In the year that I've been here at allkpop, I've written about B.A.P more than probably any other group. This is partly because B.A.P has put out so much music over the last year, and partly because they're just so impressive that it's hard not to write about them. After "Coffee Shop" and "Hurricane" (which was re-recorded here so Himchan is saying "roof" instead of "loof"), I couldn't wait to see what they had hidden up their sleeves for "BADMAN".
For those of you who don't know, that statue of a fist in one of the shots is a very famous Detroit landmark called The Monument to Joe Louis or The Fist. It's named for a boxer who is considered the United States first black national hero. Detroit itself was home to a number of infamous race riots- my own mother lived there in 1967 during one of the biggest- and race-related crime and violence is still a big issue in the city to this day. Detroit has faced very challenging times and the city even declared bankruptcy. I hope the creative team knew the symbolism behind some of the important landmarks filmed in the video.
I say all this to start only because the video made me feel a bit uncomfortable and very nearly ruined the song for me. However, after taking a couple of days away from the song and listening to just the song without the video, my initial opinion has- thankfully- changed. Not about the video itself, mind you, but with a little bit of distance I can pretend I never saw the video and just listen to the song for what it is.
"BADMAN" opens with the sounds of sirens, breaking glass, someone breathing through a gas mask, and a chanting crowd under a pounding kick drum and a heated bass line, over which Daehyun practically growls, "The despair I hear in the darkness, the world that is ridden with fear". The way it builds up reads almost like a gritty, urban adaptation of the opening lines of "Heaven on Their Minds" from Andrew Lloyd Webber's 'Jesus Christ Superstar'. Intentional or not, this sets up an interesting perspective for "BADMAN", as "Heaven on Their Minds" is also a song sung from the perspective of a rebel looking to eventually overthrow a power he considered to be too big.
Yongguk jumps in with an aggressive narrative about overthowing... something. Much like previous B.A.P fight-the-system singles, "BADMAN" isn't clear on exactly what system they're fighting. "BADMAN" lyrically builds on the narrative from previous songs- while "Warrior" begged someone to wake up to what was going on around them and join the fight for something better, "BADMAN" warns, "I got a feeling / It'll be the day you close your eyes / you're in danger". Going into the chorus, Daehyun's lines from the beginning of the song are completely turned on their head- instead of just observing darkness and despair and fear, B.A.P asserts "I'm a bad man / I will imprison you in darkness / see how you're ridden in fear". The song progresses further into some trap inspiration (apparently this is going to be the new thing in K-Pop, because it seems to be popping up everywhere these days) as well as some kind of middle-eastern inspired chanting, and wraps up neatly with a return to the chorus. While I feel that "Hurricane" was a more successful stab at the genre-hopping trend and that a co-producer with a more editing ear could have smoothed things over for a more engaging delivery, "BADMAN" did ultimately win me over.
Those who aren't sold on "BADMAN" should turn their attention to the album's intro track, "Whut's Poppin'", which packs a wallop into its 1:50 runtime and is strong enough to stand on its own as a single. The simple, mechanical beat makes way for the band to not only boast about their own awesomeness, but takes a shot at idol music, calling it a "kiddie show" and claiming that they're "different from all the girly guys". As I mentioned a bit ago, B.A.P has put out a lot of songs about fighting some kind of power- "Whut's Poppin'" finally names a power that they're fighting.
"Excuse Me" picks up where "Whut's Poppin'" left off, taking more jabs at idol groups (Zelo gets in a particularly punny zinger, "Our size is different / you think you're something because you debuted? / You put in your insoles and challenge me / but you can't even reach my height") over the sounds of a marching band. As the band calls out the "Copycat Boyz" multiple times throughout the song, one can't help but wonder if that wasn't a subtle jab at the Bangtan Boys (BTS), who debuted earlier this year with a similar aggressive, rap-heavy image to B.A.P. Could this be the beginning of a K-Pop rivalry? Only time will tell.
"Bow Wow" rounds out the rest of the new songs on this album. It's a chill R&B/funk track that compares men to dogs who are easily- if only momentarily- distracted. In this case, B.A.P are distracted by fit girls with long hair, gym shoes, and confidence even with no make-up on. The boys assure their girlfriends that their eyes aren't really wandering, it's just a quick distraction that makes them say "bow wow wow". This style of song is really popular with some of the bigger names in K-Hip-Hop (see Zion. T's "Babay" or Dynamic Duo's "BAAAM" for example), and B.A.P does a commendable enough job with it to earn themselves some credibility points.
It's been a long year for B.A.P. Three single albums, three EPs and a repackage with a total of twelve promoted singles, sold out shows on an international tour and an impending Japanese debut- they've definitely earned a bragging right or two by now. In "Whut's Poppin'", Youngjae sings "The name to become a legend / We are unstoppable"- and right now, it certainly seems that way.
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