Red Velvet’s Irene & Seulgi Oscillate Between Frightening and Seductive in ‘Monster’

South Korean girl group Red Velvet unleashed their first subunit this week with members Irene and Seulgi. The duo dropped their first EP titled Monster yesterday morning with the music video for the lead single of the same name following today.

Red Velvet’s artistry has always simmered with a twisted, candy-coated darkness and Irene & Seulgi’s “Monster” is no exception–however this single definitely serves as an elevation of that style. “Monster” is one of the most stand-out singles of the year thanks to its fascinating use of dark pop and dubstep. The highlight of the instrumentation that makes the track unforgettable is of course the eerie modulated vocal melody that follows the chorus line ‘I’m a little monster’–it sounds kind of like a little girl’s voice and is reminiscent of a horror-movie or something out of a nightmare.

The music video for “Monster” isn’t far behind in the eerie factor. There is indeed plenty of glamor and glitter to be found, but all of it is accompanied by imagery that can only be defined as creepy–in one scene Irene caresses a doll while the sounds of a baby cooing play in the background; in another clip Seulgi brandishes a gun at what seems to be a pagan altar of some sort. The entire video is filled with unflinching gazes at the camera, vivid hints at homoeroticism, voodoo and fascinating but strange choreography.

Irene & Seulgi’s five-track EP Monster dominated world charts upon its release yesterday, hitting number one on iTunes in over 45 countries and several Korean charts like Hanteo.

Stream ‘Monster’ below: