A lullaby written for a friend with insomnia: four songs Choi Jae Heum sang at the rabbit playground
No drums or bass, just one guitar and a voice. From 'R', brought along as a demo, to a lullaby forgotten for two years and brought back. The last song became 'NONOL VOL 31'.
Also available in:한국어
Singer-songwriter Choi Jae Heum was the 35th musician on NONOL Live. It was filmed at midday, when the sun has you looking for shade, at the rabbit playground in Gwangnaru Hangang Park. It came right after heyseunghey, featured here yesterday, on the very same playground. With no drums or bass, Choi Jae Heum sang four songs as a duo with one electric guitarist, and described the songs in progress as "dark and quiet overall."
0:00 R (Demo)
After the song, Choi Jae Heum explained that in conversations there are often things we want to say but don't, afraid they'll damage the relationship. So the song steps into a relationship where today's words keep getting pushed to tomorrow and tells it from the speaker's point of view. As the "(Demo)" in the title says, it was still a demo, brought along early as a song meant for an EP coming out in the second half of that year.
3:32 검은 숨 (Black Breath)
Choi Jae Heum wrote it during a stretch of low moments, watching the shadow of a tree fall across the window at the family home outside Seoul and feeling the mood of the small hours. The video description tells it as the story of a boy who loves the night and feels an odd kinship with the slender tree outside the window.
7:07 쉿 (Shh)
Introduced as "the slightly less quiet one." In conversation, there are moments when you can tell what someone is about to say, but it isn't always what you want to hear, so the song carries the feeling of "please, just be quiet." The video description begins with the small pleasure of guessing the next line of dialogue while watching a film.
10:42 오늘 밤은 따뜻한 꿈을 꾸길 바래요 (Lullaby)
Choi Jae Heum introduced it as a song "to be released with NONOL." A friend from high school with severe insomnia asked for a lullaby to help with sleep, so Choi Jae Heum wrote one, then forgot about it for nearly two years before bringing it back and reworking it for this shoot. On this song, Choi Jae Heum picks up an acoustic guitar and plays along (12:15). It was officially released on February 10, 2024, as 'NONOL VOL 31', and its English title on Apple Music is, fittingly, 'Lullaby'. Apple Music
If sleep isn't coming easily tonight, start with the last song.
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Sources
- 1.[노래하는 놀이터 : 노놀 NONOL] [SUB] 최재흠 Full ver(설명란·화면 자막) ↗
- 2.[벅스] 노놀 VOL 31. 최재흠 '오늘 밤은 따뜻한 꿈을 꾸길 바래요'(2024.02.10) ↗
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