ENHYPEN are Mysterious and Menacing in the Video for ‘Drunk-Dazed’

South Korean rookie group ENHYPEN returned today with their second EP Border: Carnival led by the single “Drunk-Dazed” and its accompanying music video. The group shot to fame in 2020 after their formation via the idol reality show I-Land and made their debut in November 2020 with the EP Border: Day One.

The septet are confident, bold and powerful in the eerie music video for “Drunk-Dazed” and seem to be hosting a supernatural party of sorts, celebrating what could be a birthday or coming-of-age. They take sips from glasses containing a red liquid–possibly blood–and fall into a haze. There is a strong implication they are more than what meets the eye–perhaps vampires or other creatures of the night–as they slowly draw others into their world. A haunting highlight from the clip is when blood rains upon vocalist Sunghoon as he performs alone in a room. The music video also features surprise cameos from the septet’s fellow I-Land contestants K and EJ, who have their own dark roles in the blood-drenched film.

Produced by Hitman Bang and Wonderkid, “Drunk-Dazed” uses heady blends of EDM, pop, rock and synth to achieve an addictive rhythm. The chorus is particularly catchy, almost hypnotic in the refrain of “daze, daze, daze” as it pulls listeners in–much like the video. The lyrics are about being trapped in a loop or carnival from which there is no escape: “Honestly I’m scared/ My reflection in the mirror is unfamiliar/ The pitiful truth behind this mask/ But I never escape.” But as time passes the addiction to the ‘carnival’ grows and the need to escape fades: “I feel it, my head’s in a Daze Daze Daze/ I’m addicted, I Replay Play Play/ The way you want it/ Go as far as you can to reach it/ Trapped in the carnival wow wow.” 

Border: Carnival features a total of six tracks: “Intro: The Invitation,” “Drunk-Dazed,” “Fever,” “Not For Sale,” “Mixed Up” and “Outro: The Wormhole.” Pre-release sales for the EP surpassed the group’s own record, clocking in a whopping 450,000 copies sold as of April 23rd, as stated by ENHYPEN’s label Belift Lab.

In a press conference earlier today the group reflected on their success, with member Sunoo stating, “I want to thank our fans. We are only five months into debut and we are just rookies, so we are going to work really hard and focus on our work.” Sunghoon added, “ENHYPEN grows every time we make a comeback and we want fans to know that and we want more people to know our name.” Leader Jungwon expressed that the group aim to be the hottest group in the current fourth generation of K-pop and will work hard to achieve their goal.