Greatest Hits:: ATEEZ: BOUNCY (K-HOT CHILLI PEPPERS)

 Okay, so. I actually decided I was going to do this song now back in January, I think, because I have a friend who is a teacher and has been sharing K-Pop with her students this year. They're remarkably resistant to a lot of songs (they hate Girls' Generation specifically, love VOODOO DOLL and OKay, and tolerate Chase Me and Mr. Simple, but also tolerate Red Velvet, Hearts2Hearts, and aespa) and have generally poor taste because they refuse to give girl groups an actual chance and what do you mean that they didn't like Zombie Party by SPEED? They can however sing almost the entirety of Gangnam Style and CUPID. But up until OKay was released, BOUNCY and VOODOO DOLL were the crowned kings of the class. Which makes it wildly hilarious to me that xikers has now dethroned ATEEZ. But I obviously can't cover OKay yet because it's not two years old, and I obviously can't cover VOODOO DOLL because I already did that one. So, even though they'll likely never see this, I'm going to cover their former favorite song (I'm planning on having my friend ask them for which song they liked this year I should cover, so look forward to that in June). I got lucky that it also qualifies for the May theme because I didn't remember I wanted to cover this one now until I was about halfway through song selection. Don't worry. The last song for May inspired the theme, and if you haven't figured it out by now, which is fine, you should be able to figure it out by next time because the theme is what that song is known for. 

ATEEZ debuted in 2018 as KQ Entertainment's first group. They're an eight-member group with both a pirate and a revolutionary concept. I regularly describe their lore like "Footloose meets Blade Runner". But with some Doctor Who elements thrown in there. Actually, their lore reminds me specifically of  "Army of Ghosts" and "Doomsday", which is fun. Those are good episodes. They're not ones I'd have you start on because they require context (I have a list of introductory episodes before tossing you into the whole show if you'd like them), but they're very good. So, yeah. Those two episodes meets Footloose.

BOUNCY (K-HOT CHILLI PEPPERS) (hereafter referred to only as BOUNCY because I am not typing that whole thing every time I want to say the song title) was released in 2023 as the title and third track of their mini album WORLD EP.2 : OUTLAW (which also has Dune, which I previously covered as a BBS post courtesy of a submission to The Form). It won five first place awards on the music shows: two on The Show, two on Music Bank, and one on Show Champion. The album itself hit number one on multiple charts across the world. We've got the recent usual suspects for an ATEEZ song in the credits: Hongjoong and Mingi for their raps and possibly something else, Eden (xikers, BTOB, Younha, Gallant, Heize, Lim Seul Ong, Woodz, Yuju, and maddox), Ollounder (xikers, Dreamcatcher, BTOB, maddox, The Boyz, Golden Child, N. Flying, Teen Top, and Favorite), Peperoni (xikers and Dreamcatcher), Buddy (Dreamcatcher, xikers, Changyung Hwang, Eden, maddox, Babylon, Yuju, and HLB), and OLIV (xikers, Dreamcatcher, Parameter, and Aviino). Hongjoong and Mingi only have lyricist credits, the others have lyricist and composer credits, and Alexander Karlsson (TOMORROW X TOGETHER, BTS, NCT, Enhypen, SuperM, AleXa, &TEAM, Xdinary Heroes, LE SSERAFIM, xikers, TWICE, Momoland, Cherry Bullet, NiziU, Billlie, ITZY, TWS, Hwasa, Dino, ALL(H)OURS, Baekhyun, Lay, SHINee, Kino, LUN8, Red Velvet, MCND, SUPERKIND, The Boyz, Key, B.A.P, WHIB, Tempest, Fantasy Boys, Chanyeol, Super Junior, SixTONES, GWSN, Cravity, BAE173, FT Island, TVXQ!, ARrC, INI, Baekho, IMLAY, IS:SUE, Lee Jinhyuk, and CNBLUE) only has composer credits.

• Group: ATEEZ
• Debut Date: 2018 October 24
• Company: KQ Entertainment
• Status: Active
• Album: WORLD EP.2 : OUTLAW
• Song: BOUNCY (K-HOT CHILLI PEPPERS)
• Release Date: 2023 June 16

I have a confession. This was the song that had come out most recently when I started listening to K-Pop. And, because of my love for xikers and how much they obviously adored ATEEZ, I decided to take a listen to them. This was the first song of theirs I ever heard, and I almost didn't listen to another one because I was slightly scandalized by that one Hongjoong fancam.

If you know the one I'm talking about, you know. If not, I'm going to try to find it so everyone else can experience it. I gave them another chance before Crazy Form came out because I really wanted to like them and did find a song I absolutely loved. Still, it took me a couple of years to get over how much I didn't like this song. Seeing them perform it live did help. But it took me time, and I still don't listen to it often, and I'm not sure I'd ever seen the music video. Which I haven't. 

Ideally, I would have been able to wait a little longer on this song, but you know what? No time like the present to dig into a song and appreciate what it is and what's there.

And that also means that now that I'm actually watching it, with subtitles on, I'm suddenly realizing that I understand some of the Korean.

Hold on. I need to take a second to be excited about my progress. I apparently need to start assuming that I do actually understand more than I think I do.

And that's the beginning of Crazy Form at the end. Fascinating.

Okay, audio or music video? 

You know what? Concept first because Mingi at the beginning with the eyeliner and the hat at :19 makes me thank his parents. Here's the thing though: cowboys and outlaws light up a part of my brain that I'd prefer not to think about too deeply but I know stem from the fact that before I moved to Vegas, I was around them a lot. Like, you put me around a rodeo, and I am respectfully paying a lot of attention. And as far as the outlaws go, look, that's what happens when you're raised on westerns. And also Star Wars (Han Solo anyone? No?).

And then my now not-so-recent discovery that I really like eyeliner, and Mingi is just very nice. Plus, his voice fits this so unbelievably well to provide a solid and necessary grit and depth that's coupled well with the aggression that we're seeing on camera.

So this particular concept is basically catnip for my brain. Needless to say, I'm a bit googly over it in general. Probably a good thing I never watched the music video before this. 

So, interestingly, this music video is reminding me a lot of Work's music video, which is a little bit funny because this one is dark and edgy where Work is bright and whimsical, but the idea behind both is just a bit odd. Interestingly, this music video pairs really well with EXID's Every Night, which is not a comparison I thought I'd ever make. If I had a nickel for every song I've covered with a music video involving a heist and chili peppers, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it's happened twice now. It also pairs really well with EXID's Hot Pink as well, but that fits into the larger crime spree music videos that we also get with B.A.P's Feel So Good. And now I've suddenly got an idea for something new.

Great. I'll sit on that for a bit. 

There's something really interesting about how the song is structured. The two pre-choruses use four of the eight members between the two of them, and the post-chorus uses two of the remaining four. The actual chorus uses only Hongjoong, until after the bridge, so in that chunk of time for the area around the chorus, we've got seven of the eight being used. The only one remaining is Mingi, who has a pretty big chunk of the second version and the beginning and that's it. Not that I necessarily think he was neglected because he matches this incredibly well. And, most importantly, I've seen this performed in concert. The man has arenas and stadiums screaming his name. And barking at him, which he really enjoys. 

That is not being neglected. That is getting to kick open a set of double doors Aragorn style. That is getting to strut because you are the most powerful person in the room in a room of powerful people.

Anyway, back to Hongjoong's choruses. They take up the majority of his lines, but despite not having his own rap, because the chorus has two very iconic spots of choreography, he gets to be in the spotlight more than nearly everyone else. And with that first one, when he says "Slow it down", he bends down aggressively which triggers the fire. It's a very dramatic effect that I very much enjoy.

And can we just appreciate the absurdity of the one storyline? They're stealing chili peppers. It's a heist to steal chili peppers. If you didn't know it, you'd think they were stealing priceless artifacts or mountains of gems or KitKats. But no. It's chili peppers.

And it's the most serious thing.

San gets to show off his athleticism, which is always a good time. Beaten, bloodied, still able to deliver a roundhouse kick to the face.

And then there's Wooyoung going "Go, go, go! Get back out there!"

Then of course the entire thing is actually a cover for them to have the chili peppers, which have bullets, so that they can take out one of the white robot guys. If I remember what they're called, I'll probably be very excited about it. I'm not as up to date with the ATEEZ lore as I am with their younger brothers, but it definitely feels like they're in hiding (badly) and then they end up somewhere a lot more institutional and, well it reminds me a bit of the Institute from Fallout 4. Which, you know, means total control, robots or robot-like beings, and lack of emotions. I don't know how accurate that is in the context of the lore, but that feels like I could be picking up the correct vibes based on what I know of the lore.

It's a good dichotomy between the blood and the rawness of them in black versus them in white in the white building with sterility and control. 

Blue Hongjoong was something else. As is that thumbnail.

The most viewed part of the video is Hongjoong's first chorus. Polite cough.

This choreography made the practice room shake, didn't it? Well, we'll find out later.

Anyway, this is actually a One Take performance from Music Bank, so you don't get the names yet. I just wanted to get this performance out of the way since it does have by far the most views. But also, we've got San on the floor, Mingi screaming in a mesh shirt, Yeosang showing shoulder, Yunho looking like a chaebol from a kdrama, Wooyoung being smiley and you can hear his claps, Seonghwa being remarkably stable even when he has to let the backtrack take it so he can get a breath, and Jongho singing along almost the entire song.

Jongho requires the hand mic because he's one of those that sings along (along with Woozi of Seventeen and Han of Stray Kids so he's in great company) and you can pry that hand mic out of his cold dead hands. He's an incredible vocalist and I know there's the joke that he eats CDs for breakfast, but the man's vibrato pattern changed. That's about the only difference between this performance and the studio version. That's it. It's insane. KQ got a gem when they got him.

Here's the thing. Yes, you want to be watching what's going on up front at 2:18 because it's San and Yunho. But also, you want to watch what's going on behind them with Yeosang and Wooyoung. 

And speaking of Wooyoung, those are definitely live mics because at 2:38, you can hear his clap right there. 

I hope the person behind the camera always sleeps on the cool side of the pillow. The shot as San was bending backwards? Are you kidding? His biceps flattened out as he was going back the way SCoups's do during Thunder, which is one of the more attractive parts of that choreography and makes me very happy to see here. San is just incredible. I don't know if I've said that here, but I appreciate his dedication to the concept and choreography, which in this case was a bit bulkier. And then he has the audacity to poke himself in the dimple for the ending fairy like he wasn't out here doing that.

The audacity.

Here's the proper Music Bank performance with the names. By the way. San just distracted me. 

And, funnily enough, I had to slow it down to see what Jongho was doing with his mic at 2:05. I thought he might have been flipping it, which felt both out of character and also more aggressive than we normally see from him, but no, he was just gesturing with that hand while the mic was in his hand. 

The posturing at the beginning with Seonghwa and Mingi was kind of funny. They were doing the bro bouncing into each other (pun not intended), which made it a little funnier that they get the second verse together. 

I cannot tell you how much I love that you can hear Seonghwa's voice clearly go in and out as he lets the backtrack take it. Look, with how hard this choreography is, even though it's relatively close to the beginning, him sneaking quick breaths is responsible and understandable. It would be hard enough with how many words he's trying to get out that fast just standing still. But also, proves it's live.

The Show

First of all, Hongjoong's little wink right there at 1:31 is positively lethal. How is he allowed? 

Second of all, Yunho is out here looking like a driver who used to be special forces, but got out of that line of work because he decided it wasn't worth dying over, but now those skills are needed once again because someone got kidnapped.

Third, Mingi is the same thing, but a bodyguard. His visuals are visualling so hard I've literally got my bias on screen right now because I paused the video and Mingi is basically the only thing I can see. What color is the background? Purple? I couldn't even tell you. And it's even worse (or better depending on your point of view) during his rap. I try not to swear during these because that feels unprofessional, but know that I'm going to stop here or I'll start foaming at the mouth and none of us want that.

Also, a moment of silence for the magnificent coat that was before it got cut in half for San.

Say what you will about this group though, but they don't come to play. Until the ending fairy when San is winking and Yeosang is sniffing a chili pepper. 

One thing I really like about the bridge is that it's basically the first quiet part of the song. There's been a lot of yelling and volume up until this point, and then we've got Yeosang, Yunho, and Jongho. The progression increases in volume through the three members, as well as increasing in pitch. We've got Yeosang's lovely, lovely deep voice starting it, progressing to Yunho's mid-range, and then Jongho's high notes. It's really well done. It really is. I love it. And then the start of that last chorus echoes the bridge's drops again, so we get hit again with it before San goes full Demon Line and the dance break cuts in. 

Band Version time, and this time we get a very limited backtrack so just raw vocals for the most part. The amount of grit they're throwing into their voices would bring a person stronger than me to their knees. It's just so visceral in a way that you get from Concert ATEEZ and rough and at some points, it's like a cat's tongue. Yes, you're being licked, but it's like sandpaper. You're going to be raw by the end of it, but it's something to enjoy as an expression of affection.

The limited amount of backtrack we get also means that we get to hear their little yips and grunts and yells and just noises that they make. And they're so noisy and get noisier as the song progresses and they settle more and more into the performance. Mingi and San are the biggest culprits because they're constantly running their mouths and adding to the aural landscape. Mingi especially is rapping along with the high-pitch backtrack parts for Yunho and San, but you can also see him singing along with Hongjoong at :51. And the thing is, because they're all using hand mics, when they're making their noises and singing along and you can hear them, they're having to actively make the choice to bring those mics up to their mouths.

I don't know what it is about Yeosang at 1:13, but he looks so soft and fluffy, until you take a look at his forearms and you realize that you can actually see the muscle definition and the tendons. Which is kind of the general consensus with him. He's kind of the opposite of Mingi that way, which is adorable on both ends.

And I would be remiss if I didn't include the Choi bros part at 1:46. Y'all, they sound so good together right here. San being all gritty and Jongho being smooth as butter is such a satisfying combination.

And then San at 2:44 with Wooyoung. That was cute.

Tipsy Live performance! I always think of BTOB when I see one of these, and while the entire thing is hilarious (some of them handle their alcohol much better than others, and some of them get soft and sleepy and it's so precious), this feels in the spirit of the song. If the video doesn't spit you out at 6:19 like it's supposed to, that's where you want to go. I included Mingi's voice crack right there because it makes me laugh affectionately every time I watch this video.

We also get a rare Jongho voice crack here during the performance, and not just one but two. Like, I don't think we can get a more real performance than this one. They're either just vibing and or doing the choreo in tiny. And these aren't performance mics and half of them are at least tipsy if not drunk, and they still sound this good. Chaotic. But good.

There's so much happening that if I were to go into detail, we'd be here all afternoon. Just enjoy at your leisure.

ATEEZ 2024 fanmeeting! Fancam time! If you've been around a while you know that I love it when groups do ridiculously powerful choreography while dressed up weirdly (see also: Savage). 

San doing this choreography with the cute little hearts on his ANITEEZ butt gives me the cuteness aggression. I just want to squish him and shake his face.

Just enjoy this. It's sweet. It's goofy. 

As always, the best part of a relay dance is not what's going on in front, it's what's going on behind the lead person. That's where most of the goofiness happens, goofiness that I love. If you're looking to learn it, this might make it a little easier to learn the choreography.

If the Killing Voice video does not spit you out where I want you to go, you're looking for 2:34. I don't know what it is about Killing Voice, but every artist just looks so good, like they're just sort of glowing. The stylists outdid themselves.

Also, this feels a bit like their tipsy live video, where they're just vibing. Some of them do the choreography, some of them are singing along (standing away from the mics so they don't get picked up) when it isn't their part, but they're all very, very loud. They're so loud.

I love dance practices in the KQ room because the lights shake with particularly aggressive choreography.

ATEEZ had the lights shaking almost immediately from some stomping.

It's really satisfying how the dancers just sort of appear from nowhere at 1:06 behind Yunho. I know that they came out of the entrance on the other side of the room from where the camera is, but they're so smooth about it. Sneaky dancers.

Starting at 2:27, the bridge part (and the beginning of the last chorus because we again get that echo) gives us a cool little build, starting off with Yeosang up in front and on his own. Then it's the whole group in formation and in sync. Then it's Wooyoung in front moving on his own, then it's the whole group in formation and in sync again. Then it's the dance break. It's actually kind of a fabulous start and stop to give them a breather right before they're going to go all out, but it builds anticipation really well too for that dance break. 

And at :28, can we just appreciate how strong Yunho's knees are? He's a big boy. He's tall. He's not willow tree slender. That's a lot of weight and he goes down so smoothly with an equally smooth recovery. I'm not sure I could have done that without my left knee (which has some bad cartilage in it) sounding like a bowl of Rice Krispies at any point in my life. 

I know this hasn't taken all that much time, relatively speaking, but I'm a bit behind. It's fine. I can catch up. Hello, everyone! I hope you enjoyed this song! After about five hours of work on this, I do like the song a lot better now. One song left for the monthly theme! You'll probably be able to figure it out if you haven't!

If you've got a song that you want me to cover, feel free to drop a comment or you can always fill out The Form for me if you'd rather do that. I'd love to see what you've got for me!

Previous: "Shining Diamond" by Seventeen                                                          Next: "Tempo" by EXO