Shin In Ryu is an indie rock band that gives off a twinkling charm on Korea’s Indie scene.
Since their debut in 2018, they’ve garnered attention for their pastel-toned musical style and lyrics that soothe sadness like calm waves, which touch on universal experiences and emotions. To date, they have released two EPs and a number of singles, and in April of this year, they released their anticipated first full album: “Shining Strike.” Shin In Ryu has truly carved out a space for themselves as one of the representative bands of the scene.
They will be performing their first live concert in Japan at Tower Records Shibuya on October 12th. Ahead of this memorable first visit to Japan, we conducted a mail interview with them. We will discuss what led to the band’s formation, their diverse range of influences, the production behind “Shining Strike,” the pre-release listening event held in Japan, and their enthusiasm for their Japanese performance. We took a closer look at their unique worldview and story:
Interview & Text：AKARI（BUZZY ROOTS）
Support：mahocast
English Translation：SOFIA
—— Nice to meet you! First, could you introduce yourselves to everyone in Japan who may be hearing of Shin In Ryu for the first time?
Shin In Ryu: Hello. We are Shin In Ryu, the band that will capture all your shining moments. We are a trio made up of Shin On-yu (Vocals), Ha Hyung-eon (Keys), and Moon Jeong-hwan (Bass). Each member brings their own individual personalities and color, and together we paint the stage with our stories. While based in rock, we blend pop sensibilities and warm melodies to create a kind of music that connects with everyone, sometimes as dazzling as a scene from an animation, sometimes as pure and warm as a fairytale.
—— Apparently, all of you came from the same university’s practical music department. What were your original ambitions when you were enrolled? Also, how did you come to form the band?
Shin On-yu: I realized that most of the music I liked was “band” music, and I began to think, “I want to make a band too.” I studied music at University, and met friends and colleagues who liked my music through listening and sharing in classes. After that, we continued to play sessions together, and it felt only natural to make a band.
Moon Jeong-hwan: I majored in electric bass at university because I liked band music. I wanted to become an “in-demand” bassist, haha. However, when I entered university, I realized many of my friends were much better than I was. I felt anxious and stuck.
Then I met On-yu Nuna (a Korean term used by men to address older women they are close with). When I heard her music, I thought, “It would be amazing if I could be in a band with her.” So as we grew closer, I tried to figure out if she wanted to start one. At the same time, I naturally got to know Hyung-eon. Little by little, we kept growing closer, and the band formed after that.
Ha Hyung-eon: I originally played classical piano up until junior high. But I realized I liked writing and composing pieces even more than performing. So, of course, I enrolled in a music composition program at university. I met the current members of Shin In Ryu in my same class. I remember that On-yu Unnie (a Korean term used by women to address older women they are close with) and I used to share our favorite movies when we lived together on the same floor of our dorm. From there, we began sharing our music and eventually created the band.
—— What artists have you been influenced by up until now? I’d be grateful if you could tell us, either domestic or international.
On-yu: I particularly like rock, jazz, funk, and synthpop genres. For Korean artists, I like 3rd Line Butterfly, Clazziquai, Loveholic, and Tearliner, among others. As for international artists, I often listen to Radiohead, Nirvana, Lana Del Rey, and Cory Wong.
For Japanese artists, I often listen to Sakanaction, Lamp, KIRINJI, Fishmans, Masayoshi Takanaka, and CASIOPEA; they’ve had a real influence on me. I listen to so many other artists that it’s hard to name all my influences. I think I take from a wide range of music.
Jeong-hwan: I always want to create a kind of groove that sticks to you in the drums and bass of Shin In Ryu’s music, so I love listening to the rhythm and tone in Jamiroquai and KIRINJI’s music.
Hyung-eon: I really love Stevie Wonder, David Foster, and KIRINJI. I enjoy arranging each of our songs to bring out the charm of the instruments, such as keyboard, guitar, and bass, like they do. The original idea for “Kaibutsu” was based on synth bass—I like playing bass lines on keyboard, so it came together organically.
—— How does your songwriting process usually go? On-yu is responsible for writing the lyrics, right? The melodies seem to be woven around the lyrics, which are so vivid and beautiful. So I’m curious to see how the songs take shape from scratch and how the details are developed.
Shin In Ryu: We strive to create songs in various styles for each album. While On-yu is primarily in charge of the song lyrics and melody, we all collaborate on the ideas for the song’s chord progression and genre. For songs that make heavy use of MIDI, Hyung-eon takes the lead, while Jeong-hwan is in charge of the basslines and mixing.
Sometimes our ideas all come out at once, sometimes we have heated arguments, but it’s precisely that process of collecting various ideas that is so helpful when producing something. When we make use of each other’s individuality and share what we think in the same space, our ideas are linked, just like a relay race. Thanks to this process, we too come to love our music even more.
—— Six years after your debut, you released your first full album, “Shining Strike.” What kind of album were you trying to make?
Shin In Ryu: “Shining Strike” is a work that holds a lot of special meaning for both us and all of our fans. We tried to find a single message and emotion that we wanted to convey while expressing a wide range of styles and colors throughout the whole album.
—— During production, were there any moments that left an impression on you?
Shin In Ryu: The most memorable moment during production was when we again realized just how many things we wanted to say. We worried a lot about the sound and visuals, and put great care into each song. Should we call it Korean “Jeong”? (a Korean concept of implicit affection, like an invisible thread connecting people) Through this process, we feel like we’ve grown a step further.
—— The moment I saw the tracklist, the Japanese-titled track “Kaibutsu” caught my eye. In the liner notes, it mentions that the name comes directly from Director Hirokazu Koreeda’s film “Kaibutsu” (“Monster” in English). I’d love to hear how you were inspired and how the music composition took shape.
On-yu: Honestly, when I was writing the song and preparing the demo and lyrics, I saw Director Hirokazu Koreeda’s film “Kaibutsu/Monster.” Its themes gave me a lot of inspiration, particularly for the latter half of the lyrics. The film crosses the boundary between family and society, and it delicately expresses humans’ complicated inner feelings. At first, since the title is “Kaibutsu,” I thought it might be a little scary. If you hadn’t seen it, the first image that would come to mind would probably be a scary monster movie.
The word “goemul” (Korean for “Monster”) has a sort of uncomfortable and unfamiliar sound, but in Japanese, you write it as “Kaibutsu,” which is sort of cute. Somehow, it has a familiar feeling. That’s why, when you open the door to your heart and listen to our songs, we want you to feel like your heart is thawing. I particularly liked the line in the movie, “If you don’t know what it really is, it’s just a monster, but if you do know what it is, it’s not a monster after all.” We wanted to communicate this message through the song: We want you to see and accept all your sharp edges. I love you, and I want to help you grow.”
I made this hoping that everyone will get to know the “monster” within them, find it lovable, and accept it.
—— If you could share just one of your songs with everyone in Japan, which would you choose?
On-yu: I want to recommend “Home.” This song was written while thinking about what we picture when we think of “home.” I’d be happy if you listened to it whenever you need comfort.
Jeong-hwan: “Dilemma” is my recommendation. This song tries to bring a new genre to “Shining Strike,” and the arrangement is also really unique! I think that if you know Shin In Ryu from “Attack!”, you’ll find “Dilemma” has a fresh kind of charm to it.
Hyung-eon: “Return to Picnic,” the second track on “Shining Strike,” is the song I recommend. The composition has an intentionally strong connection to “Intro: Shining Strike,” and personally, it gives me the feeling of April weather in Japan.
—— In April 2025, you held pre-release listening sessions for “Shining Strike” in 7 Japanese and Korean venues. Could you tell us why you decided to host this event? Also, I’m sure you received all sorts of reactions. How did they make you feel?
Shin In Ryu: Whenever an album is released, we’re always curious to hear everyone’s reactions. We continuously listen to the songs during our creation process, but we want to see how they feel to our fans when they hear them for the first time. So, using these pre-listening sessions before the albums are released, we created opportunities to see all our fans’ responses firsthand. It’s a great experience to be able to confirm how our music is being received in these moments.
Since this was the first time we previewed an album in Japan, we were very curious to see the response. We were truly happy and grateful to hear that even more people than we anticipated had come to and enjoyed the event. Although we weren’t able to see everyone in person, just feeling the warm atmosphere and reactions alone really lifted our spirits. This experience made us want to share our music with even more people!
—Finally, what are you excited about for your first performance in Japan?
On-yu: Music, as long as it is made with sincerity, it doesn’t matter what language the lyrics are written in; I believe it will touch the hearts of everyone who listens to it. We recorded the newly released Japanese version of “Attack!” including those same ideas. I also hope to meet many Japanese Parang-sae (meaning “Blue Birds” in Korean; Shin In Ryu’s fandom name)!
At the end of the day, your stories are our stories. The one thing that brings us all together is music; I hope that we will be able to bring together hearts that sing of love. Just like the stars shining when you look up at the sky, we want to share with all of you what we see, hear, and feel every day. And if you feel it too, that would make us very happy. Thank you for supporting Shin In Ryu.
Jeong-hwan: I’m very excited to be able to do this performance in Japan, a country that has had such a large influence on my musical career. I hope that our Japanese listeners will take a greater interest in Shin In Ryu and our music. Starting from this performance, I’m looking forward to meeting you all more often. Thank you for supporting Shin In Ryu!!
Hyung-eon: I’m very happy that Shin In Ryu can have our first overseas performance in Japan. When I visited Tokyo the year before last, I was curious about the kinds of music everyone listened to, so I earnestly researched all the songs I heard on the street. I believe that even if where we were born and what language we speak differ, music is a language that instinctively reaches all of us. Please look forward to the stories we’ll be sharing through our music with Japan!
