Touring South Korea in a funk band from the age of 12, writing his first film score at 15 and releasing his debut album at 20, multi-instrumentalist Jung Jaeil had a prodigious early career. He is now 40 and it is only in recent years that his compositions have exploded worldwide, thanks to his intricate soundtracks for Bong Joon-ho’s Oscar-winning film Parasite and Netflix hit Squid Game.
After channelling a baroque grandiosity for Parasite’s domestic drama and incorporating traditional folk instruments to anchor the dread of Squid Game, his latest project sees Jung take a new direction. Returning to a solo format, Listen, his debut release on the Decca label, strips back his ear for musical storytelling to its compositional foundations, comprising seven tracks of piano and minimal strings.
“To do what people don’t expect is what makes your music special,” Jung has said and the pared-down tracks on Listen showcase poignant melody at its least adorned. Opener The River draws on the plaintive lines of composer Ryuichi Sakamoto’s solo piano works, while Ocean Meets the Land and Incendies take on a darker palette with emphatic, sparse phrasing. Esthesia builds into gorgeous harmonic swells, as if scoring the turbulent climax of a film. Throughout, with great simplicity, Jung conjures deeply expressive, imaginative worlds, the mark of a major talent.
Listen is out now on Decca Records
