부​끄​러​워​요 Bu​-​kkeu​-​reo​-​wo​-​yo (Single, 2013)

‘Bu-kkeu-reo-wo-yo’: A collaboration between pop artist The Jack and electro rock band Love X Stereo

Q: What do you get when you cross-breed pop artist The Jack and electro rock band Love X Stereo?
A: A brand new form of dance music.

The Jack, a mischievous, one-eyed rabbit character full of curiosity, is well known in Korea as a pop artist and exhibition planner. After once existing on the boundary of fantasy and reality, harbouring the secrets of myriad past lives, he experienced “embarrassness,” the emotion at the root of the universe, upon which he transformed himself into a character and began communicating with the general public through the easily accessible medium of pop art. His popularity is such that not a day goes by without new photos of him posing with beautiful women being uploaded to his Facebook page. The exhibitions he plans enjoy broad support from a variety of pop artists and help spread joy throughout the world through their free style of communication.

The Jack and Love X Stereo first came together at Jisan Valley Rock Festival in 2012. During a late-night performance, Love X Stereo invited The Jack up onto the stage. Sure enough, however, The Jack stayed embarrassingly at the edge of the stage, watching Love X Stereo’s magnificent performance from the sidelines. (Here’s the evidence: lovexstereo.com?attachment_id=1865). This prompted the band to promise to create a theme song one day for The Jack: the result was none other than Bu-kkeu-reo-wo-yo (“I’m Embarrassed”).

Inspired by and named after The Jack’s famous catchphrase, Bu-kkeu-reo-wo-yo is a dance track so compelling that it’s literally impossible to listen to without getting excited and dancing spontaneously. The orginal plan to make a simple theme song ended up taking a whole new direction, with the track developing an increasingly forceful, complex and full-to-bursting sound as it progresses.

This is a “embarrassing” song from start to finish. Its only core lyrics are “Bu-kkeu, bu-kkeu-reo-wo-yo” (“I’m em-em-em-embarrassed”). In fact, that’s about all there is to it. From the first repetitions of bu-kkeu-reo onwards, the track’s tension builds up through an accumulation of instrumental layers, eases off in the middle bridge, then soars to a climax in the final section before finally touching down for a chic finish.

The second track on the album is a remix of the first by J-Path, universally acclaimed as Korea’s top drum and bass DJ. J-Path has produced his own unique, deep and rhythmical-yet-sophisticated remix by using, unusually, “Korean traditional rhythms.” The track’s combination of compelling traditional rhythms and occasional sounds of the gwaenggwari, a traditional Korean gong, are irresistible: as soon as you hear this powerful track, you’ll drop everything and head for the nearest club.

So: a collaboration between a pop artist, an elecro rock band and a DnB DJ. A rare combination indeed. If you want to learn more, listen to the track! You may find yourself dancing “embarrassingly,” too, before you even know it…