To all indie lovers, I am here to introduce another K-Pop Indie Band who deserves a little more appreciation. Say hello to… Urban Zakapa.

Urban Zakapa has nine members: four vocalists Jo Hyun Ah, Kwon Soon Il, Park Young In and Choi Jae Man; five instrumentalists that include guitarist Yoon Ji Min, pianists Choi Yoon Jeong, Lee Ji Ho, upright bassist Baek Ha Hyeong Ki, and drummist Han Tae Young.

They debuted in 2009 with the song, “Cafe Latte” and they currently have two mini albums out and one official album. Unlike other groups, they have been earning their fame little by little performing as guests on other artists’ concerts, and music festivals, mostly without use of public advertisement. All of their songs are composed, produced, and sung by all the members of the group.

Upon listening to “Cafe Latte,” Urban Zakapa reminded me of artist Sweet Sorrow because they both shared similar musical harmonies and techniques, which is pretty refreshing in the over-autotuned and over-produced world of K-Pop. Aside from the harmonies, their songs have very mellow rhythms, addicting melodies, and sweet lyrics that make you want to sing a long.

Another favorite of mine is “One Who leaves, One Who is Left.” Although it’s not their title song from their second mini-album, I really liked the lyrics and how the song is pretty addicting in a way that doesn’t involve auto tune and repetition of same “hook” words that currently saturate the idol market.

There’s something about the simplicity of Urban Zakapa’s music that makes me smile just listening to it. But, they’re not without flaw. Sometimes it does seem that their music is slightly reminiscent of more popular groups’ music, including material from artists like 8eight, Vibe, and Sweet Sorrow. But of course every artist can be compared to someone else who pursues the same style of music. But despite that, Urban Zakapa has a lot of potential to succeed. They are young artists who can sing, compose, and produce music.

Check out their live performance of “Crush” on Live Session:

(pyosin, sarakim17)