Making their sixth Jukebox appearance, the Kpop group who pissed off a bunch of racists a few months back…
[Video]
[5.88]
Alex Clifton: In some ways, this is a difficult song to review: it’s the first official cover BTS have put out as a group (as opposed to ones they’ve done for fun). Not only that, but it’s a cover of a terrifically influential song. Seo Taiji’s original version was certainly dark, but somehow the production of the BTS version feels even more dramatic and darker, theatrical and panicked as opposed to the original’s jazzed-up saxophone backing. The boys own it, though, with updated raps and a better sense of melody. It’s edgier than their mainstream singles, so it’s an interesting public offering, although I do wish the production were a little less blippy–that high-pitched wail throughout does my head in after long enough. It was a risk, and overall it’s paid off; whether or not this was a true one-off or will feed into the boys’ next project, only time will tell.
[8]
Ryo Miyauchi: The battle-rap vigor of BTS dusts off the much aged Cypress Hill pantomime of the Seo Taiji & Boys original. The intensely animated voices of Suga and J-Hope turn up the urgency of the grind, not only for them but also their family — a passed-down sentiment that hits home two decades and a few K-pop generations after.
[6]
Juana Giaimo: BTS did a strange cover where they keep some of the key elements of the original, like the high-pitched synth noise, but leave out the jazzy trumpet that gave a smoother tone to an otherwise too rigid song. The hook gets lost in the aggressive vocal delivery and the final result is a noisy song that neither follows the original nor gives a refreshing sound.
[3]
Thomas Inskeep: Because it’s a cover (of a song from the first huge K-pop boy band, Seo Taji and Boys), this isn’t your typical BTS song: it’s not nearly as musical as most of their catalog, for starters, riding a harder, ’90s, hip-hop beat. And because of that, I find it much less appealing than most of their work. I’ve yet to hear a bad BTS record, but this isn’t a great one.
[5]
Adaora Ede: Last time I checked, BTS was on the tip of become Kpop’s darlings with innovative, very now moombahton infused hiphop. And well, this isn’t really that all? “Come Back Home”‘s awkward nu-metal harks back not only to the earlier days of 90s K-pop, but also BTS’ formative period of grittier punk edged hip-pop. Nonetheless, this cover lacks the bite of the more shock rock inspired original but that’s not to say it’s completely spineless- in fact, it arguably outdoes the Seo Taiji, transforming something that easily could have been the skeleton of juggalo rap track into symphonic trap banger with old school inflections throughout. I can’t tell which is less skippable nowadays.
[6]
Katie Gill: You know, I was wondering why this song sounded so much like a mediocre hip-hop song trying desperately to ape 1990s rap. Turns out it’s a remake of a mediocre hip-hop song trying desperately to ape 1990s rap. BTS certainly made it sound more polished, but they couldn’t remove the inherently dated aspect inherent the song’s DNA–and weirdly enough, made it sound more dated to begin with. BTS’s version sounds more mid 2000s than the Seo Taiji original which actually came OUT in the mid 2000s.
[4]
Alfred Soto: The year’s best opening: a guitar and bass interplay reminiscent of “One of these Nights,” followed by a horrorshow organ and the rasp of their ODB interjections. Maybe this is the joke: if you left, would you come back home to this?
[7]
Kalani Leblanc: Seo Taji and The Boys’ 1995 classic “Come Back Home” is old enough to get sentimental about, so Taji himself wants to celebrate by throwing the classic BTS’ way with a “make it work boys, xoxo Taji:)” note attached. The choice of BTS is more than obvious–not only because the seven skyrocketed as a top tier boygroup with such short notice but–since they have the distinct gangly goofiness that’s especially apparent in the rapper’s lines. Wiping out the original’s unintentional goofiness with intentional goofs is only perfect for the update.
[8]