Ki Oni – “A Leisurely Swim to Everlasting Life – Live at dublab” (AKP Recordings) [Documentary Review]

Ki Oni released his album, A Leisurely Swim to Everlasting Life, on August 25, 2023. It is a soothing and inspirational album of ambient soundscapes that received high global praise.

The artist (real name Chuck Soo-Hoo), who hails from Virginia, has now dropped an accompanying mini-documentary that takes us through an intricate recording process and allows Ki On the opportunity to discuss the inspiration behind his work.

It is fascinating to watch as he lays out his somewhat simple tools in a small studio and begins producing the meditative sounds that emanate from this almost ceremonial process.

What is interesting is how he describes the music as something to listen to at “Indoor swimming pools, long drives at night or rambling in the forest,” which re-evaluates the experience of listening to music, not necessarily at a gig or festival, but during general living.

He discusses how his music is directly influenced by daily life, via watching a basketball game or drinking coffee, and how he includes field recordings of his bicycle ride to work or raindrops on a window. We can view this as a new, possibly post-COVID attitude to music production that takes the DIY ethic to another level. Or we can simply accept that this is just beautiful ambient music.

The passing of his grandmother inspired the album. In the doc, he reminisces about spending time with her in her garden. He uses the example of Gaspar Noe’s film Enter the Void as a way of describing how he views his grandmother’s journey to the other side. In the film, the protagonist takes a journey following his death, floating across the city and checking out with all his friends and family before moving on. Whilst Noe’s movie is jarring and explicit, Ki Oni’s journey is, in his own words, “meditative.” It brings beauty and calm to a concept/journey most of us fear.

As the film draws to a close, Ki Oni introduces a flute to the mix, which he breathes into softly. This completes the picture of an artist finding a balance between electronica and more organic instrumentation.

This is a wonderfully calming film that draws you in slowly and absolutely leaves you wanting to discover more about this intriguing artist and his work.

Director: Christian Kim
Producer: Scott Osgood
Starring:  Chuck Soo-Hoo / Ki Oni
Distributed by: AKP Recordings
Release Date: January 16th, 2024
Run Time: 8 minutes