Unforgiven (Le Sserafim album)
2023 studio album by Le Sserafim
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Unforgiven is the first studio album by South Korean girl group Le Sserafim, released by Source Music on May 1, 2023. It contains 13 tracks, including the singles "Unforgiven" and "Eve, Psyche & the Bluebeard's Wife".
| Unforgiven | ||||
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Digital and "Vol.3 Bloody Rose" version cover | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 1, 2023 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 37:50 | |||
| Language | Korean | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer |
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| Le Sserafim chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Unforgiven | ||||
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The album debuted at number one on the Circle Album Chart and was certified million by the Korea Music Content Association (KMCA) for selling 1,000,000 units. In the United States, it debuted at number 6 on the Billboard 200, becoming the group's first top-ten album. It was awarded the Best Album Bonsang at the 38th Golden Disc Awards. The group embarked on the Flame Rises Tour from August to October 2023 in support of the album.[2]
Background and release
On March 16, 2023, Source Music reported that Le Sserafim would be releasing an album in early May.[3] On April 3, it was confirmed that the group's first studio album would be titled Unforgiven and released on May 1.[4] A day later, the promotional schedule was released.[5] On April 10, the album teaser video was released.[6] On April 17, the track sampler video was released.[7] A day later, the track listing was released with "Unforgiven" announced as the lead single.[8] On April 24, the highlight medley teaser video was released.[9] The music video teasers for "Unforgiven" was released on April 28 and 30.[10][11] The album was released alongside the music video for "Unforgiven" on May 1.[12]
Composition
Unforgiven consists of 13 tracks, with the first six tracks having previously been released as part of Fearless and Antifragile, respectively.[8] The seventh track, "Burn the Bridge", is as a song that "announces the start of Le Sserafim's new journey" with lyrics "based on the members' own writings or what they [had] said in interviews [previously], adding sincerity to the message they wanted to convey". The eighth track and lead single, "Unforgiven", is a hip hop song characterized by "funk guitar rhythms" played by American musician Nile Rodgers; it samples "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly", a theme song used in the film of the same name.[13] Rodgers stated he was excited to work on the song due to the new types of chord changes it included.[14] The ninth track, "No-Return (Into the Unknown)", is a song with lyrics that "expressed the excitement ahead of the adventure". The tenth track, "Eve, Psyche & the Bluebeard's Wife", is a song with lyrics that contains the meaning "you can move on to the next level only when you break the taboo". The eleventh track, "Fearnot (Between You, Me and the Lamppost)", is a song with lyrics written by all of the members for their "fandom and singing just for them". The twelfth track, "Flash Forward", is a social media pop song with lyrics about "risking everything without hesitation even if the ending is obvious". The thirteenth and final track, "Fire in the Belly", is a song with lyrics about "burning the passion in [your] heart by showing the ambition to becoming the winner of an adventure".[13]
Critical reception
Unforgiven was generally met with positive reviews from critics. Cristina Jaleru of AP News called the album "an absolute firecracker of a record" and praised it as being "a bold anthem of female empowerment."[16] Neil Z. Yeung of AllMusic wrote that the album is "an ideal entry point into the world of Le Sserafim" and particularly commended the track "Fearnot (Between You, Me and the Lamppost)" for highlighting "the group's vocal harmony."[17] Onome Uyovbievbo of Riff Magazine noted the album's "nonconventional tropes and experimental pop twists" and opined that "Le Sserafim is setting the example for a new generation of K-pop artists."[1] Paste ranked the album number three in their list of The 20 Best K-pop Albums of 2023.[18]
Accolades
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Disc Awards | 2024 | Best Album (Bonsang) | Won | [19] |
| Album of the Year (Daesang) | Nominated |
Commercial performance
On April 11, 2023, media outlets reported that Unforgiven had sold over one million copies in pre-orders in less than one week.[20] Pre-orders increased to 1,380,000 copies by April 28.[21] In the United States, the album debuted at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 main album chart on May 15, 2023, with 45,000 album equivalent units earned in its first week, marking the first time Le Sserafim entered the Top 10 of the chart since their debut.[22]
Promotion
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The World Is My Oyster" (2023 version) |
| 13 | 1:47 |
| 2. | "Fearless" (2023 version) |
| 13 | 2:48 |
| 3. | "Blue Flame" (2023 version) |
| 13 | 3:22 |
| 4. | "The Hydra" |
| 13 | 1:44 |
| 5. | "Antifragile" |
| 13 | 3:04 |
| 6. | "Impurities" |
| 13 | 3:16 |
| 7. | "Burn the Bridge" |
| 13 | 2:35 |
| 8. | "Unforgiven" (featuring Nile Rodgers) |
| 13 | 3:02 |
| 9. | "No-Return (Into the Unknown)" |
| 13 | 3:05 |
| 10. | "Eve, Psyche & the Bluebeard's Wife" (이브, 프시케 그리고 푸른 수염의 아내; Ibeu, Peusike geurigo Pureun Suyeomui anae) |
| 13 | 3:06 |
| 11. | "Fearnot (Between You, Me and the Lamppost)" (피어나; Pieona; 'Bloom') |
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| 3:27 |
| 12. | "Flash Forward" |
| Hiss Noise | 3:16 |
| 13. | "Fire in the Belly" |
| 13 | 3:18 |
| Total length: | 37:50 | |||
Notes
- "Unforgiven" contains portions of "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly", the theme to the film of the same name, written by Ennio Morricone.
- "Fire in the Belly" and "Eve, Psyche, & The Bluebeard's Wife" are stylized in sentence case.
- "Fearnot (Between You, Me, and the Lamppost)" is stylized as "FEARNOT (Between you, me, and the lamppost)".
- "No-Return (Into the Unknown)" is stylized as "No-Return (Into the unknown)".
- "Fearless", "Antifragile", and "Unforgiven" are stylized in all caps.
Personnel
Musicians
- Le Sserafim – lead vocals (all tracks), background vocals (7, 11)
- Huh Yunjin – production (11)
- Score (13) – production, keyboards (1–11, 13); drums (2–3, 5–10, 13), digital editing (all tracks), vocal arrangement (all tracks)
- Megatone (13) – production (1–11, 13), bass (1–10, 13), guitar (2–3, 5–7, 13), drums (8–10), keyboards (11), strings (11), digital editing (all tracks), vocal arrangement (all tracks)
- Jukjae – production, guitar (11)
- Hiss Noise – production, keyboards, synthesizer (12)
- Woo Min-jung – digital editing (2)
- Kim Jun-yeong – digital editing (8–10, 12–13)
- Nile Rodgers – guitar (8)
- Hareem – harmonica, ocarina, Irish whistle, background vocals (8)
- Matt Hornbeck – guitar (9)
- George Shelby – saxophone (9)
- Louis Van Taylor – saxophone (9)
- Phillip Whack – saxophone (9)
- Wendell Kelly – trombone (9)
- James Ford – trumpet (9)
- Mike Condone – trumpet (9)
- Craig Young – bass (11)
- Victor Indrizzio – drums (11)
- Sam Hunter – guitar (11)
- Blvsh – background vocals (2)
- Paulina Cerrilla – background vocals (2, 5, 12–13)
- Josefin Glenmark – background vocals (2, 8)
- Sound Kim – background vocals (2, 11)
- Jonna Hall – background vocals (3, 6)
- Isabella Lovestory – background vocals (5)
- Charli Taft – background vocals (6, 9)
- Anne Judith Wik – background vocals (8)
- Kris Jana – background vocals (8)
- Arineh Karimi – background vocals (9–10)
- Cazzi Opeia – background vocals (9)
- Shorelle – background vocals (9)
- Young Chance – background vocals (9–10)
- Belle – background vocals (10)
- Feli Ferraro – background vocals (10)
- Duane Benjamin – horns director (9)
- Stella Jang – vocal arrangement (1)
Technical
- So Sung-jin – executive producer
- Geoff Swan – mix engineering (1, 4, 7)
- Manny Marroquin – mix engineering (2, 5, 8)
- Chris Galland – mix engineering (2, 5, 8)
- Josh Gudwin – mix engineering (3)
- Tony Maserati – mix engineering (6, 9)
- David K. Younghyun – mix engineering (6, 9)
- James F. Reynolds – mix engineering (10)
- Chris Lord-Alge – mix engineering (11)
- John Hanes – mix engineering (13)
- Chris Gehringer – mastering
- Hwang Min-hee – engineering (1–3, 5–8, 11–13)
- Lee Yeon-soo – engineering (3, 5–7, 9–10)
- Jeon Bu-yeon – engineering (3), mix engineering (12)
- Kim Hyeon-soo – engineering (4)
- Bob Horn – engineering (9)
- Howard Willing – engineering (11)
- Matt Cahill – mix engineering assistance (1, 4, 7)
- Ramiro Fernandez-Seoane – mix engineering assistance (2, 5, 8)
- Heidi Wang – mix engineering assistance (3)
- James Cunningham – mix engineering assistance (10)
- Brian Judd – mix engineering assistance (11)
- Shachar Boussani – engineering assistance (9)
- Austin Brown – engineering assistance (11)
Charts
Weekly charts
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Monthly charts
Year-end charts
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Sales and certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Japan (RIAJ)[50] | Gold | 100,000^ |
| South Korea (KMCA)[51] | Million | 1,000,000^ |
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^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||