From Korea Girl to Ee: Tobin Mori on Past, Present, and What’s Next
- Daria Slikker
- 3 hours ago
- 6 min read
Few bands from the late 90s indie underground have found a second life quite like Korea Girl. Formed in San Jose in 1996, the band carved out a sound shaped as much by instinct as influence, drawing from records like Slanted and Enchanted while standing apart from the heavier guitar music dominating their local scene. Though short-lived, their self-titled release went on to be named Album of the Year by Santa Clara University’s KSCU, and decades later, tracks like 'Reunion' have found a vast new audience online, amassing millions of streams and introducing the band to a new generation of listeners.
At the centre of it all is Tobin Mori, whose path through music didn’t end with Korea Girl’s breakup in 1999. Instead, it evolved. Later that year, he formed Ee, a project that soon expanded with a new lineup, including bassist Che Chou and drummer Pete Nguyen, which pushed the band toward a more post-rock direction. The addition of Sooyoung Park on guitar and keys further deepened that shift, beginning with their debut album Ramadan and continuing through a series of releases across the 2000s.
After years of relative quiet, Ee returned to the stage in 2025 for their first shows in nearly two decades, marking another unexpected revival. Now, with Korea Girl hinting at new material and Ee back in motion, Mori finds himself revisiting both past and present at once. We spoke to Mori about the origins of both bands, his approach to songwriting, and what it means to see his work resonate all over again.
How did music first become a serious part of your life growing up?
It started when I was about twelve or thirteen. My sister’s boyfriend brought over an acoustic guitar and I was instantly obsessed. He’d play songs by The Police and U2, and I’d just sit in my room trying to learn them. No one had to tell me to practice. It’s funny because no one pushed me into music. I took piano lessons for a few months and quit, but guitar just completely clicked.
Did you keep playing during university?
I thought about majoring in music and took some jazz classes, but it kicked my butt. Jazz is hard. I ended up studying literature at UC San Diego and kept music as a side gig. I also felt like studying music too seriously started to take away some of the magic. I didn’t want to overanalyse something that felt so mystical and transcendent to me.
Did you have a plan after your literature degree?
At first, I thought I wanted to be a professor. I spoke to my professors and they basically told me not to do it. One of them said he had 150 applications for assistant professor roles. I taught for a year or two, then got into software to pay the bills. A lot of people were doing that without formal training in Silicon Valley.
How did you all come together as a band?
I was in a band with our bassist Summer, and after that ended we were looking to start something new. We saw an ad Liz had put out with her drummer, and it just clicked. Summer played bass, I played guitar, Liz sang and played a bit of guitar, we had a drummer and suddenly a full band. We were all in our mid-twenties. It felt like really good luck.
What do you remember most about forming Korea Girl in the mid-90s?
We formed in San Jose, which was very Silicon Valley. There were a few indie bands but also a lot of bad metal bands, so we stood out. We were influenced by a lot of bands like Pavement, Slowdive, and Mojave 3, which wasn’t really what the local scene sounded like.
What were you trying to capture in those early songs?
When I look back at my lyrics, I don’t always understand them. A professor once told me the best writing comes from the unconscious, and that’s how it feels for me. Sometimes I start with an idea, but a lot of it comes from feeling rather than logic.
So it’s more instinct than intention?
Yeah. I’ll usually start with a melody or something in a notebook and try to put words to it, then just keep iterating. My favourite songs come from a feeling. A lot of it feels unconscious.
Even with science, people think they’re being purely logical, which they are on one level, but there’s always a deeper reason. Why are you drawn to studying something like human biology? It often comes from something personal, like wanting to understand yourself or help others. Feeling drives more than we realise, even in science.
I’m a big believer in that. Emotion sits underneath everything. Even optimism, I think, is a kind of survival skill.
Korea Girl has found a whole new audience years later. How does it feel seeing that resurgence now?
It’s insane and really gratifying. It’s amazing that younger listeners connect with it. I think Liz’s lyrics were ahead of their time, especially around things like bullying and emotional health. Those topics are more openly discussed now, so the songs still resonate.
You recently hinted at new music. What can you share?
You’re the first journalist I’m telling this to but our new song ‘Anthropocene’ is out today on Bandcamp and will be on streaming May 1st. Liz and I both love it.
How did you and Liz come together to write this new song?
It took some coaxing. I’d send her emails from fans talking about how songs like ‘Reunion’ helped them. I think that reminded her of the impact the music still has.
After Korea Girl disbanded, what pushed you to start Ee?
People often ask me why Korea Girl broke up or why it became defunct. I didn’t really have an answer for it at the time but I do now. We would practice three times per week, play shows in the Bay Area three or four times per month for two or three years. We ended up burning out. At some point, there were ideas of releasing songs but it didn't materialise. I moved to San Francisco and wanted to move into something more ambient and acoustic which led to the formation of Ee and what Ramadan is.
Did your songwriting approach change with Ee?
Not really. It’s still very unconscious. I don’t sit down knowing exactly what I’m going to write. I believe more in putting in the time and letting something emerge. The idea of a perfect creative spark is kind of a myth. It’s mostly iteration.
Heartbreak usually creates that big creative spark for me.
Yeah, that too. Ramadan was actually largely a break up album. It wasn’t just a break up of a relationship but the disbandment of Korea Girl. I had a lot of emotion in me to work out that I needed to get out on a page.
What was it like playing live shows again after your three week America tour in 2002?
It was amazing. There were so many younger people in the crowd who knew the words. Back in 2002, no one really knew us on tour, so that was a big shift.
Are there more shows planned?
Yeah, we’re planning to play New York and San Francisco in the fall, and probably going to keep doing a few shows each year.
Would you ever bring Ee to the UK?
I’d love to. I was there last summer with my family and had a great time. We do get emails from people asking us to come over.
What stands out to you when you compare the indie scene then and now?
In the ‘90s, there were still a lot of grunge-influenced bands trying to sound like Nirvana. Now things feel more polished, which can be both good and bad. I think there’s less college indie rock bands that have that raw and jangly guitar sound. Sometimes it feels more like people are emulating something rather than creating something that’s their own. I’m always more interested in bands pushing boundaries, even in small ways.
How important was college radio for you at the time?
Huge. A big moment was hearing our album named Album of the Year on a Santa Clara University (KSCU) station while driving in San Jose. College radio really supported indie bands back then. Now you can just upload to SoundCloud, but in the ‘90s everyone was trying to get on those stations.
With both bands being revisited and reissued, how do you think about your past work now?
I rarely go back and listen to it because I’ve already heard it so many times while making it. I revisited Ramadan recently though and thought, ‘this is actually a good record.’ My goal has always been to make something I won’t be embarrassed by years later, and overall I’m genuinely proud of it.
Listen to Ee on Spotify, Apple Music, and SoundCloud, and follow them on Instagram.
