Shin Joong Hyun & Yup Juns Shin Joong Hyun & Yup Juns

Spring of 1974 witnessed the birth of psychedelic power trio Shin Joong Hyun & Yup Juns. “In Korean, yupjun literally means a brass coin,” Shin explains. “However, during that time it was used as slang to describe a sense of unpleasantness and dislike. Since I was so unpleasant and dissatisfied [in my career], I told myself, ‘Ok, fine, I am just a yupjun,’ and named my band with a rebellious attitude.” He began by renting a room at Seoul’s Tower Hotel to serve as a creative base for the group. After six months of preparation, the group cut ten powerful songs filled with monster grooves, fuzz guitar, emotive singing, and top-notch songwriting. The album was pressed up as a broadcast-only promotional vinyl to test radio response; the response wasn’t what anyone expected, and the record label refused to release the album. The band re-recorded the album, but it is this, the original ten track version, that has become legendary—with good reason. An astounding record, and one that we are privileged to bring to the rest of the world for the first time.