Boy band DAILY:DIRECTION explores where love leads on 1st EP
K-pop boy band DAILY:DIRECTION / Courtesy of ODDWAVE
Eight months after its debut, rookie boy band DAILY:DIRECTION is taking the idea behind its name — that everyday choices add up to a direction in life — and pointing it at a bigger question of which road leads to love.
The six-member ODDWAVE act, made up of EN KIM, Kim Joo-hyoung, Lim Ji-hwan, E-VAN, Lee Won-woo and Jang Yoon-seok, dropped its first EP, "WHICH WAY," on Wednesday, presenting listeners with a record built around the question of where to go next on a journey together.
The all-Korean group debuted in February with the single "FIRST:DELIVERY."
The members met the press at a performance hall in Jung District, central Seoul, hours before the album's release, to talk about the making of the record.
"While preparing, we thought a lot about how to show the six of us, each with a different charm, and how best to bring out a refreshing side," Lee said.
The members stressed that the album traces the path toward love.
EN KIM turned the question back to reporters, asking whether any particular love came to mind for them, before describing the record as one that "asks questions about love and searches for the road to the answer."
Kim walked through the storybook prince motif that runs across the album's visuals.
"There’s a very narcissistic element to it — you see us falling in love with ourselves," he said. "We thought of Cupid as a fantastical figure who makes love come true. Watching senior K-pop groups take on conceptual images about love, we wanted to try it ourselves."
From left, Jang Yoon-seok, Lim Ji-hwan, Kim Joo-hyoung, Lee Won-woo, E-VAN and EN KIM of K-pop boy band DAILY:DIRECTION attend a press event for the group’s first EP, “WHICH WAY,” at a performance hall in Jung District, Seoul, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Pyo Kyung-min
The album has six tracks, including "WHICH WAY," "IF YOU SAY SO," "TRAPPED," "DOWN WITH IT," "WHO I AM" and the prerelease single "UP."
"WHICH WAY" channels the freewheeling energy of alternative hip-hop and alternative rock into a polished pop sound. Lim said the song is about pressing on even while wondering whether the path you are on is the right one.
"It shows a side of us we’ve never shown before," he said. "Everyone can sing along to the chant part and enjoy it."
Kim pointed to their choreography's signature, in which the members form a "W" with their fingers and jab it in the direction they want to go.
Asked what they hope to achieve, Jang said he simply wants more people to come across the group, ideally by hearing its music playing on the street.
"The moment I hear it outside, I’d want to film a short-form challenge video right there on the spot and upload it," he said.
Lee wants the group to be known for its range.
"I’d like to hear that we’re a chameleon-like group," he said. "We’re taking on a lot of genres and concepts, and I want to show that we can blend into all of them without backing down."