Performers, singers, songwriters and K-pop idols, members of girl group Purple Kiss revealed their fifth EP, “Cabin Fever,” on Wednesday, striving to be the “dark horse” in the competitive world that is fourth-generation K-pop.
The six members — Na Go Eun, Dosie, Ireh, Yuki, Chaein and Swan — held their showcase at the Konkuk University New Millennium Hall in Gwangjin District, western Seoul.
The newest EP is a continuation of the dreamlike concept that the group was known for, having both similarities and differences to the previous releases, according to the members.
Purple Kiss was never about following the trend — and even “purple” in the group name refers to the mixture of the colors representing each member’s musical capabilities. Ever since the group’s debut in 2021, the group did not fear being different. The group’s last EP, “Geekyland” (2022), revolved around “geek and nerd” cultures and the third EP “memeM” (2022) discussed cultural memes of the younger generation. In the second EP “Hide and Seek” (2021), members took on the concept of horror high-teen. Even the fans of the group, Plory, call their idols “Purple Kiss Witches.”
“We differentiate ourselves with unusual concepts that only Purple Kiss can do: witches, zombies, nerds and so on,” explained Ireh.
Purple Kiss is also known for its members participating in the production of their own songs, including writing the lyrics and designing choreographies, and “Cabin Fever” is no exception. They are also proud and open about the fact that they are involved in the production of their songs.
“I think one of our strengths is that members are involved in the production. Everyone is so talented, and when we come together [as a group], our charm multiples,” said the group’s only rapper, Yuki, who also wrote her own rap in the album.
The lead track “Sweet Juice” refers to the sweet freedom from “Cabin Fever” and the feeling of closeness and constraint caused by the pandemic, which Purple Kiss will help people achieve, explained the members.
“We had a lot of candidates for our lead track, but the members picked ‘Sweet Juice’ unanimously as we all had good first impressions of the song. While the demo version of the song feels different [from the final release], we worked on putting our own mood and color into the song,” said Chaein.
