Much like BTS, we’re back! [Kerosene, dopamine] [what I gotta do?] [Yeah, we call this s— normal.] – Hi, what can I get for you? – Can I get a large fries and a medium Dr Pepper. No ice, please. – Alright. It’s been four years since BTS put out music as a group. Their new album, it’s called “Arirang,” came out last week. I want to be honest. It’s way better than it needs to be. I know that sounds like slight praise, but it’s not. It almost is immaterial if the music is good, progressive, thoughtful, challenging, interesting. It’s going to have fan loyalty. They’re going to sell out their tour. And yet, this album really feels like a musical step forward. They’re actually pushing themselves, trying novel things, taking risks and landing them. The song I love most on this album is called “Normal.” – Hi, you’re the Dr Pepper and the fry, right? – That’s correct. It reminds me of a couple things. On the one hand, there are all those late-career Rihanna singles. Huge and slashing. Rock influence, but still had the structure of big mainstream pop songs. On the other hand, this has a touch of that Mk.gee energy to it with guitar that’s like a little bit low in the mix and sounds almost depressed. So I’m listening to the lyrics of the song, and I’m hearing this kind of like drip, drip, drip of what it feels like to exist in the intensely pressurized environment of being a K-pop superstar. “If everything’s just happy, that ain’t real.” “Wish I had a minute just to turn me off.” It’s very rare that you hear K-pop stars expressing how challenging their jobs actually are. What I like so much about “Normal” is BTS is saying to their fans, “Yeah, we’re back. Yeah, we’re big. Maybe even bigger than ever.” But underneath all that, there’s a cost. Thank you.
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