Seo
Taiji Solo Album 980707
by
Minnie
Chi
June, 1999
 Some say he's the
Michael
Jackson of Korea. Others
say he's a mere 'biter' of Cypress
Hill's rap style. Some
say he's a legendary genius.
Others say his lyrics are Satanic.
Seo Taiji has caused tremendous
social, moral, and cultural
commotion in the Republic of
Korea. Starting off with
his own group in 1992, he received
as much criticism as success
by creating four controversial
albums and ending his arduous
career in 1996. So why
is he back as a solo artist?
And what is up with this
opaque purple album cover with
a CD infested with hardcore
alternative + rock that Koreans
dare not submit to? This
album not only gives you the
unexpected sounds of Taiji,
but he puts in a piece of his
mind and heart in a very mysterious
fashion. He'll always
remain an enigma, but the cover
photo of his CD reveals the
symbolism behind his new masterpiece.
The striking image of
a man viciously pulling off
his white shirt, revealing his
skin colored wings represents
his struggle with freedom. This
musician has been stomped on
constantly by the Korean media
and society all four years of
his career, and now he declares
that it is his time to rise
and shine like the glowing white
bird that he is so infatuated
with. He's back, he's
alive, and better than anyone
can imagine as a solo artist,
with more independence and freedom
to fly to the farthest
skies of the unlimited paradise
of music.
Seo
Taiji bewilders us with bland
titles of Take One, Two, Three
and so forth, with tiny interludes
like Maya, Radio, and Lord on
this short 28 minute album.
A half minute track, Maya
starts it off with a low volume
guitar, softly strumming away,
followed by a volcanic eruption,
which leads to the explosive
slash of alternative tuned guitars.
His style of acoustics
in this song resembles the bleeding
guitars of the Smashing Pumpkins.
His voice echoes through
your ears as he sings about
the everlasting hope of the
world's creator. Taiji
sings on her behalf," 내가
말했잖아 너를 데려간다고 너의
아픔들은 이제 없을거라고"
(You told me, "I'm
going to take you away/ All
your pain will disappear now").
He restores us with hope
for our corrupted human race
adding, "고통없는 세상이
너의 두 눈앞에 펼쳐질것이라고"
(The world without pain will
spread before your eyes). He
takes us out of this spiritual
rapture with the next track.
In
Take Two, he experiments with
digital grooves to emphasize
the issue of the clash between
the old and new generation.
This song is very unique
as he uses television as the
analogy of separate generations.
A lot of criticism is
used in this song, showing the
conflicting point of views of
the old and new "TV."
It starts you off with
the static of a record spinning
and sharp guitar samplings.
He calmly mutters words,
"망쳤어 니가 미쳤어 이제
끝났어 무식 --- 소리를 내 사실은
고백을 해야할 시간 역시 좀더
나은 화질의 디지털" (You're
destroyed, you've gone insane,
now it's finished, make an ignorant
--- noise, it is time for the
true confession, as I expected
a little better quality digital
screen), and pounds your ears
with heavy industrial guitar
as he chants the chorus, "TV
TV TV". It's ironic
how he uses irritating beeps
to censor parts of his own lyrics
as in, "무식 --- 소리를
내" (..make an ignorant---noise)
and in the beginning of the
second verse, "사과에 꽂혀버린
색연필에겐 단지 --- 저고리에
숨어버렸어." This line
describes a red pencil sticking
in the apple and possibly penetrating
into the seed. Some music
analysts claim that this red
pencil that Taiji is referring
to is the same red pencil used
by the strict teachers of Korea
who mark all your foolish mistakes
on tests. I strongly feel
that Taiji is making a statement
about how his lyrics suffer
at the hands of judgemental
critics. This proves that
freedom of speech was (and still
is) tightly restricted in Korea
and Taiji definitely knows it
because he has been the greatest
victim of censorship in the
Korean music industry. Towards
the end of the song, he releases
his rage against the irritating
friction as he shouts in a muffled
mechanical tone, "내가
아무래도 그렇게 멍청할것 같냐
내 마이크에 누가 껌을
붙여놨어 진짜 좀 더럽게 좀 굴지마!"
(Do you think I'm as stupid
as you think? Who put gum on
my mic? Stop f****n annoying
me!). Take Two has certainly
made its point with various
sound effects and digital programming.
Now
time for the darker side of
this tale. Radio prepares
us for the next song, Take Three,
with guitar mixes that tune
in between channels. The
preceding interlude smoothly
blends into the ultimate metal
song of this album. I
admit, this track isn't the
easiest to listen to for the
mainstream audience with the
rough cries of electric guitars
pounding into your head, but
the sounds of electric zippers,
acute static, and inconstant
drum beats make it somewhat
interesting. And you must
confess to his vocal abilities,
as he whispers grimly, "어둠속에
내가 묻혀 결국 후회속에 죽기
위함이었나" (In the end,
to die in my own regret, buried
in the darkness). In the
chorus he yells through hollow
static, sounding as if he's
trapped inside a dark dungeon,
"난 어둠속에 깨어있어 죽기를
바라는 것처럼 너를 일으켜 -
-" (I'm awaking in the
darkness/ you rise yourself,
as if you want to die). Maybe
it is true that Taiji is Satanic,
yes? Wrong. He personally
declared to his listeners that
Take Three sends a deep message
that touches on the sensitive
and terrifying issue of suicide.
This track may sound demonic
due to its dark and gloomy lyrics,
but his point is that self-destruction
does not solve the pain of living,
but causes even more torture
in the eternal abyss of death.
Once again, he brings
forth an important message that
society shudders to acknowledge.
Let's
move into the next realm of
Take Four, an upbeat melody
with Taiji's own twist of rock,
similar to his past songs like
"시대유감" or Shidaeyugam
('Regret the Times'). This
one opens with a funky guitar
strum and electro bass that
slides by before you know it.
He sings in various styles
from playful alternative tones
to fast-paced chirping. His
lyrics are directed toward pathetic
souls who are enrapped in superficiality
and can never find true happiness
as he sings, "착하면 좋겠어
타버리는 종이처럼" (I
hope you become good, just like
a burnt piece of paper). Taiji
produces ironic lyrics to cast
light on the blind youth of
our materalistc society.
This
grateful artist dedicates Take
Five to his loyal fans. Taiji
expresses his adoration with
a friendly, inspirational melody,
jamming with shaky electro and
acoustic guitar chords. He
lets his fans know that they
are and will always be his strength
as he sings, "맘속 가득한
진실을 느끼고 더욱 강하게 네안에서
난 믿음을 찾았어 난 꿈의 소중함을
알았어" (My mind is filled
with joy, stronger and stronger/
I left to look for trust in
myself, but soon the only thing
I find is your significance),
expressing his renewed strength
found in those who are sincere
and faithful. With that
in mind, Take Six introduces
us to another positive message
about his own determination.
The tune starts unexpectedly
as the volume is way under,
then finally a punky rhythm
sneaks out behind a sharp beep.
The guitar and drum slamming
of this final song resembles
the hype that Green Day generates.
Taiji is filled with encouragement
as he sings,"이제 난 또
다시 일어서는거야" declaring
his will to rise again. But
don't turn off that stereo after
this melody ends, because a
couple of minutes later, you'll
find a hidden track that is
waiting to be discovered. Many
fans claim that the two minutes
of silence that occurs before
the bonus track represent the
two years of Seo Taiji's dissappearance
from the music scene.
Seo
Taiji has crossed several boundaries
that lie in modern Korean music.
In the past, he brought
us all kinds of genres such
as rap, hip hop, reggae, jazz,
classical, techno, punk, dance,
alternative, and especially
rock. But this time, he
does what he does best with
a sizzle of digital mixes and
unidentifiable effects. Yeah,
maybe this album is "just
rock" but he creates it
with an undying passion and
skill that other Korean so called
"musicians" can barely
attain. The way he varies
the sound of his charismatic
voice, the way he manipulates
the guitar, and the way he composes
this entire project alone proves
that he is one of the dedicated
few who reinforce rock/alternative
as a legitimate genre of music
in Korea with complex lyrics
that bring forth serious issues
that desperately need to be
faced by the world today. And
with a humble heart, he certainly
does not forget the bond that
he has with his fans. Taiji
has finally found peace by escaping
the barred cage of confinement. Now
he soars with wings of glory
and freedom as the breeze of
adulation guides him along his
journey to an unknown destination. |
