“I was overjoyed that the song I wrote “Love Toxic” was chosen as the title. Love is an essential while living through life. Anyone lives with love in their hearts. So, rather than a unilateral story, I wanted to create a song that the fans would be able to understand and easily follow along to, and I think that feeling came through.” (Sooyoon)
This does not mean that member Sooyoon is the only one to take the lead. The album is also full of songs that James and Moon have written as well. Thanks to that, the whole of this album is comprised of songs the Royal Pirates members composed themselves. Expressing various types of love, they’ve reached out to the “fans’ heart.”
“This is not the first time this has happened. On the previous mini album, with the exception of one song, all of the rest were composed by the members. We put a lot of aspects into the album this time, ranging from a fresh new love, interest in the other sex, the sadness that grips you after an end, affections you feel as you live through life, and etc.” (Moon)
Of course, the stories about love on the album this time have to come from the experiences of the Royal Pirates members. By putting their sincere thoughts and feelings into the songs, they formed an empathetic connection with the public. In other words, it’s a match between heart and heart.
“I’m particularly attached to the song “Haru.” I made it about the fluttering you feel at the very start of loving someone. When I composed it I had a girlfriend, and when I let her hear it she really liked
it. It’s been a while since we broke up, so it’s become a really distant memory.” (Moon)
After debut they’ve not only been on stage, but have also got together with fans through various other medias. That is to say, they’ve been composing songs in their spare time while appearing in variety programs. James has appeared on SBS “Laws of the Jungle”, and Moon in SBS “Laws of the City”, while Sooyoon has been the host on an ArirangTV radio program.
“At first I received the suggestion to appear on “Laws of the City.” Later on, I was switched with Moon. Rather than being sad about it I felt more comfortable. There was a problem with my stuttered Korean, as well. The most important thing is, that if the casting were to have carried on as originally planned, I wouldn’t have been able to show on “Laws of the Jungle.” (laugh)” (James)
James says that “he learned a lot about Korean culture” through his experience on “Laws of the Jungle.” Also, he could not properly adapt due to the language barrier. Although he was met with the harsh environment of being on a trip to a far off place, with individual missions along with his colleagues for the sake of “entertainment”, he was able to make strong attachments.
“I grew confident. If there are any requests for me to be on variety in the future, I will no longer be afraid. The “Laws of the Jungle” Indian Ocean edition that I appeared on has already ceased, but the Byungman tribe colleagues still have a good relationship. I even spoke with Park Hwisoon-hyung not too long ago.” (James)
Of course, appearing on variety shows may be a burden to these artists who are walking the road of music. While devoting themselves to writing songs, the thing that becomes lacking the most is time. So, as a reporter won’t to do, I asked them this question (if variety shows were a burden/took from their time) and the answer, interestingly enough, came back as, “Never, no.”
“Truthfully, at first everything was a little confusing. The members didn’t want to be entertainers, we wanted to be a band. However, if our name is not known, performing as a band becomes an impossibility. Later on I felt that through variety shows we were able to let our faces be known, and let the fans know of our gratefulness to them. Now? I want to do more. (laugh)” (Sooyoon)
The Royal Pirates plan on continuing promotions with their title song “Love Toxic.” They still haven’t been able to shake off completely the tag of “rookie.” Even with all the time they’ve spent on music and broadcasts, they still have a long way to go. I became curious about their hopes and dreams for the future.
“We want to show the public more of the personable sides of the members. Of course, we plan on letting them listen to more of our music, as well. The gap between our first mini album and this one was eight months but in the future we want to make that gap smaller with more performances (in between). This is the time when we should be working hard to run.” (Moon)
After having answered all the questions we prepared, one could really feel the Royal Pirates’ charming honesty and abundant energy. This is the band who tries for a human-on-human relationship with the public, in other words, a “lively” three-man rock band. We anticipate the music they’ll spread in the future.
Reporter Jang Yongjun, zelra@asiae.co.kr
