Everglow returns as eerie and enchanting “Zombie”

From left: Everglow members E:U, Onda, Yiren, Sihyeon, Mia, and Aisha pose for a picture during the press conference held in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Monday. (Hwang Yun-ha/The Korea Herald)

Everglow dropped an intense new single, presenting themselves as hauntingly beautiful zombies.

The new single comes in 10 months, during which they held tour concerts in the US, Europe and Japan.

The group released a new single called “Zombie” on Monday. Besides the title track, two B-sides -- “Colourz” and “Back 2 Luv” -- are included.

The title song “Zombie” already garnered attention for working with The Stereotypes -- a producer behind projects with global stars like Bruno Mars, Silk Sonic, Ne-Yo and Justin Bieber.

Everglow member Onda explained that love and hatred are two keywords in their new music.

“It’s a song that exudes a mysterious and dark allure, and we aimed to express intense emotions dynamically.”

In the music video, six members wore pale makeup and platinum blonde wigs, something they had never shown before. The members said they thought a lot to effectively capture the chilling atmosphere of zombies.

“When I first heard the song, I was worried whether we could pull off a calm and chic mood. However, by working together and researching various references on zombies, we elevated the song’s mood with Everglow’s unique charm,” said Yiren.

“We focused on incorporating eerie elements into our gestures and choreography, practicing our expressions in front of the mirror. We shared ideas to refine the details,” said Onda.

Mia highlighted the importance of emotion and expression in their latest performance. “Unlike our previous performance that focused on powerful dance, this time, facial expressions and emotions were key to our performance. We contemplated on how to convey the look of being heartbroken and desperate.”

E:U said that the music video’s background set in a hospital was related to the song’s concept of zombie.

“We brainstormed on how to effectively show the concept of the song and we thought about where zombies typically originate, and a hospital came to mind. We also aimed to depict scenes where members heal each other in that setting.”

Onda emphasized that unlike the music video’s mood of horror, the performance on stage will highlight the members’ charms.

“We hope you focus on the enchanting atmosphere conveyed through our stage and music.”

Celebrating their 5th debut anniversary this year, Everglow attributed their stable team dynamic to teamwork.

E:U said the members have never fought in the past five years because they know each other well.

“We have a lot of conversations. Misunderstanding happens when there is not enough communication, so we try to resolve things through discussion,” Mia added.

Leader Sihyeon expressed her ambition to win the trophy at music chart shows with their new song.

“We want to deliver unique performances and touching moments on stage. We hope to see our song receive love and achieve another 1st place in music shows.”

By Lee Jung-youn(jy@heraldcorp.com)