Battle (South Korean band)

Battle
Origin South Korea
Genres
Years active 2006 (2006)–2010 (hiatus)
Labels
Members
  • Ryu
  • Jin Tae-hwa
  • Lio
  • Chris
  • Hwichan
Past members
  • Shin Ki-Hyun
Battle
Hangul 배틀
Revised Romanization Baeteul
McCune–Reischauer Paet'ŭl

Battle (hangul: 배틀) is a South Korean boy band that debuted on December 17, 2006 with the release of their first single "Crash". They are most popular for winning the reality show, Let's Coke Play! Battle Shinhwa!. The group includes Ryu, Tae-hwa, Lio, Chris, and Hwi-chan. Shin Ki-Hyun, who was chosen by Shinhwa's Eric, departed the group in 2008. The group became inactive following the bankruptcy of Good Entertainment, but has not officially disbanded.

Formation

The members of Battle participated in a popular reality show, Let's Coke Play! Battle Shinhwa!, hosted by the members of Shinhwa themselves. The show was sponsored by Good Entertainment, M-NET and Coca-Cola.[1] The members were hand-picked particularly by each of the Shinhwa members. They were chosen because of their singing, dancing, and endurance skills. Although Kim Jang Hyun was picked during the course of the show, he decided to leave the group due to conflicting musical styles. Dongwan, who picked Jang Hyun, replaced him with Hwichan.

Though initially marketed as the next Shinhwa, meaning legend or myth, Battle did say that though it is an honor to be compared to the legendary band Shinhwa, they do not want to be the next Shinhwa; rather, they want to make a name for themselves and consider Shinhwa to be their mentors .

Career

2006—2007: Debut and first tour

Their first single was Crash, a song with a strong guitar and drum accompaniment. The music video was very dark, showing the members destroying various objects such as T.V.s, cars, etc. As opposed to Crash, which was a melodious dance tune combined with hardcore guitar and staccato drum beats, their other song, Icarus, was a ballad, showing their smooth vocals and harmonizing skills. Many of the fans also mention that "Icarus" sounds a lot like Shinhwa's number one hit song, "Once in a Lifetime". Flying Up, the third track from the single, was a rap song with great beat. Their first ever debut performance was on SBS Gayo where they received very little applause and cheers though it being their first performance they achieved very well from then on when they first did their live performance critics all stated that Battle is weak in vocal skills, despite the rolling rumors and comments Battle went on MBC Music Core and did a live performance for the very first time and succeeding very strongly.

After gaining some popularity in Thailand,[2] the group started their first concert tour there on April 30, 2007. Subsequently, their second single "Tell Me! (Mal Hae)" was ranked 7th on the monthly "Top 20 Album Sales" with 10,263 copies sold in May.[3]

After their tour from Thailand, Battle flew to Beijing, China on July 31, 2007. There, they appeared on numerous shows, including the popular CCTV-4 music program Joonghwajeong.[4]

2008: Step by Step, Kihyun's departure, and solo careers

On May 30, Battle's homepage was officially opened and their new looks were unveiled. Here the next album was teased, with photos releasing daily. Their music video was released 2 hours later than scheduled. They made their comeback stage on Music Bank's Summer special, on June 13. Later the same year, Kihyun announced he would be leaving Battle. A comeback was speculated in 2009, but members HwiChan and Lio entered the military on June 2 and July 7, respectively, putting the group on hiatus. The other 3 members focused on their solo activities: Ryu started an acting career while Chris studied Music in New York; lastly, Taehwa announced a solo career shortly after.

Despite all these, Good Entertainment stood firm that the group would not disband.

2009—2010: Military service, Good Entertainment's bankruptcy and indefenite hiatus

On October 6, 2009, member Jin Taehwa released his first solo single under the name Zin Taehwa.

Although no official statement was released, Ryu entered the military. Following Good Entertainment's bankruptcy, the group became inactive. No mention has yet been made about disbandment.

Members

  • Ryu
  • Lio
  • Taehwa
  • Hwichan
  • Chris

Former members

  • Kihyun

Awards

Years Awards
2007

Discography

Singles

Title of release Date of release Tracklist
Crash (Crazy Love) December 14, 2006
  1. Crash [Crazy in Love]
  2. Icarus
  3. Flying Up
  4. Icarus Instrumental
Tell Me (Malhae) May 30, 2007
  1. 말해! (Malhae! - Tell Me!)
  2. Hey Yo
  3. 고장난 가슴 (Gojangnan Gaseum - Broken Heart)
  4. 고장난 가슴 (Gojangnan Gaseum - Broken Heart) Instrumental
Step by Step June 10, 2008
  1. Big Change (feat. Deegie)
  2. Step by Step
  3. Luv U

References

  1. ↑ http://rki.kbs.co.kr/japanese/program/program_artist_detail.htm?No=103923
  2. ↑ New Group 'Battle' to Release Single Album in Thailand Originally from KBS (2007). Archived on March 28, 2007. Retrieved on December 31, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Top 20 Album Sales (May 2007)". Escaping To Another Realm. 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2007-06-26.
  4. ↑ "Battle To Suspend Activities For 8 Months". KBS World. 2007-08-29. Retrieved 2007-09-16.
  5. ↑ "2007 Mnet KM Music Festival Part1". MAMA. Retrieved 2014-12-14.
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