Seoul's death-punk disco troublemakers 18Fevers are heading to Tokyo for the first ever LOUD WOMEN Fest in Asia on Saturday 14 November. We caught up with Christmas Kwon, Garik and Matt to talk about Korea's underground scene, punk gatekeeping, unlikely songwriting inspiration, and why they'd rather you came to a gig than watched another bloody Reel.
18Fevers are Christmas Kwon (vocals and guitar), Garik (drums) and Matt (bass). Together they make what they call 'death punk disco', a gloriously unruly collision of punk, post-punk, hardcore and dancefloor energy.
First things first, where did the name 18Fevers come from?
Garik: 18Fevers, because 19 is too many, and 17 is too little.
Christmas: We got together when COVID was bad, and 18 in Korean sounds like ‘sibal’, the Korean curse word for ‘fuck’.
Matt: We’re very mature haha.
What’s the punk scene like in Seoul, and where do you fit into it?
Christmas: Seoul’s punk/hardcore scene is very small but we are all very passionate. I don’t think 18F fits in anywhere though lol.
Matt: It’s very stagnant and full of people that just want to call themselves punk but don’t actually care about the ethos or using their platform to push issues that affect us all. We typically don’t fit in with the punk scene and found kindred spirits in the underground electronic scene.
Garik: We pride ourselves in playing shows with anyone who wants to have us!
If you could tear up one rule of the music industry, what would it be?
Matt: Social media and bands being expected to become content creators. Our music and live show is the content, get off the internet and come see us!
Christmas: There’s no ‘right way’ in any kind of music.
Garik: Help drummers carry their stuff!
Tell us about a song that’s particularly important to you.
Christmas: I’ll say ‘Danse Macabre’. That song gave us the name ‘death punk disco’.
Garik: ‘Danse Macabre’, it’s in the name. Dance with us on stage!
Matt: I’ve heard people say they connect with ‘Never Fall’ because it has a positive message of doing what you want and not worrying how other people view it. That song came together so fast! I had a bassline and Christmas just banged out the lyrics.
Christmas also tells us that ‘Just a Nipple’ was inspired by a wardrobe malfunction during a COVID-era livestream that resulted in YouTube taking the performance down. Meanwhile, Matt admits to recycling a riff from an old band for ‘Let Me Live’, although even his former guitarist couldn’t recognise it.
What’s been the biggest challenge, and what keeps you going?
Christmas: Being in a band with two guys lol. After 5+ years, I got used to it.
Matt: The ceiling for growth as an underground band in Korea is really low. There’s not far you can actually go so that’s why we go overseas as much as we can.
Those overseas adventures have included three appearances at Rebellion Festival in Blackpool, with Matt picking their most recent performance in the Empress Ballroom as his proudest band moment.
For Christmas, though, the biggest rewards are more personal.
Christmas: When people come up to me and tell me my lyrics gave them power to stand up.
Garik’s proudest achievement is making the video for ‘Gatekeeper’, which features people from across Korea’s music community.
You must have some ridiculous gig stories by now?
Where to begin? Garik recalls a bassist tackling the drum kit and breaking it, while Matt remembers playing a punk-rock wrestling event in a Seoul department store to a baffled audience, including one older gentleman who immediately covered his ears.
Christmas has a particularly memorable Rebellion story.
Christmas: When we were playing Rebellion Festival, one guy wanted to take a pic with him kissing my foot and also me stomping on his body. The next day he made a T-shirt out of those pics and showed up wearing it.
We suspect that particular piece of merch is now a collector’s item.
Who would you most love to collaborate with?
Christmas: Would love to collab with The Distillers someday cuz Brody Dalle is my literal hero.
Matt: I would love to do something with Peaches. Anything really!
Garik: You think Night Lovell (Canadian dark rap) would answer our call?
What’s coming up for 18Fevers?
First up is LOUD WOMEN Fest Tokyo, where they’ll join nine other acts from Japan, South Korea, the UK and the US at Shinjuku MARZ on Saturday 14 November.
After that, the band hope to record new material and turn their attention to North American touring in 2027, with a possible trip to Thailand also on the wishlist.
As the band put it in their final message to us:
“Thank you for the support to everyone at Loud Women! What you guys do is so fucking important.”
And that’s exactly why we’re so excited to have them on the bill.
Catch 18Fevers at LOUD WOMEN Fest Tokyo × Too Hot to Be Cool, Saturday 14 November 2026, Shinjuku MARZ.
Tickets and festival information