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Walpurgis Night (album)

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Walpurgis Night
Digital and My Way version cover
Studio album by
GFriend
ReleasedNovember 9, 2020 (2020-11-09)
StudioSource Music, Big Hit Studios
Genre
Length37:05
Label
GFriend chronology
Song of the Sirens
(2020) 		Walpurgis Night
(2020)
Singles from Walpurgis Night
  1. "Mago"
    Released: November 9, 2020

Walpurgis Night (stylized as 回:Walpurgis Night) is the third Korean-language (fourth overall) and final studio album by South Korean girl group GFriend. It was released on November 9, 2020, by Source Music and distributed by Kakao M. The album contains 11 songs including the lead single "Mago". It serves as their group's final release before the departure of all the group members from Source Music following the termination of their contracts and the group's disbandment on May 2021.

Release and promotion

[edit]
Logo used for promotion of 回:Walpurgis Night.

On October 12, 2020, it was reported that GFriend would come back on November 9 with a new studio album titled 回:Walpurgis Night.[2] It's the third and last release of the series "回". Preorders began on October 19.[3] On October 20, it was confirmed that the group will perform some tracks from the album in advance during their online concert GFriend C:ON on October 31.[4] On October 24, the group released the checklist of their album.[5] The tracklist of 回:Walpurgis Night was released two days later, including the lead single "Mago" as well as previous releases "Apple", "Crossroads" and "Labyrinth".[6] On October 27, the first set of concept photos titled "My Way" were released.[7] The second set titled "My Room" was released on October 28.[8] Moving photos for "My Room" only were uploaded later on the same day.[9] On October 29, Source Music released the last set of concept photos titled "My Girls".[10] On October 31, the group revealed and performed in advance the sub-unit songs "Secret Diary", "Better Me" and "Night Drive" during their online concert GFriend C:ON.[11] On the same day, members Eunha and Umji showcased a tip of the song and the choreography for "Mago" on the show Knowing Bros.[12] On November 4, the highlight medley for the album was uploaded on HYBE Labels' YouTube channel.[13] The first teaser for their lead single "Mago" was uploaded on the same channel on November 6.[14] Two days later, the second teaser was released.[15]

The album was released on November 9,[16] The music video for "Mago" was released on the same day.[17]

Production and composition

[edit]

For "Mago", Eunha, Yuju and Umji participated in composing and writing lyrics for the song.[18]

"Secret Diary", "Better Me" and "Night Drive" are sub-unit songs, performed respectively by Yerin and SinB, by Sowon and Umji and by Eunha and Yuju. Each of the members participated in composing and writing lyrics for their respective song.[19][20][21]

The songs "Apple", "Crossroads" and "Labyrinth" were previously released from the prior '回' album series, with the tracks having updated harmonies during the choruses. These versions of the songs are not found on the iTunes version of the album, rather are on the physical release of the CD.

Critical reception

[edit]

Beats Per Minute called Walpurgis Night as "a bold, vibrant and occasionally experimental album that finds GFriend shedding the melancholy of their previous two releases."[22] It gave the album a score of 68%, evaluating it as "a daring reinvention that adds new dimensions to their discography. However, the group haven't fully veered away from what has made them one of the most distinguished groups in K-pop, and what makes this album special is how they have reserved their bright energy for internal healing and liberation, but still keep romance in their peripheral vision."[22]

IZM gave Walpurgis Night 3 out of 5 stars, stating that, aside from a slight sense of incongruity, "the good melody, which were the center of the team, is safely inherited" in GFriend's new path;[23] however, it found that the '回' trilogy clashed with the group's previous releases, "trying to burn too many stories and excessive intervention that does not seem to take into account the existing identity."[23]

Walpurgis Night on rankings
Publication List Rank Ref.
SCMP The Top15 Albums from K-pop Groups in 2020 [24]
Time The Albums That Defined K-Pop's Monumental Year in 2020 [25]
Rolling Stone India 10 Best K-pop Albums of 2020 4 [26]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Mago[a]"
FRANTS3:19
2."Love Spell"
  • FRANTS
  • Maria Marcus
  • "hitman" bang
  • Misung (VoidheaD)
  • ZNEE (Flying Lab)
FRANTS3:08
3."Three of Cups"
  • Noh Joo-hwan
  • Lee Won-jong
3:28
4."GRWM"
  • Son Young-jin (MosPick)
  • Yeahnice (MosPick)
  • Ferdy (MosPick)
  • JayJay (MosPick)
MosPick3:30
5."Secret Diary" (performed by Yerin and SinB)
Noh Joo-hwan3:13
6."Better Me" (performed by Sowon and Umji)
  • SCORE (13)
  • MEGATONE (13)
  • LUKE (13)
  • Umji
  • Sowon
133:01
7."Night Drive" (performed by Eunha and Yuju)
  • Noh Joo-hwan
  • Yuju
  • Eunha
Noh Joo-hwan3:27
8."Apple[b]"
  • FRANTS
  • Pdogg
  • "hitman" bang
  • Hwang Hyun (MonoTree)
  • Eunha
  • Hannah Robinson
  • Richard Phillips
  • Alex Nese
  • Chendy
  • Yuju
  • Noh Joo-hwan
  • Kim Jin (Makeumine Works)
  • Gu Yeo-reum (Makeumine Works)
  • Lee Seu-ran
  • FRANTS
  • Pdogg
  • "hitman" bang
3:27
9."Crossroads[c]" (교차로; Gyocharo)
  • Noh Joo-hwan
  • Lee Won-jong
  • Noh Joo-hwan
  • Lee Won-jong
3:23
10."Labyrinth[c]"
  • Noh Joo-hwan
  • "hitman" bang
  • Lee Won-jong
  • Kim Jung-woo
  • FRANTS
  • Sophia Pae
  • Carlos K
  • ADORA
  • Cho Yoon-kyung
  • Kim Yeon-seo
  • Noh Joo-hwan
  • "hitman" bang
  • Lee Won-jong
3:21
11."Wheel of the Year" (앞면의 뒷면의 뒷면; Ammyeon-ui dwinmyeon-ui dwinmyeon: lit. The front's back's back)
  • Hwang Hyun (MonoTree)
  • Mayu Wakisaka
Hwang Hyun (MonoTree)3:48
Total length:37:05

Charts

[edit]

Release history

[edit]
Release dates and formats for 回:Walpurgis Night
Region Date Format Label Ref.
Various November 9, 2020
[29]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ "Mago" is stylized in all caps.
  2. ^ "Apple" is the previous lead single of the group from the EP 回:Song of the Sirens.
  3. ^ a b "Crossroads" and "Labyrinth" are previous releases of the group from the EP 回:Labyrinth.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "回:Walpurgis Night". www.sourcemusic.com. Archived from the original on 2021-02-05. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  2. ^ Jeon, Hyo-jin (2020-10-12). "여자친구 컴백 확정, 11월 9일 정규앨범 발표 [공식]". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-10-25.
  3. ^ "[예약] 여자친구 – 回:Walpurgis Night". 위드드라마 (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-10-25.
  4. ^ Yoon, Sang-geun (2020-10-20). "'11월 컴백' 여자친구, 31일 첫 온라인 콘서트 '지콘'[공식]". 다음 연예 (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-10-25.
  5. ^ Kang, Seok-bong (2020-10-24). "여자친구, 새 정규앨범 '回:Walpurgis Night'…컴백 카운트다운 돌입". sports.khan.co.kr (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
  6. ^ Cho, Sung-woon (2020-10-26). "여자친구, '回:Walpurgis Night' 트랙리스트 공개… 총 11곡". Sports Donga (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18.
  7. ^ Park, Jae-hwan (2020-10-27). "여자친구, '현대적 마녀'로 돌아온다". entertain.naver.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
  8. ^ Woo, Bin (2020-10-28). "여자친구, 욕망 앞에서 솔직해지다". Ten Asia (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
  9. ^ germainej (2020-10-28). "GFriend reveal 'My Room Only' moving teasers for upcoming album '回:Walpurgis Night'". allkpop.com. Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  10. ^ Jeon, Aram (2020-10-29). "여자친구, 새 앨범 'My Girls' 버전 콘셉트 포토 공개…소녀들의 우정과 연대". www.xportsnews.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
  11. ^ "여자친구, 첫 온라인 콘서트 'G C:ON(지콘)' 성료". Sports Donga (in Korean). 2020-11-02. Archived from the original on 2020-11-18.
  12. ^ "'아는 형님' 여자친구, 베일 속 'MAGO' 노출". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  13. ^ "'컴백 D-5' 여자친구, 중독성 강한 디스코 '마고'". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  14. ^ "여자친구, 타이틀곡 'MAGO(마고)' 뮤직비디오 티저 공개". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-07.
  15. ^ "여자친구 'MAGO' 2번째 뮤비 티저..경쾌해진 디스코 매력". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  16. ^ "여자친구, 정규앨범 '回:Walpurgis Night' 오늘(9일) 발매...솔직하고 당당한 현대적 마녀". hankyung.com (in Korean). November 9, 2020. Archived from the original on November 18, 2020. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  17. ^ "솔직 당당 'Modern Witch' 여자친구, 신곡 'MAGO' 뮤직비디오 공개!". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  18. ^ "MAGO". www.melon.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  19. ^ "Secret Diary". www.melon.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  20. ^ "Better Me". www.melon.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  21. ^ "Night Drive". www.melon.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  22. ^ a b Early, J. T. (November 13, 2020). "Album Review: GFRIEND – 回:Walpurgis Night". beatsperminute.com. Retrieved March 6, 2022.
  23. ^ a b Hwang, Sun-up. "回 : Walpurgis Night". www.izm.co.kr (in Korean). Retrieved March 6, 2022.
  24. ^ "The Top15 Albums from K-pop Groups in 2020". South China Morning Post. December 15, 2020. Archived from the original on June 17, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  25. ^ "The Songs and Albums That Defined K-Pop's Monumental Year in 2020". Time. Time. December 11, 2020. Archived from the original on March 31, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  26. ^ Riddhi Chakraborty (December 29, 2020). "10 Best K-pop Albums of 2020". Rolling Stone India. Archived from the original on February 1, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  27. ^ "국내 대표 음악 차트 가온차트!". gaonchart.co.kr. Archived from the original on 2016-05-05. Retrieved 2020-11-16.
  28. ^ "Gaon Album Chart – November 2020" (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Archived from the original on December 10, 2020. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  29. ^ 回:Walpurgis Night, archived from the original on 2021-03-03, retrieved 2021-02-27
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