CNBLUE: Back to the basics with "EAR FUN"

CNBLUE at their showcase for their 3rd mini-album "EAR FUN" held in Seoul, South Korea on March 26, 2012. [FNC Music]

Announcing their comeback in over a year with their third mini-album "EAR FUN" at the press conference on Monday, the members of CNBLUE explained that the group wanted to go back to the basics and purely enjoy themselves on stage.

"It feels great to stand here on stage for our showcase today. (If you have any stereotype of CNBLUE as idols) We hope you enjoyed watching us just like watching a rock band," leader Jung Yong-hwa said after the group presented their first song "I Still Love You" and continued with their performances of "In My Head" and title track "Hey You."

"The songs that are listed in the new release are light and cheerful and just like the name of our album 'EAR FUN' it features music that will enlighten your ears with some fun," CNBLUE's bassist Lee Jung-shin said.

"Even though we felt all this immense amount of pressure to outdo our past records, we decided to go back to the basics and re-embrace the mindset we had when we first started out with our debut song 'Alone.' We just want to focus on our music and present it to the audience with no fear," Jung said.

CNBLUE's guitarist and vocalist Lee Jong-hyun added that the members would have to have fun on stage first in order for the audience to enjoy the group's performance.

As the four members performed each song it seemed as they became more confident and comfortable being on stage.

The boys moved around the stage like rockstars, playing their instruments and singing the lyrics without any mistakes.

Interestingly, the lyrics were focused on expressing people's dreams, hopes and passion, whereas their previous hits sang about love and heartache.

Below are the excerpts of CNBLUE's interview, describing each track in the album that was released today.

CNBLUE pose during their showcase for their 3rd mini-album "EAR FUN" held in Seoul, South Korea on March 26, 2012. [FNC Music]

"Hey You"
Kang Min-hyuk (Kang): This is one of my favorite songs and just by hearing the first part of it, I'm sure the listener will instantly know that this is sang by CNBLUE. I even thought to myself that this track strongly holds our color. Overall, it's just a great song with lively melody and simple lyrics.

"I Still Love You"
Jung Yong-hwa (Jung): I composed this song and I feel that the chorus part and the over melody are quite powerful. Also, I feel that the song is addictive and it will probably get stuck in your head (laugh).

"Dream Boy"
Kang: I feel that lyrics to 'Dream Boy' expresses who we are as a band. It is a cheer-up song that touches on our dreams and hopes. It starts off with a calm and soft melody and all of a sudden it has a turning point where it suddenly speeds up the beat.
Jung: It draws the picture of our dreams as kids, like a fairytale.

"Rock n'Roll"
Lee Jung-shin (Lee): This vocals and the rap show the true colors of CNBLUE that makes you burst in excitement. I feel that our fans will enjoy this song when we perform it at our concerts.
Jung: Even though we can't dance, we are planning to do a dance move called 'Happy Dance' and hope to perform it to the fans at our concerts. (laugh)
Kang: I know for sure that Yong-hwa will automatically dance to it at concerts.

"Run"
Lee Jong-hyun: The song 'Run' goes well with the spring season and it's easy to listen to for everybody.
Kang: It's a good song for someone who's going for a walk. I'm sure that the song will make the listeners want to run. (laugh)

"In My Head"
Jung: I composed this track myself and it is a song that I treasure the most. We first released this song as our major Japanese debut single. I asked our agency's CEO if we could include the Korean version of it because I really wanted our fans in Korea to enjoy it as well. I hope I can get a chance to perform it in live.
Kang: It is a great song and Jung did a great job in writing the lyrics to it.

CNBLUE pose during their showcase for their 3rd mini-album "EAR FUN" held in Seoul, South Korea on March 26, 2012. [FNC Music]

※ Any copying, republication or redistribution of 10Asia's content is expressly prohibited without prior consent of 10Asia. Copyright infringement is subject to criminal and civil penalties.