Devil’s Music

Germany.

In Friedrichstrasse, Berlin, lies the Dussmann das KulturKaufhaus, known to the public as the "Culture Department Store." This store, spanning from the basement level to the fourth floor, sells a variety of cultural items, including books and music records. To Koreans, it feels like a colossal department store, making even the large bookstores in Korea seem like small neighborhood stationery shops. Early in the morning, before the store had opened, a 1.5-ton truck was parked in front of the department store. Men in white polo shirts bearing the Dussmann logo were unloading boxes from the truck.

A man in his fifties, hands on his hips, watched and shouted loudly.

"Make sure to check if there are any art history books among today’s arrivals before sending them downstairs. Could you please ask the bookstore manager to select which books to put in the main exhibition area? And are there any new music records?"

A blond man in his early thirties, checking a box marked 'Music,' replied while lifting it, "Here it is, general manager. But this box feels too light. There might be only a few inside."

The general manager, a man in his fifties, nodded as he lifted the box from below, feeling its light weight, and pursed his lips.

"It’s because of the digital tracks. Musicians only release digital versions nowadays, which makes the physical records sell poorly. It looks like there are only one or two albums in here. Sebastian will be disappointed, especially with the declining performance of the record store. Send it up to the second-floor record section."

"Alright, general manager."

The man in his thirties, feeling sorry for carrying only one light box, tucked a small box under his arm and headed to the second-floor record section. Meanwhile, the first-floor bookstore was bustling with employees busily arranging new books and organizing the storeroom. The man climbed the stairs to the second floor easily because of the light box. Unlike the busy first floor, only two staff members were cleaning the quieter record store.

"Sebastian! There’s a new record!"

The man at the counter, who was resting his chin on his hands, stood up without much expectation and reached out.

"What’s the use of new records coming out? At this rate, we might as well not have a record store."

"Ha ha, but there are still great musicians releasing great songs. Major musicians are still releasing albums; you never know, it might be a hit."

After receiving the box, Sebastian turned to the counter and said, "Well, I'm not sure. Thanks for the effort."

After the man left, Sebastian put the box on the counter. Two men, one tall and wearing glasses, approached him.

"Manager Sebastian, is this a new album?"

Sebastian rested his hands on his hips and looked at the box, sighing, "Yes, Matthias. But who knows how well it will sell."

The tall Matthias stood beside a stocky man with black hair, who adjusted his glasses and asked, "Whose album is it?"

Sebastian shook his head and looked the stocky man up and down.

"I don't know, but Julian. You should be wearing a uniform, why are you always in that Carnival Corps t-shirt?"

Julian, wearing a black t-shirt with the Carnival Corps logo, shook it and laughed, "We're not open yet. If I wear a uniform while cleaning, it gets dirty. Plus, they were my favorite band."

Sebastian looked at the logo on Julian’s chest.

"Yeah, your favorite band, in the past tense. It’s been a while since that band released their last album, hasn’t it?"

"Yes, their last album 'A Skeletal Domain' was in 2015."

Sebastian shook his head.

"I get it. Who listens to CDs these days? They skip and make weird noises when you carry them around. With just a phone, you can stream music for cheaper."

Matthias chimed in, "But some people still buy Metallica albums because they only offer one-minute previews. So, there are still buyers."

Sebastian cut the sealed tape on the box with a cutter knife.

"Yeah, but it's not like the old days. When I started working here 17 years ago, this second-floor record store was the busiest place in the entire Dussmann department store. Now, people who listen to the previews care more about headphone quality than buying albums. Do you know how much we made last month?"

It was unlikely that an ordinary employee would know about the sales figures, so Julian looked curious.

"How much was it?"

Sebastian stopped opening the box and sighed.

"5,964 euros (about 8 million won). That's the monthly sales of a store that uses the whole second floor of this huge department store. If the D

ussmann chairman didn't love music and wasn't determined to maintain the symbolic meaning of a culture department store, this record store would have been turned into an instrument store by now."

Matthias made an awkward face.

"If we subtract our salaries, it's just enough to cover the electricity bills."

Sebastian snickered and reached into the box again.

"That’s the way it is. At least the other floors are doing well, right? What the... there's only one today?"

Sebastian looked inside the box, which contained a hundred CDs of one kind, and his expression fell. Beside the CDs were five rolled-up posters. He irritably untied the rubber band around the posters and unrolled one with little expectation.

The three men stopped moving for a moment, and silence fell in the record store as they looked at the intense poster.

"Montana? This is the first album since 'Guitar Heaven' in 2011?"

Matthias held one end of the poster and said, "Yes, that’s right. It's an album by a major musician, worth looking forward to... What’s with this poster?"

Julian, hands clasped over his belly, adjusted his glasses, "It's a background of flowing lava with a dragon and a tiger fighting. Looks like a movie poster. Look at the tiger's teeth."

"And the dragon's eyes, too. They're fierce."

Sebastian paused to look at the poster, then opened one CD and handed it to Julian.

"Register this as a sample CD and play it in the store. Matthias, hang all five posters on the columns. Oh! And stick one on the new release bulletin board outside the store."

"Right, manager."

As Matthias left with the posters, Sebastian grimaced as he looked down at the CD.

"Tsk, Montana has really gone downhill. What’s with this Latin rock musician poster? Does it really match their style? This album will be a blot on Montana's record. Another major musician bites the dust."

Sebastian returned to the counter and grimaced again as he saw the sales figures on the PC screen.

"Sigh, I've got nothing to say at the next manager's meeting."

As he focused on the PC screen, the sound of a bass guitar caught his attention.

"What the... Julian! I told you to play the Montana album! Are you playing Carnival Corps again?"

In the office, Julian, who was operating the audio system, shouted back.

"No, no! This is the Montana album, manager!"

Sebastian looked up at the ceiling of the record store as the fast, heavy bass and machine-gun-like guitar riffs began tearing through the space. His eyes widened and his mouth opened as a loud, sharp roar filled the store.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"

Sebastian leapt up from the PC.

"What, what is this!"

As the bookstore employees on the first floor stopped their work to look up at the ceiling, an explosive vocal line roared, and they ran up the stairs to the second floor. Seeing the employees peering into the second-floor store, Sebastian turned his head towards the audio system where Julian was headbanging with a thrilled expression.

"Julian! Bring the CD case you opened!"

Julian quickly brought the CD case while still headbanging.

"Wow!! Totally my style! It's like the guitar and bass are fighting each other!"

Julian handed over the CD, and as Sebastian received it, another heavy roar burst forth.

"Every child's story begins with the parents."

Julian, his forearms goosebumped from holding the CD, stared at them with wide eyes. Sebastian shivered and pulled out the album cover from the CD case.

"Okay, Carlos Montana's guitar playing is top-notch, but who are the bass guitar and vocals? Oh!!!"

Sebastian's eyes nearly popped out, and Julian, stroking his goosebumped arm, approached and asked.

"Who is it? Kevin...? Who is this?"

Sebastian pointed to a spot on the CD cover.

"Look... look at the vocals."

Julian adjusted his glasses to read the small text, his eyes widening.

"Ke... Kay?"

Sebastian slammed the table and stood up.

"Bang!!"

"What were they thinking releasing an album without any prior promotion! This isn't Fantagio style!"

Julian checked the front of the CD and said, "Um... manager, this isn't from Fantagio. This is from Montana's company."

Sebastian snatched the cover away to check it, then tossed it aside and shouted.

"Matthias!! Matthias!! Call the factory right away and get more posters!! When the posters arrive, plaster them all over the outside walls of the department store! Julian! Check if there's also a digital album available!"

Julian quickly grabbed his phone to check the music streaming site, then exclaimed with a happy face.

"There's no digital single! It's 'Offline album only'!!"

Sebastian's face lit up as he shouted.

"Good! Let's move fast!"

>

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