JAKARTA - Aespa is back with a small surprise for the summer. The South Korean K-pop group will release its second studio album, "Lemonade", on Friday at 13.00 local time.
According to a Yonhap report quoted on Friday, May 29, this album comes two years after their first studio album, "Armageddon", which was released in May 2021. This time, Karina, Winter, Giselle, and Ningning are still wearing strong electronic energy. However, the tone is made fresher.
"People often say our music has a 'metallic taste'. But this time we are back with a 'sour taste'," said aespa at a press conference in Seoul, quoted by Yonhap.
The sentence is light, but it explains aespa's new direction. They didn't leave the loud sound that has been their signature. It's just that "Lemonade" feels like it wants to be made more relaxed, cooler, and easier to get into the ears of summer listeners.
The lead single "Lemonade" uses a synthesizer bass, an electronic sound created through a digital musical instrument, with a strong beat. The message is simple: life's trials are likened to lemons. Don't just swallow the bitterness. Make it into lemonade.
"It's about treating trials and pain as lemons, then grinding them into a delicious lemonade," Karina said. "We hope people get energy from this song."
According to Yonhap, the album containing 10 songs also includes "WDA", a hip-hop song that was released earlier and featured G-Dragon. There is also "Switchblade" with American rapper Ty Dolla Sign.
Another number is "Shakin'", a dance song about confidence; "Can't Help Myself" which has a rock touch; and "Camouflage", a hyper-pop song, which is electronic pop with fast, dense, and experimental sounds.
Outside of music, aespa still carries their fictional universe based on the virtual world. For this album, the concept is based on "cracks" in the multiverse and parallel worlds. Multiverse means a shadow of many universes that run side by side.
For aespa, the crack is not just a sign of a crisis. It is also a path to new possibilities.
"This second album takes our signature fictional universe one step further," said Winter. "Fans will feel the familiar intensity, but also a stronger message and direction."
Karina said the big theme of this episode was turning a crisis into an opportunity. This does sound like a motivational phrase. However, in the K-pop machine, such messages can turn into songs, choreography, clothing, videos, and pop-up stores that work in unison.
For promotions, aespa will open a pop-up store, a temporary store to sell products and promotional experiences, at IFC Mall, Yeouido, Seoul, from Friday to June 7. Similar stores have also opened in Los Angeles, New York, and Shenzhen, China. After that, promotions continue to more than six other cities, including Bangkok, Tokyo, and Taipei.
Through "Lemonade", aespa seems to be testing a new recipe: stay futuristic, stay intense, but not too cold. This time, the sour taste is actually sold as a refresher.
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