“While we were preparing for the album and in the songwriting process James got hurt. At that time we wondered, “Well what do we do now?” We felt that starting activities would be extremely difficult and we became frustrated. Thankfully James pulled through. Even though he’s had to switch from playing bass to the synthesizer, I’m glad we’re still able to promote together.” (Moon Kim)
Accidents can happen at the most inopportune of times. Royal Pirates’ James was the victim of one such unfortunate happenstance upon entering a Chinese restaurant. The entry door- which up to that point was perfectly normal- came falling down towards James, and the heavy iron frame and glass crashed to the floor. Shattered glass and frame left severe injuries on James’ left shoulder and wrist.
“I underwent a more than eight hour surgery on my wrist. The staff insisted I use a prosthetic but I refused. If I relented to their suggestion, I would no longer be able to make music. Of course, the healing process was extremely difficult. I needed blood transfusions and relied on pain-killers. Despite still having pain and post-traumatic stress, I will never regret my decision.” (James Lee)
The bass guitar is an instrument that you need two hands to play, but with his injury James became unable to do so. With only his passion for music driving him all these years, James found himself at a loss. Despite falling into despair, through a fortuitous opportunity James was able to switch from the bass to a new instrument entirely.
“Since I could no longer hold my guitar, I wondered how I could continue making music. So I went from the bass to the synthesizer. I received recommendations from SOLID’s Jae Chong, and Moon and EXSY gave me advice as well. At the time of the accident my members came to see me and the first thing they said was, “Well, now you can play the keyboard.” Little did we know it would actually turn out that way. (laugh)” (James Lee)
The bass is an instrument that makes up part of the backbone of band music. The presence or absence of its sound is important enough to determine whether a song is complete or not. James must have felt the gravity of having to put down his bass, but his members were right there with him.
“I’m sure James himself had the hardest time, but it was also a confusing and difficult time for Moon and I as well. But even so, while James was healing we still continued to work on songs. We kept considering how we would able to make our music without his bass. We found that we could replace the bass with the synthesizer, and that gave us a lot of strength. The results of this process can be seen in our most recent album.” (ExSY)
Royal Pirates’ most recent album ‘3.3’ is the reflection of their experiences. It’s composed of a differentiated sound that hasn’t been heard anywhere else in the world and it’s a fresh surprise. As such, listeners of the album gave a hot response. The reviews of fans who love and support Royal Pirates’ music increases even to this day.
“Of course we like ‘3.3’ but musically speking it’s not an album that we were one hundred percent satisfied with. I think of it as the best that we could put down in that moment. As far as the results go, we gained a lot of strength out of the fact that the fans listened and liked the album. We usually communicate with the fans through SNS often. The number of members in the fancafe are also rising, and I really want to actively write on the boards. Truthfully after the accident I was worried about telling people through our SNS. From now on we have to bring them good news.” (Moon Kim)
In all honestly, Royal Pirates’ genre of music is not mainstream. It’s not only that they do not have a set genre but it’s also difficult to break out into a market that is focused on idol groups. Due to this there have been many times the Royal Pirates have been troubled over making the music they want and making mainstream music to appease the public with.
“Personally I think we could be fully mainstream. I want to make music that the public can like- music that is refined and unique- yet still trendy. When I’m writing songs, I like it the best when others like the music much more than I do. But finding that combination is extremely difficult. Not only does what’s popular in music change at a moment’s notice, but listener’s musical preferences are always varied and changing as well.” (EXSY)
The Royal Pirates are not only active musically, but also active in many other fields as well. Most recently Moon Kim appeared as a reporter for KBS Entertainment Weekly. James shone on the runway as a model at Fashion Week which opened at DDP. RP has also appeared in popular weekly drama SBS Tantara, cameoing as former band members of the main lead.
“It was really fascinating to see ourselves and hear our voices coming out in a drama on tv. It’s a small occurance and our appearance was short but the fact that we were able to participate in itself was an honor. Just recording a small live scene in a drama took more than three hours. (laugh) People who already know us will say, “RP came out” but I think there are many who still don’t know us. If there is a good opportunity, I’d like to try and accept all casting calls.” (James Lee)
The Royal Pirates are currently working on their next album for their second comeback of the year. The thought of letting their fans hear all of the songs they have been compiling up to now is already giving them strength. All the difficulties and adversity the Royal Pirates have overcome will surely become prosperity for them in the future.
“Truthfully we still cannot say that we have “overcome adversity.” It’s still difficult, and every day is a fight. We think the new album will be out in the summer or in September, at the latest. Some time when it’s still hot. We want to become an explosive (prolific) band, like an active volcano. We’ll let you listen to all the songs we’ve been storing up until now, one by one.”
“It was really fascinating to see ourselves and hear our voices coming out in a drama on tv. It’s a small occurance and our appearance was short but the fact that we were able to participate in itself was an honor. Just recording a small live scene in a drama took more than three hours. (laugh) People who already know us will say, “RP came out” but I think there are many who still don’t know us. If there is a good opportunity, I’d like to try and accept all casting calls.” (James Lee)
The Royal Pirates are currently working on their next album for their second comeback of the year. The thought of letting their fans hear all of the songs they have been compiling up to now is already giving them strength. All the difficulties and adversity the Royal Pirates have overcome will surely become prosperity for them in the future.
“Truthfully we still cannot say that we have “overcome adversity.” It’s still difficult, and every day is a fight. We think the new album will be out in the summer or in September, at the latest. Some time when it’s still hot. We want to become an explosive (prolific) band, like an active volcano. We’ll let you listen to all the songs we’ve been storing up until now, one by one.”
Ⓒ Donga Reporter Jang Kyungguk
English translations by setsailroyalpirates (heymeowmao)
Please credit~~ ^^
