Part 1: 14* reasons why BTS’ Arirang is my AOTY
*There are 14 tracks and this is actually a track-by-track break down, soz about it. You’re here now. Swim with me.
I told my work friends last week that my two favourite BTS genres were ‘obnoxious Korean hip hop’ and ‘introspective power ballads’ and that’s why Arirang is the best thing I’ve ever heard. Every song has multiple moments that scratch my brain just right. I’ve decided to timestamp them. Think of it as an interactive tour of the album.
I read a Guardian review of Arirang that called it ‘dumb fun pop’ and the writer is not wrong but also not remotely right. Therein lies the genius of Arirang. If you only dip in a toe you can have a great time pretending it’s a silly, horny, fun hip hop / pop album. But if you dig deeper you realise that it’s still fun but also smart, clever, outrageous, confident, riddled with self-doubt, ironic, angry, sad, hopeful, beautiful, replete with yearning. In short, a modern no-skip masterpiece.
Body to Body
This song is the perfect opener for an arena concert. BTS and their performances are inextricably linked — these 7 men are simply too much to live inside a static recording. They kicked off this album and era with a timeless banger that literally tells the story of the members’ arirang for their lives as BTS, for being on a stage surrounded by fans. It couldn’t be more perfect. It couldn’t be more BTS?
0:40 — When Yoongi goes “from everywhere to Korea” that is a flex. He goes on to say: It's big in real life 뭘 체면 따져 내려놔, 야 인마 (Why get hung on saving face, drop it, ya dude). And then he inhales sharply through his teeth and says, “Hop in. 좀 더 가까이 와 (come a little closer) skin to skin.” What I’m trying to say is that I am deceased before the first minute is up.
0:46 — BUT THEN Jimin appears singing in his LOWER REGISTER in the pre-chorus and I rise again.
0:52 — I’m very into the way JK sings 저기 저 달에 닿게 손에 손 (hand in hand, we reach for the moon). It’s giving Rumi and Jinu.
1:00 — Beat drop 😤
1:52 — the first hint of the Korean folk song Arirang in the background, sneaking into your psyche.
2:25 — Full blown Arirang now — the ancient song that’s allegedly* an unofficial national anthem in Korea. The song that encapsulates the feelings of love, pain, regret, and longing that BTS wanted to share in this album. I have full body chills. Hope I get to hear ARMY singing this live one day.
*I’m not Korean but watch the vid below at 29:28 onwards for an example of how hard the use of this song in Body to Body is hitting the Korean diaspora.
Hooligan
Last week I talked about being excited to hear J-hope go crazy on Arirang. I got what I wanted on track 2. But before I get to that, I need to talk about the first 18 seconds of this song which starts like an orchestra, morphs into a glitching creepy carnival ride soundtrack, and then turns into the sound of knives being sharpened. It’s really no surprise that one of the co-writers and producers on this track is El Guincho, who worked with Rosalía on one of my favourite LUX tracks, De Madrugá. This is an extremely hooliganish start to a song.
0:24 — J-hope’s unhinged laugh.
1:43 — Yoongi raps 시간 됐으니 좀 비켜 좀, all clear 이상 무 (it’s time to move aside, all clear, good to go) in the most satisfying way and then is followed straight after by JK and Jimin and their unpredictable tempo changes.
Take you out, take you out
What's the future? Where's the now?
This is international
Make it unforgettable
2:15 — I give you, RM:
We’re the mess, gonna get a bigger mop here
This that K gotta get a better pop here
You gon’ hear this one playin’ round the clock, yeah
This song is pretty intense experimental hip hop. I love how unexpected it is. And, like the other opening tracks on this album, I know it’s going to be even better live. If you don’t believe me then go watch it on Netflix. Hooligan begins at 5:17 with Jin trying and failing to be a hooligan, and ends with V giving an extremely hooliganish glare down the barrel of the camera.
Aliens
This song is sonically outrageous and lyrically genius. Aliens is about being an outsider in a cultural landscape dominated by English-speaking, western artists. It’s a clapback to casual and not-so-casual racism, and an anthem that speaks to the members’ very intentional choice to remain true to their cultural identity regardless of how big they get in the west. The obnoxiousness is precisely the point. I love its confidence and aggression.
0:22 — J-hope’s pre-chorus
Hello, this your, hello, this your new honey
박수 쳐, 흔들어, 중모리 (clap and shake it to the jungmori rhythm)
Oh, my God, do I look too funny?
뭐 어쩔래 (so what)? Just move for me, yeah, move for me
0:40 — The whole chorus from JK and V is 🫨
From the 가나 to the 하, 우리 보고 배워놔 (from the beginning to the end of the Korean alphabet, watch and learn from us) — I have learned Hangul because of BTS so..🫡
Yeah, we aliens
If you wanna hit my house, 신발은 벗어놔 (shoes off at the door)
Yeah, we aliens
어쩜 그래 shameless (the nerve on you, shameless)
예의를 차려 we aliens (show some respect, we aliens)
해는 동쪽에서 risin' (out of the East, the sun’s risin’)
Aliens, aliens
1:13 — RM’s verse. He is a gift.
It goes, let me, honey, talk about the business
Everybody know now where the K is
어디까지 가니 이런 제길 (How far are we taking this, dammit)
저주하니 아직? 흉즉대길 (Still cursing us out and talking trash)
Pardon, 김구 선생님, tell me how you feel (Kim Gu Seonsaengnim tell me how you feel?) — Kim Gu is an historical Korean politician and activist who wanted his nation to be known for its culture, not its political power or military might.
영어는 또 나밖에 못 해, but that is how we kill (I’m the only one who speaks English but that is how we kill)
눈만 또 허벌나게 큰 너희가 말하길 (you guys with ridiculously big eyes say)
Are they for real? For real?
STOP IT RM. But don’t. Please, continue.
FYA
This is like the 6-7 of songs. I think when the Guardian guy wrote his review and he said dumb fun, he was referring to this song specifically. Can you imagine being in Korean military service for 18 months, and then a few days after your discharge, flying to LA to spend 2 months hanging out with mostly American songwriters and producers who tell you everything is fire all the time? Can you imagine if you were constantly having to learn new and incomprehensible slang in a language not your own?
Suga said he wrote his verse for people to have fun with, to laugh at. I generally find it super cringe when millenials like me use words borrowed from younger generations. E.g. Taylor Swift on the Track 5 that shall-not-be-named. But somehow BTS get away with it because it feels like they are laughing. Let us not forget that the reason so many people (read: me) love these guys is because they are FUN, and we get to have fun vicariously through them.
Seeing this live was/will be epic.
0:02 — here for the heavy breathing
0:27 — RM saying “oh oh oh I see what you’re saying.” Like, “I think I understand what you mean or I’m going to pretend like I do!”
0:45-0:57 — This whole pre-chorus makes no sense and I love it. I particularly love how JK says “can’t forget” in a way that makes you believe him even though it’s completely nonsensical?
1:09 — BRITNEY REFERENCE
1:40 — Suga says 무서워, 무서워 한겨울에도 엉뜨 필요 없어 (scary, scary, won’t need a heated seat even in dead winter).
Honestly, I fully expect this will make the club go psycho and will take them viral. Not that they need it.
2.0
First, a moment for the transition between FYA and 2.0. So smooth that I missed it altogether on my first two listens.
0:11 — what is this vocal effect just before Suga starts rapping? I’m obsessed with it. God I love this song.
0:29-0:42 — The pre-chorus is so percussive. Basically they went on hiatus and all the K-pop bands were waiting in the wings to become the next BTS and now BTS are back to claim their crown. And here they are saying it out loud very intensely. As they should.
0:44 — I don’t know if it’s intentional but I like how the repetition of ‘do do do do do do’ kind of sounds like the Korean word for 2 둘 and am I just flexing because I learned how to count to ten in hangul last week? Yes. This is my blog.
0:50 — I just love how 불을 붙여, brand new, 붙여, brand new (light the fire, brand new, light it, brand new) sounds. Inject it.
0:59 — J-hope’s whole verse. RM said it was his favourite rap verse on the whole album and I agree. I mean I like it everytime J-hope opens his mouth, though. I won’t give you an exhaustive translation this time, just go and listen because it sounds good. You can get English translations on Apple Music and Spotify.
1:53 — RM says hit ‘em with the truth like rah so nonchalantly. The aura.
Also the choreo for this goes absolutely crazy.
No. 29
This album has two parts and this 1:38 second track is the interlude between them. It’s the sound of the Sacred Bell of King Seongdeok. When you listen to it through headphones you can hear the resonance slowly dying out. It gives you a moment to breathe before the more chill, ‘pop’ side of the album begins.
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It’s late and unsurprisingly I’ve spent too much time on this so I’m going to make it a 2-parter. I’ll be back tomorrow for tracks 7-14.