The Swedish singer Lasse Lindh has been living in a small apartment in Sinchon since October last year. The 36-year-old singer-songwriter started performing at the age of 15, and released his first solo album "Bra" in 1998, writing songs and producing albums on his own without an agency.
His 2002 album in English "You Wake Up at Sea Tac" drew huge praise from the Swedish media and "The Stuff" from the album was named the best song of the year. But why does a well-known indie musician from Sweden settle down in Korea?
Lasse Lindh Lasse Lindh
Lindh's relationship with Korea dates back to four years ago: his songs "The Stuff" and "C'mon Through" were used in the MBC TV series
"Soul Mate". Because his songs were listed in original soundtracks in the United States, Hong Kong and Taiwan, he was not really interested in Korea at first. But his good looks, husky voice and sorrowful tunes created a sizeable fan base in Korea, and in October 2006, album producer Chili Music Korea suggested he make appearances here.
Lindh gave concerts and appeared on TV and radio programs. "The audience remained quietly seated. At first, I thought they weren't enjoying the concert, but then I realized that they were intensely concentrating on my music. It was a new experience", he recalls.
Until October last year, Lindh had four concerts in Korea. Since then, he decided to live here, and looked for small studio apartments in Sinchon online. "It was a time when I needed a wind of change for my music", he says. "I got a lot of stimulation and inspiration in Seoul. Because I wasn't in relationship, I was able to leave Sweden quite easily". It was the bustling streets in Seoul that captivated Lindh. "Sweden has clean water and magnificent forests. But the population is a mere 9 million, a lot less than Korea. Seoul has a lot of energy".
Lindh plans to express the feelings he got from Seoul in the next album. He returned to Sweden on Saturday last week to take part in a pop festival, and will come back to Korea in mid-July. He gives an open-air concert at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts on July 22. "I think my Swedish fans are a bit annoyed that I'm not coming home", he says.
