The Two Koreas - Sessions

Genre indie-rock Publisher Unfamiliar Records External Links Unfamiliar Records Website The Two Koreas MySpace

I must admit, I was a bit apprehensive as I hit “play" on my mp3 player to open The Two Koreas' new EP, Sessions. Growing up in the 80s during the punk revolution, I use bands I liked (or disliked) as a median when comparing the neo-punk style of the 90s and of the new millennium. As the first track of the new EP, "Withering Heights," started, I instantly changed my decade old prejudice against the new punk scene, and found myself positively enjoying what I was hearing. I listened further, scrolling through the songs to get a better feel of what The Two Koreas is all about. I could only come up with one word: amazing.

Rocking their way out of Toronto, Canada, The Two Koreas is comprised of Stuart Berman (vocals), Kieran Grant (guitar), Jason Anderson (organ/synth), David Gee(drums), and Ian Worang (bass). Formed in ‘03 as more of a side job than anything else, The Two Koreas quickly proved to the local Toronto indie scene that they were serious. And the fans ate it up.

Stuart Berman’s voice is reminiscent of eighties punk icon Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedy's and Rob Smith of The Cure; a quirky, unique style of vocal discipline full of nasal congestion. But the guitar riffs and percussion has one pointing to a band of a newer age, the Smoking Popes. It gets rather tedious trying to compare one band to the next, but in the indie world, where most bands have the same type of power chord playing repeatedly over 120 beats per minute, it is a rarity to find a fresh sound, such as The Two Koreas has brought to the music scene. There are actual guitar solos, and the final song of the EP, "A Neu Ing/No More Drinking With Estonians," proves that guitarist Kieran Grant can shred on his axe as well as any pop-punk band that is getting radio play today. What is a rarity in the indie scene, and modern music in general, is Jason Anderson’s choice of instruments, the farfisa. Remember that old, bulky, five hundred pound, double keyboarded organ that your Aunt Peg had taking up half of the living room? Well, that is Jason’s choice of instrument, playing it sublimely under guitar and bass riffs, giving the songs that little extra filling to make them that much more enjoyable.

Sessions was released in June 2008, and is available on vinyl (records, for those of you youngsters born after 1990) and digital download. A definite must have for the indie connoisseur, Sessions by The Two Koreas is a unique, clever, and talented work of genius by five very talented men from the Great White North.