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plasticflwrs · 3 months

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Beginning with their first episode airing on April 12, 2019, JTBC's SUPERBAND would take sixty male contestants from the indie scene to create their own band in the live finale. The series is composed of fourteen total episodes and concluded on July 12, 2019, with an average of 3% viewership in South Korea. In the end, the top five placements were HOPPIPOLLA, DEATH VALLEY, LUCY, PURPLE RAIN, and MONÉ. The competition was further split into introduction performances, one-on-one battles, two semi-finals, and the live finale with judging by Yoon Jongshin, Yoon Sang, Nell's Kim Jongwan, Linkin Park's Joe Hahn, and AKMU's Lee Suhyun. Superband was met with mixed responses with positives for allowing indie artists to show off their talent for the world and negative ones based on fans not being able to vote until round four, poor judging, and lack of female artists.

THE SOUND OF DEATH VALLEY.

THE MEMBERS OF DEATH VALLEY.

SAWYER LEE ( 1999 ), born as Lee Siyul, is a musician and producer hailing from Chicago, Illinois, United States and currently signed under Superbloom Media. In 2019, he made his first public appearance on Superband and would place second as DEATH VALLEY's leader, pianist, and vocalist.

KO SEUNGMIN ( 1999 ) is a musician and teacher from Seoul, South Korea. After the unofficial "disbandment" of DEATH VALLEY—where he was the drummer—he would become a secondary music teacher to fall back on. As of 2022, he signed with JYP's Studio J and debuted as the drummer of DOGFIGHT.

YOON TAEYUN ( 2000 ) is a musician and member of SAFETY ZONE, which still remains independent to this day. He competed on Superband with his members, however, they were all eliminated before the semi-finals. Taeyun would join DEATH VALLEY as their bassist and one of their lead producers.

OLIVER SONG ( 2001 ) is a member of the idol band PLASTIC FLOWERS, serving as their guitarist and lead vocalist, and calls Boston, Massachusetts his hometown. He is currently signed under Superbloom Media and has risen alongside his original members to become one of the best selling bands in the industry.

THE OLIVER SONG EXPERIENCE ... INTRODUCTION — ROUND THREE.

Coming into Superband, no one knew who OLIVER SONG was. Plastic Flowers was still struggling to sell 1,000 copies of their new albums and the band had just wrapped on promotions for Hypocreep just the month before. On April 12, Oliver would be introduced to the public as one of the vocalists on Superband with his cover of Fleetwood Mac's BIG LOVE, from their fourteenth studio album TANGO IN THE NIGHT. Though he impressed judges with his fingerpicking and vocals, they would complain the cover did not go "far enough" as his own rendition of such an iconic song. With just his voice and a guitar, the judges were also surprised by his attention to the cameras and basic stage presence. It was noted early into his critiques that not only had he debuted as a member of PLASTIC FLOWERS, but he was the YOUNGEST CONTESTANT as well.

This would also begin the small feud he had with Linkin Park's JOE HAHN as he wanted to push Oliver to his true potential throughout the competition. LEE SUHYUN enjoyed his performance the most and they actually remain close friends outside of Superband. According to the judges, his nerves got in the way of what would have been a great performance and Oliver needed to work on that for future rounds. Despite this, Oliver was chosen as a FRONTMAN for the first round of performances.

Teaming with pianist SAWYER LEE, bassist SHIN DURI, and drummer JEONG ILSEONG, he was demoted to just vocalist and found it difficult to perform without something in his hands. They went with a cover of Nirvana this time, choosing HEART-SHAPED BOX to showcase their individual talents. However, the song was met with less than stellar reviews because the group lacked synergy and lost to their rivals, who performed a cover of TVXQ's hit MIROTIC. All the members were considered for elimination and sadly, Duri and Ilseong were let go by the judges. They have since gone on to create other bands and are relatively successful despite their short run. However, this loss messed with Oliver's confidence moving forward and this would give him the UNDERDOG edit for the rest of the season. It was obvious that the judges and production liked Oliver, but without him proving his worth, they struggled to keep his momentum in the first few episodes.

Poppies were sad to see Oliver have very little confidence throughout the beginning of Superband and many have stated they cannot watch before episode 7. For the second round, Oliver was chosen as a surprise by drummer PARK YEONGJIN to join himself, YANG JIWAN, KIM HAJIN, and ISAAC HONG in a cover of Lorde's ROYALS. According to Yeongjin, this would be the only time that they could work together and he wanted to test the dynamic. Going against the now iconic An Seongjin team with their original composition of F=MA, Gwyn was nervous but his team had something up their sleeves. From their initial composition with Yeongjin's now iconic, "the two that sing" before calling both Isaac and Gwyn as their vocalists, this team was different.

There was the initial worry that finding a middle ground was going to be impossible for the five musicians as seen in the confessionals. Oliver was still surprised even when being interviewed and apologies were given by Park Yeongjin as a joke to the vocalists. Though not much was seen from the initial practices, the five members quickly came together to formulate the perfect arrogant with Oliver being told to sing "arrogantly" by his teammates. From the first moments of their performance, everyone was shocked to see this new, darker side of Isaac and Oliver as they shared the stage in a duet. For this performance, Oliver showed off his abilities on the keyboard and other instruments to provide the perfect sound when he was not singing. The most iconic part was the bridge as Isaac and Oliver provided harmonization and belted to the gods as their instrumental counterparts highlighted their own talents, with the last minute going viral with fans.

According to the judges, this performance was the ultimate reversal. Gwyn was even given the opportunity to shout out his bandmates when stating that he had done rock and roll with their previous releases and was surprisingly more confident than in the previous stages. He was successful in making the judges his fans from this performance as they enjoyed seeing a more confident side of the idol. Nell's Kim Jongwan and Mystic Entertainment's Yoon Jongshin became his biggest supporter from this moment. With two iconic performances, this could have gone either way and thankfully, the judges voted 2:3 in favor of Royals, securing their first win.

Coming off their win with Royals, Park Yeongjin decided to KEEP his lineup for a second performance of THE TIME OF MY LIFE from Dirty Dancing. Unlike the previous round, it was less shocking when they decided to stick together. However, they struggled when choosing a song as the expectations were already high for the group. Utilizing the same positions as before, Oliver remained the second vocalist, keyboardist, and synthesizer. He also had to give some 'dance' lessons to Isaac Hong for the performance, bringing them much closer as the 'brothers' of Superband. Another successful performance, they won against Shin Hyeongbin's team 4:1.

THE FORMATION OF DEATH VALLEY ... ROUND FOUR — SEMI FINALS.

After the third round, the bands could reshuffle for the last time before creating their respective bands. Having proved himself competent enough to stand against Isaac Hong, Oliver was a popular choice for those desperate to make it to the last few episodes. However, he had already made promises to SAWYER and they just needed to find two more partners—a bassist and a drummer. The pair had made a pack after Oliver's second win in that last episode and wanted to show the judges that they could work well together. They went for the overlooked options as neither TAEYUN nor SEUNGMIN had been a part of a winning team but seemed interested in making the same type of music as them. Within the first twenty minutes, they were the second group to finish choosing members. Many were surprised by the lineup considering how popular both Sawyer and Oliver were, but they had a plan forming in the background.

In the fourth round, Sawyer's team would release one last cover of OSASIS'S CHAMPAGNE SUPERNOVA, which was met with stellar reviews from the judges. Oliver was much more relaxed and confident on stage, especially now that he had his guitar back in hand. Seeing how Isaac's freedom on stage was taken positively, Oliver let go as he swung the microphone around and did some stupid dances. Rather than focusing on keeping what made Champagne Supernova iconic in the first place, Sawyer and his team would put a few of their own touches on the song and just have fun being on stage. his welcomed change awarded the band with 453 points, tying them with LEE JUHYEOK and the future members of LUCY for second place. The judging panel complimented their composition, calling it something they had not seen yet and Oliver's newfound confidence. It was even advised that they stick together by Yoon Jongshin as they had found something great together.

With compliments like that, they formed DEATH VALLEY in the 12th episode of Superband. No one was surprised to see this lineup when they all met together before the performances. As their first live performance with an actual audience, SEUNGMIN was worried that about impressing the fans as they were all struggled with confidence throughout the show.

They presented their first original composition in the form of FARTHER AND FARTHER, a ballad about longing and memories. In their critiques, YOON SANG stated that seeing this newfound freedom from both OLIVER and SAWYER was amazing compared to the first round. While the song was met with great feedback from both judges and fans, there was no overtaking LUCY with CRY BIRD. Death Valley, however, did take SECOND PLACE with 7,410 votes.

OUR PAGE was definitely a Plastic Flowers reject and Poppies were quick to notice after the episode aired. Despite this, they earned almost a perfect score from the live audience and secured FIRST PLACE with 7,470 points, with HOPPIPOLLA not far behind them. With the two having very similar performances that showcased a new side of their bands, it made many confused as to what the audience and judges were looking for. They were given, once again positive feedback from the judges, however, they were given the challenge to make something more exciting. While these songs were good, none of them seemed like lead singles for their first album and Joe Hahn wanted to see that from the quartet in their next performance as it was the last stage. If they could make something lead single-worthy, they would have no problem winning.

SECOND PLACE IS THE FIRST LOSER ... THE LIVE FINALE.

Taking the advice of Joe Hahn to heart, the members of Death Valley got to work on their next song. For leader Siyul, it would make no sense for the group to prepare a cover this late into the game and need to come up with something brand new. They took similar themes from OUR PAGE and transformed them for TAKE MY HAND, a promise to their new fans and breaking away from the fear that had held onto them throughout the entire competition. They kept with their FLOWER BOY aesthetic and fought hard against their competitors, however, OLIVER struggles with his in-ear caused some weird sections as he attempted to shove the device back into his ear to hear the music, which was clocked by both judges and the audience. Death Valley ended up ranking SECOND OVERALL in the competition, earning 27,389 votes total.

THE AFTERMATH ... WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Following the end of Superband, each other members went their separate ways. OLIVER returned to Plastic Flowers and his popularity during Superband brought the first wave of new fans to the band. He has since become the creative lead of the team along with debuting as a soloist in March of 2023. SAWYER followed close behind Gwyn and signed with Superbloom Media as a songwriter and producer. The pair often collaborate, as seen with Burnout Syndrome. Sawyer currently has no plans of debuting solo or in another band at the current moment. SEUNGMIN returned to his college program and recently earned his teaching license in South Korea! Though he went back to his original band, he wanted to complete his degree to have something to lean back on as DOGFIGHT struggled to gain relevance. Finally, TAEYUN went back to SAFETY ZONE, which remains an independent artist to this day and tries to release music consistently.

DEATH VALLEY would, of course, reunite not long after filming ended for the SUPERBAND TOUR, where the top five bands all reconnected. It was a bittersweet time for their fans and they promised to come back soon, which never did happen. With the FIVE-YEAR anniversary of Superband happening in 2024, the members have teased the potential for a reunion and even their own album. Given how busy each member is, it's not surprising that nothing has been set in stone but they promise something will come!

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replaybf · 4 months

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hey adam what did you think of the metamorph concert? oh funny you should ask! here :3

hi guys. i’ll pretend i know staging directing and anything more about music than “i like sounds” here 👍

first, critique:

the concert felt and was rather short. i understand why, but it was still sad to had it end so soon lol

my personal opinion here: i wish we got more older songs other than the iconic ones, but again, this is the guilty album concert, so i understand

he really did not do well on “not over you” and i’m glad he acknowledged it too, not just moving past a subpar performance

“want” also wasn’t the nicest imo? he sang that weirdly low, or at least that’s what i heard

maybe again, just my audio, but it really didn’t sound as if he actually Sung “advice” lol

this one i’ve said before but honestly, even taemin can’t do “move” now - the dance i mean. maybe it was the clothing here though bc on the show with akmu it was great. but yeah the red cloth outfit didn’t pair well with “move” imo and made the key hip movement look messy

this is not about taemin; the beyond live style of concert kind of deprived us of actual cinematography of it :/ like tell me why strings and black rose looked so much better on random fancams from 7 rows behind than… on the actual screen lol

general commentary:

he was so nervous. really. like i get why, again, i understand it all, and even that didn’t stop him from delivering some absolutely delicious stages, but ohhh brother he was nervous

why was the audience so. dead. like why did you hype up my man when he did good huh. i have to do everything in this house myself next time i’ll be the hype man nr 1

this is my lukewarm take: i didn’t enjoy the “criminal” rock version that much. it was very boring? the chord progression of the guitar sounded too much like a sample without much twist, and there were better ways to incorporate rock into that song imo

i think overall the ratio of lip sync to backing track to no backing track was reasonable and i do like that he didn’t try to lip sync much, just letting everyone see “yeah this is playback”

and now <3 praise and what i enjoyed <3

even though i really don’t like “the rizzness”, that opening was fucking insane. imagine starting a concert while hanging upside down. and singing while it. wow!

all the ment segments were so precious. it was clear he missed the audience for his solo stuff too. i know he’s been touring with shinee for half a year now and all but i imagine it’s different to know that these people came here only for you, you know? the interactions were cute and it was just… well it’s good to see the both sides of lee taemin :)

as i mentioned, the ratio of supported vocals to raw vocals was reasonable, but when he did actually sing… oh lee taemin. this is obviously a biased opinion because i genuinely love his voice, it was what made me fall in love with him as an artist in the first place. notable mentions of vocals imo:

“heaven” was perfectly delivered and a feast as always. the bridge in “heaven” is probably my top 5 taemin bridges, so it’s not surprising, but the energy on the stage while he performs that is So Good. MWAH

“light” was fun! i was dancing along, the playing with the dancers choreo is entertaining to watch and it’s a good time over all

after the flop of “not over you” he payed back with both “night away” and “blue” to me. “night away” especially, it felt so warm and so… just lovely. he nailed that

even though i don’t particularly enjoy “black rose” i can’t deny, it was so good. the choreo is always captivating and he sung it well

“door” … where do i even start. “door” is one of my favourite taemin songs of all time, and to see it executed in such a bold way was absolutely incredible and so enthralling, i felt enchanted listening to each new note and line. genuinely an amazing experience

some miscellaneous thoughts that i don’t know where to place:

i loved “impressionable,” the energy was so right for it, especially, well the D2 unzipped pants :)

the “strings” choreo is so sensual and sexy and yet in this classic taemin style of subtlety about it, it’s so nice to watch, to see him get lost in the pain/pleasure the song talks about. and there is almost, a grown aspect to it now, the aspect of like fully owning his body and what he does with it. very nice

“she loves me she loves me not” was cute, the choreography was very simple but still nice to look at, and i loved the energy on stage of it. the girl gang TM smiling and all :) good time!

rearrangements/special concert versions of songs:

as i mentioned above, i have lukewarm feelings about “criminal,” i didn’t dislike it, but it could have been better

LOVED the whole “danger” stage so much as well as “famous,” to me they’re like two sides of the same coin tbh. and something about both of them being in the same section as want mmm…

i wish i didn’t have to talk about “guilty” but i think i have to mention “guilty” too. the staging was absolutely gorgeous, the orchestral pieces at the beginning and before the bridge, the change in choreo of the dancers as if ensnaring him… it was delicious! such a good stage!

a separate section for the encore because i feel like it deserves it:

i don’t think it’s too untoward to think of jonghyun’s passing when it came to the date of the concert. i saw a few other mentions of it too, so i know i’m not alone in this belief. and this is not to suggest it was somehow planned this way with this date in mind, but rather, soemthing to just keep in the back of your head, i guess?

the whole encore was magical. opening the concert back up with “idea”, the orchestral version nonetheless, and staging that mixed both the hell and heaven aspects of the concept (light blue iridescent suit + dark stage lighting and fire) was delicious to witness and a great way to get the energy in the audience back up again

i don’t think i can talk much about what “pansy” means to me as a song without crying. maybe it’s stupid, because that’s exactly what the song was meant to do, but the fact that taemin co-wrote it too just… makes it so special :( and to know what… the sentiment of the song is probably even doubled now, to know that he came back from the enlistment, because so many fans kept loving him and his music and we stayed by his side even when he wasn’t there. this is just me being sappy i know but to hear “pansy” again made my heart sing

“i think it’s love” is a beautiful song and he sung it beautifully. it was a great encore choice, just an overall masterpiece

finishing the concert with “identity” of all his songs, on a concert named metamorph after the idea of metamorphosis, the imagery of cocoons and blooming and growth seen throughout the concert, with, once again, the significance of the date… it meant so much. it means so much. it was genuinely a moving performance, one that hooks you in and keeps you there, not letting you go. the emotion the execution the meaning behind it all… it just felt right, for that song to close the concert

CLOSING THOUGHTS

i’ve seen every taemin concert, save for the beyond live one in 2021, and this one fits into the theme beautifully. it’s a comeback, it’s a reminder that he’s still here, that he is Back, and he is back for good! as he said in one fan sign, this will go on for as long as he wants to and he will be the one to put the stop to it. i’m grateful for everything taemin did musically this year and i can’t wait to see him grow even more, as an artist and as a person. love you! if anyone read this whole thing leave me an 🍎 emoji in the replies hah <3

#txt #note: this is nearly 1.5k words long so proceed with caution lmao

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seasquared · 11 months

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the young boys of summer

Even if there are four seasons in this world, one season stands alone as the ultimate vibe in kpop, and that's the summer bop. This could be, and usually is, a song released late into spring or in the doldrums of the season itself, but timing of the release is not determinative. If you are lucky, the song will advertise itself as such (GFriend's "Sunny Summer," ITZY’s “IT’z Summer,” f(x)'s "Hot Summer"). But like most vibes, you know it when you hear it, like the first time you are graced with Sistar's legendary, iconic, never-to-be-duplicated "Touch my body.” When you hear these songs, you instantly recognize the canonical kpop summer accent, big bold brasses and sounds that seem slapped joyfully out of their instruments and maybe a Spanish guitar. They demand to be played during cookouts, on outdoor patios, through a portable poolside speaker, with a silly little nonsense chorus that only makes sense because the sun has baked off a few of your braincells (ATEEZ’s “Wave”, I’m looking at you). You play these songs around other people, because sharing things makes them hotter, and thus you cooler.

If the "Red Flavors" and "Alcohol-frees" of this world are the accent of summer, then there are the kpop songs that are intended as [Erik Singer voice] evocations, meant to suggest summer and, in some cases, its eventual passing. It's my personal opinion that the slightly jazzy, very r&b, midtempo jam is the sound of autumn, but even if you don't agree, you can hear how Heize in "And July" uses Dean's khiphop vocal stylings to hint at the eventual cooling down of summer and the relationship. A touch of synthwave (IKON's "But You"), EDM (AKMU's "Dinosaur"), or sultry poledancing (After School's "First Love") are all quick shortcuts to this kind of song, one that never quite mentions summer by name but could only be played on a hot summer night. And you couldn’t ask for a better example than Winner's discography, which is littered with summer hits of both kinds. "Island" is a dictionary-definition perfect rendition of the canonical mid-summer accent, while "Everyday" despite its beachy, swimsuit-packed MV and April release date is an end of summer evocation, and “Really Really” somewhere in between.

My favorite summer kpop evocation is the emotional rock anthem. Seventeen are such masters of every variety of the summertime bop ("Healing", "Swimming Fool," "Very Nice") that at some point you just have to lovingly roll your eyes at them releasing a thirst trap song in the middle of summer and naming it "Hot" because, of course. "Rock with you" was released smack dab in the fall months of October, but when I heard it I knew what it was: a "goodbye summer" song, too melancholy for summer vacation and too exuberant for going back to school but just perfect for convincing you that you have one last chance to tell your summer crush that you like them. Others in this vein: a little bit of BTS' "Run," a little bit of Stray Kids' "Time Out," and a whole lot of TXT's "0x1=LOVESONG."

And so too with NINE.i's "Young Boy." Released in November of last year, it too is a summer evocation, rock anthem subspecies, opening with a combo of synths and rhythmic strumming that drives you recklessly forward through the song like a car barreling down a mostly empty highway covered in the bruised purples and pinks of sunset. It is stuffed full of all the typical (post?) 4th gen markers: video cameras, stickers, spray paint, a tightly focused shot of someone boxing in a dimly lit warehouse, sparklers, the vague sense that you are intruding on a Lost Boys paradise. No kpop MV has captured the turbulent and contradictory angst of being a teenager better than the 0:32 mark, when Vari laughingly looks back on footage he's filmed of his groupmates while lipsyncing the line "When I get sick of it and say, 'Hate this.'"

It's no secret that kpop centers youth: in its performers, its intended audience, its aesthetics, in many of its lyrics. When BTS closed out their adolescent period, they released a two-part mini album whose English title is usually rendered as "The Most Beautiful Moment in Life." For BTS, there is no ambiguity as to when that moment happens: it is when you are young, which Suga underscores in the intro track that shares the album's name. Perhaps at the time BTS meant the title a little ironically, more question mark (the most beautiful?) than exclamation mark. (This is, after all, the group that wrote a song called "War of Hormone" that includes a lyric about squeezing pimples every day.) But when it came time to join the mini-albums into one full-length album, they doubled down, giving the compilation the subtitle "Young Forever" and releasing a song with the same name which declares over and over again "forever / we are young."

"Young" is, of course, not a number. BTS was not declaring the members' intention to remain physically immortal, kpop vampires who never age past their 20s. To be "forever young" is "endlessly run towards my dream," to push forward despite being lost in a maze, to "fall and hurt myself" but still get back up and keep pushing. "Forever we are young" is also an acknowledgement that BTS may always be remembered by some of their fans for this era, caught in glorious high definition high concept music videos that celebrate a carefree "live fast die young" aesthetic. In the MV for "Epilogue: Young Forever," these images, distorted as if on VHS tape, trap the members in a cage of fences. When they escape, it is to an empty runway while a plane flies overhead as if towards heaven. Is this freedom, or death? The only way to remain young forever may be to die young; or put another way, to remain young forever is to die.

Don Henley knew this when he wrote "The Boys of Summer," the summer evocation to end all summer evocations. It is, as everyone knows, not an ode actually to the boys of summer but rather to what remains after they are gone. Its best lines ("Out on the road today / I saw a Deadhead sticker on a Cadillac") are about the contradictions of growing up, realizing that you may have to betray the idealism of your youth. It is, in other words, not Maverick and Iceman playing beach volleyball in Top Gun but rather a much older Tom Cruise in Top Gun: Maverick finally having to sit down on the sidelines to watch his students carry on playing beach football without him. The "you" of the song is a girl that Henley's singer still longs for, perhaps one he met when he himself was a boy of summer. But for a very long time, I thought Henley's singer was addressing himself as a younger man. (Can you blame me, when he sings about hair "slicked" back, wearing Wayfarers like one of Top Gun's flyboys?) Through the course of the song, Henley makes peace with the death of youth as best as he can. "Those days are gone forever," he says. He has had to grow up. But in his heart, he still sees his lost love—and maybe himself—forever young.

Perhaps that is what NINE.i is summoning in "Young Boy," when they sing "I can even die." For a moment you may think they are singing "I can't even die," and in a way, both are right. To stop being young is to die, spiritually, but growing old does not mean you stop being young. You can always return to that state. NINE.i's young boy is one of Henley's boys of summer, always shining in the sun, smiling at everyone. He is gone only if you, like Henley's speaker, let him go, turn your back on him and turn him into a sticker on the back of your Cadillac. The young boy of summer is immortal, not because he can't be hurt, but because he is mythological. Youth is not an interlude in one's life. It is a state of possession, like an ancient god that descends upon your body. It is a bit unfamiliar but, NINE.i assures you, as long as you can dream him, he is "forever."

#kpop #if spring is the season of youth then summer is when youth goes to die.

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