Human mind (사람의 마음) is the third studio album by the South Korean band Kiha & The Faces (장기하와 얼굴들). All songs on the album were written by Chang Kiha, while Chang and Yohei Hasegawa served as co-producers. In addition to the two producers, all members of Kiha & The faces(장기하와 얼굴들) participated in the arrangement process. At a press conference held on 13 October 2014, Chang summarized the album by stating that the band had "tried to create a sound faithful to the fundamentals of rock and roll." He also described it as an album that was "worked on diligently to demonstrate that the three years and four months since the previous release had not been wasted."“장기하와얼굴들, 로큰롤 기본 충실 '사람의 마음'”. 《뉴시스》. 2014년 10월 13일. 2016년 12월 20일에 원본 문서에서 보존된 문서. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함. The title track, "Human mind(사람의 마음)", was inspired by stories Chang heard from listeners and the advice he gave them while hosting a radio program every night.
The album cover was designed by Kim Gijo, chief designer of Bunga Bunga Records, who had also designed the cover of the band's previous release. Chang explained, "After listening to the entire album, I asked him what came to mind, and he suggested an image of a heart with its blood vessels clearly visible. I liked it. The Human mind(사람의 마음) is often represented by a heart symbol, but that image seems to separate the mind from the body. The heart on our album cover is an actual organ, and I liked how it blurred the boundary between mind and body." The music videos for "My people(내 사람)" and "Human mind(사람의 마음)" were produced by editing footage of Chang Kiha performing an improvised dance.
The album includes "Almost Good(좋다 말았네)", which had been released in advance on 29 March 2013. Human mind(사람의 마음) was released on 15 October 2014, three years and four months after the release of the band's previous album, Kiha & The faces(장기하와 얼굴들), while "My people(내 사람)" was released in advance on 7 October. The album was produced in two versions, a digital edition and a physical edition. The digital edition contains twelve tracks, including the title track "Human mind(사람의 마음)", while the physical edition includes "Have You Been Well?(별 일 없었니)" as a bonus track.권석정 (2014년 10월 15일). “장기하와 얼굴들, 3집 ‘사람의 마음’ 전격 발매…“하고 싶은 건 다 해봤다””. 《텐아시아》. 2017년 3월 8일에 원본 문서에서 보존된 문서. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함. Upon its release, the album achieved strong commercial success and was received favorably by both critics and the public. To commemorate the release of the new album, the band embarked on a nationwide tour beginning in Seoul on 23 October, followed by performances in Daejeon, Daegu, Jeonju, and Busan.한인구 (2014년 10월 13일). “장기하 "전인권 선배님의 피처링, 굉장히 임팩트 있어"”. 《엑스포츠뉴스》. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함.
Background With their second studio album, Kiha & The faces(장기하와 얼굴들) (2011), Kiha & The faces(장기하와 얼굴들) won four awards at the Korean Music Awards, including Album of the Year, Musician of the Year, Best Rock Album, and Best Rock Song.김형우 (2014년 10월 13일). “장기하와 얼굴들, 3년 4개월만에 컴백 뮤지션 붐 이을까”. 《뉴스엔》. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함. In an interview with Nylon(나일론) magazine on 20 December 2013, the band discussed their third album, stating that they were planning "a more powerful rock and roll sound than the first and second albums." They added that Chang Kiha had drawn considerable inspiration from his work as a radio DJ and that most of the songs intended for the album had already been completed.“장기하와얼굴들, 화보 속 6色 매력…다소곳한 양평이형 ‘눈길’”. 《TV리포트》. 2013년 12월 20일. 2017년 3월 8일에 원본 문서에서 보존된 문서. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함. On 20 August 2014, a source involved in the album told Star News, "Post-production work on the songs has been completed, and we are currently in the planning stage for the music videos. September seems a little early, and we are aiming for an October release. As with the previous album, Chang Kiha will likely direct the music videos himself."윤성열 (2014년 8월 20일). “장기하와 얼굴들, 10월중 3집 발표..3년여만에 컴백”. 《머니투데이》. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함.
On 1 October 2014, a teaser video was released. In the teaser, Chang stands motionless and gazes into the camera while numbers are counted aloud, heightening anticipation for the album. At the end of the video, the phrase "The Mind of My Person" appears on screen. The words "My Person" light up first, revealing the date "2014.10.07", followed by "Human mind(사람의 마음)" and the date "2014.10.15", indicating the release dates of the pre-release single and the album, respectively.권석정 (2014년 10월 1일). “장기하와 얼굴들 이달 15일 새 앨범 발매”. 《텐아시아》. 2017년 3월 8일에 원본 문서에서 보존된 문서. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함. At noon on 7 October, "My Person" was released in advance through various online music platforms.한인구 (2014년 10월 7일). “[쥬크박스] 장기하와 얼굴들 '내 사람', 측정불가한 이들의 유쾌함”. 《엑스포츠뉴스》. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함.
On 13 October, a listening session and press conference commemorating the release of Human mind(사람의 마음) was held at Mudaeryuk in Hapjeong-dong, Mapo District, Seoul.한인구 (2014년 10월 13일). “장기하 "MV서 막춤 춘 이유? 건강한 신체 담고 싶었다"”. 《엑스포츠뉴스》. 2017년 4월 7일에 확인함. Addressing the delay between the band's second and third albums, Chang stated that frequent appearances on television programs had partly contributed to it.전원 (2014년 10월 13일). “장기하 "연기·DJ 하니 노래에도 영향미쳐…표정 다양해졌다"”. 《마이데일리》. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함. During the press conference, Chang remarked, "We worked hard to show that we had not wasted our time." He continued, "I wrote and composed the songs myself, while the arrangements were developed collaboratively. Since 'Cheap Coffee(싸구려 커피)', I have never written songs with a predetermined concept for an entire album. These songs emerged naturally, and when gathered together, they turned out to be about the Human mind(사람의 마음). They contain experiences that almost anyone could relate to."정준화 (2014년 10월 13일). “장기하 “시간 허투루 쓰지 않았다는 것을 보여주겠다” 출사표”. 《동아닷컴》. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함. On the same day, Yohei Hasegawa commented, "This is the first album that truly feels like a collaborative effort. Although I have always been involved in production, I think many more ideas were contributed to this third album, and it feels less like Chang Kiha alone and more like Kiha & The faces(장기하와 얼굴들) as a band." Chang added that although the members' opinions were reflected extensively throughout the process, the overall sound was intentionally stripped down.정준화 (2014년 10월 13일). “양평이형 “우린 장기하가 아닌 ‘장기하와 얼굴들’…3집에 적극 참여””. 《동아닷컴》. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함.
Recording Chang Kiha and Yohei Hasegawa served as co-producers, while all members of Kiha & The faces(장기하와 얼굴들) participated in arranging the songs. To achieve the highest-quality sound, the band devoted considerable effort to the album's production, recording in studios both in South Korea and abroad and experimenting with various mixing and mastering approaches. Before beginning the main recording sessions, the band first recorded demo versions in their rehearsal room and later completed the final recordings in professional studios. However, after listening back, they found that the demo recordings often captured a better atmosphere, and nearly half of the tracks on the album ultimately used those recordings.서정민 (2014년 10월 23일). ““유난히 흥 넘쳤던 가녹음본 살렸죠””. 《한겨레》. 2017년 4월 7일에 확인함. Chang explained, "We tried every possible approach to achieve the sound we wanted for all thirteen tracks. We even experimented with different recording engineers, which resulted in two or three versions of each song. Some were recorded in our rehearsal room, while others were recorded in large outside studios. In the end, we invested enough time to record the equivalent of more than thirty songs."“'컴백' 장기하와 얼굴들 "멤버 의견 반영 높이고 소리 비웠다"”. 《OSEN》. 2014년 10월 13일. 2017년 3월 8일에 확인함.
Mastering was handled by Soichiro Nakamura, a Japanese engineer and close friend of Hasegawa. Multiple mastered versions were produced, including one by an American engineer, resulting in three versions overall. Excluding Hasegawa, the remaining band members conducted a blind listening test and selected the final master
The Mellotron, an instrument famously used by the Beatles during the 1960s, was featured on "Please Call My Name(내 이름을 불러주세요)" and "Being Kind Is Not a Bad Thing(착한 건 나쁜 게 아니야)". Hasegawa said that after hearing the demo of "Please Call My Name(내 이름을 불러주세요)", he was impressed and wanted to enhance the track's quality. Around that time, Soichiro Nakamura, who later mastered the album, informed him that he had purchased a Mellotron, prompting Hasegawa to personally bring the instrument in before recording began.김학선 (2014년 10월 22일). “[힘들게 만난 사람] "굳이 더 정교하게 하려고 노력하지 않았다" 장기하 & 하세가와 요헤이”. 《weiv》. 2017년 4월 6일에 확인함. The band noted that during the production of their second album they had only used a VST emulation of the instrument.박준우 (2014년 10월 14일). “[뉴스] 장기하와얼굴들 새 앨범 [사람의 마음] 음감회 후기”. 《웨이브》. Lee Jong-min explained that for "Please Call My Name(내 이름을 불러주세요)", even the faint background noise generated when the Mellotron was switched on was deliberately inserted into sections where the instrument itself was not playing, including the introduction and ending of the song.임희윤 (2014년 10월 17일). ““이번엔 정통 록으로 정면 승부… 작정하고 힘줬어요””. 《동아일보》. 2017년 4월 7일에 확인함. In "My Person", a powerful repeating guitar phrase played exclusively on the sixth string of an electric guitar was layered over a main theme performed by a Yamaha DX7 synthesizer and an electric sitar playing in unison. For the title track "Human mind(사람의 마음)", Lee Min-ki recorded the guitar solo heard in the latter half of the song multiple times in order to achieve the most exhausted-sounding performance possible.윤성열 (2014년 10월 13일). “장기하 "사회적 메시지 전달하겠다고 곡 만든 적없어"”. 《머니투데이》. 2017년 4월 7일에 확인함. Regarding "Miser(구두쇠)", Chang wrote, "The banjo guitar used here created a warm and rustic atmosphere, while the vintage organ that had been used to create a laid-back mood in 'Heard It Through the Rumor(풍문으로 들었소)' was employed in a more playful manner."“장기하와 얼굴들 - 사람의 마음”. 《애플뮤직》. 2017년 4월 7일에 확인함.
Although "Almost Good(좋다 말았네)", which had previously been released through the Blank Check Project, was re-recorded for the album, the band ultimately decided that the original version was superior and included it unchanged. Chang stated that the trombone performance on "Not Coming, Are You?(올 생각을 않네)" was played by keyboardist Lee Jong-min, drawing on skills he had learned during his military band service. For "I Don't Remember", Chang initially recorded a falsetto demo with the intention of featuring a female vocalist, but the demo recording was ultimately retained and the featured vocal was never added. Chang later recalled, "I couldn't think of a suitable female singer, and while I was struggling with the decision, the head of the record label casually suggested, 'Why don't you just use the demo vocal?' I realized that was possible. It was a complete change in perspective. There are even some pitch imperfections because I sang it casually during the demo session, but it ended up becoming one of the most entertaining songs on the album." Regarding "Can't Be Forgotten", Chang wrote, "I wanted the beat to be extremely simple, so we used a rhythm machine from the 1980s. Drummer Jeon Il-jun performed the part by pressing the buttons himself." During the production of "Being Kind Is Not a Bad Thing Pt. 2", the band felt that the section where the song modulates upward and reaches its climactic vocal passage should ideally be sung by Jeon in kwon from the beginning, and he readily agreed to provide the vocals. "Wake-up Time Is Fixed(기상시간은 정해져 있다)", a song Chang had originally released in 2005 during a period of youth unemployment and had continued to perform live, was recorded and included as a full-band version for the first time.김시은 (2009년 4월 15일). “장기하 "입대 전 몸무게 100kg 육박"”. 《한국경제》. 2017년 4월 7일에 확인함.
Music and lyrics