QWER returns with 'My Name is Malguem'

From left: QWER members Chodan, Magenta, Hina and Siyeon pose for a photo during the press conference held at Sinchon, Mapo-gu, Seoul, Monday. (Kwon Min-seo/The Korea Herald)

Rising girl group QWER returned with positive energy, hoping to deliver love and comfort with their second EP.

The project band QWER, put together by YouTuber Kim Gye-ran, debuted last October. The members consist of Chodan on drums, Hina on guitar and keyboard, Magenta on bass, and Siyeon as the vocalist.

The band’s second EP “Algorithm’s Blossom” was released Monday.

The title track, “My Name is Malguem,” features the Korean word "Malgeum," which means clear. The song conveys a determination to move forward bravely, even after experiencing pain or sadness.

This album features collaborations with several artists. The title track was written and composed by (G)I-dle's Soyeon, the intro and outro were composed by the electronic trio Idiotape, and “Run! Run! Run!,” the first duet between Chodan and Magenta, was composed by composer Sumin.

“At the beginning of the band’s formation, we searched for many songs and attended various performances to broaden our musical spectrum. I once watched an Idiotape performance and was impressed by their ability to tell stories through music. I thought they would be great at incorporating our narrative into their music, so we decided to work together this time,” said Hina during a press conference on Monday.

Hina also added that Soyeon provided significant help as an experienced K-pop star.

“Soyeon gave us advice on how to pose and look at the camera during the shoot, and even joined us in the recording booth to personally show us where to emphasize to improve our vocals,” said Hina.

“When I first heard ‘Run! Run! Run!’, I was worried whether we could pull off the song’s color. But the lyrics about running with everything you’ve got resonated with our growth as a band,” said Chodan.

Although QWER has been a band for less than a year, they received much love with their release of “T.B.H” in April this year, performing at university festivals nationwide and the Incheon Pentaport Festival, Korea’s representative rock festival.

“Pentaport is a dream stage for bands, and it was an honor for us to share the stage with other amazing artists. We practiced and rehearsed really hard, and I’m grateful that we could show everything we had prepared to the fullest,” said Hina.

“Even if we had to stay up all night, we never skip rehearsals and lessons and I think that’s why our harmony is getting better and better,” said Chodan.

Siyeon expressed her desire to receive as much attention as they did with "T.B.H."

“Of course, rankings aren’t the most important thing, but I’d like to see us reach a good position on the charts again before the year ends. We hope to receive a lot of support from everyone,” she said.

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