Dalmatian (EP)

Dalmatian is the debut mini-album by South Korean idol group Dalmatian. It was released on February 14, 2011, through IS Entermedia Group and distributed by LOEN Entertainment. Filled with songs revolving around love stories, the record was musically, conceptually, and visually conceived by the members of the group. Preceding its release, "Round 1" was released in September of the previous year as Dalmatian's introductory single.

Dalmatian
EP by
Dalmatian
ReleasedFebruary 14, 2011 (2011-02-14)
Recorded2010–2011
Genre
Length25:11
LanguageKorean
LabelIS Entermedia Group
Dalmatian chronology
Dalmatian
(2011)		 State of Emergency
(2012)
Singles from Dalmatian
  1. "Round 1"
    Released: September 1, 2010
  2. "That Man Opposed"
    Released: February 14, 2011
  3. "Lover Cop"
    Released: February 14, 2011

Dalmatian and its two lead singles "That Man Opposed" and "Lover Cop" were concurrently released on Valentine's Day. Dalmatian promoted the record through music chart programs across various television networks by performing both songs. The mini-album peaked at number 22 on South Korea's national Gaon Album Chart, selling over 5,700 copies since its release.

Background

In order to better communicate with fans and create an album with "emotional" music, Dalmatian decided to conceive a record with love stories.[1] The group was able to freely determine the direction of its craft, including the music, lyrics, styling, concept, and theme.[2][3] In addition to the tracks on the mini-album, the group wrote 60 other songs.[4] The sextet practiced the choreography for their singles for three months.[5] The title of the mini-album is a portmanteau of "dalmatian" and "musician".[6]

Artwork concept

The cover art for Dalmatian showcases the six members set against a white background, with black spotted patterns overlaid them to resemble a dalmatian dog. The colors symbolize the "internal suffering" endured by the members for the years they spent training, while also signaling to a "bright" future.[7] In the album photos, henna was applied on the faces of rap members Inati, Day Day, and Dari to accentuate an impression of strength; vocalists Jeesu, Daniel, and Youngwon donned smoky eye shadow to convey a "soft" and "mature" ambience.[8]

Music structure

Described as being accompanied by a "sweet" melody and vocals, the opening track "Lover Cop" is a dance track which centers around a house beat and synthesizer. A guitar with an electronic rock sound was implemented into the refrain. The lyrics were written by Day Day, credited as David Kim, who was inspired by the film RoboCop (1987) to pen the song.[9] The song was conceived as a result of the hypothetical question, "are robots also capable of feeling love?".[4] The second track "That Man Opposed" is a hip hop-dance song compromising an "intense" beat and "moderate" piano.[9] A story of unrequited love, it was inspired by Jeesu's middle school experience.[4] Comparing the tracks to a dalmatian dog, the group felt that the former demonstrated a "black" feeling, while the latter's comical lyrics and "gentle and cute" appearance illustrated a "white" one.[10] "Really Really" is a hip-hop track performed by rappers Inati, Day Day, and Dari.[11] "Real Eyes" is a neo soul track with a simple jazz piano foundation. It is sung by vocalists Jeesu, Daniel, and Youngwon, with lyrics written by the former two.[9][11] Serving as the closing track, "Round 1" is a dance song inspired by 1990s music.[12][13]

Release and promotion

Dalmatian released its debut single "Round 1" on September 1, 2010.[14] Dalmatian was announced on January 2, 2011, with a scheduled release for the following month.[15] Originally intending to release one lead single, group leader Inati expressed confidence in the music to simultaneously release a second.[3] The music video teasers for the lead singles "That Man Opposed" and "Lover Cop" were directed by Jo Su-hyeon and unveiled on February 11.[16] Dalmatian and the two music videos were concurrently released on Valentine's Day.[17] On that day, the group held its Dalmatian 1st Mini Album Show showcase at Rolling Hall in the Seogyo-dong neighborhood of Hongdae.[18] Dalmatian performed five songs in total, including both lead singles, and attracted between 200–300 attendees to the event.[19][20][21]

Dalmatian began promoting "That Man Opposed" and "Lover Cop" three days later on Mnet's music chart show M Countdown,[22] followed by subsequent comeback performances on Korean Broadcasting System's (KBS) Music Bank, Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation's (MBC) Show! Music Core, and Seoul Broadcasting System's (SBS) Inkigayo.[23]

Commercial performance

On the chart dated February 13 – 19, 2011, Dalmatian debuted at number 22 on South Korea's national Gaon Album Chart.[24] By the end of the month, it shifted 2,933 units domestically.[25] The mini-album ranked at number 202 on the year-end chart, selling 5,755 copies in 2011.[26]

Track listing
Track listing[27]
No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."Lover Cop"David KimDisc BrothersDisc Brothers3:28
2."That Man Opposed" (그 남자는 반대; Geu Namjaneun Bandae)David Kim, Park Jang-geun, Disc BrothersShinsadong Tiger, Choi Gyu-seong, Rado 3:37
3."Lost in Love"Disc Brothers, David KimDisc BrothersDisc Brothers3:40
4."Really Really" (featuring So-hyun)DalmatianDisc Brothers, Park Jang-geun, Day Day 3:27
5."Real Eyes"JeesuDisc Brothers, JeesuDisc Brothers3:55
6."Home Run"Disc Brothers, David KimDisc Brothers, Park Jang-geun 3:39
7."Round 1"MC Mong, David KimJo Yeong-su, MC MongJo Yeong-su3:25
Total length:25:11

Charts
Weekly
Chart (2011) Peak
position
Gaon Album Chart[24] 22
Year-end
Chart (2011) Peak
position
Gaon Album Chart[26] 202

References
  1. Park, Kun-wook (February 14, 2011). '컴백' 달마시안 "팬들과 더욱 소통하기 위해 노력했다". Asia Economy (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  2. Lee, Hye-rin (February 24, 2011). "ko:달마시안 "팬들에게 충성하는 그룹 될게요!"". Osen (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  3. Park, Eun-byeol (February 24, 2011). 달마시안 '우리 노래는 직접 만들어요'(인터뷰). edaily (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  4. Hong, Dong-hee (February 16, 2011). 미니앨범 낸 6인조 ‘달마시안’ ...달마시안 흑•백처럼 독특하게...로봇도 사랑을 느낄수 있을까요?. Herald Economy (in Korean). Herald Corporation. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  5. Jang, Jin-ri (February 11, 2011). 달마시안, 첫 미니앨범 기념 쇼케이스 성황리에 개최. Joynews24 (in Korean). inews24. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  6. Lee, Jeong-yeon (February 23, 2011). [스타 포커스] 달마시안 "점박이 개 처럼…친근함·개성으로 승부". The Dong-a Ilbo (in Korean). Dong-a Ilbo Company. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  7. Lee, Hye-rin (February 8, 2011). 달마시안, 파격 얼룩무늬 재킷 사진 공개. Osen (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  8. Han, Jun-ho (February 8, 2011). 달마시안, 파격적인 새 음반 재킷 사진 공개. Segye Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  9. Jo, Woo-yeong (February 14, 2011). 달마시안, 달달한 뮤지션이 되어 돌아오다. TVreport (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  10. Hong, Dong-hee (February 16, 2011). 미니앨범 낸 6인조 '달마시안' ...달마시안 흑·백처럼 독특하게...로봇도 사랑을 느낄수 있을까요?. Herald Economy (in Korean). Herald Corporation. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  11. Kim, Eun-ku (February 14, 2011). 달마시안, 250여 팬 "앙코르" 환호 속 성공적 첫 쇼케이스. Edaily (in Korean). Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  12. 엠넷, '달마시안의 매니저 파업시대' 방송. Yonhap News (in Korean). Seoul: Yonhap. September 6, 2010. Retrieved November 29, 2017. Alt URL
  13. 달마시안 'MC몽 키운 아이돌답네' 남다른 행보 시선집중. Newsen (in Korean). September 5, 2010. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  14. MC몽 키운 신예아이돌 달마시안 1일 데뷔 '본격 활동 스타트'. Newsen (in Korean). September 2, 2010. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  15. Lee, Eun-jeong (January 2, 2011). 아이돌 그룹, 신묘년 벽두부터 경쟁 돌입. Yonhap News (in Korean). Seoul, South Korea: Yonhap. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  16. 그룹 '달마시안', 더블 타이틀곡 티저 공개로 화제. Korea Economic Daily (in Korean). February 9, 2011. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  17. Lee, Hye-rin (February 14, 2011). 달마시안, 첫 쇼케이스 성황리 개최 “이제 시작이다!”. Osen (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  18. 달마시안, 14일 미니앨범 발매 및 첫 쇼케이스 개최. bntnews (in Korean). February 7, 2011. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  19. Kim, Jae-chang (February 14, 2011). [T포토] 달마시안, '팬서비스는 확실하게'. TVreport (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  20. Han, Jun-ho (February 14, 2011). 달마시안, 쇼케이스에서 6인6색 음악적 매력 뽐내. Segye Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  21. Cha, Yeon (February 14, 2011). 신예 男아이돌 달마시안, "무대 위에서 미칠 것". No Cut News (in Korean). CBSi. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  22. Jeon, Won (February 17, 2011). 달마시안 컴백 ‘강렬&발랄’ 완벽퍼포먼스 누나마음 녹였다. Newsen (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  23. Han, Jun-ho (February 21, 2011). "ko:달마시안, 개성 만점 헤어스타일과 독특한 무대 매너로 찬사". Segye Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  24. 2011년 09주차 Album Chart (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  25. 2011년 02월 Album Chart (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  26. 2011년 Album Chart (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Archived from the original on September 10, 2016. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  27. Dalmatian (liner notes). Dalmatian. IS Entermedia Group. 2011. 1024027509.CS1 maint: others (link)
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