Marking its first release as a seven-member group, EPEX returns after a year to wrap up its four-part “Youth” series with the new EP “Youth: Epilogue.”
Boy band EPEX poses for a photo during a press showcase for its seventh EP, "Youth: Epilogue," held in western Seoul on June 9.C9 ENTERTAINMENT
Boy band EPEX has sung about its spring days for the past two years. Now, at the start of summer, the septet is bringing its “Youth” series to a close with renewed determination for what lies ahead.
“There certainly are some unstable, confusing moments in one’s youth,” said member Mu during a press showcase ahead of the release of the group’s seventh EP, “Youth: Epilogue,” held in western Seoul on Tuesday. “But being young means going through all those instabilities to reach self-assurance — and I believe that lies in the center of our answer for what youth means in this album.”
EPEX’s seventh EP, “Youth: Epilogue,” comes nearly a year after the group’s previous album, “Youth Chapter 3: Romantic Youth,” released in July last year.
The album completes the four-part “Youth” series, of which the Korean name, sohwa, refers to splendid spring days and youth. The series began with the septet’s first full-length album, “Youth Chapter 1: Youth Days,” released in April 2024, followed by “Youth Chapter 2: Youth Deficiency,” released in November that year.
“This has been the longest gap between our releases,” said A-min. “So in the meantime, we studied a lot about what should go into this album, and each of us worked on improving ourselves individually, so we really wanted to present the results to the world as soon as possible.”
EPEX debuted under C9 Entertainment in 2021 with the EP “Bipolar Pt.1: Prelude of Anxiety,” and celebrated its fifth debut anniversary on Monday.
The group consists of seven members: Wish, Mu, A-Min, Baekseung, Ayden, Yewang and Jeff. Former member Geum, who halted activities in May last year, left the team in November. “Youth: Epilogue,” therefore, marks the group’s first release after it officially became a septet.
Poster for boy band EPEX's seventh EP, "Youth: Epilogue"C9 ENTERTAINMENT
The latest EP consists of four songs: the hip-hop-leaning lead track “Echo,” and B-sides “Better Days,” “Boys in the Band” and “Call it Love.”
All seven members actively participated in the production process this time, with Jeff, Baeksung and Ayden credited for songwriting and lyrics, Wish and A-min taking part in creating the choreography, Yewang assisting in recording and directing and Mu in styling. Mu, in particular, came up with three different styling ideas and detailed plans for the group’s looks.
Looking ahead, the group says it is not chasing grand goals. Instead, EPEX wants to keep moving forward at its own pace.
“Of course it would be good if we set big goals, and we would love to do that,” said Baekseung. “But at the same time, I think what matter most to us is keeping our pace and continue to carry on without burning out.”
Yewang said the experience of working on “Youth: Epilogue” has already become fuel for the group’s next step.
“I want to get inspiration for the next album with what I learned from this one,” said Yewang. “I want to complement what we lacked with this album in the next one — and I think that kind of experience is what we need to create perfect songs.”
