It was mid-May when TeStar's album teaser was released.
The movie in which they appeared in a cameo, 〈Cosmic Gunner〉, was a global box office success enough to mobilize 8 million viewers in Korea and was about to leave the theater.
-When the water comes in, don't you come out in a hurry to row?
-Ah, please don't be in a hurry. It's the taste of capital that attracts each person's popularity
- They even set up a label, but why does it feel like they are out of business?
Some people started whispering about comeback articles and rumors that popped up without notice only three days before the teaser was released.
Park Moondae's first homma was also on the verge of biting her nails.
'The general manager looks like an idiot with a young American disease… ! Could he be influencing TeStar?'
The general manager managed to focus on Mirynay, but now it might be in vain.
The thought popped up. Of course, gossip was a part of people, and most of them who heard the news of TeStar's comeback were intoxicated with the results that came through Cosmic Gunner.
That was actually a bit worrying.
-Awesome, awesome, TeStar's surprise comeback is crazy.
- They'll lift the billboard again Wow, I'm already excited
'… These guys' expectations are rising endlessly.'
Moondae has never let her down, but what if things go a different way this time?
'Even if Moondae and the kids do well, it's useless if the company does stupid things again… !'
From the words of a company official at the end of the article to the expression 'this album that will delight various global fandoms', she felt uneasy.
-Heart pounding! (link)
Still, she shared TeStar's comeback article and commented on it, but this was also a reaction for external use.
'I am named… Cherish yourself… …'
She especially missed Moondae who put apple cake stickers on his cheeks at the fan signing event.
… At least, if they made a comeback, she'd see it again. They would do another fan-signing event.
'Okay. Let's trust and wait.'
In fact, wasn't it a season where it wouldn't be strange to make a comeback just by looking at the term!
She organized her mind like that with a fairly pure fan heart.
And three days later…
- It's up! It's up!
The teaser, which was clicked amid tension and excitement, started with black smoke rising like a haze.
What unfolded was a dark and profound modern banquet hall.
In a slightly ominous and elegant place with thick shadows, colorful figures wearing masks danced.
The silhouettes overlapped and blended together.
Just when fans were expecting a scene from a 20th-century art movie to appear…
The sound suddenly changed.
-Rumble!
Thunder.
"… !"
Amid flashes of light, the scene changed to the outdoors outside the dark and pale banquet hall.
In the middle of the night when the rain was pouring down, the lights of the banquet hall leaked out of the window above the castle gate.
[…]
Splash.
And, a certain foot stopped in front of the rainwater gate.
The flesh was dyed red and dripped off, spreading into the water.
It was getting contaminated.
"… !"
Then, there was somewhat spooky camera work and editing.
And slowly, the sight rose.
What had been revealed… A faceless shadow wearing a red hood.
A mask without facial features.
Goooooh.
The moment fans wanted to confirm the eerie grotesqueness, the screen turned black again.
Darkness.
A riff melody resounded.
- Mmmmm.
The graceful and slow-pitched violin plays ominously and eerily, and the laughter of the people in the banquet hall subsides.
The album title popped up.
[OVER the Masquerade]
[TeSTAR]
"Wow."
The atmosphere was clear.
Elegant and ominous, dark and luxurious feeling.
- Wow!
-Oh my god!
First of all, contrary to the speculation and concerns of some netizens, the visual beauty created by pressing the capital was excellent.
First of all, people who expected gukppong gave good reviews and chatted with excitement.
(TN: Gukppong/국뽕: Used sarcastically towards people who are too prideful in their country)
- I don't think I'd be ashamed to put it out there.
-You can see that even the sound has improved. ㅋㅋ
The problem arose after some time.
This esoteric, aesthetic, and intense atmosphere created a sense of incongruity.
Because people had seen it a lot.
-Hmm… It feels like a combination of popular K-pop idols in the US, such as VTIC.
-The taste of America must have been so sweet ㅋㅋ They have no conscience for benchmarking
-They don't have a real identity, they just stick to what's popular like a bat;
This was because it reminded them of VTIC, whose dark, deadly, and luxurious symbols grabbed the American fanatics, and some idols whose global momentum was better than domestic ones.
In fact, it was common for idols to change concepts, but there were also people who couldn't laugh at the switching that seemed to be aimed at the right timing.
In other words, the form did not live.
-ㅋㅋㅋ Still, I think I'll eat some American K-pop pie, right? The quality is like that of a big company
-I wonder if there was even a need for this, cleverly…
"Mmmm."
To be honest, it felt a little forced, but the momentum of the fans of other groups who rushed at them with a sense of crisis was too much.
'Still, the public reaction is okay.'
Many people found several classic symbols in the short teaser.
-This looks like a reference to 'The Mask of the Red Death' by Edgar Allan Poe. As the plague spread, the vested interests who lived in a luxurious hideout by themselves eventually came to the silent visit of the plague… I'll just talk until here ^^
└ Oh, I was wondering how to apply it! Awesome, very profound and dangerous feeling
-It's a horror story where all the people who hit the wall die because of a plague ㅇㅇ
But she, too, was a bit uneasy.
'This isn't even an image similar to their movie appearance.'
Wasn't it too heavy? Not like the usual TeStar…
"… …"
Anyway, contrary to her worries, the quality was good, so she concluded that there would be no problem if they just endured the aggro at the beginning of the release.
'Let's go for a career-high this time too!'
But in fact, her worries and concerns had already been paid for by the parties concerned.
What was the nature of TeStar?
Where was the source of their uniqueness?
- It seems to be going back to one in the end.
After Seon Ahyeon's analysis, Park Moondae came to this conclusion.
- It's fun.
It was just fun.
And the suction power that the charm of the fun exerted…
Immersion.
-So, the first keyword that Ahyeon chose after analyzing all of this must be immersion.
They never made obscure symbols and allusions their main value.
That was just a side story.
The main value was one thing.
'Fun to see and hear.'
The most indigenous and fundamental value that the stage and music have.
Pleasant pleasure that could be enjoyed without burden and without a stale aftertaste.
TeStar's center had never changed. And that would be the case with this album as well.
-Let's go.
The week after the teaser release, the music video was released.
'Ooh!'
The homma clicked on the video right away, even as her hands trembled.
The scene in the music video began with a gate that had been torn off in half.
It was a cut following the teaser, but there was a clear difference.
'… There is no light.'
There was no light in the banquet hall that was leaking out, albeit faintly. And no rainwater.
There was outdoor scenery in the middle of the night when everything stopped.
Goooooh.
It was creepy for a while.
The camera work, which moved as if being sucked into the castle gate, passed through the unlit corridor and led to the dark banquet hall.
Broken masks. Red paint.
In the mess that had already turned into ruins, the monster in the red robe that appeared in the teaser was caught in the center. Anyone could see that it was the cause of this horror.
'Uh… … Is that a plague?'
Was it one of the members? What was that creepy feeling?
But the camera didn't get any closer.
Instead, the scene changed in a swish.
There was the gate again.
- Whoa.
The sound of a short breath. A person standing with his back to the camera was captured, facing the huge half-torn castle gate.
Instead of silence, there was the sound of the night forest and the sound of insects.
There was a tall man wearing an indigo robe.
At that moment, the music returned.
Whoa-!
The sounds of drums and trombones intersected quickly and magnificently, and the person standing in front slowly looked up at the sky.
Kwakwang!
Thunder and lightning struck.
It was raining.
But maybe it was because of the music, instead of the gloom that was seen in the teaser, it was a refreshing and overwhelming scene.
'Huh?'
The moment the person turned around and took off the mask…
A close-up shot caught the face.
It was Park Moondae.
"… !"
The shaded neck, shoulders, and ears were attached to the technology elements of the military uniform like sci-fi equipment.
But it was only for a moment that the viewers properly checked it.
In the very next scene, Park Moondae flipped over the navy hood he was wearing on his head.
White hair tinged with blue fluttered.
Chichik!
Then, a glitch seemed to pop out from the back of his head, and blue light sprouted and swayed over his shoulder like a mane.
"… !?"
Park Moondae smiled.
[Ha!]
With a short shout, the gloomy outdoors instantly became a stage filled with a luminous sci-fi light!
- There's a voice calling anxiously
Listen, the sound of my running footsteps
Appeared first
The head!
Following the melodic rap from the first measure, a cool treble split the accompaniment as if piercing the window sill.
The moment Park Moondae hit the floor as if jumping off with the highest note, the camera pulled back and the applicator fluttered.
And six other people appeared in between.
Kim Raebin's low-pitched rap, which came out as the center, was mixed with the first bar of the high-pitched note.
-Yeah, give me that baton.
Symbol of Rule, Bell of Justice
It rings louder today
Taut and expansive
Appear!
Park Moondae doubled the last verse.
A sense of speed was created by the galloping rap and piercing high notes.
In addition, the chorus exploded immediately with the performance that flipped the hood.
-That's ma savior!
Let go of tension and enjoy
Victory Night!
"Heok."
A thrilling and enjoyable beat.
While watching the video with her mouths open at the momentary change of atmosphere, seven people ran into the castle gate, beckoning to the camera before they knew it.
Wherever they went, yellow and blue glows flashed from the candles. The accompaniment of string instruments, which were sharp and lively and full of skill, followed as if to assist.
And again, a creepy barefoot figure wearing a red robe drew attention as if being sucked in.
Chiyiing!
The members each took their places in the seven colorful banquet halls, and each part had a fierce performance cut like a battle.
Like a hero fighting a villain.
"Wow."
It didn't look like a clumsy action movie thanks to the fact that only the part where the impact of the collision exploded was cut short.
It was just that the dynamism of the performance had come to life more realistically.
'What concept is this?? Who is this?'
The excited homma clenched her fists, but no answer came out.
It was fine though! What was certain is that… It was cool and fun to see TeStar running wild wearing techwear with details from traditional military uniforms.
Yeah, it was fun!
- Get on this dance
Bowstring pulled, dice thrown
Don't stop marching
Melody!
Lightning struck the dark banquet hall. And rainwater poured down, scattering around the splendid dance.
A spectacle of performance created by afterimages of blazing blue light.
And the intense choreography of the bridge that connected the posture and body to make it look like a giant siege gun.
-That's ma savior!
An outstretched hand.
The red hood caught the head in an instant.
At that moment, the performance and music, which seemed to run out of control, stopped.
[…]
The fabric around the captive head drooped, and the red hood fell to the floor.
There was nothing in it. This was because it was the embodiment of disease and fear itself.
All that remained was the mask in Cha Eugene's hand.
Gooooh.
In an instant, white noise flowed on the screen, and the color and camera work changed to make it slightly creepy.
But Cha Eugene, who was holding the mask… He just glanced at it as if he didn't understand.
The tension disappeared.
"… ?"
In addition, Bae Sejin, who was standing behind, came out as if nothing had happened, grabbed the mask, and smashed it without hesitation before throwing it out the window.
[…]
Then, he looked back at the rest of the members with a face that said, "Are you okay?"
[Jjak… Jjakjjakjjak!]
The 4-dimensional appearance of the members clumsily clenching their palms as if they were paying attention, contrasted with the intense performance and created a strange laugh.
"Ah, what!"
The homma also laughed. The screen was ending with the members trudging out of the banquet hall encouraging each other.
-Ring the bell, Ring my bell
I wanna be your savior
An empty banquet hall that was no longer dreary.
The last line popped up loudly in the subtitles, neatly ending all sounds and cuts.
It was a perfect ending that made her want to see more.
"Hoo… …"
But before the homma could think of anything to appreciate, the video returned.
"Hmm??"
An empty space inside the castle gate where the clouds cleared and the moonlight shined down…
Seven round stone statues arranged in a circle were caught in the sky's view.
And it was a stone statue she knew.
"… ! This… ."
A huge, round body that she had seen in front of Gyeongbokgung Palace.
It was Haetae.
(TN: Haetae/해태 also known as Xiezhi/獬豸 is a mythical ancient creature that resembles a goat/ox with a single horn on its forehead. It is known as the symbol of impartiality and justice.)
"… ?!"
In Korea, a mysterious animal with a traditionally emphasized guardian character that punished bad guys.
And the homma had a lightning-like realization.
"That… That's why!"
This… It was a Haetae concept to beat the plague!
There was even an extra video.
It was Haetae, the member who opened the door of the temple and coolly ran out to the city under the mountain.
In the city, as if it had never been destroyed by the plague, the already restored night view was shining.
"Wow…"
The homma opened her mouth.
It was like collecting only the essence of TeStar's album activities so far… After all, what was different about a restaurant specializing in concept performances… No, anyway!!
'It's just fun to look at! It's more fun when you know it!'
And the members in techwear were insanely handsome and sang well!
Especially Park Moondae!
A few minutes later, when the excited homma barely calmed down and turned on social media, the text was already overflowing.
And the members were also quickly monitoring all of this.