BTS Makes Their Anticipated Comeback With ‘Arirang’

Grace Diviny, Staff Writer

The BTS Mania is in full swing again! After nearly four years of hiatus, the beloved K-Pop boy  group is finally back with their new album ‘Arirang.’ 

The group went on hiatus in mid-2022 due to Korea’s mandatory military service for men around  the age of 28, with eldest member Jin being the first in line to enlist in November 2022.  Eventually, the rest of the members ended up enlisting around the same time as each other in late  2023 to ensure that their fans would not have to wait a long time for the members to come back. 

This is the group’s fifth studio album and their first studio album in six years, in which they  stated on Weverse that they had started collaborating collectively again around July 2025. They  worked with many well-known artists in the Western industry on this album, such as Ryan  Tedder from OneRepublic, Diplo, Kevin Parker from Tame Impala, and JPEGMafia.  

While many fans were expecting the usual pop sound like their past works, this album showcases  a more unique and experimental side to the group, with the album title and sound being a  homage to a folk song created in 1896 by seven Korean men with American ethnologist Alice  Fletcher. Their first track, Body to Body, shows this perfectly with its groundbreaking  futuristic hip-hop vibe that transitions into a pansori-style folkish tune towards the end, which is an evident nod to its album title and inspiration. 

They also incorporate the sound of the Sacred Bell of the Great King Seongdeok in their song “No. 29,” which emphasizes them leaning into their roots. One song in particular, Hooligan, takes on a unique and grittier sound that  resembles “noise” music, a risky yet experimental move on their end. Songs such as Like  Animals and Merry Go-Round share an edgier sound with elements of psychedelic and pop-rock.  However, their lead single SWIM is a melodic, defined beat that mimics their classic pop R&B stuff in a more mature and precise manner.  

With Arirang’s release being heavily anticipated, the reviews are divided amongst fans and  critics alike. Clash Music praised the band for straying away from their “chart-focused” hits and  taking their own sound, in which they stated that it resulted “in a project that feels current  without sounding derivative,” and that their tracks were a “more mature body of work” this time  around compared to their more on the surface hits such as “Dynamite” and “Butter.” Other  critics, such as Mark Savage from BBC, stated that the album brought back the edge seen in their  earlier albums that they had lost as they shot up to stardom.  

However, RIFF Magazine critiqued the album’s stylistic choices and argued that the group’s  sound was still consistent with Western assimilation, stating that the album was a “mixed bag of  Western pop hits rather than a cohesive storyline.” Pitchfork shared the same sentiments, stating  that the album’s themes and message “repeatedly ring hollow, like birthday emails from a mega  corporation.”

Arirang is BTS’ most creative, innovative, and risky album to date that is not afraid to move outside of the box with its variety of musical influences from folk, R&B, and psychedelic to Jersey-inspired beats. The group, despite the criticism of aiming to appeal to a western audience, stays true to their roots and displays no hesitation at rejecting assimilation throughout their album’s lyrics and themes.