‘Genre Melting Pot’ Xdinary Heroes “Comeback with Fresh + Fun Songs Again” [Q&A]
Xdinary Heroes proved the infinite potential of ‘Music Hero’ with the digital single series ‘Open ♭eta’ (open beta) of the ‘2024 Xperiment Project’ last year, and shone as a concert hot spot with the ‘Closed ♭eta’ (closed beta) concert series that sold out all 15 shows.
The sixth mini-album, ‘Beautiful Mind’, released approximately five months after the fifth mini-album, ‘LIVE and FALL’, showcases the bold and intense transformation and new narrative of Xdinary Heroes, who are tested once again by revealing their raw emotions.
The title track ‘Beautiful Life’ is a song that features an intense heavy rock sound and unpredictable development, increasing immersion with the heavy riffs that hit from the beginning and the repeated twists as the song progresses. The lyrics, ‘’Let‘s throw away this ’beautiful life‘’’’’ are a powerful declaration in themselves, vividly conveying the anger and longing to find a way out of the suffocating reality.
Regarding this, members Geon-il, Jeong-soo, Gaon, O.de, Jun Han, and Juyeon, who participated in the production of all the songs on the new album, personally talked about the new album ‘Beautiful Mind’ and the title track ‘Beautiful Life’.
[The following is a Q&A]
Q. About 5 months after our 5th mini album, ‘LIVE and FALL’, we are releasing a new mini album, ‘Beautiful Mind’. Please tell us how you feel about this comeback.
- Gunil: I have been waiting for the new songs with the mindset of ‘I wish they would come out to the world as soon as possible’, so I am especially excited. I want to show you an even more mature side of me at our solo concert in Seoul in May.
- Jeongsu: We have poured a lot of time into the new music. I am always nervous and excited to wait for the day when the album, which contains the time and process of hard work to give the public a ‘surprise’, is released.
- Gaon: Just like we have always done since our debut, we are back with fresh and fun songs. I think this album is one that we have put a lot of thought and research into to maximize our strengths. Please show us lots of interest and love!
- Odd: We are very excited to return with a new album that contains Xdinary Heroes’ unique color. I‘m so excited and nervous just imagining how the Villains (fandom name: Villains) will react!
- Junhan: This album is full of subjective themes. I think there are so many different values in the world, so I want to know what you think when you listen to our songs. I think we’ll be able to share interesting stories with each other, so I‘m looking forward to this promotion even more.
- Juyeon: We worked hard thanks to the support you gave us for our comeback. I’m so happy and grateful that I can proudly show it to the world.
Q. Your new album ‘Beautiful Mind’ and the title song ‘Beautiful Life’ both include the word ‘Beautiful’. I‘m curious about the meaning of ‘Beautiful’ in this album, and what does ‘Beautiful’ mean to Xdinary Heroes?
- Geonil: To me, beauty is imperfection. Just as a caterpillar goes through hardships to become a butterfly, I think the process itself of constantly striving to develop is truly beautiful.
- Jeong-su: I often thought that the fact that there are Villains who love us, who do music, and X-Diary Heroes is truly ‘Beautiful’. I think this album was born as I focused on the beauty of life and thoughts while working on the song. I want to express my gratitude to the fans who have given us a beautiful life and the driving force to think through the album.
- Ju-yeon: I think that not being tied down to a specific place, knowing your own ‘self’ and living accordingly, and being responsible for protecting what you value are beautiful.
Q. During the release interview for ‘LIVE and FALL’, you mentioned that you age and store the songs you work on using the expression ‘Jangdokdae’. I’m curious if this album also includes songs from ‘Jangdokdae’, and all the members participated in the production of all the songs on the new album. Was there a moment when you felt like you grew and developed as a creator?
- Gaon: The last track on this album, ‘BBB (Bitter But Better)’, is a song I wrote about 2~3 years ago. It matured well in Jangdokdae and was able to be deliciously included on the new album. The moment I feel like I‘ve grown as a creator is that I’m becoming more objective about the melodies and lyrics I‘ve created and am developing an eye to find what’s lacking. As the saying goes, ‘The arm bends inward’, there are times when I unknowingly become attached to my own creations and can‘t tell if they’re good or not, but I think I‘ve developed a little bit of an eye for discerning while working on the new album.
- Juyeon: ‘Supernatural’ is a song I wrote while working on the album ‘LIVE and FALL’, and I put it away in Jangdokdae and took it out while preparing the new album ‘Beautiful Mind’. Since it’s a song that showcases Xdinary Heroes‘ unique ballad world, I’m excited to see how the listeners will react to it. As a creator, I feel like my ability to imagine images and keywords has grown a bit, which makes me happy.
Q. Compared to the title song ‘Night before the end’ from your previous album ‘LIVE and FALL’, which had a standout lyrical vibe, the comeback title song ‘Beautiful Life’ has a completely different vibe. The development of the new album‘s elements, which we’ve seen through teasing content such as mood films and concept photos, also makes us think that it‘s ‘unpredictable’. What message did you want to convey with this album and the title song ‘Beautiful Life’?
- Junhan: While working on the new album and ‘Beautiful Life’, I thought ‘What if I make people imagine colorful hope?’, and I wanted to add a spoonful of fun to the listeners. The title song ‘Beautiful Life’ will increase your immersion with its heavy riffs that hit you from the introduction and its atmosphere that changes repeatedly as the song progresses, so please listen to it a lot and look forward to our future activities.
- Juyeon: With the title song ‘Beautiful Life’, I wanted to convey the message of the beauty of discovering your ‘own-ness’ and loving it even in the midst of chaos where nothing is set in stone.
Q. All seven tracks on the new album ‘Beautiful Mind’ contain the touch of Xdinary Heroes. What are your favorite songs and in what situations would you recommend listening to them?
- Geonil: My favorite song is ‘Diamond’. The song contains the meaning of ‘Overcoming inner pressure and realizing your own worth’, so I think the lyrics will resonate more when you listen to it when you’re going through something upsetting.
- Jeongsu: My favorite song is track 3, ‘more than i like’. I think the refreshing and cute vibe goes well with my vocals, and I think it‘s an extension of our song ‘AGAIN? AGAIN!’. I think it’s a more mature love song by Xdiz. I think you‘ll be even happier when you listen to it when your heart or the weather is warm and sunny.
- Gaon: I also like ‘more than i like’ the most. This song is about ‘love’, a rare subject even among Xdiz’s songs. If you need a ray of light and someone you can rely on in a dizzying world where there is no one you can trust, I recommend you listen to this song.
- Junhan: My favorite song is ‘BBB (Bitter But Better)’. It really captures the ‘charm of rawness’. More than anything, it is the song with the most intuitive message among the songs on the new album, so I think you will automatically think of our stage whenever you listen to it.
Q. When it comes to Xdinary Heroes, the fresh and diverse concepts that you show with every album stand out. Since you showed a bold and unique vibe with this album, the teasing content and music video filming process must have been interesting. If there was any memorable episode from the preparation process, please share it with us.
- Jeongsu: I think it was the strongest concept among the albums we have released. Especially when we filmed the mood film, the storyboard itself was really fresh, and I remember the scene where Gaon and I looked at each other and shouted ‘Na’ was really funny and entertaining.
- Odd: The action scenes took up a lot of time in the filming of the comeback title song music video. It was our first proper action shoot, so it was a little awkward, but it was fun to work with the veteran action actors.
- Juyeon: The action scene we first filmed is the most memorable. I‘ve always said that it’s been my dream to try noir action acting, and I was happy that I was able to take my first step toward that goal through this opportunity. I hope you look forward to the wonderful action acting that unfolds without hesitation.
Q. True to its reputation as a ‘melting pot of genres’, Xdinary Heroes showcases music from various genres with each album. Since their debut single, they have been consistently working on songs and have established their own unique musical style. What do you think is the most important part when working on a song or playing an instrument? Also, what is the source of Xdinary Heroes‘ music?
- Gaon: First of all, the most important thing to think about when working on a song is, ‘Are we having fun making music right now?’. Ultimately, I think the source of Xdinary Heroes’ music comes from their interest and love for music, so I believe that if you‘re not having fun, it’s hard to make good music. Personally, I think the most important thing when playing an instrument is ‘Harmony’. The process of listening to each other‘s sounds and adjusting to each other is really important.
- Juyeon: I think the image of the atmosphere that music gives off is important. Personally, when I watch animations or dramas, I mostly remember the scenes that linger in my mind because of the image and atmosphere. I’m really happy when the lingering images that I‘ve built up piece by piece are expressed through music.
Q. For Xdinary Heroes, 2024 will likely be remembered as a meaningful year as we successfully completed the ‘2024 Xperiment Project’, consisting of the digital single series ‘Open ♭eta’ and the concert series ‘Closed ♭eta’. I’m curious about the areas in which you grew through the ‘2024 Xperiment Project’, and what other projects you would like to try.
- Junhan: Last year, we showed the audience the stage with the concert series ‘Closed ♭eta’ and the solo concert ‘’. If we were to try a new project, I think it would be really fun to do guerrilla performances at small live houses where we could meet the audience more closely, or to perform together with fans.
- Juyeon: I thought it would be fun to work on solo songs that infuse each of our individual charms. I can‘t help but imagine how much more abundant the music project will be if each of you adds your favorite music genres.
Q. Following the sellout of all 15 shows of your concert series ‘Closed ♭eta’, you have been active in various festivals and performances, including appearing as a music festival headliner for the first time since your debut. Please choose a charm that Xdinary Heroes has on stage that you would like to share with the audience.
- Gunil: I think our main weapons are our powerful energy and explosiveness on stage. And the dopamine rush that comes from performing songs that we can run nonstop. When I see the audience getting more and more immersed in the stage and jumping around, I get even more excited and jump along with them, and that makes me really happy.
Jungsoo: I think the fun and charm of XDIZ concerts is that the audience and we who perform become one and headbang together. It’s a series of really intense, exciting, and immersive songs, so I hope that the people who come to our concerts will be able to relieve some stress!
Q. Living up to the nickname “a great concert spot,” you announced a comeback and also shared news of Xdinary Heroes’ new world tour. Starting with the Seoul concerts from May 2nd to 5th, you will be opening the door to the new world tour, “Xdinary Heroes World Tour.” Since this tour will be a global tour and will be different from the concert series, “Closed ♭eta,” is there anything you want to show?
- Gaon: We accumulated a lot of data about the stage while doing concerts last year. I think that now we can create a stage together with the audience rather than just singing and playing on stage, such as how to dominate the stage, the overall flow that creates the rise and fall, and a deeper understanding of our music. Through this tour, I want to show our present and future as a band called Xdinary Heroes and how big we will grow as a band.
- Juyeon: In 2024, I remember the energy we shared with the audience on stage at the concert series ‘Closed ♭eta’, the solo concert ‘’, and various music festivals. This year, based on the experiences we have accumulated so far, I want to show you the unique atmosphere of Xdinary Heroes that has matured even more. And our performance and live skills that have grown even more.
Q. What is the biggest goal that Xdinary Heroes, who will continue to be active in various ways in 2025, wants to achieve the most this year? Please tell us what you hope 2025 will be like for Xdinary Heroes.
- Odd: This year, from our comeback to our new world tour and even ‘Lollapalooza Chicago’, we have many opportunities to meet fans in Korea and abroad, so we are really happy. My biggest goal is to share Xdinary Heroes’ unique musical energy with more people. I also hope that when we look back on this year, we can feel that we have grown this much.
- Junhan: In terms of performances, the members and I have talked about our dreams of entering Inspire Arena or KSPO DOME, and our dream of expanding the size of our concert halls has grown bigger. We also want to hold solo concerts and further develop our musical skills.
- Main character: Last year, we showed our musical potential with the digital single series ‘Open ♭eta’ of the ‘2024 Xperiment Project’, and this year, I hope that there will come a moment when Xdinary Heroes‘ songs resonate throughout the world. I think it will be really thrilling and unforgettable.
Jeon Hyo-jin, Donga.com Reporter jhj@donga.com
This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.
