HYUKOH & Sunset Rollercoaster: The Global Indie Sensations You Need To Know About

While many have come to typically expect the grand, electrifying pop idol spectacles leading the charge for globally touring bands out of Asia, stripped-back indie rock and mellow jazz groups taking on the world’s stages are now breaking the mold - changing the mainstream perception of the genres making waves internationally.

The success of K-Pop and J-Pop don’t diminish the validity of other genres exported from across the way - and HYUKOH proves it. The South Korean indie alt-rock outfit has garnered huge international success, with their second EP, 22, hitting fourth on the Billboard World Albums Chart back in 2015.

Their sound is quite similar to the indie-rock of Aussie bands that we all know and love, with a bit of a chiller vibe to it. Combine that with the jazz-influenced synth-pop that their collaborators, Sunset Rollercoaster, bring to the table, and you get AAA - the 2024 powerhouse album created by two of Asia’s leading indie bands.

Sunset Rollercoaster are a Taipei-based group, bringing the warmth of their home into their music. They introduce more of a romantic undertone to AAA, balancing out HYUKOH’s sheer rock energy. 

But with one band in South Korea and the other in Taiwan, how did they even meet?

The cross-cultural journey is a long-winded one, beginning with a simple chat in Tokyo in 2020, with HYUKOH there on tour and Sunset Rollercoaster working on their third album there. The passing conversation was obviously productive enough, causing HYUKOH’s lead singer to feature on Sunset Rollercoaster’s track, Candlelight. The friendship had already started to blossom, and soon Sunset Rollercoaster were even remaking HYUKOH’s track, Help. 

Meeting up again in Seoul in March 2023, the idea for a year-long collaboration, AAA, was born. Fast forward to May that year, and the bands were already holed up at Music Village 1939 in Gapyeong for a one-of-a-kind songwriting camp. With the brunt of the work done, HYUKOH and Sunset Rollercoaster then made sure to have monthly catch-ups to finalise the project.

Before they had actually settled on a name for the album, both bands had tentatively started calling it AAA - referencing the car insurance company that Sunset Rollercoaster took out during their first tour in the States. 

Once the record was finished being made, the bands stuck with the stand-in name of AAA. According to lead singers OHHYUK and Kuo-Hung Tseng, the title represents “something good” and “guaranteed quality.”

Finally, with the name and tracks sorted, the only thing the bands had to do was the cover shoot. And, according to an Instagram post by the group, it was quite chaotic.

“The profile shoot of [AAA] started with the idea that the members of HYUKOH and Sunset Rollercoaster are a musical troupe travelling through space,” the post read.

“At first glance, they appear to be a well-organised musical group, but upon closer inspection, they all seem disjointed, as if they’ve lost something, like a group of stragglers who have crash-landed on Earth. But as they explore their unfamiliar surroundings together, find temporary residences, and begin singing and playing again, they look bright and adventurous, a metaphor for the making of this album.”

Excitingly, the 8-track record is the first album both bands have dropped in over four years. And now they’re bringing it Down Under for two stellar arena concerts in Sydney and Melbourne. Hitting ICC Sydney Theatre first, they’ll play on the 18th of November, before heading to John Cain Arena on November 20.

The bands will, obviously, play live renditions of the tracks from AAA, as well as song tracks from both Sunset Rollercoaster and HYUKOH’s back catalogues. 

Tickets are on sale now, via Live Nation.

HYUKOH 혁오 & SUNSET ROLLERCOASTER 落日飛車

AAA TOUR 2024 AUSTRALIA

ICC SYDNEY THEATRE, SYDNEY
MONDAY 18 NOVEMBER

JOHN CAIN ARENA, MELBOURNE
WEDNESDAY 20 NOVEMBER 

Find tickets and more info at livenation.com