Shin Hae Chul was a South Korean singer-songwriter, radio DJ and record producer. He was a pioneer of Korean experimental rock music and was often referred as "Demon Lord" for his charismatic stage presence. He attended Sogang University trying to obtain a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy but dropped out to focus on his music career.
In 1988, he formed the band "Muhangwedo" when he was a sophomore at university. That same year, MBC decided to air the Campus Music Festival and Shin’s band gained immediate national attention after winning the competition. In 1989, the band released their only album "When Our Lives Are Almost Over".
Shin released his first solo album in 1990 which included an English rap, something unheard of in Korean music at the time. He won nearly all music prizes that year and in 1991 he released his second solo album and began working at MBC FM as a radio DJ. in 1992, he formed N.EX.T and switched to rock music. The band released albums in 1992, 1994, 1995 and 1997 and several singles before separating when Shin moved to London to study music producing.
In London he renamed himself Crom and released a techno album in 1998 and created the project group "Monocrom" alongside guitarist Chris Tsangarides in 1999. He then moved to New York to produce his live album and in 2000 he formed the band "Wittgenstein" and released a home studio album.
He returned to South Korea in 2002 and two years later he re-formed N.EX.T with new members releasing albums in 2004, 2007, 2008, and 2014. He married in 2002 and later had a daughter and suffered from prosopagnosia or face blindness, a cognitive disorder where the person’s ability to recognize faces (including his own) is impaired.
In 2014 he was treated for gastrointestinal problems by Dr. Kang Se Hoon. The doctor performed a stomach reduction surgery without consent and punctured Shin’s small intestine and pericardium. After running a fever, he had a heart attack on October 22 and died five days later due to pericarditis and sepsis. His family stopped his cremation to perform an autopsy and the police investigation determined medical malpractice. Dr. Kang lost his license, was fined and jailed for one year.
In 2015, Psy released his song "Dream" as a tribute to Shin and all the profits from the song were donated to his family.
(Source: Wikipedia)
