Those who know Lomosonic and their two majestic albums have long been wishing for mainstream recognition for the band. Now, we might just get what we want.
Lomosonic’s latest music video, Kor (Warm Eyes), was released on Monday evening, and a little over 48 hours later it had garnered almost 1,200,000 views on YouTube alone. The stats are staggering considering the single is from a semi-indie band that’s not exactly a national darling. Its widespread popularity has also translated itself into various memes that poke fun at now often-quoted sentences from the music video alongside visual manipulations. Social media users also express their lovelorn feelings by using words lifted from Kor.
This must be the latest example of the power of social-media sharing. Kor has gone viral in the most spectacular way, thanks to its heart-wrenching music video and sonic artistry.
“I still can’t believe how this song strikes chords with listeners and viewers,” said Peerasit Poltan, Lomosonic’s vocalist. “We’re very much overwhelmed by such responses. We can see that numbers of our followers on our fan page keep on increasing rapidly. It feels very good, and we’d like to thank everyone.”
Kor is not your typical hit in the making, as it doesn’t follow the usual pop formula. It probably wouldn’t have gotten much radio time if it hadn’t gained its current talk-of-the-town status, since it’d be considered too “hard” for casual listeners to appreciate. As beautifully written and profoundly conveyed as it is on its own, Kor owes its music video to the ongoing craze.
Following a simple story of two former lovers who accidentally run into one another, Kor manipulates a Facebook chat log into creating a meaningful storyline. A long time after their break-up, the formerflames meet briefly, share a melancholic moment, and return home to chat online with flashes of good and bad memories inserted between dialogue. Using a typed dialogue is nothing new in the music video industry, and neither is retelling the story of two souls drifting apart, but in Kor the words and emotions seem so real, so piercing and yet so simple, like it’s lifted from that lamenting conversation that we have with our ex once the hurt and the pain have been put to rest — what it was, what it now is, and what it could have been.
Kor’s dramatic timing is precise and genuine, triggering the social-media world to flood with tears for past love.
“This storyline popped in my head while I was on a 32-hour bus journey from Laos. I didn’t have an internet connection, so I was browsing my chat log history, and found some texts that ignited this idea,” said director Thitipong Kerdtongtawee who added that he’s still in shock about the countless job offers he’s had since the release of the video.
Besides declaring that Kor makes them cry, members of the public have also said that it’s as if the song and its film have been lifted from an episode of their own lives.
“I think Kor resonates well with the public because it expresses a certain feeling that all of us go through, or will eventually go through. It has that universal message cloaked in specific words. We must give credit to the director who has got all the visual timing in the right places,” said Peerasit.
Lomosonic, who released their debut album in 2009, has always had a strong fanbase, which is constantly growing, and Kor seems to be speeding up the process for them.
Hopefully, those who have just learned about them will take time out from crying to dig deeper into the band’s discography, and try to make it to one of their
explosive live shows, as they will not be disappointed.
If there’s one band that deserves to be larger than life, Lomosonic is it.
Lomosonic plays their first full-scale show “T Minus Zero” on March 29 at Central Plaza, Chaengwattana Hall. Tickets are 1,000 baht each.
Visit www.smallroom.co.th
