Artists work years and years to try and achieve success and recognition in the music industry.
So it may seem strange to some that the members of Gang Of Youths savoured the relative obscurity they found when they relocated to the UK – a move which, ironically, was designed to help them further their careers with its close proximity to Europe and the USA.For Jung Kim, the opportunity to go off the radar was an opportunity to recharge, and for much of 2019 he says the band enjoyed the anonymity of it all.
"I think in a way we kind of savoured it, because I mean ultimately the goal – the whole reason why we're there – is to get the music to as many ears as possible," he says.
"But, having said that, there's also something kind of special about having that anonymity to actually be able to ground, and having that space to actually take the time to grow as a person and find the inspiration to write the next record."
That record, 'Angel In Realtime', was released last year, after being written, recorded and produced in bulk by the band members themselves during London's COVID-19 lockdowns.
"I think it was kind of exciting, because for me particularly, having an interest in production and engineering and undertaking the process of making the majority of it on our own in our own space, that was kind of exciting for me to get a bit nerdy and techie with the whole process," Kim says.
"We realised very quickly this is the only way Gang Of Youths can possibly make a record. . . Even though in so many situations I felt like we had no idea what the hell we were doing – because we'd never done anything like it before – it was important that we felt empowered: We didn't know what we were doing and I think it was important we leaned into that, because otherwise I think it wouldn't have come out the way that it did."
Gang Of Youths returned to Australia in 2022 as part of their 'Angel In Realtime' world tour, which was a humbling experience for Jung.
"To be able to sell out Rod Laver Arena and then be able to organise that second one; and just seeing that want and the urgency to see bands or to see live music again, and to kind of be at the forefront of that and trying to revitalise live music in Australia again after [the pandemic] – it definitely means a lot," he says.
"I suppose we probably go through the motions with it, but it's not something that we take too lightly; it's a huge privilege and honour to be able to be a part of it."
For Kim, the tour afforded an opportunity to see his parents for the first time in over three years. In fact, every date had enough friends and family present that it felt like a home-town show.
"As people and as humans we kind of had like unfinished business, in a way, in terms of what it's like to be a human being – which is to be able to connect and to be with loved ones, and to share experiences," Jung says.
"Not just through the songs that we created, but through deeper conversations that could be had around what those songs are actually about with our closest ones in person. . . Having that exchange and connection, to be able to physically be in the presence of those you have missed for so long at every city throughout the whole tour, and to be able to share that with the beautiful team we had the entire time – not to sound cheesy, but it was very fulfilling."
The tour was grandiose, with multiple guest artists including Gretta Ray, Simon Matāfai from Auckland City Church Choir, and percussionists Louis Giannamore and Jimmy Lartner.
"It was a big operation with a lot of moving parts onstage. . . It kind of makes it fun, though, because I like to look around on stage and see what everyone's doing anyways – it's a lot easier I feel to look at the band than it is to look at the crowd," Kim laughs.
"Because that's a lot of people staring at you compared to, like, five or six people that you're familiar with."
The band has already returned to Australia once this year for a series of festivals, and will return again next month for several dates including Bluesfest, Vintage Vibes and Lazy Mountain Festival, and while the touring party will definitely be scaled back, the show will contain the same energy as last year's shows.
"It won't involve every piece of what we brought last year, but it will still be very much the big, grand show that we try to bring every time – just because there's less people doesn't mean that it's going to be less grand or whatever, you know?" Kim laughs.
"Unfortunately with logistics of touring and all that, it's kind of impossible to bring so many people every time, but having said that, we'll still do our best to maintain the epicness, I suppose."
The band is looking forward to Vintage Vibes in South Australia because the boutique event promises a very special reunion between Gang Of Youths and some of their oldest friends.
"Tash [Sultana] is a really good buddy of ours, and between us, Tash and Middle Kids we did a festival together right after the massive forest fires that occurred in 2020 – we put on a charity show and we were all on the bill, and through that we're all great buds," Kim says.
"It's kind of like this very insular sort of thing with Australian music, because a lot of us all grew up together – so Dave's childhood friend is actually playing in King Gizz and through that we kind of know those guys as well."
Kim originally started out as Gang Of Youths' keyboardist – an instrument he could play after growing up learning classical piano at his parents' behest – but guitar was always his first love, and discovering he would be moving to guitar following the departure of Joji Malani in 2019, Jung found himself indulging in some vintage vibes of his own.
"Probably my latest major indulgence was I bought a vintage guitar in my home town of Chicago," he says. "There's a music store there called Chicago Music Exchange and it's basically like a mecca for guitar players – especially if you're into vintage guitars.
"When I discovered I was going to be playing a bit more guitar in the band I kind of just said, 'F... it, I'm going to treat myself!' So I had a day off in Chicago and I bought myself a vintage '65 [Fender] Jaguar. . . and I haven't bought another guitar since."
Although he feels more exposed playing guitar rather than being behind a keyboard, Kim says it's frontman Le'aupepe's vulnerability and his incredible stage presence that allows the band to perform intimate theatre shows as well as headline arenas and command festival main stages.
"I think at every show he kind of comes and tries to look at everyone in the eye and no matter if you're in the back or the front he's always very conscious of trying to meet you wherever you are – and I think in a way that makes the room feel a bit smaller," Jung laughs.
"I think ultimately if you have a frontman like Dave who is going out of his way to make sure that he sees everyone in that room, or everyone in that festival ground, and make sure they're seen and noticed and he's trying to communicate every ounce of what he's trying to say in a song to everyone in that place. . . I mean, that's how it kind of works."
It was Le'aupepe's penchant for leaving it all on the stage, Kim says, that led to the band postponing their final show in Aotearoa.
"I mean – full transparency – I think it's kind of endemic in the industry now, if you're an artist you kind of suffer from some form of mental illness or some sort of struggle to grapple with the emotions that stir on the inside and how that effects just your mental health; and also how that informs the physical body as well," he explains.
"Like so many artists that had to pull out or cancel shows this past year, for probably similar reasons, we just needed a break to recharge and to come back with the best possible attitude and energy and state to be able to deliver what I feel like people deserve."
It has become a societal expectation, Kim says, to push through the feeling of waking up and not wanting to do what you feel like you have to do, for artists and for those with regular day jobs.
"Especially if you're a touring musician, I think people are kind of opening up a lot more about the fact that it is a f...ing gruelling job, and that it's okay to admit that, 'you know what? I actually don't want to wake up and do this sometimes'," he says.
"I think it's a really important step towards valuing the fact that even as successful artists we're just human beings with limits and a capacity, and I think that's really what it was for us – just checking in with ourselves first and foremost, and looking after one another and saying 'hey, alright, we need a break, this is not working'."
Jung says there's no way, in that state, it would be right to go onstage and even try to feign something that's not there. "And to be honest, coming back to Auckland [last month] – it was the very last official Gangs show of this whole campaign, and hands down that's the best show," he says.
"The anticipation and the warmth – and just the camaraderie as well – across everyone in that room, was just. . . I don't think I've ever experienced anything like it in the 12 years of playing music in Gang Of Youths."
Gang Of Youths 2023 Tour Dates
Sat 2 Apr - Vintage Vibes (Adelaide)Fri 7 Apr - Bluesfest (Byron Bay)
Sat 8 Apr - Lazy Mountain Festival (South Coast)
