Mar 20, 2026 12:25pm IST
BTS’s “ARIRANG” Is A Multi-Genre, Experimental, Lyrical Buffet Of Songs That Retain The Vibe of The KPop Band: Album Review
BTS’s “ARIRANG” is here. Finally, the album which has been trending on social media ever since it was announced has dropped. “ARIRANG” which has a total of 14 tracks was produced majorly in the US with BTS members staying in Los Angeles for two months for the same. The boy band described it as a ‘music boot camp’ where they just sang, wrote songs and were in the studio all day like normal office workers. For the unversed, “ARIRANG” is a folk song describing the resilience of the Korean people. It talks about love, longing and courage in the face of all odds.
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"Body to Body" is a track we will hear a lot in the bars and clubs. It is unlike all past songs of BTS. It starts off strongly with Namjoon's rap followed by J-hope. It is good to see how producers have used Kim Taehyung, Jin and Jimin's voices. There is a seamless blend of the traditional "Arirang" chorus in between. It is produced by Picard Brothers, Diplo, Ryan Tedder, Pdogg. The composing and songwriting team also includes Ryan Tedder, Maxime Picard, Thomas Wesley Pentz, Akira Evans, Teezo Touchdown, Pdogg, RM, SUGA, j-hope and Kirsten Allyssa Spencer.
"Like Animals," is one of the stellar tracks on the album. From the echo to the rock composition and use of vocal line, it is a composition done right. It is produced by Diplo, Artemas Diamandis, Toby Daintree and Kevin White. This song belongs to both the rap and vocal line. Jungkook, Jin, Namjoon, j-hope, SUGA all leave an impression. It has the soft rock vibe with use of guitar as the main instrument.
The rap line of RM, SUGA and J-hope completely devours "Hooligan," a song that starts off on a retro note. Old BTS listeners will be astonished with the sound design of "Hooligan." J-hope's laugh is going to stay fresh in our minds for a long time. It is the perfect song for an action movie with the stamp of El Guincho all over. It has a lot of ambient sounds and Indian fans will be reminded of RD Burman. The legendary musician too used a lot of background sounds to enhance the listening experience. The song is produced by El Guincho, Fakeguido and Jasper Harris.
"Aliens" is produced by Mike WiLL Made-It, Pluss, Donut, Khaled Rohaim. this track also belongs to the rap-line starting with SUGA's robust vocals. It is a classic Korean and English track reminding us of the band's younger days in terms of sound and music. Compared to "Body to Body", and "Hooligans," this song is more in the KPop territory. Pdogg who has been with them for years is a part of the song.
"FYA," is trademark Diplo and NITTI with its composition. With its catchy adrenaline pumping vibe it is the gym song of the album. It will end up as one of the most popular tracks from "ARIRANG" with the general public.
Coming to "2.0," this song is also in the same mode as "Hooligan." SUGA again takes centrestage with Kim Seokjin and RM. The chorus is excellent. The producers have used Jin and Jimin's voice really well in this number. This is also a song made for the movies. Period.
"Merry Go Round" is produced by Sam Homaee, Sarah Aarons and Kevin Parker. This is a romantic pop song with electronic synth, lyrical rap and lofi hip hop. Jungkook, V and Jin shine with their vocals beautifully complemented by RM and j-hope. "ARIRANG" has tried to offer something to every music listener, old and new and the second part reflects the same.
"NORMAL," comes in clean and explicit versions. The line distribution in "ARIRANG," is excellent and "NORMAL" is a wonderful example. The producers Ryan Tedder and Sean Cook have made great use of their skills. This is a song you will love to listen to when you are on a long drive. It has lofi hip hop, electronic synth and rock and roll elements. In terms of its sensuality, it is right up there with Pied Piper.
BTS V is known to love rap and "they don't know 'bout us," beings with his growling vocals. It is produced by Pdogg and GHSTLOOP Y2K. They have worked with the boys on multiple occasions. Jimin and Jin are in full experimental mode in this song. It is a lyrical diss track and we wish there was a video for the same.
The romantic vibe of "One More Night," is similar to that of "Dimple" and "Just One Day." It is a synth track mixed with lyrical hip-hop. Like "Aliens," this song will too resonate with traditional KPop listeners. Jimin, Jin and Taehyung's vocals have the best lines in the song. It is produced by Diplo, Pdogg and NITTI.
"Please" produced by Tyler Spry matches the vibe of "One More Night." It is dominated by the adlibs of Kim Seokjin.
The last song is the anthemic "Into the Sun" which is produced by Pdogg, Diplo, Tyler Johnson, NITTI and GHSTLOOP. It is a ment song for their upcoming concerts. This song belongs to Kim Seok-jin and Taehyung. But this is a song that will take some time to grow on you.
BTS' "ARIRANG" sees the KPop band step into unfamiliar territory with the rap-line dominated songs like "Hooligan," "Aliens" and "Body to Body." The album which has lyrics in Korean and English offers something in every genre of music. While the first part of "ARIRANG" is rap heavy, the vocal line dominates the second phase of the album. The line distribution is excellent and the producers seem to pushed the musical boundaries of all the members, especially Jin and Jimin. With this album, they have proved that they are ready to experiment with every genre and sound. "ARIRANG" retains the vibe of their old works from albums like "DARK & WILD" and "BE."
The KPop band was accused of playing it safe with songs like "Butter," "Dynamite" and "Permission To Dance." With "ARIRANG," they show us that they are unafraid to take risks. The music producers seem to have done with their best with the boys. Some of the songs would have sounded a lot different if their fluency in the language was better.
With "ARIRANG," they have not only served a sumptuous buffet for their fans but also tried to expand into neutral listeners base with aplomb. The whole album is packed with too many elements to absorb in one listening but has that BTS stamp that makes the band distinct in the first place.
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