The original definition of the music term “indie band” is where members of a band produce their own music independent from any large corporation or commercial record label. These bands are typically associated with the underground music scene and are often typecast as having a specific, non-mainstream sound: Hence the use of the term “indie” to describe a certain genre or style of music, even when the band itself is not truly an indie band.

“We are a rock band,” members of the popular local band Broccoli, you too? said in unison.

The four artists of Broccoli, you too? ― Dukwon on vocals and bass, Jandi on keyboard, Hyanggi on the guitar and Ryuji on drums ― first started their young music careers as amateur musicians playing to small crowds in the clubs of Hongdae. 

And now nearly a decade later, the band has become one of the most recognized names in underground Korean music. However, despite the band’s tremendous success, Broccoli, you too? is still widely considered indie band, mainly because of the unconventional style and sound of its music.

“Indie band is seen as a genre a lot of times,” said Jandi.

“In Korea especially, a lot of people would listen to a song and say that it sounds very indie,” Hyanggi explained.

“In the beginning, we truly were an indie band, self-producing and distributing our own music,” said Dukwon. However, the band has moved up from performing in small clubs and limited crowds to having its albums distributed by major record labels, with the group headlining some of the country’s largest rock festivals.

“I think the idea of us as an indie band is a bit of a misconception,” Dukwon explained humbly. “I hope that one day we can move away from that title and have people see us as just a band.”

The four members have managed to make a name for themselves while still floating below the radar and maintaining their status that Hyanggi referred to as, “A familiar name with not so familiar faces.” And although they do not consider themselves an indie band, they also do not consider themselves or their music at all mainstream. Even after the group starting seeing success and gaining a large fan base, the band mates have in no way walked the path of conformity or compromise since making their debut in 2005 playing on small stages in various local clubs.

The musicians of Broccoli, you too? place a strong emphasis and importance on originality and individuality. In regards to the band’s name, the intention from the get-go was to come up with a totally random and unique name for the group.

“At first we just took a bunch of meaningless words and wrote them down as they came to us,” said Dukwon. “We ended up with a few hundred random words and we saw ‘broccoli you too’ together and thought it was funny.”

Another aspect that sets this band apart from other groups ― aside from its eccentricity ― is that all of its songs are composed, written and arranged by the members themselves. Broccoli, you too? released its latest album “1/10” last December.

“The album is basically about the loneliness of living in the city,” he said. “The album differs from our other albums in that it has a sadder tone to it, like the feeling you would have really late at night or while waiting for the last train.”

“In terms of our lyrics, we talk a lot about questions or concerns that many people are conflicting with in their everyday lives,” said Dukwon. “We don’t try to give solutions to these questions. We just enjoying singing about questions that don’t necessarily have any answers.”

Broccoli, you too? has released two full studio albums and the members revealed that they have something special and new in store for their next album.

“I think it’s going to be a while before we release our third full album,” Dukwon said. “We are going to make some changes. We really want to do something different and show a new side of the band.”

Broccoli, you too? will be one of the headlining acts in this year’s annual Greenplugged rock music festival in Seoul, which will be held this Friday and Saturday at the Nanji Hangang Park.

By Julie Jackson (juliejackson@heraldcorp.com)