Misplaced Pages

Nell
Background information
Origin	Seoul, South Korea
Genres	Alternative rock
Years active	2001 (2001)–present
Labels	Space Bohemian Woollim Goesoo Indigene Home Game
Members	Kim Jong-wan Lee Jae-kyung Lee Jung-hoon
Past members	Jung Jae-won
Website	spacebohemian.com

Nell (Korean: 넬) is a South Korean alternative rock band formed in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist, keyboardist and guitarist Kim Jong-wan, lead guitarist Lee Jae-kyung, bass guitarist Lee Jung-hoon and previously drummer Jung Jae-won until his departure from the group in June 2023. The group was named after the film, Nell, that starred Jodie Foster. The band is known for their gloomy and psychedelic sound, and has achieved fame with hits such as "Stay" from Let It Rain [ko], "Thank You" from Walk Through Me [ko], "Good Night" and "Losing Heart" from Healing Process [ko] and "Time Walking On Memory" from Separation Anxiety [ko]. Their third studio album Healing Process was chosen as one of five best recordings of the year by South Korean critics. Nell's fourth studio album Separation Anxiety was a hit in South Korea, ranking number one in various real-time album charts.

Musical career

Early years and turning point

Nell was formed in 1999 by four students who had failed to pass the college entrance exam. The group performed at clubs around the Sinchon-dong area and released two indie rock albums, Reflection of [ko] and Speechless [ko], in 2001, causing a revival of emotional rock in the country.

While performing at live clubs in Hongdae, they were picked up by Seo Taiji, and soon became the first band to promote under the record label Goesoo Indigene, a subsidiary of Seo Taiji Company in 2002. In 2006, the band decided to finish their contract with Goesoo Indigene. They signed with Woollim Entertainment.

The band is heavily influenced by numerous British bands such as Radiohead, Placebo, Travis, and Muse. They also performed a number of covers of Muse, Coldplay, Sting, and Bob Dylan during their gigs.

Nell has participated in both the 2006 and 2007 Pentaport Rock Festival of South Korea, where Placebo and Muse also performed each year.

2012–2013: Comeback after hiatus, Gravity mini-album series and Japanese debut

After a long hiatus due to compulsory military service, they released their fifth studio album titled Slip Away on April 10, 2012, with the title track "The Day Before". Its music video starred Lee Min-ki and Song Jae-rim, but none of the Nell members appeared. Slip Away was a hit in South Korea, placed top rank on various real-time music charts, such as Mnet, Bugs, and Olleh Music. Kim Jong-wan featured in G-Dragon's song "Today" in his 2012 album One of a Kind.

On November 22, 2012, Nell's official homepage included a new picture signaling Nell's comeback. The picture showed a large moon that had a kind of explosion going on. Nell's new album, Holding onto Gravity was released on December 3. On December 2, 2012, Woollim's YouTube official channel released the music video for "White Night" starring Im Soo-jung.

In January 2013, Nell made their Japanese debut with the Japanese edition of Slip Away, released by Home Game Records, a Watanabe Music Publishing label dedicated to Korean rock. In May 2013, the official Woollim YouTube channel uploaded a teaser for the upcoming mini-album which was scheduled for release in June. Nell's official homepage was updated on June 3 confirming the release date for the second part of their three-part mini-album series of Gravity, Escaping Gravity. The music video for the mini-album's title track, "Ocean of Light", was released on June 9.

2014: participation in U.S. concert and Billboard recognition

On March 11, 2014, the band performed at the second K-Pop Night Out at SXSW in Austin, Texas along with Hyuna and Jay Park and others. On December 11, their album Newton's Apple was selected as number two on "Billboard's 10 Best K-Pop Albums of 2014" by Billboard K-Town with the write-up, "The strongest rock album of the year, Newton's Apple highlights Nell's vocalist/chief composer Kim Jong-wan's clever and honest songwriting skills, best heard on the single 'Four Times Around the Sun' and 'Grey Zone' ... All the lyrics are wrapped in warm, lush arrangements and instrumentals that enchant the listener simply by themselves."

2016: Space Bohemian

On March 22, 2016, it was announced that Nell ended their contract with Woollim Entertainment and set up an independent record label named Space Bohemian. On August 18, 2016, they released their first album with their new label, C, with the title song "Dream Catcher".

Members

Current

• Kim Jong-wan (김종완) – vocals, guitar, keyboard, drums
• Lee Jae-kyung (이재경) – lead guitar
• Lee Jung-hoon (이정훈) – bass guitar, tambourine, keyboard, chorus

Former

• Jung Jae-won (정재원) – drums

Discography

Studio albums

Extended plays

Single albums

Singles

Other charted songs

Soundtrack appearances

Awards and nominations

References

1. ^ Kang, Bo-hyun (January 20, 2012). "넬 컴백, 1집 앨범 중고 최고가 30만원을 기록했던 그들이 온다" (in Korean). Retrieved September 16, 2023.
2. Park, Jae-deok (January 17, 2007). "넬 공연, 예매 시작 2분만에 매진" (in Korean). Joy News 24. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
3. Kang, Ji-hoon (April 1, 2008). "넬, 앨범판매 1위-콘서트 매진 '겹경사'". My Daily. Archived from the original on December 15, 2019. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
4. ^ "넬, 앨범공개 '4년 공백'에도 동시 차트올킬" (in Korean). April 10, 2012. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
5. Kim, Jin-kyung (April 10, 2012). "넬 '그리고 남겨진 것들' 폭발적 반응…진정성 담은 음악 통했다". Archived from the original on September 10, 2022. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
6. Yoo, Ji-yoon (September 3, 2012). "GD, 새 앨범 트랙리스트 공개 '김윤아-김종완-타블로로 참여'" (in Korean). Retrieved September 16, 2023.
7. Hong, Grace Dan-bi (November 12, 2012). "Nell Signals Comeback with Teaser Photo". CJ E&M enewsWorld. Archived from the original on January 29, 2013.
8. Park, Se-yeon (December 3, 2012). "임수정, 넬 '백야' 뮤비서 폭풍 눈물 열연" (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
9. Lee, Yeon-jung (January 23, 2013). "넬, 일본 데뷔…'슬립 어웨이' 앨범 발표" (in Korean). Retrieved September 16, 2023.
10. Lee, Geum-joon (June 3, 2013). "'컴백' 넬, '여름의 바다' 담은 새 앨범 콘셉트 일러스트 공개 - 아시아경제" (in Korean). Archived from the original on July 17, 2024. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
11. Jin, Eun-soo (June 10, 2013). "Nell back with melodic synthpop". The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on October 31, 2013. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
12. Lee, Sang-hyun (March 6, 2014). "넬·현아, 美음악축제 SXSW 무대 선다" (in Korean). Archived from the original on July 17, 2024. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
13. Benjamin, Jeff; Oak, Jessica (December 11, 2014). "The 10 Best K-Pop Albums of 2014". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 16, 2015. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
14. Kim, Hyun-sik (March 22, 2016). "밴드 넬, '10년 동행' 울림 떠나 독립레이블 설립". Archived from the original on May 20, 2024. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
15. Kang, Nae-ri (August 19, 2016). "넬, 2년 만에 돌아온다…오늘 정오 정규앨범 'C' 발표". YTN (in Korean). Archived from the original on July 17, 2024. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
16. "Gaon Album Chart". Gaon Chart. Archived from the original on 2016-01-30. Retrieved 2016-11-18.
    • "Let's Part". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on May 16, 2020. Retrieved November 22, 2018.
    • "Colors in Black". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 3, 2015. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
    • "Moments in Between". Circle Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on July 15, 2023. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
17. "2012년 Album Chart". Archived from the original on 2019-07-29. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
18. "2014년 04월 Album Chart". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
19. Cumulative Sales of C:
    • "2016년 10월 Album Chart". Archived from the original on 2016-12-20. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
    • "Circle Album Chart – Week 31, 2023". Circle Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on August 10, 2023. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
20. Cumulative Sales of Colors in Black:
    • "2019년 10월 Album Chart". Archived from the original on 2020-04-12. Retrieved 2019-11-07.
    • "Circle Album Chart – Week 51, 2024". Circle Chart (in Korean). Retrieved December 26, 2024.
21. "Album Chart 2021.09 Month". Archived from the original on 2022-07-26. Retrieved 2023-09-16.
22. ^ "Gaon Digital Chart". Gaon Chart. Archived from the original on 2017-03-09. Retrieved 2016-11-18.
    • "See U in Five – Week 41 of 2019". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 25, 2016. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
23. Cumulative sale of "The Day Before":
    • "2012년 04월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2020-10-18. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
    • "2012년 05월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2020-10-18. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
24. Cumulative sale of "White Night":
    • "2012년 12월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2019-06-11. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
    • "2013년 03주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2015-04-12. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
25. "2013년 03주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2015-04-12. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
26. "2013년 06월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2015-02-23. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
27. Cumulative sale of "Four Times Around The Sun":
    • "2014년 02월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
    • "2014년 03월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2016-03-09. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
    • "2014년 04월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2015-10-02. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
28. "2014년 12월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2015-06-23. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
29. Cumulative sale of "Star Shell":
    • "2015년 39주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
    • "2015년 40주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
30. "2015년 12월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
31. Cumulative sale of "Dream Catcher":
    • "2016년 34주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2016-08-29. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
    • "2016년 35주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2016-10-10. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
32. ^ "2016년 34주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2016-08-29. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
33. "2016년 12월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2017-01-10. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
34. "2017년 30주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2017-08-03. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
35. "2017년 46주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2016-11-25. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
36. ^ "2012년 04월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2020-10-18. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
37. Cumulative sale of "Slip Away":
    • "2012년 16주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2020-09-27. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
    • "2012년 17주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2020-09-27. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
38. ^ "2012년 16주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2020-09-27. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
39. "2012년 12월 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2019-06-11. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
40. ^ "2012년 50주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2017-12-03. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
41. ^ "2013년 25주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2017-07-26. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
42. Cumulative sale of "Memories Of A Stranger":
    • "2014년 10주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2015-05-14. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
    • "2014년 11주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2015-05-14. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
43. ^ "2014년 10주차 Download Chart". Archived from the original on 2015-05-14. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
44. "2005 MKMF part 1" Archived 2016-02-01 at the Wayback Machine. Mwave. Retrieved 2014-08-28.
45. "2006 MKMF Part 1 : I Love Punk - Haerang + Lee SungWoo/ Break Through-SS501/ The Queen Is Back! - Cocoboys and Dodogirls + Um JungHwa" Archived 2014-10-26 at the Wayback Machine. MAMA. Retrieved 2014-10-26.
46. "2007 Mnet KM Music Festival Part1" Archived 2014-10-26 at the Wayback Machine. MAMA. Retrieved 2014-12-14.
47. "Winners from Past Years: 2008". MAMA. Archived from the original on 2012-12-25. Retrieved 2013-01-10.
48. "2013 Mnet Asian Music Awards (part 1)". Mwave. MAMA. Archived from the original on 9 December 2014. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
49. "[Full Ver.] 2014 Mnet Asian Music Awards Part1". mwave. MAMA. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
50. "MAMA Nominees". mwave. Archived from the original on 29 October 2016. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
51. "2018 MBC Plus X Genie Music Awards Announces Nominees + Voting Begins". Soompi. October 1, 2018. Archived from the original on June 10, 2019. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
52. ""BTS·워너원·트와이스·볼빨간"…'2018 MGA' 후보 공개, 투표 시작". Naver. October 1, 2018. Archived from the original on February 11, 2020. Retrieved October 1, 2018.

External links

• Official website

• South Korean indie rock groups
• Musical groups established in 1999
• Musical groups from Seoul
• MAMA Award winners
• Korean Music Award winners
• Melon Music Award winners
• 1999 establishments in South Korea