On his new four-track EP “Underwater,” singer Jung Joon-il is a man on a mission: to create an album that is destined to be unpopular. It’s not for lack of quality. “Underwater” is one of the most interesting records to be released of late. 

On the lead track “Plastic” featuring rapper BewhY Jung’s pained, at times husky voice pairs excellently with BewhY’s staccato-style rap. Between Jung’s singing, BewhY’s unusual use of syncopation in his rap, and the sudden changes in tempo and melody at the bridge, the song is entertaining, if a bit demanding on the listener’s attention. In contrast, “Ian” is almost laboriously monotonous, and with “We Will Meet Again” everything goes a bit pastel and soft as Jung croons “everything will be all right,” as much to the undoubtedly disturbed listener as to himself.

The dark and lamenting lyrics, especially on the first track “Useless,” are as close as Korean lyrics have ever gotten to emo fraught with angst without being corny.

Jung only made a thousand copies of this record, knowing that this album -- not quite pop, and a far cry from the sensitive-guy-with-a-guitar indie trope -- was never going to be mainstream. He was wrong. “Plastic” is sitting comfortably in the top 50 on the first day of its release. Perhaps he underestimated his audience; perhaps the public had been waiting for exactly his type of well-crafted, brooding melancholy.

By Won Ho-jung (hjwon@heraldcorp.com)