Two years since their last release as a group, Super Junior returned Monday (Oct. 30) with the single “One More Chance” ahead of their upcoming eighth album.
“One More Chance,” also known as “Don’t Leave Like The Rain” in Korean, was co-written by member Lee Donghae and marks the start of the boy band’s promotions for Play, the team’s eighth Korean studio album (ninth including 2015’s anniversary album Devil) that will drop on Nov. 6.
A bit of a surprise to fans, SM Entertainment released a teaser clip for “One More Chance” through social media only two hours before dropping the official music video for Super Junior‘s latest song.
Trending on Billboard
Radiating with sentimentality, the single is a pop-rock ballad that features subtle builds to guide the song’s melodic vocals. The track is framed with lyrics, including a rap written by member Eunhyuk (Lee Hyukjae), that reflect on the past, “One More Chance” is a fittingly retrospective track that evokes the maturity of Super Junior, an iconic K-pop act already in its second decade in the industry.
Lee, who has written for the group’s albums and subunits in the past, revealed part of his songwriting process through Super Junior’s currently airing webseries, SJ Returns. The members were also seen choosing the song as a pre-album release track due to its emotive style and meaning. The show also revealed other behind-the-scenes clips, including the group in-studio sessions while recording “One More Chance” and other songs that will be featured on the album.
“One More Chance” will be followed by the single “Black Suit” and the rest of Play next Monday.
Known for their dance tracks and immense size, with 13 or 15 members at its height depending on who is counting, Play features seven members of Super Junior: Lee, Kim Heechul, Leeteuk (Park Jungsoo), Shindong (Shin Donghee), Yesung (Kim Jongwoon), Choi Siwon and Eunhyuk. Several other members of Super Junior’s main grouping are sitting out the album due to personal reasons, while others are fulfilling their mandatory service in South Korea’s military.
The same day as they released “One More Chance,” Super Junior’s label SJ revealed that Choi will also be absent from Play’s promotions, though his vocals and imagery will not be removed from the album and accompanying music videos. Korean news outlet Yonhap reports that the decision comes on the heels of the singer-actor being mired in controversy after his family dog bit a neighbor, resulting in her death.
The early-release album track was accompanied by an equally emotive music video that depicted the seven men in various states of reflection. Bookended by scenes featuring Lee and the past lover that the song’s titular request is aimed at, the members of Super Junior represent their anguish in a variety of emotive scenes, including several that show the members running in the rain. While lacking the choreography Super Junior is typically known for, the melancholic music video matches the evocative tone of “One More Chance.”
Watch the music video for the song below: