Bol4, also known as Bolbbalgan 4, has returned with a bold new single dedicated to all the struggling workers out there.

The rising female folk duo unveiled “Workaholic,” the lead track off its new EP “Two Five,” at its showcase held in Seoul on Tuesday where they talked about the drastic shift in its sonic style and shared insights into the new song.

(Shofar Music)

Maturing away from its previous naive girl-next-door image, “Workaholic” showcases the girls’ more charismatic and bold sides, featuring them in a totally new light as office workers grappling with their everyday tasks. Kicking off with heavy thumping bass, the song thrives on various sounds like guitar, organ, string, rock and hip-hop, lyrically tackling down-to-earth circumstances relatable for all those office workers.

“Working on our new album, we wanted to try something new. It’s a very interesting album, I think. ‘Workaholic’ is dedicated to every exhausted youth and worker out there. It tells them not to get discouraged from the reality and just live today,” explained vocalist Jiyeong at the event while clad in office outfits that befitted the song’s concept. “Just face what you are doing / Face it like youth that fear nothing,” sings the duo in “Workaholic.”




Having turned 25-year-old in Korean age this year, Jiyeong and her former high school classmate and vocalist-guitarist Jiyoon, elaborated on the reason behind seeking drastic changes in their music at the risk of leaving many fans confused.

“We’ve always wanted to try something new. I know that our new sound confused many of our fans, but we tried to keep our unique character in its lyrics and melodies. This new album is very meaningful to us as our musical path may depend on how listeners accept it,” said Jiyeong.

“Actually, I wrote this song when I felted overloaded with work myself. Facing myself in the mirror, I looked haggard and dull. I’d even thought of giving up on it. Then I thought of making such thoughts into music.”




Finding their age riddle-like, as it vacillates between adulthood and youth, the girls said that they’ve also been dealing such a tricky time of their lives. After giving much thought into it, they gave out their own answers; “Its’ okay just to know half of the world. Learn it little by little,” they sing in “25,” another introspective track from the new album. “We used to be girly and cute and all in our previous songs, but I felt more like myself when styling up and preparing for this album,” Jiyoon chimed in.

Asked about their opinion on criticism that the duo has been churning out similar styles of music for the past few years, Jiyeong said, “We receive such criticism a lot, but I think it’s inevitable that our songs sound similar to each other as we compose and write them ourselves. But given that they’ve been loved by many listeners, I think our music is still being widely accepted.”

“As time passes, we would be able to prove our musicality, which will serve as a ground for further variety,” she added.

With the new album, the duo also announced their upcoming national tour, while details are yet to be revealed.

The six-track album also features “XX,” “Taste.” “Day off” and the acoustic version of “XX.”

By Hong Dam-young (lotus@heraldcorp.com)