UPDATED with newly rediscovered exclusive interview – now available as PodCast!

 

If you weren’t there, you missed the Super Psychedelic Rock N Roll Party

Wednesday night, Galaxy Express, award-winning Korean indie band, rocked El Cajon Boulevard for an enthusiastic crowd of fans, old and new alike. With fist-pumping, foot-stomping energy, this rock-till-you-drop band kept the mood electric from start to finish.

Masters of rhythmic dynamics, their music keeps you moving and the tempo constantly surprises you. And the vocals are excellent: guitarist Park JongHyun and bassist Lee JuHyun harmonize and sing counterpoint to one another throughout giving lie to the idea that indie punk is just a lot of screaming. Wildly screaming guitar licks are another story: JongHyun has total control over the six-string beast he calls ‘guitar’. Mad, complex bass lines scream from JuHyun’s side of the stage, too. Kim HeeKwon’s powerful drumming keeps everything on track and that’s no mean feat – Galaxy Express’ musical style takes great joy in mixing up the rythyms – keeping the listener/participant on their toes, literally and figuratively. Don’t underestimate their stage presence, either – these guys know how to entertain. Jonghyun’s humorous, easy-going banter with the crowd and their lively stage style are attention-grabbing and entertaining.

Galaxy Express has managed a North American tour in the Spring for the last three years. San Diego was one of the final stops on their Wild Live Tour 2013. The tour began in San Francisco on March 7^th and has taken the energetic young men to Texas for SXSW, Arkansas, Tennessee, Missouri, Indiana, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and finally, back to California for back to back wind ups in San Diego, Fresno, Oakland and Los Angeles. They have taken the Korean indie band scene by storm, winning Album of the Year at the 2009 Korean Music Awards with “Noise On Fire” and Musician of the Year in 2011.

Traveling by bus and camping in KOA campgrounds, the men have had a grueling schedule with little time for sightseeing. They were, however, able to stop off and see Hoover Dam on the way over from Phoenix: “It was really big!” and then see the Grand Canyon. “It was unlike anything I’ve ever seen. It was so huge! Impressive!”

Their last U.S. performance this year will be at the Dim Mak Studio in L.A. tomorrow night (Saturday April 6) for die-hard San Diego fans wanting to make to trek. Those unable to make it there may have to suffice with buying the albums on iTunes. Turn the volume up and get ready for some head-banging, soul-pounding sound. Just make sure your headphones and speakers are up to the task.