Formula Indie Sessions _ Interview with Jinwoo
Introduction of the project
This project is a musical exploration of a state of stillness.
Rather than adding more sound, it is closer to a process of removing what is unnecessary and moving toward the center.
This album is a record of the journey toward an unwavering mind—taking equanimity as an ideal and tracing the process of approaching it.
What is your earliest memory connected to music?
My earliest memories of music are closely tied to my family.
As a child, my mother played a wide range of music for me. I received classical music education at a young age, and during my teenage years, my parents introduced me to hip-hop, jazz, and rock, which we enjoyed together.
They especially loved musical theater and film scores, so I grew up listening to composers like Ennio Morricone, John Williams, and Philip Glass. Through these experiences, my curiosity and sensitivity toward music naturally expanded.
How did your passion for creating music begin?
I was introduced to various instruments from an early age, including violin, piano, and flute. Among them, the flute stayed with me the longest.
Growing up in such an environment, I began to feel a desire to create music myself around the age of fourteen. Listening to Porter Robinson’s Worlds album was a turning point—I remember thinking that I wanted to make music like that.
I started composing using GarageBand on my iPad and later FL Studio on my computer, which marked my first steps into MIDI composition.
What’s the story behind your current music project?
This album was created during a personal journey toward finding an unwavering state of mind. While I idealize calmness and equanimity, I also observed how easily I was swayed by emotions and inner turmoil. The album reflects that tension through sound.
Mount Parnassus and the nine Muses serve as symbolic guides in this journey. In mythology, Parnassus is a place where wisdom is sought through oracles, and the Muses inspire artists. In this project, I position myself as a narrator who asks questions and accepts the answers they offer.
I came to realize that wisdom is not a fixed solution. Equanimity is not about suppressing emotions, but about maintaining balance regardless of circumstances. What I sought from the Muses were clues to an unshaken mind, and the insights gained along the way were recorded as sound.
I hope this album can stand as a meaningful milestone in my life.
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music before?
For this album, I aimed for a sound that is pure yet ambiguous—clear and transparent, but intangible. Rather than highlighting individual instruments, I wanted them to blend into a single presence, with nothing feeling sharp or intrusive.
If I were to describe it as an image, it would be like a sea of clouds in a high mountain range—something closer to mist or drifting fog.
What is one thing you’ve learned that completely changed the way you make music?
This album took nearly five years to complete. Through that time, my focus shifted away from technical perfection toward the impression, breathing, narrative, and atmosphere of the music.
The role of vocals became especially important. Collaborating with vocalist SURYEON greatly shaped the project. Her voice carries both clarity and mystery, and it resonated deeply with the direction of the album.
We spent a long time talking, sharing music, and aligning our understanding of the project. Eventually, we reached a point where even small musical ideas could be exchanged intuitively. I learned a great deal about communication, listening, and musical breathing through this collaboration.
What tools, instruments, or software are essential in your creative process?
I usually compose through MIDI, starting from piano-based ideas. All production was done in Ableton Live, using generative approaches to sound-making. Recently, I’ve developed an interest in wind instruments and have been learning the Korean traditional bamboo flute, the tungso.
Which indie artist or song are you loving right now?
I often listen to artists such as Luca Delphi, Ólafur Arnalds, Akira Kosemura, Ichiko Aoba, Roy Borland, and marucoporoporo.
Albums I particularly recommend are The World by Luca and MIRAI by Akira Kosemura.
How have your personal experiences influenced your music and artistic vision?
There’s a saying that your music can never be better—or worse—than who you are. I believe my temperament and values inevitably surface in my work.
Making music, for me, is about setting personal standards and practicing them consistently. The quiet experiences of daily life—anxiety, trembling, warmth—shape my music more than dramatic moments. In this album especially, my belief in calmness and inner stillness is reflected.
What emotions or messages do you hope listeners take from your work?
I hope to leave space for listeners to breathe at their own pace—quietness, balance, and ease. I’d like them to set aside lyrics, titles, and messages, and simply encounter themselves without being overly serious or too light.
What’s the most important lesson music has taught you so far?
Music has made me question what it truly means to listen. I often ask myself whether I am really listening. I feel I have yet to fully hear sound as it truly is, and that realization has become a lifelong inquiry. Though the path feels long, I’m grateful for the depth it offers.
What is a dream venue or festival you would love to perform at?
I feel grateful for any opportunity to perform. If I had a personal dream, it would be to create a performance specifically for the people who shaped me the most—my family, relatives, teachers, and close friends.
If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be and why?
I’ve learned the most from composers like Bach and Debussy. Collaborating with them—even hypothetically—would be an immense learning experience.
On a more personal note, I sometimes imagine collaborating with my younger self, recording that voice from the past and weaving it into my music.
Where can our listeners follow and support your music?
Listeners can find my work through the following links:
linktr.ee/jinw.o
Instagram: https://instagram.com/existuntilexit
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/11a3uNPwQf2UDYo0UXoUcj
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@existuntilexit
Looking toward the future, what’s your dream for the next chapter of your musical journey?
In historical Korea, there was a concept called Darak—tea and music rooted in ritual and philosophy. I’m preparing a project that reinterprets that spirit through contemporary listening practices. I hope to present it next year.
I’m also working on the next full-length album that continues the narrative of this release, which I aim to share the year after.
What do you hope listeners will discover about you along the way?
I hope listeners see me not as someone special, but simply as another person living with similar questions.
Representative YouTube Video
