Song Review: aespa x PUBG – Dark Arts

Collaborations between K-pop stars and video games have become more common, which makes sense because I’d bet there is a lot of crossover between the fandoms. aespa’s new track with battle royale game PUBG goes beyond simple tie-in to include a full music video that sees the girls deposited in the game’s violent landscape.

Musically, Dark Arts feels like a suitable extension to the group’s monotone Dirty Work from a few weeks ago. The energy is similar, even hinging on a spoken-word hook. However, there’s a little more going on here, from the skittering percussion to the melodic pre-chorus. And even though the song’s centerpiece is spoken, there are at least… more syllables? That’s weird criteria for a review and to be honest Dirty Work‘s defiant grumble has grown on me a bit since its release. But unlike that song, Dark Arts attempts to build into mini peaks of drama that give it greater scope.

Even so, this relatively flat “we’re so badass” sound isn’t my favorite match for aespa. For such great vocalists, it’s disappointing to hear them constrained by the material. Just imagine how cool Dark Arts might have sounded with a fully sung chorus that echoed the excitement the production seems to promise. Even better, pair it with the trance synths that briefly pop up during Dark Arts‘ climax and you’d have a truly energetic highlight worthy of a shoot-em-up video game. But sadly, Dark Arts is too concerned with being cool to ever be legitimately fun.

Grade: C