The essence of Shin Ji-hyun's sound in the 80's Shin Ji-hyun and the Three Travelers

In 1983, Shin Ji-hyun formed a new band 'Three Wayfarers' to do the music he wanted completely without any burden or entanglement. Let's look at the rock music scene of this period. In the mid-1970s, after the suppression of popular music by the Yushin regime, which was referred to as the 'cannabis wave', the topography of rock music in Korea was greatly changed. Korean rock, which had sprouted like a bamboo shoot in the past and showed all kinds of potential, was uprooted before it even bloomed properly, and the fertile soil that had grown accustomed to new music was drying up like a forest after a fire swept through it. What flourished on top of that was trot-based adult music, dance music influenced by disco, which was popular around the world at the time, and ballads that contained the lyricism of folk, which had already been pushed out of the mainstream. The space for rock music was getting narrower and narrower. Several bands that appeared through music contests hosted by broadcasting
companies, such as College Song Festival, Riverside Song Festival, and Beach Song Festival, Sanwoolim that transformed into soft rock, and Peregrine Falcon that played a popular sound were at the center of the Korean rock scene in the early 80s. In 1980, Shin Ji-hyun, who was lifted after a long ban and returned to the music world after 5 years, released an album containing a rich brass sound with the band Music Power, which was organized on an unprecedented scale. Following The Men, Kim Jeong-mi, and Yeopjeon-deul, recorded in a new arrangement gained popularity, but Music Power's music could not satisfy him. Around the same time, he was working on a new project with bassist Kim Jae-chan and drummer Lee Seung-han. Right after the release of Music Power's 1st album, a three-member group like Yeopjeons, but not a different band name, 'Shin Joong-hyun' [Wait for you/Even if you leave] was released under the name, but the album did not attract attention and the project was short-lived. He
replaced all members except keyboardist Kim Jeong-hee and released Music Power's second album in 1982. Since then, new vocalist Kim Dong-hwan, who gained popularity with , gave a powerful shouting fit for a straighter guitar in this album. Overall, the album has a faster, more dynamic beat and clean energy, but it was far from popular regardless of the solid perfection of some songs. It's because the times were like that. The era of rock, in which Shin Ji-hyun's creativity, talent, and various experiments could shine, has already passed, and the heyday of new rock, namely heavy metal and band music, has yet to come. Around that time, Shin Ji-hyun starts another new band. At the time, he was feeling frustrated with the splendidly changed music scene. The 'music you can dance' that the market wanted and the 'popular music' that record labels demanded were far from his will. 'Heavy metal that shows off power and muscles' was the same. The real music that Shin Ji-hyun had long thought and
believed was 'Korean rock'. Although he did not use these expressions himself, he had the idea that rock, American music, must become ours in this land. So he decides to go on a musical journey to materialize it with his like-minded friends. Accompanying him were bassist Lee Nam, a colleague from Yeopjeons days, and new drummer Seo Il-gu, and the name of the band was decided as 'Three Travelers'. They loaded musical instruments into vans and wandered aimlessly through mountains and fields. He traveled around the sea, played and wrote songs. After wandering around for four months, he prepares a new album with songs that reflect his vivid emotions, feelings, and mood at that time. When recording, instead of Seo Il-gu, who left the band after the trip, drummer Moon Young-bae, who went through the black butterfly, who was with The Men, participated and played under the name of 'Dongpo'. As expected, the album release was not easy. Not only was it out of fashion, but there was no place to
welcome his music, which could not find elements that the public would like. In the end, the album was produced through King Records and was able to be released in Seorabul Code, but he had to endure the complete ignorance of the public. Come to think of it, this album was pretty unfortunate. Even if the indifference and commercial failure of the time were unavoidable, even after the next generation recognized the value of Shin's music, this album was an exception even though many of the works he played, sang, composed, and produced were reevaluated and subject to discussion. This too has to do with the times. In general, Shin Ji-hyun's status has been established as a pioneer of Korean rock, as a composer of numerous hit songs, and as a producer who discovered and produced outstanding newcomers. His unrivaled role was able to shine even more against the background of the 60s and 70s, when Korea was like the virgin land of rock. Traces of the 80s, when rock has already evolved and become
familiar to the public, are not easy to attract attention unless they change the flow or play a pioneering role. Therefore, I wonder if the music of the three travelers would have received much more attention and would have been evaluated differently if it had come out about 5 years earlier or later. In other words, the domestic rock market in 1983 when this album appeared was too vague. (Shin Dae-cheol, the eldest son of Shin Ji-hyeon, who was a high school student, formed the group Sinawi that year and played a big role in popularizing heavy metal a few years later.) Of course, it can't be simply a problem of the times. The music of the three travelers is definitely a great hard rock album, but the music contained here is not an innovative sound that has never been before, and it does not go beyond the colorful musical horizons that he has cultivated himself. It is regrettable to say that it is an excellent composition that stimulates universal sensibility. Nevertheless, this album is not
a work to be taken lightly in Shin Ji-hyun's discography. It is also clear why this is an album that should not be excluded from discourse and must be paid attention to. This is because it fully expresses the core elements of Shin Ji-hyun's sound in the 80s. The music of the three travelers is close to the image of the 'ideal rock' he dreamed of, which he naturally headed toward through three albums for about three years after lifting the ban. The final form of rock intended by Shin Ji-hyun was ours, a folk rock music that melted the colors of Korea, where I was born and grew up. He included it in various parts, from the name to the composition, arrangement, and song style of Yeopjeon, which he formed 10 years ago. This, too, cannot be said to be perfect, but the high-purity hard rock of the three travelers is exquisitely combined with our beats and melodies. A guitar riff that has been heavily distorted overflows with a traditional rhythm often heard in traditional Korean music or a melody
in the tone of Taryeong. The natural and excellent harmony of elements that do not seem to correspond leads to a unique excitement and evokes an unprecedented inspiration. ) Of course, it is not simply a matter of the times. The music of the three travelers is definitely a great hard rock album, but the music contained here is not an innovative sound that has never been before, and it does not go beyond the colorful musical horizons that he has cultivated himself. It is regrettable to say that it is an excellent composition that stimulates universal sensibility. Nevertheless, this album is not a work to be taken lightly in Shin Ji-hyun's discography. It is also clear why this is an album that should not be excluded from discourse and must be paid attention to. This is because it fully expresses the core elements of Shin Ji-hyun's sound in the 80s. The music of the three travelers is close to the image of the 'ideal rock' he dreamed of, which he naturally headed toward through three albums
for about three years after lifting the ban. The final form of rock that Shin Ji-hyun intended was ours, a folk rock music that melted the colors of Korea, where I was born and grew up. He included it in various parts from the name to the composition, arrangement, and song style of Yeopjeon, which he formed 10 years ago. This, too, cannot be said to be perfect, but the high-purity hard rock of the three travelers is exquisitely combined with our beats and melodies. A guitar riff that has been heavily distorted overflows with a traditional rhythm often heard in traditional Korean music or a melody in the tone of Taryeong. The natural and excellent harmony of elements that do not seem to correspond leads to a unique excitement and evokes an unprecedented inspiration. ) Of course, it is not simply a matter of the times. The music of the three travelers is definitely a great hard rock album, but the music contained here is not an innovative sound that has never been before, and it does not go
beyond the colorful musical horizons that he has cultivated himself. It is regrettable to say that it is an excellent composition that stimulates universal sensibility. Nevertheless, this album is not a work to be taken lightly in Shin Ji-hyun's discography. It is also clear why this is an album that should not be excluded from discourse and must be paid attention to. This is because it fully expresses the core elements of Shin Ji-hyun's sound in the 80s. The music of the three travelers is close to the image of the 'ideal rock' he dreamed of, which he naturally headed toward through three albums for about three years after lifting the ban. The final form of rock intended by Shin Ji-hyun was ours, a folk rock music that melted the colors of Korea, where I was born and grew up. He included it in various parts, from the name to the composition, arrangement, and song style of Yeopjeon, which he formed 10 years ago. This, too, cannot be said to be perfect, but the high-purity hard rock of the
three travelers is exquisitely combined with our beats and melodies. A guitar riff that has been heavily distorted overflows with a traditional rhythm often heard in traditional Korean music or a melody in the tone of Taryeong. The natural and excellent harmony of elements that do not seem to correspond leads to a unique excitement and evokes an unprecedented inspiration. It is regrettable to say that it is an excellent composition that stimulates universal sensibility. Nevertheless, this album is not a work to be taken lightly in Shin Ji-hyun's discography. It is also clear why this is an album that should not be excluded from discourse and must be paid attention to. This is because it fully expresses the core elements of Shin Ji-hyun's sound in the 80s. The music of the three travelers is close to the image of the 'ideal rock' he dreamed of, which he naturally headed toward through three albums for about three years after lifting the ban. The final form of rock that Shin Ji-hyun intended
was ours, a folk rock music that melted the colors of Korea, where I was born and grew up. He included it in various parts from the name to the composition, arrangement, and song style of Yeopjeon, which he formed 10 years ago. This, too, cannot be said to be perfect, but the high-purity hard rock of the three travelers is exquisitely combined with our beats and melodies. A guitar riff that has been heavily distorted overflows with a traditional rhythm often heard in traditional Korean music or a melody in the tone of Taryeong. The natural and excellent harmony of elements that do not seem to correspond leads to a unique excitement and evokes an unprecedented inspiration. It is regrettable to say that it is an excellent composition that stimulates universal sensibility. Nevertheless, this album is not a work to be taken lightly in Shin Ji-hyun's discography. It is also clear why this is an album that should not be excluded from discourse and must be paid attention to. This is because it
fully expresses the core elements of Shin Ji-hyun's sound in the 80s. The music of the three travelers is close to the image of the 'ideal rock' he dreamed of, which he naturally headed toward through three albums for about three years after lifting the ban. The final form of rock that Shin Ji-hyun intended was ours, a folk rock music that melted the colors of Korea, where I was born and grew up. He included it in various parts from the name to the composition, arrangement, and song style of Yeopjeon, which he formed 10 years ago. This, too, cannot be said to be perfect, but the high-purity hard rock of the three travelers is exquisitely combined with our beats and melodies. A guitar riff that has been heavily distorted overflows with a traditional rhythm often heard in traditional Korean music or a melody in the tone of Taryeong. The natural and excellent harmony of elements that do not seem to correspond leads to a unique excitement and evokes an unprecedented inspiration. It is close to
the appearance of 'ideal rock'. The final form of rock intended by Shin Ji-hyun was ours, a folk rock music that melted the colors of Korea, where I was born and grew up. He included it in various parts, from the name to the composition, arrangement, and song style of Yeopjeon, which he formed 10 years ago. This, too, cannot be said to be perfect, but the high-purity hard rock of the three travelers is exquisitely combined with our beats and melodies. A guitar riff that has been heavily distorted overflows with a traditional rhythm often heard in traditional Korean music or a melody in the tone of Taryeong. The natural and excellent harmony of elements that do not seem to correspond leads to a unique excitement and evokes an unprecedented inspiration. It is close to the appearance of 'ideal rock'. The final form of rock intended by Shin Ji-hyun was ours, a folk rock music that melted the colors of Korea, where I was born and grew up. He included it in various parts, from the name to the
composition, arrangement, and song style of Yeopjeon, which he formed 10 years ago. This, too, cannot be said to be perfect, but the high-purity hard rock of the three travelers is exquisitely combined with our beats and melodies. A guitar riff that has been heavily distorted overflows with a traditional rhythm often heard in traditional Korean music or a melody in the tone of Taryeong. The natural and excellent harmony of elements that do not seem to correspond leads to a unique excitement and evokes an unprecedented inspiration.

Shin Ji-hyun used guitar effects more actively than ever in this album. Fuzzton's harsh guitar sound definitely adds weight to the song with a different texture than before, and in some songs, the hard rock/heavy metal sound of the time is reminiscent of Rainbow's Richie Blackmore, D.O's Vivian Campbell, and Black Sabbath's Tony Iommi. is close to Unlike before, it is also unique that it is composed entirely of new songs. As mentioned earlier, these are the songs that were completed while traveling for four months. The material, theme, and content of the song are the sea, rivers, streams, and roads, etc., the nature encountered on the trip, and one's own image and determination reflected there. Of course, at the center of it is a strong will to do the music you really want and a stronger affection for the music itself than anyone else. For example, Rainbow's famous song

Written by Kyungjin Kim

* Original reel master tape used
* KJH Sound LAB, 2023 New digital remastering
* LP Shade Black Disc
* OBI included, LP miniature specification
* Liner Note included