Wildly boppy hyper-pop with a hippy trippy MV that makes you wonder whether the whole art department were hallucinating – anything that opens with songwriter Jinyoung’s apparently disembodied head singing in a box trips my weird-o-meter. The song’s just a guy berating his girlfriend for lying all the time, but for some reason the sets are cartoonish and disturbing, while the costumes are in colours and patterns that will suck your eyeballs right out of your head. Be warned.

Psychedelics aside, it’s hard not to sing along with this one, especially given the smattering of English in the lyrics. My advice is just give in to your bad self and sing those incorrect Korean lyrics – you’ll definitely want to shout out “got-ji-mal” (lie).

This time you get a dance practice video, and it’s almost as much fun as the MV. B1A4 usually have good dance practice videos (but not always <cough 10 Times cough>), because they’re usually clear, the boys give it plenty of welly, and there’s usually a bit of clowning around before and/or after. This choreography is oddly appropriate, being bouncy and energetic, so instead of a sleek choreography designed to make the members look cool, these boys are nerdy and having fun with it. Watch out for lead dancer CNU (glasses and Brooklyn t shirt) – he’s mastered the choreography and adds little flourishes for the hell of it.

There’s an added extra, in the form of a performance on a TV program, included so you get an idea of how they shape up live. Pretty clearly they’re not lip syncing (although occasionally one of the members may let the guide carry a line), but they are enjoying themselves, as are the audience, who can be heard singing along with the hooks. Highlights are Sandeul’s belting (he’s famous for it), occasionally encouraged by Gongchan, plus CNU’s athletic dancing and joyous ad libs. You may not recognise CNU and Sandeul from the haunting and beautiful Oblique Line, but it’s easier to see all three in 10 Times (the MV, not the dance practice) – there’s the same sense of fun and camaraderie that’s kept them together for 10 years.

Which to watch?

Further update: SBS have blocked the Daegu Super Concert performance in Australia, so that’s no longer available, at least here. 😦

• Update: If you want to see the trio (CNU, Sandeul, & Gongchan) performing this song, watch the SBS Super Concert MV. It’s particularly moving because the audience had to be socially distanced due to strict Covid regulations, but they had an invited online audience, who can be seen on the back screens bopping and singing along.
• If you want a traditional (but deeply weird) music video, watch the MV.
• If you want to learn the choreography, or want to see the boys having fun in their natural habitat, watch the dance practice.
• If you want to see what they look like on stage, watch the Live on Music Bank. This also includes English translation.
• If you want to sing along, or know what the words mean, or you’re learning Korean, watch the lyrics video.
• Addendum: for added cartoony weirdness, I’m also including the MV of the Japanese release of the same song. It’s always interesting to compare the two, because costumes, set design, and even the whole theme of a video can change between the Korean/world version and the Japanese version. Watch this as well as/instead of the main MV.