Epex fans scrutinize lyrics, boy band adjusts controversial wording

Boy band Epex showcases ″Anthem of Teen Spirit,″ the title track of its latest EP on Tuesday at Ehwa Womans University's Samsung Hall. [ILGAN SPORTS]

Boy band Epex’s latest release “Anthem of Teen Spirit,” which dropped Tuesday as the title track of the band’s third EP, “Prelude of Anxiety Chapter 1. 21st Century Boys” has stirred controversy among international listeners, especially Germans.

Soon after the EP’s release, German-speaking netizens have been speaking out online that a part of the title track’s lyrics, “Crystal Night,” seems to refer to the historical event of Kristallnacht. Kristallnacht refers to the pogrom against Jews by the Nazi forces in November 1938.

But it’s not just the lyrics: Netizens continued to point out that the boys’ outfit they wore during the showcase on Tuesday and in the music video of “Anthem of Teen Spirit” altogether remind them of the gruesome event.

C9 Entertainment, the label managing Epex, released a statement Wednesday saying that there was no intention to remind people of the historical event through the boys’ new song, music video or stage costumes.

“The music, lyrics and music video of Epex are based on various literary works and physics theories. Among them, many parts of this [EP] were inspired by George Orwell’s ‘1984,’ published in 1949,” the label said in the statement.

“'Anthem of Teen Spirit’ is a song that points out and warns of the harm caused by the robotized education system that Korean youth are experiencing. In the lyrics, 'the night in the crystal' expresses the realistic life of teenagers, used as a metaphor for the images of children burning in competition in the windows of numerous academies that are lit up brightly like crystals every night, and another expression is from the ‘glass paperweight’ appearing in ‘1984.’”

The label explained that in “1984,” the main character’s “glass paperweight” broke when he was arrested by party members.

The label said the lyric was created as such and has “absolutely nothing to do with actual historical events. It added that the Korean name of the title will clear out the misunderstanding. The title track is called “Hagwon-ga” in Korean, which literally translates in English to “Academy Song.”

C9 Entertainment did, however, apologize for not being more careful in using the phrase as a metaphor.

“We sincerely apologize to everyone in Korea and abroad for not paying attention to the use of controversial content,” it said. “We take full responsibility for the controversy that has arisen, and we apologize again to the many people who were offended.”

For future performances of the song, the label said it will change the controversial lyrics.

“The night in the crystal” will be changed to “Myself in the crystal.”

“Tonight, the crystals that protected us are shattered” will be changed to “The crystals that protected us are shattered, today, I will.”

“I see them burning raw” will be changed to “I see them running now,” and finally, “Crystal Night is coming” will be changed to “Crystal Light is coming.”

C9 Entertainment said the boys have already re-recorded the song using the new lyrics.

“We will change and register them with all music service companies around the world as soon as possible.”

As for the boys’ costumes for the song and the music video, the label said “all costumes and content were expressed using the setting and lines from ‘1984’ as a motif, and there’s no connection with actual events, people or groups, as insisted by some listeners.

“By taking this opportunity, we will be more careful and pay deep attention so that the music, lyrics and music video of Epex do not hurt anyone,” the label added.

BY YIM SEUNG-HYE [yim.seunghye@joongang.co.kr]