Going back to the first day of school, everyone was so excited about the new beginning. Now, some students may find themselves lost and trapped by the routine assignments, tests, and alcohol and live from pointless day to day. For those students, the indie band Zitten will heal through its voice. In March, Zitten unveiled a new album called Diaspora—meaning lost people who cannot find where to head. He has been actively performing recently and is waiting for the big concerts on 21st and 22nd of June to cure “the Diasporas.”

▲ Artist Zitten recently finished working as a DJ reading books from EBS radio and now is primarily focusing on his new album, Disapora. Provided by pastelcompany.com

The modern rock band Zitten may be familiar to some, but to many the name might be very new. They had their first debut in 2005 with the album Rock Daves and at first had just two members, Seong Yong Uk being on vocals and Yoon Hyeong Ro on electric guitar and keyboard. Their lives as musicians were more of an enjoyment as they first met in a music-lovers’ club in college eight years ago. However, when Yoon was serving in the army, Seong signed with Pastel Music Entertainment and snapped into developing his career as a musician. In 2011, Yoon officially left the group due to a different musical propensity and Zitten became a solo band.

Zitten is a Korean term that means deep, dark, and heavy. The band first thought of using the name Cezanne, referring to Paul Cezanne, the famous impressionist. However, Cezanne in Korean sounded similar to the word meaning three cups and thus chose their second option Zitten. They still hoped for their music to feel like the first impression that their name gives out—the feeling of a deep oil painting where the paints are painted layer upon layer.

Also, back then the band was touched and influenced by the idea of impressionism, as it evoked of personal feelings. During the impressionist movement, people found beauty from expressing what they felt and saw. The balance between what individuals’ thought about beauty and what the public thought mode impressionist so charming. Therefore, Zitten focused their music to express their own feelings about whatever they thought but at the same time ensure that listeners emphasize with that feeling as well.

The beautiful and dreamy voice and melody heal the hearts of the listeners, and their strong color, which no one else can imitate, allows the listeners to stay and keep close with the band. In their previous albums, Zitten’s songs had more of a relaxing atmosphere. Songs like “December” and “BakYa (the white nights)” show the distinctive characteristics of Zitten’s music style. It is far from rock and popular music, and their melodies have a more peaceful soul resembling that of a deep painting.

However, from the new album Diaspora—the Scattered People, released this year, it developed more of a strong masculine feeling through the lyrics. The five songs on the album all relate to people who were scattered from reality or confused by their surroundings. These people are the ones literally roaming aimlessly from place to place, but they are also the ones psychologically lost. You will find yourself a bit similar to these people. In some ways, this album is a portrait of our story— mentally lost, heading nowhere.

Anyone who wishes to make their life a bit different and, just like the title song of the new album suggests, “Try” something new, first enjoy the songs of Zitten and get yourself ready to begin writing your new story. Its voice, melody, and lyrics all together will bring you into a new zone of comfort, strength, and affection.