High School Band Goes Viral
[Is the skill level of Korean high school festival bands these days really like this?!?! Reacting to school band performances!!]
While watching countless other videos like this, Iseo unconsciously let out a grin.
Heh heh heh. Heh heh heh. Heh heh heh.
"Choi Iseo! Stop laughing like a maniac and come eat!"
"Heh heh heh... Okay."
The bellow of her mom from outside the room. Iseo gave a half-hearted reply and stretched with a big yawn as she shuffled out.
Breakfast was already on the table.
"Aigoo... Vacation doesn't mean you hole up in your room all day. Aren't you gonna do any exercise or something?"
"I will... someday."
A perfunctory answer as she sat at the table and picked up her spoon.
Phone during meals is the unspoken rule... With that thought, Iseo pulled out her phone again and opened the community app.
She had figured someone would film the performance, it'd spread online, and they'd get praise for their skills.
What if someone recognizes us? What if the comments are all praise? Should I pop in like, Hey, I'm the bassist from that band?
But even in her wild daydreams, the current situation was beyond imagination.
Who could've guessed the broadcasting club would upload the school festival footage, and their band's clip would hit the algorithm jackpot?
Iseo reopened the original video.
The band's performance clip had racked up hundreds of thousands of views.
Scoop of rice, check the views, scoop of rice, check the views.
For some reason, this video made her feel like she could eat forever.
Iseo opened KakaoTalk to message her friends, then stopped.
'They said they'd block me if I brag one more time...'
No, she hadn't even bragged that much. Like ten times?
But with a video this good, how could she not brag?
Her friends, not being in a band, just didn't get it.
That left only the bandmates.
'Come to think of it, what the hell is Suyeon up to...'
No contact since vacation started. The band group chat was just read receipts, no real talk.
'She's alive at least... Not starting another band or something, right?'
"Why isn't she here yet...?"
Sehyun glanced anxiously at his phone clock.
Renting a studio was time is money. For a broke arts college student like him, saving time was priority one.
He'd set everything up early, but the key session player was MIA.
"I told you to use Jeongmin."
"Jeongmin didn't have the vibe. How many times did I try him?"
His friend's nagging. Sehyun scratched his head and opened his mouth.
"You think money grows on trees? I used him 'cause I had to. The vibe wasn't there with the others."
The album had started as a graduation project from arts college, a proper kickoff to his career.
What began as a joke turned serious, and what he thought friends could handle ballooned into calling in session pros.
True to Korea's top arts schools, the overall production was smooth... but at the final mixing stage, doubt crept in.
'Is this really okay as is?'
Something felt missing. He pondered what it was.
But the gap wouldn't close. Frustrated, he doomscrolled YouTube and stumbled on a guitar cover.
He contacted the player immediately. It was exactly the vibe he needed.
"Still, calling someone off a random self-made track online with zero creds? Come on."
His friend harping on a done deal. Sehyun shot him a glare.
The friend averted his eyes slyly. Sehyun sighed.
"She'll show eventually. Not like she'll ghost us. It's the 21st century—everything's recorded..."
His words cut off by a buzz in his pocket.
Pulling out his phone, the screen showed [Guitar].
"Hello?"
"Yes, this is White Room. I'm at the studio now."
A voice much younger and lower than expected. It matched the YouTube video, but...
"Ah, yeah, coming down~"
Sehyun headed to the first floor where the studio was.
In front of the building stood a tall girl. Long hair half over her face, sharp-featured beauty staring at him blankly.
"Uh... so..."
"Nice to meet you. White Room."
"Ah, yeah..."
A huge guitar case on her back, hard case in hand. She had that veteran session player aura, overwhelming him.
"You're I Sehyun, right?"
"Yeah."
Sehyun felt his voice tremble slightly.
Why? I didn't expect her to be this pretty...!
The kind of looks that'd make anyone double-take on the street.
And killer guitar skills too? The world was so unfair.
"Ah, hi... Wanna head up now? We've got the setup mostly ready..."
"Sure."
Her speech and vibe don't match her age at all.
Sehyun thought.
The guitar case opened the moment they entered the studio. A Fender Stratocaster, black everywhere but the neck.
Fender?
Sehyun hadn't banned Fenders. Still, a Fender...
He'd heard they had that unmistakable "Fender sound," though he hadn't experienced it himself.
But he schooled his expression.
Fender... Does it matter? Play well, that's it.
"The tracks we want you for... are these."
No beating around the bush—Sehyun played the songs.
Smooth, ballad-like melodies.
Looking at Suyeon listening quietly, Sehyun spoke awkwardly.
"But something's bugging me. I'd love to add a guitar line... couldn't find the right fit. Then I heard your cover and reached out."
"Got chord charts for this?"
Suyeon cut straight in once he finished.
Sehyun froze, then reached for his friend.
A few A4 sheets handed over.
"Kill the vocal a bit..."
She seemed too young for sessions—probably her first, since her portfolio was empty.
Yet she handled it like a pro with decades under her belt.
A prepared genius?
Even her cover felt that way—not raw talent, but a fully bloomed star.
Fingers tapping the desk, eyes closed analyzing the track... then she opened them and grabbed the guitar.
"I'll lay it down inside, let's record and tweak the tone after."
"Ah... sure."
A bit shocking. Minutes after hearing it? Not even the full song?
Sehyun glanced at his friend in panic.
The friend shook his head, full of doubt.
They weren't pros yet, but arts college kids who ranked second to none in Korea.
They'd heard "genius" endlessly, and had the skills to back it.
But even they hadn't seen this: nailing an album-quality guitar line on a first listen in minutes?
Impossible. Why do session guitarists exist then?
She wouldn't just noodle around, right? Sehyun eyed the booth skeptically.
And from inside, gentle guitar tones began to flow.