Interview with 99ANGER

As one of the most active live bands in the Korean punk scene, 99ANGER have built up a solid fan base during their almost 12 years as a band. Now, with the re-release of their 2004 EP The Anger and the Sadness fast approaching and the prospect of a new full-length album this year, vocalist and guitarist Hyun Lee took the time to answer a few questions about the band's history and future.

Can you introduce yourselves to our readers?

Hyun Lee: I am Hyun Lee. I sing and play guitar in 99ANGER.

Let's start with the band's beginnings. How did the band originally meet and form?

Hyun Lee: The band was formed when I came back from the States in 1997. I had a friend who played guitar in a school band in Korea. Even before I arrived in Jeju, Korea, I called him up to find members for our band. He didn't at the time but somehow we found all the members and played our first show in late 1997 in Sorquipo City, Jeju Island.

What dreams did you have when you formed the band? Have you achieved these yet?

Hyun Lee: Well, like millions of other bands we tried to be Nirvana. When I was in high school, Nirvana was huge and really changed my life. I didn't know anything about the music business, I just wanted to be like Kurt Cobain. I have not achieved my goals yet but maybe I will in the next 10 years.

Why did you decide to call yourselves 99ANGER?

Hyun Lee: I had complaints about everything when I was younger. Or maybe I still do, but I express them differently. I still don't think it was anything to complain about. I got so angry whenever I encountered a situation like that so there could be 99 complaints. These complaints became anger. Anger is a non-countable noun but I put 99 in front of it! Isn't that awesome?! (laughs)

What does music mean to you? Is there any particular message that you are trying to portray through your music?

Hyun Lee: Music is like food for my soul. It's not something that I choose to do or not do. If you're hungry for food, you eat food. If you're hungry for music, you eat music.

Through music I express myself. Music is like my language. There are things that you can express through words and other things that you can express through music.

How would you describe your music to someone who has never heard you before?

Hyun Lee: When people who know music ask me this question I say, "We play some hardcore, some punk and some emo music". When people who know nothing about music ask me this question I say, "Well, it's loud music. Do you know Crying Nut or No Brain? It's like that but not exactly like that".

What are your favorite and least favorite aspects of being in a band?

Hyun Lee: I cannot list all favorite and least favorite aspects of being in a band, but I do want to tell you this. When you overcome one of your least favorite aspects of being in a band, you gain one of your favorite aspects.

The band is from Jeju Island (island to the south of mainland South Korea). Is there much of a punk scene there or do you mainly have to work in Seoul? Did this ever cause problems for you as a band?

Hyun Lee: Kids do play music there and everything. You know how everything is in Seoul, right? That causes problems for every city except Seoul I think.

The band spent some time in Canada. What are the main differences between the Korean and Canadian punk scenes? What kind of influence do you think this time abroad had on your music?

Hyun Lee: There are a lot of differences between the Canadian and Korean punk scenes, but I don't want to discuss it. Personally, the thing that bothered me was that I was a foreigner there. That made me really uncomfortable for some reason. It wasn't natural so I just wanted to play at home. I think I learned this while I was in Vancouver, about "being natural".

Why did you decide to go to Canada specifically?

Hyun Lee: When our drummer left in 2002, I didn't know what to do. I was miserable. We needed to make a new start. I hated Seoul, the city, the people, the bands... So, I said, "Let's go to Vancouver" and she [the bassist] said, "That's awesome" so we decided to go.

Your musical influences contain many western bands. Are you influenced by any Korean artists in particular?

Hyun Lee: Oh yeah, Yoo Jae Ha, Kim Kwang Suk, Sanulim...

You recorded a cover of Bad Religion's Do What You Want last year. What made you want to cover this song? Do you want to do any other covers in the future?

Hyun Lee: We have been playing this song for about 10 years really. Like any other punk fan, Bad Religion is one of my favorite bands. One day I listened to the live version and I was like, "Wow! This is awesome! Let's do this!" Recently we've been thinking about covering Rise Against.

You recently recorded a new video for your song The Answer. How did you find the process of making the video and would you like to make more videos in the future?

Hyun Lee: That was part of a school project for some students. We were lucky. I like music videos. Some music videos make the music better but some make it worse.

Next month you will re-release your 2004 EP The Anger and The Sadness. Why did you decide to re-release this at this point in your career? What can we expect from the new bonus tracks?

Hyun Lee: I always wanted to re-release the EP but couldn't for various reasons. Now the label is re-releasing the EP for us and I'm happy about that. Hmm, what can you expect from the bonus tracks? They are not that different from the other tracks on the EP.

You've announced plans to start work on a new full-length album after 9 years. Why was there such a big gap between albums?

Hyun Lee: Yeah, you can blame me for that. Next question!

What can we expect from this album?

Hyun Lee: Well, there was a huge gap between the first album and the new full-length album. I have changed now and things have changed a lot. I regret that there has been nothing between those two, no transition. Sorry, old fans!

What do you think about the closure of Skunk Label?

Hyun Lee: There must be a reason, Skunk Label is like home to us. Well, I don't know what to say at this point. I don't really feel anything.

Do you have any plans to play overseas in the future?

Hyun Lee: Not yet. Hopefully soon.

Finally, do you have a message for the KoME readers?

Hyun Lee: Hello KoME readers, happy 2009! Use it, don't abuse it. The question is how you use it...

Special thanks to 99ANGER for making this interview possible.