Going Home Release Note
It was an unplanned recording.
While visiting Korea in this past summer, I had an opportunity to play my originals at a beautiful recording studio with a gorgeous Steinway piano. I loved the sound and experience so much that I decided to record my new originals with my summer band members.
Due to schedule conflicts, the only time we could record was few hours before our last club concert allowing us two takes for each song without rehearsal. So, on one of the hottest days of the summer, we recorded with AC turned off to keep the tune for the piano. It was so hot that we had to come out of the recording hall between takes to cool off and regain our conscious to be able to play again. While recording under the time constraints was a bit challenging – especially when you have to play at club right afterwards, we all somehow very much enjoyed the chaotic moment and decided to go with the second takes – as it seemed to capture our excitements very well.
Albums prepared slowly over a long period of time are great, but personally, I prefer the albums that capture the moments without any decoration like a candid snapshot. Each time I listened to the recording during mixing and mastering, the recollection of every key stroke and interaction with band member was so vivid to me. While it may be far away from being perfect, I hope the listeners also find those natural moments attractive.
Brief explanation of each song:
Atticus is a character from the novel “To Kill a Mockingbird.” I was deeply moved by his beliefs and noble character, and it inspired me to write this song. Personally, I like the piano performance in this song the most.
Everyday is Groundhog Day was inspired by Groundhog Day movie. I highly recommend everyone watching this movie. The life, at times, seems repeating itself everyday even though we wish to be better prepared for better days. To express this, this song was developed with the motif of three chords.
The Grass Withers and the Flowers Fall was inspired by Seong-Jin Cho's Handel project. A slow tempo in 3/4 time, a diatonic melody with lots of movement, and a bit of a bluesy feel. The finished song was beautiful and had a sad feeling, so I titled it The Grass Withers and the Flowers Fade.
The last song, Going Home was composed shortly before leaving New Jersey for visiting Korea last summer expressing the excitement and longing. Many have come forward after our session at the club and commented that they liked this song the most as they were able to relate their personal lives. Please turn up the volume to enjoy the guitar solo by Junbeom Kim.
The songs I wrote in front of my piano in New Jersey travelled with me and evolved each time we performed. To musicians, playing someone’s original takes more efforts than playing the standards that they are used to. I take this opportunity to thank Junbeon, SangOuk and Minwoo who adopted my songs as if they were their own; Soop Lee – owner engineer of the beautiful studio with the best piano for recording and mixing; Yousun – graphic designer for amazing album art.
