we continue as a band and tour, the stories and experiences we make along the way will help facilitate the conversation of race in America.

“I think we are contributing to the evolution of the perception of what it means to be American.”

The album explores life as children of immigrant parents, a topic the band knows well.

This is best exhibited in "

Monsters Calling Home

," a song that describes the sacrifices and alienation of the first generation, and walls that arise between parents and children. Hwang sings:

They’re walking heavy to the beat of a broken drum

Digging for worth in a land under a foreign sun

Their children call, bitter words of a strange tongue

The band formed in 2011 when Hwang decided to enter the song in a Los Angeles talent competition. The other members ― Joe Chun (bass), John Chong (percussion), Sally Kang (keyboards/vocals) and Daniel Chae and Jennifer Rim (strings) ― heard of the project through the singer’s outreach as well as church networks. Identifying with the theme, they came aboard.

Their break came the next year, when the cash-strapped band decided to record “Fight to Keep” entirely within the confines of their Hondas ― saving money on studio time.

The car company caught wind and rewarded them by arranging the Kimmel appearance.

The performance did not immediately lead to a record deal, but the exposure helped build a fan base; the band later sold out L.A.’s legendary Troubadour and signed with Canadian label Nettwerk.

Riding that momentum, the band recorded “Run River North” with Phil Ek, a veteran producer who has worked with the likes of Fleet Foxes and Modest Mouse. Ek matched well with the band’s sound, which ranges from pensive (the tender strings on “Growing up”) to huge wall-of-sound choruses backed by propulsive drums and bass.

We talked to Hwang about the Kimmel performance and the Korean-American experience.

Q: The Kimmel thing must have been surreal. What challenges and opportunities did it bring?

A:

It was a great firework early in our career. We were able to gain a lot of exposure and specifically, it helped our parents see that this wasn’t just a hobby ― giving us a year or so before they started asking us about graduate school and/or other career paths.

At the time, we also didn’t have an album. We were able to talk to different labels, experiencing what it was like to be vetted out by major labels, indie labels, etc. It was an incredible experience for a band that was only a year old.

Q: The song “Monsters Calling Home” is a great example of how you infuse the immigrant experience into you music. What is it about that experience that might make people feel like monsters?

For me, the image of a monster is what I see as human ― imperfect, full of desire, passion, anger, etc. I think that the monster perspective is heightened in America because of the fear of the foreign, the unknown.

So when you have kids who grow up pretty American, it’s easy to see the monster characteristics in parents who left their homeland, find jobs below their college degrees and deal with usually bratty “monster” children.

Q: Your music seems to be inspired in some part by your faith, but at the same time it embraces universal themes such as the struggle between good and bad. What is the role of faith in your music?

The role of faith is personal to all of us. Regardless of our own beliefs and faith, our music is not about our personal faiths but more about observing the world around us and seeing the justice/injustice, the love and the hate that is evident in spite of any religion. However we see the world and express that in our music, the whole experience is a dialogue with the listener, and we are as intentional as possible about making that conversation as open as possible.

Q: “Lying Beast” was inspired by a Korean folk song. Was that “Arirang?” What other ways does Korean culture play a role in the band?

Yes. It was definitely “Arirang.” So far, the Korean culture hasn’t played other roles. We’re still exploring the earlier folk artists of Korea and would love to find organic and subtle ways to incorporate our parents’ culture without being gimmicky.

Q: We’ve seen the band presented by media as a sort of antithesis to K-pop. Whatdo you make of this?

K-pop is an art form that requires a different set of disciplines. The industry of K-pop is one that is very impressive and crosses so many cultural boundaries ― I feel honored that we can be compared and contrasted to them. However, besides being Korean, there isn’t too much similarity ― we’re terrible at choreographed dancing and we’d make a terrible K-pop group.

Q: Any plans to visit Korea?

Definitely. We’d love to come, as we hone our live shows and have our album get a bit more exposure, we’d love to see the response from a Korean audience. Also, I think to be able to perform in our parents’ homeland as a successful band would be truly honoring our parents and still fulfilling our own dreams.

Follow Kim Young-jin on Twitter @yjk18