Siwa is a very talented singer/songwriter. As a member of adultchild Rainbow99 has been responsible for some of my favorite music, and his electronica solo work is enjoyable as well. When first learning of their joint project, SiwaRainbow, naturally I was quite excited. Last week the duo returned with a new album, 우리 모두는 혼자, and the lovely Siwa was so kind as to answer a few questions for Indieful ROK:

Could you please start by introducing yourselves and share the story of how you came to work together?
Rainbow99 used to be a guitarist of 어른아이 [adultchild] as a regular member. Nowadays he plays guitar with Kafka, Hi, Mr. Memory, 옥상달빛 [Dalmoon] and 시와 [Siwa]. He released a self-produced album, love is no tomorrow in 2010. Also, he is the album producer of 투명 [Two Myung] and SiwaRainbow. As a producer he has many plans involving various kinds of music this year.

Siwa is a singer and song writer for some kind of folk music. She released the EP 시와, which included the song 길상사에서, in 2007, and a full-length album, 소요 (wandering), in 2010. Her name first became known through the song 화양연화 on the 3rd Live Club Bbang compilation.

Rainbow99 loved my song 길상사에서. Then we’ve became closer to each other. He plays the guitar for my performances. Eventually we came to make our music as SiwaRainbow.

How would you like to describe the music of SiwaRainbow?
He draws a drawing by musical sounds, I sing a song to talk to you.
We want to make electronic music with a temperature, the same degree as body heat. At first he makes sounds to decide the whole atmosphere of music. (After he had made 10 tracks, he gave them to me to listen to all) And then I write melodies and lyrics. We don’t talk about sounds and lyrics that much, as I try to absorb the music itself, not a word. While he creates a space, I sing a song to talk you in that space.

Especially, this work helped me to go through depressed days. So I think this music has all process of my overcoming. In that sense, I thank him, Rainbow99, more.

To the title 우리 모두는 혼자 seems like the oppposite of We Are All Together. How do they relate to each other?
‘우리 모두는 혼자’ means ‘we are all alone’. Rainbow99 thought of ‘we are all together’ and ‘we are all alone’ already from when SiwaRainbow vol.1 was made. He says he likes ‘contrast’ originally.

More specifically, I think We are all together is closer to Rainbow99, We are all alone is closer to me and my outlook on life.

What more can you tell us about 우리 모두는 혼자?
Some people say ‘우리 모두는 혼자 we are all alone’ is too lonely. But we think it is not only solitude. We could say, if you feel lonely it seems like there’s only you in the whole world. But not just you or me – ‘we’ are ‘all’ alone. So it’s alright. We can feel at ease.

When I feel pain, if I know it’s not just me feeling pain – if someone at my side is feeling a similar pain – I will feel relieved. It’s a good thing. And because we are all alone, we can lean on each other. Because we are all alone, we can make ‘us’. It’s a really good thing.

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I have yet to hear the new album, but found their first to be quite intriguing – as refresh_daemon put it “the sum total result is actually quite strong and is truly collaborative”. Both albums from SiwaRainbow have been published by MagicStrawberry Sound, the label of Oldfish (whose own sound isn’t that far off from what the two behind SiwaRainbow have accomplished together).

To get an idea of what 우르 무두는 혼자 sounds like, listen to Look At Me (고개를 들어봐) and check out the album teaser.