Hongdae -cradle of Korean underground music

Session players for Yoon Duk-won of band Broccoli, You Too perform during their gig at Rolling Hall in Seogyo-dong, Seoul, on Feb. 6. / Korea Times photos by Nam Hyun-woo

Rolling Hall owner recalls club's history, worries endangered music scene

By Nam Hyun-woo

In the mid 1990s when Nirvana front man Kurt Cobain retired glam metal with high-pitched vocals and shredded guitar solos from the mainstream rock scene, bands influenced by him started to mushroom in Korea.

Naturally, demand for live clubs where those bands could perform soared and they sprouted.

One of them was Rolling Stones in Shinchon, western Seoul. It was founded in 1995, but has since moved to Hongdae, the Mecca of Korean underground music, and was renamed Rolling Hall. While many other clubs shut down because of financial problems, Rolling Hall has weathered obstacles during the past two decades and become one of few still operating in Hongdae.

A session player for Yoon Duk-won of band Broccoli, You Too sets up his drum kit before a gig at Rolling Hall in Seogyo-dong, Seoul, on Feb. 6.

Popular bands such as YB, Jaurim and Cherry Filter were among the so-called fledglings of Rolling Hall, and many rock star wannabes are still strumming their guitars dreaming of a gig on stage at the club.

Last month, Rolling Hall marked its 20th year and more than 60 performers, from renowned rock bands such as Cherry Filter, Transfixion and Galaxy Express to even rap musicians performed throughout February to commemorate its history.

On Feb. 6 when The Korea Times visited the club, acoustic guitar duo Jaejoo Boys and Yoon Duk-won of modern rock band Broccoli, You Too filled the club with their ambient sounds.

A sound engineer at Rolling Hall controls console during a gig at the concert hall in Seogyo-dong, Seoul, on Feb. 6.

When Jaejoo boys covered “Cayman Islands” by Kings of Convenience, the beautiful sound of the acoustic guitars was delivered to the audience through the club's 20 year-long knowhow in sound engineering.

“Musicians and live clubs always coexist,” said the owner of Rolling Hall, Kim Cheon-seong. “Thus, creating a musician-friendly environment is my job.”

Kim is also the CEO of Rolling Culture One, a marketing company which focuses on promoting underground music and indie groups here.

However, Kim said that “I didn't know I would do this for so long.”

Yoon Duk-won of band Broccoli, center, You Too, throws a tangerine to audiences while performing Jaejoo Boys’ song “Tangerine” during a gig at Rolling Hall in Seogyo-dong, Seoul, on Feb. 6. / Korea Times photos by Nam Hyun-woo

Kim Cheon-seong

“I was initially in the apparel business and had never been involved in the music industry as a musician. I was just an enthusiastic listener.”

His family members influenced him to keep music not as a hobby but as a vocation. One of his three brothers is a musician and affected the young Kim to fall in love with heavy rock music, especially songs from Pantera. The brother founded Rolling Stones, which Kim bought in 1997 to develop it into a cathedral for Korean underground music.

Since then, countless musicians, including YB and Broken Valentine, have passed through the club and risen to stardom. Almost all of them still call Kim “brother,” because he treats musicians as family.

Such relationships with musicians recompensed Kim, when the club suffered an accidental fire in 2000 before it moved to its current location. Kim described the accident as the biggest obstacle for him.

Jaejoo Boys’ Park Kyoung-hwan sings during his band’s gig at Rolling Hall.

“Then, I really thought that I should stop running this,” Kim said. “The next morning, I found written messages cheering me on by many of the band members I've known.

“One read: 'Chun-sung, you shouldn't stop here.' Frankly, I cried then. A few days later, some musicians proposed that we do something to revive the club.”

A charity concert was held. Bands including Jaurim, Crying Nut and YB played for free. Sound engineering companies also supported Kim.

“Without their help, I couldn't do this today. I owe a lot to the musicians,” Kim said.

Aside from the fire, various obstacles have hampered his management.

Staff members at Rolling Hall chat before a gig at the concert hall.

In the late 90s, live clubs, including Kim's, generated profits by selling foods and drinks during gigs. That became a problem. Many clubs at the time were registered as “general restaurants,” but the Food Sanitation Act did not allow band performances in these places and cracked down on them. Kim was also arrested.

This was followed by a series of gigs in 1999 pushing for a revision to the act, and the government then allowed live clubs to operate within the new legal boundaries.

Another crisis came in the early 2000s. Dance clubs playing house music sprouted, but nitpicking media started to stigmatize those dance clubs as hotbeds of crime. Absurdly, live clubs, including Kim's, were also hit hard, because they also were listed as “clubs,” though the operations of two were mutually exclusive.

In 2005, when underground bands became a growing presence in the country's music scene, a punk band member exposed his genitals on live TV. The incident ousted rock from mainstream music and tarnished rock's reputation. Naturally, audiences visiting live clubs significantly decreased.

Audiences watch a performance at Rolling Hall.

“Club owners these days have it easy,” Kim laughed. “I could overcome those obstacles thanks to the help of my staff members and musicians.”

For Kim, however, threats have not ended and he has to steer the live club round obstacles, mostly of a financial nature.

“Management is always a problem. We have no clear solution for that,” he said. “If this building was mine, I could showcase more varied musicians, but I have to pay the rent, which is extremely expensive. Thus, I have to use famous musicians who can draw big audiences.”

Fear for next 20 years

Seen from the outside, last month was a festival period for Kim and underground music fans here, but Kim said he is more concerned about future.

Around the late 2000s, conglomerates started to penetrate underground music industry, epitomized by Hongdae, seeking a stake in the market mostly maintained by small- and medium-sized clubs.

“Hongdae is in crisis,” Kim said. “We have to admit that huge clubs run by large conglomerates can offer musicians a better environment. It is really good for the musicians. When you see through it, however, it is part of the company's marketing strategy.

“By running such live clubs, companies can create the image that they really care about underground music. In fact, however, it is nothing more than a disguise for the company's ultimate goal of generating profits.”

Starting from Sangsangmadang, an eleven-story (four underground and seven above) building run by the Korea Tobacco & Ginseng Corp., more conglomerates are looking at places in Hongdae. Hyundai Card will also reportedly open a large concert venue.

Kim said he is concerned that this will jeopardize the identity of underground music and companies will only care for bands or groups make money for them, which will eventually make the underground music scene similar to the current K-pop scene dominated by cloned boy bands and girl groups.

“Live clubs and musicians have grown autonomously. The unique sound of their music and the culture of Hongdae became what they are now because they were not controlled by companies but did what they wanted to.

“Rolling Hall marked its 20th anniversary this year, but I'm not sure whether I, or other live club owners, will be able to be interviewed 20 years from now,” Kim said.