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| Members of K-pop boy group INFINITE pose during a press conference at a hotel in Seocho District, southern Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of INFINITE Company |
INFINITE celebrates 13th anniversary of debut
By Dong Sun-hwa
K-pop boy group INFINITE has started a new chapter in its career with the seventh mini-album, "13egin" ― the sextet's first release in five years. It is the first EP released under INFINITE Company, a record label set up in January by the six members ― Sungkyu, Dongwoo, Woohyun, Sungyeol, L and Sungjong.
During a press conference at a hotel in Seocho District, southern Seoul, Monday, INFINITE Company CEO Sungkyu revealed that it was not a piece of cake to produce the group's much-awaited EP.
"INFINITE's musical career spans 13 years, but it was our first time to make an album on our own," the 34-year-old said. "It was not easy for us to make decisions about our concept and choreography. All of us were busy as well, but we listened to nearly 100 songs to decide which ones to feature in our mini-album. We poured a lot of effort into it, so we are proud of our work."
Since this year marks the 13th anniversary of INFINITE's debut, the group titled its EP "13egin," replacing the letter "B" with the number "13." It is fronted by the lead single "New Emotions," a groovy and catchy tune highlighting the members' vocal prowess.
"We all have different voices, but when we combined them together for this track, they created a unique harmony," Sungjong explained. "When I first heard 'New Emotions,' it sounded pretty distinctive from our previous releases. But I was still fascinated by its catchy melodies, so I thought it would be great if we could add our own color to it."
Sungkyu elaborated, "'New Emotions' does not capture INFINITE's musical style that most people are familiar with. However, we believed that we should showcase something new and tackle a fresh challenge with our lead track this time. When we were gearing up for '13egin,' we mused on different ways to pursue trendiness without completely ditching our original style, which is often characterized by synchronized group dance and high-pitched songs."
But Woohyun added that tracks like "Time Difference" will remind people of INFINITE's old songs.
"It resembles our previous releases in terms of lyrics and sound," he said.
INFINITE, best known for its smash-hits like "Be Mine" (2011) and "The Chaser" (2012), is poised to hold a series of concerts in Seoul and Yokohama, among others. Its sold-out shows in Seoul will take place on Aug. 19 and 20 at the KSPO Dome in Olympic Park ― one of the largest concert venues in Korea accommodating up to 15,000 people.
"I did not expect that the tickets would be sold out," Dongwoo said. "I am so thankful that INFINITE has stood the test of time even after a hiatus and the COVID-19 pandemic."
As Dongwoo mentioned, INFINITE had been on hiatus for several years because the members had to fulfill their compulsory military service.
According to Sungyeol, he was afraid that there would be not enough fans to fill the seats at the KSPO Dome, but L firmly insisted that INFINITE perform there.
"We held fan events and started our world tour there," L noted. "INFINITE and our followers created fond memories together at the dome, so I thought it was the best place for us to reunite."
INFINITE plans to perform actively as a group following the release of "13egin."
"If the schedule permits, we may roll out an album once or twice a year," Sungkyu hinted. "We will work hard so that we can meet our fans on a regular basis."
