Korea's indie rock music survives in shadow of K-Pop

It's Saturday night in Hongdae, one of Seoul's best-known entertainment districts. Alleyways that are quiet by day have transformed into bustling passageways lined with busy bars and restaurants; street food vendors have pitched tents to serve soju and fried seafood; and young men and women prowl the streets in their nightclub finery.

With so much action going on, it's easy to miss the entrance to Club Freebird, an obscure but influential music venue in the area. Inside the bar, surrounded by the blue haze of stage lights, a small crowd sways to Led Zeppelin-inspired guitars and the siren-like vocals of a singer in black eyeliner, fishnet tights and shorts.

Apart from the cheap drinks, every member of the audience is here to enjoy something that South Korea isn't known for: indie music.

"I don't really care for K-pop," says Skyler Jeong, Club Freebird's founder. "It's so omnipresent in our daily lives it's become unavoidable. But the world doesn't know there is more to music in Korea. That's why I am promoting indie bands through my venue."

Despite his conservative dressing, Jeong is a devoted fan of rock music, and his love of the sound is what drove him to open his club. "It was mainly Brit-rock back then," he says. The former composer set up Freebird more than two decades ago, before Hongdae became what it is today. The club is still a popular underground venue, with a studio and rehearsal space for bands. "I didn't play in a band, but I wanted to create a space that I could share with bands I liked," he says. "Now I do producing work for many of them, and it's very easy to meet the bands I want to work with."

Hongdae is the undisputed mecca for indie musicians. Almost every night dozens of little-known bands perform in little-known venues across the area, which is named after Hongik University, the most prestigious fine arts school in the country. Formerly a sleepy residential district detached from the city centre, Hongdae has transformed over a few decades into a bustling arts and entertainment district that has managed to maintain its indie appeal.