Lanalogue on Charting Their Own Path

I talked to K-rock band Lanalogue about standing out from the crowd, forming a musical identity, and considerations to make when entering the music industry. 

Photo credit: Instagram

What word or phrase best describes Lanalogue’s music and image? How do you finish the sentence “Lanalogue is ___”?
Lanalogue is a star.
 
What is the meaning of your band name? 
Lanalogue stands for “last analogue.” Every member was born in the nineties, so we experienced the end of the “Analogue Age” and the start of the “Digital Age.”

What does each individual member add to the group?
Lyoon: Everything started with me and Kyunue's meeting. If that accident didn’t happen, then Lanalogue wouldn’t have started at all. 

Kyunue: Lyoon's great voice made me join the group.

Tatsuo: Lyoon and Kyunue came to Osaka from Korea. First we met online, but when they came to meet me, that led me to trust them.

Meteor: I heard the demo version of “Seoul,” and I thought I can be successful if I joined this band. 

The band has been together for over a year and a half now. How has being in a band changed since the early days? 
First of all, the most different thing from back in the day is [having] fans, Ladio. Second, nothing [seemed to happen for them], even when we tried hard, but nowadays, good results seem to be slowly happening. We are ready to be busier [with promotional activities]!
 
Which Lanalogue music video is your favorite to watch and/or was your favorite to film?
Lyoon: “Wind Rider”

Kyunue: “DRIRI”

Tatsuo: “ERNY”

Meteor: “Seoul!”
 
How do you come up with concepts for your music videos? Do ideas tend to come to you as you work on songs, or do video ideas tend to come after a song is completed?
Every [music video] concept is produced by Lyoon, the leader of this band. Every member can write songs, but Lyoon [tends to write them]. Usually he thinks of the image at the same time he is writing the songs. Seo is a director of photography for Lanalogue, so most good angles are shot by him. 
 
Do you consider the roles you play in your music videos to be distinct from who you are in daily life? In other words, is there a difference between your onscreen and offscreen personas?
Sometimes yes, but sometimes it's totally different. But even when the role is totally different, we make every concept by ourselves, so that must mean [we become] the [people] who we really wanted to be… So the roles reflect the inward consciousness of Lanalogue. But when we play [a] really bad [role], it is just for the concept [of] the song and the [music video]. In that case, it is not that inward consciousness. :)
 
What is the most rewarding moment of your career so far? 
[Getting] Instagram DMs from fans who are waiting for Lanalogue's new songs all the time. And when they say congratulations. And sometimes fans paint us and upload it on Instagram. That [is] the most rewarding too, because painting requires so much time and effort. We are trying to save as many of those paintings as we can.
 
What are your short-term and long-term goals for the band?
The short-term goal is to release a mini-album this summer, and the long-term goal is to become global stars and legends. Sometimes, especially in Korea, [bands who play their own instruments] are treated as merely session musicians, and K-pop idol bands set their session bands behind them when they sing and dance. So sometimes, it sounds impossible that this mere Korean rock band can become a global star. 

How can a Korean rock band be a global star these days? Why should fans buy a concert ticket [to see bands who play their own instruments]? The fans can enjoy the good looks and dancing at [a traditional K-pop] idol concert. Also, their companies buy the best composers’ songs and [book] the best instrument players for their concerts. Those session players can play even better than rock bands. 

K-pop idols seem to be able to provide better looks, songs, and sounds... It is the reason why band music is dying, especially in Korea. So maybe becoming stars with band music seems hard to do... However, Lanalogue has the reasons why fans [should] buy their concert tickets and their albums. Lanalogue members produce all their own songs, videos, album jackets... every member… has their own unique attraction. Lanalogue [are going to be] superstars!
  
Do any of you hope to work on solo music soon, in addition to music for the band?
Tatsuo plans to release his solo album in the future, but after Lanalogue becomes superstars.
 
What advice do you have for people who want to pursue music as a career?
Bet your life! And you must qualify yourself all the time from the point-of-view of metacognition: “Will people really buy my music? Why?”

Really unexpected obstacles can [appear], like financial problems and arguments with members. [So] you must compose your own team with the best members, because you are never [going to] make it alone. 

[And] if you can’t write songs, but you want to be a singer, then you must find songwriters first.
 
What is the biggest reason why 17 Carat K-Pop fans should go check out Lanalogue’s music, especially the newest single?
Lanalogue composes songs, lyrics, arrangements, music videos, album jackets... everything. And the quality is not bad!
 
And if you join Ladio, the Lanalogue fandom, then you can enjoy Instagram Lives often. You will be able to contact Lanalogue very easily and [feel] so close! Lanalogue cares for their fans as sincerely as a girlfriend or bestie.
 
And Lanalogue is growing continuously! You can enjoy watching the process of how this band becomes a global star from the beginning to the end!
 
Support Lanalogue and watch how we make our dreams come true!

Follow Lanalogue on Instagram here, watch their music videos here, and listen to more of their music here!

Answers have been edited and condensed for clarity.