Friday, October 21, 2016

[MV Review] BTS (Bangtan Boys) - "Blood, Sweat, and Tears"


BTS make their, what? 17th comeback of the year? I honestly lost count, they comeback 20 times a year anyway. 


Okay, first thing's first - I have to get this out of my system:


More on this later.

If you've enjoyed BTS's release since "I Need U" and up then this song should be right up your alley. It's got all the same gadgets and gizmos as their more EDM-heavy songs however it removes the very hip-hop elements out, making it a more commercial release that's right in between hip-hop and pop. The result is a more upbeat dance-hall vibe that is very dance-floor friendly. The vocals and the rapping don't outshine each other hear, nor does it sound like each member is fighting to be heard (which is one of the many faults of "Boy in Luv.") The song sounds very cohesive and runs through like butter. My favorite part has to be, for once, the bridge. It's oddly lush and chill which was a nice change of pace from the more fast paced parts of the song. My only complaint is that the chorus is a bit too repetitive for my liking, but given K-pop's past with repetitive choruses, that's not really a major complaint.


No complaints here though. Nope. None.

The video is fantastic, the members themselves stated that this concept was all about "seduction." And well it's all in there. Seduction of drugs, (Namjoon with that green smoke symbolizing marijuana, Jungkook literally getting high as a kite is probably reference to cocaine.) Seduction of sex, I mean come on, Suga blind folds Jimin before a BDSM session. J-Hope has been seduced by power, the more power he gets the better he feels. Apparantly V is satan or something? And Jin is pretty much observing all of friends go through all of this and in the end, gets seduced into the lifestyle too. Now keep in mind, all of this is just at face value, and doesn't play into the "Demian" theories, I have a hunch about what's going on based around the choices of art pieces used in the MV, but I'm not going to dive too deep in it right now.Also, hats off to BTS for getting fans to READ A BOOK. As if I didn't need another reason to like them. To top it off, the choreography's pretty dope and keeps my attention.

The visuals in this are absolutely great, not just member wise but video wise too. The sets rock, from the art museum to the mansion, to the individual shots are very well done. Namjoon FINALLY has some of the best hair he's had in a while, and thus looks hot. Especially during the "21st Century Girl" performances. 


Thank you to whoever styled his hair this time. So. Much.

Yoongi FINALLY has black hair and looks fucking hot (he's also been taking some squatting tips from Jimin.) Never thought I'd see the day that Jimin rocked silver/purple hair but he looks amazing in the video. And all the other members look pretty great, the styling here was very well done...

...Speaking of the styling, does anyone else get very Rick James vibes from this? It looks like a modern twist on that androgynous look that was popular in the 1980s. They even have on those loose fitting dress shirts with the exposed chest and scarfs down!

Image result for rick james cold blooded

It's actually very befitting there's BDSM elements in this MV given Rick Jame's most popular song.

The member that shines the most this comeback is hands down J-Hope, it seems like Big Hit really tapping into his potential. He gets the most lines, gets the intro to the album, and his solo is one of the best on the album.



Overall this is another comeback I enjoyed. BTS honestly haven't released a dud since "Boy In Luv" (a song I fucking hate), and they've been one of the most consistent boy groups for me. 

A song I really hope gets some sort of promo is "Lost". Not only is it straight up amazing but it's one of the rare times where a group gathers it's main vocalists and has them sing a dance song vs a melancholy ballad.



The album itself is breaking all kinds of records apparently, which is both shocking and not shocking. On one hand, no one saw it coming but on another, BTS has always been popular with the international crowd. But still, a fucking Billboard record? Wow.

Anyway, I apologize for not being as interactive with the comments as I usually am, my schedule has been hell the past two weeks.

I'll leave you with this:

13 comments:

  1. I like how BTS dwells into other music genres, but I'm just really not into this song, it's a total grower for me that I didn't bother rewatching the MV, although I have to applaud Big Hit because it's really great eye candy.

    It's entirely different when you talk about the entire album though, and I have to agree, J-Hope's solo is one of the best. 'Young Forever' can't be dethroned as my favorite BTS album yet, but I liked Wings as a whole and I can't tell which solo song I like the most. I already loved 'Lie' from Jimin's trailer and anticipated it, but 'Begin' caught me by surprise. Not to mention 'First Love' feels like an (awesome) Agust D bonus track.

    Also, I was just as confused with the comeback too. It feels like they just had one and they're having another, lol

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    1. Yeah the whole album is good to me. My favorite solos are Jungkook's, Jimin's, Suga's, and J-Hope's. All of the group-tracks are good to me.

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  2. BTS haven't released a pleasing song since 2014. Of course, I'm being biased, because Danger and War of Hormone were my shit. But still, Fire and Blood, Sweat and Tears were REALLY FUCKING DISAPPOINTING.

    Also, Jimin looks like shit with silver hair. He's much better off with black or hell, even orange.

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    1. For me it's Black>>>>>>>>Silver/Red>>>>Orange. and I actually didn't mind the orange too much however I wouldn't mind if he never went back to it.

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  3. I felt like the dance was really dissapointing - too much jumping and just overall messiness. I thought there would be more whining / body roll type stuff like Baepsae?

    Wings was aight but it wasn't as good as The Most Beautiful Moment in Life / Young Forever whatever its called. Wings tries too hard to be super deep and I think at some points it just comes across as empty and meaningless and therefore boring

    lmao rapmon with the weed imagery while his old crew goes down for marijuana

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    1. Weed and marijuana are the same thing lol.
      The content on the album doesn't really bug me since is essentially the same kind of stuff they've always done it's just darker.

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    2. lol I know weed and marijuana are the same thing i was just pointing out the irony considering all these idols / rappers whatever are getting arrested for it these days

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  4. Also with your theory about temptation - you think Jungkook's scenes are a reference to The Swing?

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  5. Four words: Jungkook on a bed. Enough said.

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  6. V looks so good. It's the blonde hair dark eyebrows combo. Idk how to feel about the song

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  7. I'm an Army but tbh at first I was so confused with the song then I became addicted once I watched the MV ... The jumping is like their mark now in every FUCKING choreography ... and they had a lot of comebacks which is awesome but worrying ...

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