Sistar returns with new album ...on broken heart

Four-member girl group brings mature, sexy look for summer


Korean girl group Sistar stepped back into the spotlight with a press conference announcing their new mini album Thursday, breaking their eight-month hiatus.

Titled “Alone,” the album reflects the group’s attempts to transform its image from energetic to sexy in all aspects ― music, dance, make-up and outfits, Sistar said. The four-member group wore flashy red dresses cut shorter in the front to show off their new subtle moves focusing on their legs and body silhouettes.

“We tried to come up with mature attractiveness for this summer. We put so much effort into this,” said Bora, the group’s rapper. “We used to run around on stage and be all springy before, but this time, we are going to be sexy.”

The music video for the title track “Alone,” a piece whose motif is the pain of a broken-hearted woman, was filmed overseas in Las Vegas. The music video shows Sistar dancing at clubs, bars and on a graphic stage embedded with crystal lights and gleaming metals.

On Thursday, Sistar kicked off their showcase in micro shorts and loose tops with “Lead Me,” a song about a girl’s feelings towards the man she loves. The song composed by Double Side Kick is an R&B piece with a laid-back groove and hip-hop beats.

Then the group changed into red dresses with slits and performed “No Mercy” and “Alone.” “No Mercy,” composed and arranged by Rovin, demonstrates catchy composition and pop-style arrangement, noted for the reduced electronic sound and stronger guitar.

Hit songwriter Brave Brothers said that he wrote the title track “Alone” exclusively for Sistar.

“These girls have unlimited potential. They’ve got the visual (attraction) and have Hyorin, the vocal,” he said. Brave Brothers wrote “Push Push,” the group’s debut single.

The composer added a stronger piano and FX guitar to the piece.

“Sistar made a different shot this time. Previously it was oriented toward electronic pop-style, but now we added ‘real-sound,’ giving more emotions and less tension to the ears,” said Brave Brothers.

The girl group had more than just music to talk about during the question-and-answer session. Soyou shared her low-sodium diet with the audience. Dasom, the youngest member, talked about her coming of age.

“Surprisingly it makes no difference, and the agency head still won’t let me drive,” she said. Dasom added that she shed three kilograms for the new album.

Sistar returned to live TV on MNet Countdown on last Thursday.

By Chung Joo-won (joowonc@heraldcorp.com)