Korea has been riding the rock wave in recent years, and Xdinary Heroes is more than happy to ride with it.

Xdinary Heroes debuted as JYP Entertainment's second rock-style boy band in December 2021 with six members: bassist Jooyeon; drummer Gunil, Jungsu and O.de on the keyboards; and guitarists Gaon and Jun Han.


JYP Entertainment has been more known in the music world as home to major K-pop groups the likes of Twice and Stray Kids, but Xdinary Heroes is fully ready to succeed with the unique charm of rock music.

“The thing about band music is that it never goes out of style,” Gaon told the Korea JoongAng Daily in an interview held earlier this month before the release of its fifth EP, “Live and Fall.”

“You don’t stop listening to The Beatles or Oasis even after 20 or 30 years. The band set is actually the best when it comes to live performances.”

“Live and Fall” was released on Oct. 7 as the band’s first new album in the six months since the launch of its first full-length album, “Troubleshooting,” and also its first since releasing four singles under the “Open ♭eta” project every month since June.

“The lead track, ‘Night before the end,’ is, in a way, closure for us,” Jooyeon said. “It’s about the feeling of discontent and desperate despair the night before something ends. It signals the end of our single project and also the end of the year.”

“Night before the end” is a rock ballad that uses the best instrumental sounds of a rock band topped off with the emotions of a love ballad, making it the softest lead track from Xdinary Heroes to date.

“It was actually supposed to be called the ‘Last Hour’ because we talked about what we would like to do if we knew that we had just an hour before the world ended,” Gaon said. “The things that we said during that conversation turned into this great piece.”

One member who particularly impressed all the others was Jun Han, the bandmate said.

“I said that I would play my guitar even if I had one more hour left on this earth,” Jun Han said. “In a way, I always think that we can never see the end coming, so I do everything thinking that this could very well be the last moment for me. So I give my best to everything so that I don’t leave any regret behind, and I’ll be doing exactly the same as I’m doing right now.”

The band is set to hold three performances on Nov. 15, 16 and 17 at the Olympic Hall in southern Seoul, the band's biggest music venue yet.

“We’re so glad to be able to perform at a venue twice as large as where we first performed this year,” Jungsu said. “We are preparing to give the best concert by using the things we’ve learned through all the concerts we’ve held so far and the projects we’ve done.”

“The best of a band comes in live performances, especially when we’re communicating with the audience,” Jooyeon said. “We complete the experience by interacting with everyone’s movement and gestures, which really influences how we perform and sing. It’s the biggest part of our live performance, and that will be something that the audience can enjoy.”

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]