English

The Second Vacuum Factor Party at Seendosi Seoul

An eclectic archive of forgotten pieces

Words: Kevin Kang

After passing through the busy streets of Euljiro lined-up with local hole-in-the-wall pubs, I was welcomed by the dusty signs of Seendosi located at the end of a quiet street. Starting in September, Seoul-based label Vacuum Press has been organizing a party at the annex of Seendosi, just down stairs from the popular culture complex. Titled ‘Vacuum Factor’, the party boasts an eclectic line-up of electronic music artists. Under the ethos ‘No Boundary, No Genre’, the label aims to archive unique and unusual sounds which are only released in tapes.

Located on the fourth floor of the same building, the interior of the club was adorned with neon lights that offered a mood similar to the one upstairs. Once a studio of the owners of Seendosi, the place was refurbished this year to exclusively showcase parties. Right after pushing through the heavy steel doors, I saw Glam Gould taking the stage by storm. The dreamy synth of ‘Night Flight’ coming out from his beloved op-1 resonated throughout the venue, and everyone was fully immersed in the unique soundscapes of the artist. Having witnessed his live set a few years back, the show truly embodied how the Seoul-based producer/DJ perfected his craft over the years. As we got closer to the end of his set, Glam dropped ‘0’ from his double single ‘Pierce’ released later this month. The track blended beautifully with the cold glowing lights of the club, allowing the artist to effortlessly deliver a song so emotionally powerful that left us in awe.

After the phenomenal set of Glam Gould, a short intermission followed before Young Die came up on stage. While the crowd was still recovering from the previous show, the ambient artist flooded the speakers with her unique live performance. From eerie white noises and atmospheric pads to pulsating percussive textures and chopped samples, the artist took everyone on a journey to her mystical soundscapes—one that resembled the dreamy, mysterious world of ‘Enter the Void’.

The enigmatic show of Young Die was followed up by Mitsuou, who had just released his new album ‘San No Hikari’. The similar energy spilled into his set as he began to entertain the crowd with heavily reverberated percussions and dreamy arps. Soon followed by a heavy sub bass alongside 808 drums, Mitsuou started to drop pieces that resembled the aesthetics of 80s and 90s Hong Kong movies.

I was lucky enough to run into Wholesome, the boss of Vacuum Press, who shared his visions about his label.

“I like the sense of unity that comes from assembling a group of artists that each has a unique identity. The majority of our releases being ambient music have earned us a big ambient fan base, but we also aim to showcase all kinds of electronic music. After realizing that many of my fellow artists have tracks sitting in their hard drive that never made it to their album, I’ve decided to launch a label to archive these pieces.”

Strange objects and ornaments that symbolize Seendosi was absent from its annex, yet numerous neon lights illuminated the venue from every corner. There weren’t many people and nearly nobody was dancing. However, the empty dance floors didn’t feel awkward at all. In fact, it was a great opportunity to sit back, relax, and get fully immersed in the artists’ performance without any pressure to dance. I really look forward to what Vacuum Press has in stores for us next. For further information on Vacuum Press, check out the social channels below.

Vacuum Press:

Facebook / Soundcloud / Bandcamp/ Instagram