GFriend seeks makeover for anniversary album
K-pop girl group GFriend — comprising of Sowon, Eunha, Yerin, Yuju, SinB and Umji — celebrated their fourth anniversary on Tuesday by releasing a new studio album with the sentimental yet powerful single “Sunrise.”
The lead track on “Time for Us,” the follow up to last year’s “Time for the Moonlight,” “Sunrise” is a song that is packed with orchestral sounds as the sextet layer their vocals over the melody. Its lyrics compare a beloved person to the sun that is yet to rise.
“This is the first album since our first full-length album LOL, released in July 2016, and our first release since Sunny Summer last July,” member Umji said during a press showcase for promoting their second full length album at YES24 Live Hall in eastern Seoul, Monday.
The song was released alongside a sophisticated music video that features the six members serving up intense choreography with elements like hand moves emulating the sun.
For GFriend, the performance and style elements play a big role for them in shaping their concept. “I dyed my hair blonde to stand out in the music video. When the MV teasers were released, my fans told me that my style matches well with the concept,” group leader Sowon said.
“We put a lot of effort into of vocals,” member Yuju said. “I think Eunha’s four-octave high note in Sunrise would be noteworthy to watch.”
Along with the single, the latest album features 12 other tracks, including “You are not Alone,” a medium tempo song with energetic drum rhythms, “L.U.V,” a lovely synth pop piece, “GLOW,” a harmony-driven R&B pop sound, “Our Secret,” a synth-pop dance tune, “Truly Love,” accompanied by throbbing synthesizer and base sounds and “Show Up,” a Future House pop dance track.
Tracks “It’s You,” “A Starry Sky” and “Love Oh Love” are poignant pop ballad pieces with mystic vibes.
The album also includes an instrumental version of the track “Sunrise” and the Korean-language version of “Memoria,” GFriend’s Japanese single released in October. The lyrics were slightly modified as the song was translated from Japanese to Korean.
The 13-track album comes as the girl group celebrates the fourth anniversary of its debut with the mini-album “Season of Glass” in 2015.
Umji explained that each member grew more prominent since their debut, in terms of their ability to interpret and express the songs. Yuju thanked their fan club Buddy for their unconditional love and support throughout the years. “The membership of our official fan club has grown a lot over the last four years, and that makes us want to work harder,” she said.
During the press showcase, member SinB said she hopes GFriend will hold another solo concert this year to share intimate times with their fans.
“Our New Year’s resolution is to throw another solo concert so that we can share good times with our fans,” she said.
After debuting with the mini-album “Season of Glass” in January 2015, GFriend has become one of the most prominent girl groups of this K-pop generation. Their hit songs include “Me Gustas Tu” (2015), “Rough” (2016) and “Love Whisper” (2017).