The Korean boy group Monsta X released their new album on October 22nd, with the title track “Shoot Out.” The music video plays impressively with a monochrome colour palette also featuring vivid pops of colour that stand out intensely. The manipulation of colour throughout focuses on the theme of light and dark, a symbolic thought that appears to have influenced the album art – also using black, white and grey heavily, as seen above. The music video builds a dark and edgy concept, and also introduces the idea of the seven deadly sins as an overarching theme. Various symbols such as tarot cards, thorns, thrones and barriers are seen throughout the video, thus creating a mysterious and fantastical image. We wonder, speculate and gape at the visuals of this striking album.
Each group has its “sound” and Monsta X have definitely established themselves as a group that can do it all. Stylised as a “hip-hop boy group” they do not restrict themselves to merely this. The array of genres included on the album “Are You There?” is testament to this. Ranging from slow ballads to intense EDM, there seems to be no problem for the boy group in challenging themselves. Most of the members take an active role in the production of albums – be it lyric writing, producing, remixing or even the tricky process of layering harmonies. Stating in an interview with Star News, they stated that they didn’t “want to lose their colour just by following the mainstream sound.” News site Soompi describes the title track to have a “catchy melody” that “easily grabs viewers’ attention” and I definitely agree.
Check out the music video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MS10Zz49FHE, and the album can easily be found on streaming sites such as Spotify, iTunes or Google Play.
