Interview w/ Parannoul
By Nick Caceres
Published 12/20/2024
Back in the summer of 2024, underground South Korean artist, Parannoul, would release his fourth solo full-length, “Sky Hundred.” The album serves as a reflection of sudden fame in the unfolding South Korean DIY scene and music obsessed internet circles gained from albums previously created by someone who was strictly a no expectation artist, even going as far as labeling themselves as a bona fide “loser.” Yet this shy creative became one of the flagship Korean artists among the Shoegaze and Indie Rock corners that past contemporaries like Jowall and 공중도둑 (Mid-Air Thief) had previously carved out.
The cryptic low-profile activities of early Parannoul projects were upheld out of the circumstance of being produced in a cramped college dorm on GarageBand and, of course, intentionally staying anonymous for as long as possible. To this day no one knows their actual name and honestly why is that information necessary? Just shut up and listen to their music, you hypothetical overbearing fan!
By upholding the withstanding tradition of East Asian artists pulling genres primarily associated with the west, molding them into an edgier entity, Parannoul pulls from Shoegaze, a genre that has plagued the underground spaces in North America and Europe for decades, offering a more raw and honest lyrical narrative with messier yet more mirrored mixing to said lyrical content. This originality helped create some of the most authentic sound of this current generation of indie music, not just in South Korea but the world in general, touching countless melancholic souls.
The following interview took place over email throughout late November to December, where we discussed past and present releases, retirement from performing live and Parannoul’s recent escapades in Tokyo, Japan.
Photo of a street in Seoul, South Korea.
Photo courtesy of Parannoul
Nick: Hey Parannoul, how’ve you been lately?
Parannoul: I've been good. Playing The Binding of Isaac and Ruina: Fairy Tale of the Forgotten Ruins recently.
Nick: To kick things off I remember you recommending a ton of your personal favorite albums on that initial Sonemic Interview back in 2021. I believe that’s where I first heard about 神聖かまってちゃん [Shinsei Kamattechan] and, I believe, 전자양 [Electron Sheep]. Are there any recent artists or specific releases that you’ve discovered or gravitated towards within the last year that you’d like to share?
Parannoul: It's not that obscure but I discovered Arthur Russell this year and he has become my favorite composer since then. His attitude and passion for music, and meaningless genre distinction is something I admire. I listened to Clammbon for a long time, and their piano-based melodic music influenced me heavily. I remember listening to the albums “Dramatic” and “Imagination” while preparing for CSAT.
Nick: I also saw that you went to Japan and picked up a ton of cool Japanese CDs. I’m aware that some were from Tower Records in Shibuya but I’m curious to know where else in Japan did you hunt for CDs?
Parannoul: I don't know if I remember correctly but I went to Disk Union too and some second-hand music stores and bought a Climb the Mind CD.
Nick: Since this was your first time in the country, how was Japan?
Parannoul: I visited Shimokitazawa to see a gig and the sound was really fantastic. Perfomance was amazing too, I recall the lineup was WITH US, 鉄風東京, TIDAL CLUB, せだい and その感激と記録. It was sensational.
Nick: Are there any cool spots in South Korea where you can pull some awesome CDs, vinyl or Cassettes? Where and what do you tend to look for when shopping for physical music?
Parannoul: I'm not a deep collector so when I come to Seoul sometimes I visit Gimbab Records to see if there's anything I like.
Nick: Enough of talking about other people’s music, how has the reception been for this new album of yours?
Parannoul: I've been enjoying it being controversial about noises. It's ok to say drum is shit because if I were to go safe then I wouldn't make the album sound boiling and not recording real drum sources. But many people see this album as Shoegaze while I made it thinking of melodic Noise Rock, so I'm sure someone will feel their ear pretty abused thinking of my previous materials or MBV or chiptune emo thing. To me it's my best album so far and I understand people complaining about this album being downgraded compared to the previous album because all my albums have totally opposite directions. It's not easy to please everyone when leaning harder somewhere.
Nick: Compared to last year’s “After the Magic,” this album fell back into the noisier and distortion-heavy elements of your music. I’m aware that this album serves as a reflection of the popularity you received from that breakthrough album in 2021 which also had a similar approach style-wise to this new album. Therefore, is this stylistic approach meant to indicate that this album is an official follow-up to “To See the Next Part of The Dream?”
Parannoul: No, that album's follow-up was “After the Magic,” and ATM's follow-up is this album. This is not intended but I feel like second album+third album became fourth album and I'm not saying that combining is better. My musical understanding has stacked so it is natural to absorb previous experiments.
Nick: By now it’s common knowledge regarding the where and why of the album cover for “To See the Next Part of The Dream.” However, what’s the story behind this album art for “Sky Hundred?”
Parannoul: Somewhere in Seoul the kids were having fun. I liked the sunset and distortion, and the warmth felt nostalgic. When was the last time I enjoyed a playground?
Parannoul - "Sky Hundred" (2024) album cover
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Nick: I recently heard the news that you’ve made the decision to retire from performing live for a variety of reasons that are well explained on your blog as well as certain tracks off of “Sky Hundred.” To those who aren’t aware of this that need a debrief, what were your feelings towards your live sets, especially the most recent and final one at Pentaport Rock Festival back in August?
Parannoul: It was great. Only regret is not checking my Taepyeongso because it was fine during the rehearsal but didn't work during the performance. Turned out that the entrance was blocked by something. Every time I did a live performance, I felt a sense of disconnect because I didn't know how to do anything on stage, but the scale kept getting bigger which seemed strange to me. Next time I will be better.
Nick: You’ve mentioned maybe having another go at live performances in the distant future. In the meantime, what types of IRL events are you considering still doing that don’t require you actually performing but the fans would still appreciate?
Parannoul: Nothing...Listening party maybe, but that's when LP5 comes.
[파란노을 (Parannoul)]. (2024, September 5). Last Live at Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival 2024/08/03 [Video].
Nick: I saw on the EBSspace interview segment that you, BrokenTeeth, Gyn and Eeajik are hoping to work and collaborate more together in the future. You’ve mentioned on your blog that you have aspirations of creating a “Pavement-style guitar pop band.” Is there a correlation between the desire to collaborate more with your peers and this idea?
Parannoul: Maybe? I changed my mind recently and it's a secret to everybody.
Nick: I guess while we’re on topic, what was it like being featured on EBSpace? Was that a publication that you were familiar with before blowing up in the South Korean DIY scene?
Parannoul: It was a great experience. EBS Space is a historic Korean music broadcast since 2004, many admirable Korean indie artists have already performed there and I'm proud to be a part of it.
[스페이스 공감]. (2024, August 28). [파란노을(Parannoul) 인터뷰 모음.ZIP] 파란노을의 방송 첫 출연! 그 어디에서도 들을 수 없었던 진솔한 음악 이야기 [Video].
Nick: In regards to the collaboration album with Fax Gang, that was quite the contrast from what I’m used to with your music. You mentioned that this year marks the final year of your early shoegaze period. Does this album represent that creative shift and should we expect more rhythmically dynamic indietronica or glitch material in the near future?
Parannoul: The answer is a spoiler, are you sure you want to listen to the next direction? Because I'm not ready...But the things you mentioned are definitely on the road.
Nick: How did you discover the Philippine hip-hop group, Fax Gang? How and why did you guys end up working together?
Parannoul: I knew them since the 2021 album, “Aethernet.” That album was on the front page of RYM iirc. They first asked me to feature on their 2nd album “Dataprism” and it worked well, so we decided to collaborate more. It was a precious experiment.
Nick: Apparently you guys never met in-person when working on this album between 2023 and 2024. What were some struggles and drawbacks with making an album entirely over asynchronous text chat? That shit sounds chaotic!
Parannoul: Because we live around the world, someone had to get up at dawn. Besides that I think there weren't that many struggles...Thankfully they seemed to like my beats and used them, but there are at least 5~6 songs we haven't used because I rejected them.
Fax Gang & Parannoul - "Scattersun" (2024) album cover
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Nick: Before Parannoul, you had this little project called “끝이별” (Laststar) which was significantly more prolific than your more recent stuff. Pretty sure you dropped 13 albums along with a debut EP between 2017 to 2019. What factors were at play in your life that allowed you to pump out this volume of albums?
Parannoul: At that time I was a high school student. I didn't want to study all day long, so I chose something that looked fun. There were a few people who supported me, so I worked even harder. I think I was able to make it fun because the only quest the world gave me was studying. After I became an adult and there was no one to offer me the way, I always felt lost.
Nick: Did these albums serve as a journal of sorts for that period in your life? If so, in what way?
Parannoul: Sure, my main goal was to release one album per month but it was physically impossible for me so I reduced it to 10... My albums always contain the thoughts I had at that time. It may be difficult for the listener to judge, but if I explain it to everyone someday, everyone will understand.
Nick: What are some of your favorites out of this early album run of yours and why exactly?
Parannoul: To me it's “Strange Days” or “Tomorrow's They And I.” I just think they have better songs on average.
끝이별 [laststar] - "Strange Days" (2018) album cover
Image Courtesy of Rate Your Music
끝이별 [laststar] - "Tomorrow's They And I" (2018) album cover
Image Courtesy of Rate Your Music
Nick: Did the debut for the Parannoul alias serve as a sort-of transition between Laststar and…Well…Parannoul?
Parannoul: Yes it's literally what you said. The reason I did Post-Rock was because I like the genre, but also because I didn't want to use my voice. This album is the first time I put my voice in and it turned out pretty well so I changed my music from Post-Rock to Shoegaze, which has a lot of voices.
Nick: Why did you decide to take the Post-rock/Math rock fusion instrumental approach on this album? How do you think the inclusion of vocals would affect the album if you had the chance to make that change?
Parannoul: Because nobody tried to fusion Post-Rock & Math Rock & Shoegaze besides my favorite band, Monocism. What I always try to create is a combination of things I like that I can't hear in existing music. Including vocals...would have to fix the whole song structure but sometimes less is better.
Nick: Was this album completely solo or did you get some help putting it together. If it wasn’t solo, who helped you and in what ways?
Parannoul: Yes it was solo. No one helped me except the musicians who inspired me.
Parannoul - "Let's Walk on the Path of a Blue Cat" (2020) album cover
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Nick: In regards to that sophomore album that gave you that first wave of recognition, I had the opportunity to chat with Matt Cruz from Longinus Recordings back in October about how you guys first met. I’m curious to know your perspective on that first encounter. What did you think of this random dude from Michigan emailing you out of the blue regarding putting your album on physical?
Parannoul: I thought it was funny and somewhat courageous that he contacted me from abroad. Also, since we were both students, his ambitions might have been conveyed well to me. I had a lot of offers at the time, I turned them down because I felt a bit overwhelmed by the interests. After a while embracing the world, I think I was able to accept it because the time has passed.
Nick: What is CSAT and how does it connect to “To See The Next part of The Dream?”
Parannoul: It's the biggest test in South Korea that everyone takes before High School graduation. You can choose the university you want based on your grades on the test, and if you don't like it, you have to spend another year to take the test for the next year. I spent a total of two years there and it sucked. This was the main reason I made “TSTNPOTD.”
Parannoul - "To See The Next Part of the Dream" (2021) album cover
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
Nick: Since this guy was one of the first people to review or even discuss the album on the internet, what did you think of CultureDTCTV’s review for “To See The Next Part of The Dream?”
Parannoul: I saw it at that time and I was somewhat embarrassed... I always wanted to get noticed overseas because existing Korean indie acts are not as well known overseas as Japanese indie acts, but I didn't expect that so many people would empathize with my DIY sound. I think what made me famous was the first Rateyourmusic review that went on the front page and I still thank everyone who has listened and reviewed my music since my first.
[CultureDTCTV]. (2021, March 18). 파란노을 (Parannoul) "To See The Next Part Of The Dream" - Album Review [Video].
Nick: Returning to the topic of live performance, tell me about “After The Night.” If I’m not wrong, this live album pulls a lot of inspiration from Fishamns, specifically, “98.12.28 男達の別れ” (98.12.28 Otokotachi no wakare). In what ways did you prepare for and perform that was a direct inspiration of that group?
Parannoul: I love that album but not every song was inspired by that, only the last song was. Originally, we were going to end the concert with the original version of “Into the Endless Night" and 3-4 other songs as an encore, but I wanted to do a live jam session, so I tried to extend the song a bit, and then Fishmans suddenly came to mind. The middle noise section was inspired by Boris' “Rock Dream” which also had a 35 minute long song. That “reminiscence” part where people say their wishes was inspired by “いつかどこかで” by Kuchiroro. As you may not have known, the theme of the song is about going to purgatory and returning to the real world. The reason is unknown...When I was preparing for this performance, I wasn't conscious of making it into a live album, so I just did a long song as an encore as a surprise gift, but the response was better than I expected, so I just released it as an album.
Nick: I assume this is a stage of time that this performance and many of your other performances have after the performance itself but what's it like meeting fans in-person, if that's something you do?
Parannoul: Sometimes when I go to see my friends perform or when artists come to Korea, some of the audience recognizes me. But they probably know my complicated personality, so they end up quietly supporting me or asking for my autograph. Actually, I feel a little better when someone recognizes me, as long as it doesn't draw everyone's attention.
Parannoul - "After the Night (Live)" (2023) album cover
Image Courtesy of Bandcamp
[[파란노을 (Parannoul)]. (2023, March 25). 파란노을 (Parannoul) - After the Night (Live at KT&G Sangsangmadang 2023/01/14) [Video].
Nick: In regards to the musicians you choose to surround yourself with and unintentionally becoming a face to the Korean DIY scene, what type of legacy are you wanting to leave behind if any at all?
Parannoul: Well I don't know... your question is what I ask myself in “Sky Hundred” but the thought I've had since a long time ago is that I hope that in the future, young artists will look at me and think, “If this loser can make music, then I can too” and that I will be the motivation for hundreds of people to start making music.
Nick: Any final remarks to leave us on?
Parannoul: Have a nice life!