Xdinary Heroes Explore The Intricacies Of Love—While Rocking Out—On New EP ‘LXVE TO DEATH’

South Korea’s pop music scene is known for vocal groups, but over the years, it’s seen its fair share of bands—as in people playing instruments. In the 2010s, groups like DAY6, The Rose (더 로즈), and N.Flying held it down for the rock scene, and then in 2021 came Xdinary Heroes, an incandescent group of industry disruptors who are paving their own path one release at a time.

The sextet—composed of members Gunil, Jungsu, Gaon, O.de, Jun Han, and Jooyeon—is celebrating a noteworthy 2025 but has yet to rest on its laurels. As they approach their four-year anniversary, Xdinary Heroes have recently finished a world tour, made their Lollapalooza debut, and opened for rock legends Muse. Now, they’re rounding out the year with their brand-new seventh EP, LXVE TO DEATH, a thorough exploration of love in all its forms—both perfect and imperfect.

“We wanted to speak about love in a very frank way, and we wanted to talk about what actually goes on [internally] when we are in love,” guitarist Gaon tells Genius. While the EP touches on aspects of an ordinary love, it also explores the not-so-glamorous sides. It’s an interpretation that’s purely their own, Gaon says.

“[LXVE TO DEATH] has songs that have our own interpretation—Xdinary Heroes’ interpretation—of love, and at times, it is the unspoken sides of love and what goes on deep inside of someone who’s in love,” he says. “Sometimes it’s dark, but we wanted to talk about those aspects of love.”

Typical love songs don’t generally feature heavy metal guitar chords and hammering drums, but with this release, Xdinary Heroes dive headfirst into the unorthodox. They’ve previously displayed an affinity for hard rock, and their new title track “ICU” expands on this portion of their discography. The lyrics, which describe a foolish love, are layered over vigorous guitar runs and fry screams, an unusual combination sonically and thematically.

“When we were writing the lyrics for ‘ICU,’ I thought about a love that is kind of foolish,” lead guitarist Jun Han explains. “You just kind of dive in, and you only give without playing games, and I imagined crashing because of that love. Sonically, we wanted to choose the genre of hard rock because that’s the genre that we have the most fun with when we write songs.”

This song proved to be the most difficult part of writing this EP, bassist Jooyeon says. They pulled much of their inspiration for the track from Guns N' Roses, and the K-pop stars found their greatest challenge was attempting to emulate that band’s masterful storytelling.

“When you listen to those songs from the ’80s, they kind of just tell the story and then they put a melody to it,” Jooyeon says. “That was really difficult for us to try.”

Inspiration Is In the Air—And On The Screen

Admirably, the members are fully hands-on with both composition and lyric writing, and they have been since their inception—which came about in a rather unconventional manner.

Most K-pop trainees audition with the intention of being in an idol group, often with the goal of becoming a stellar dancer or vocalist. Occasionally, some audition as instrumentalists, and in even rarer occasions, they’re redirected during the training process to play an instrument—members Jungsu and O.de can attest to this. Having already joined JYP Entertainment, the pair was eventually grouped with company trainees Gaon, Jun Han, Jooyeon, and Gunil (who briefly attended Berklee College of Music in Boston). Though each member was scouted at different stages in their idol journeys, it’s apparent the universe conspired in the best of ways for the sextet, and thus, the group was formed.

Ever invested in their craft, their attention to detail is evident as they recall some of the places they drew inspiration from for LXVE TO DEATH. For the EP’s sixth track, “Love Tug of War,” keyboardist Jungsu was inspired by Netflix’s hit K-Drama Squid Game. “In [Squid Game], there is a scene where the players play this tug-of-war game, and I thought that two people in love kind of play a tug-of-war,” he says.

Their creative process truly leaves no stone unturned, as embodied by the album’s final track, “LOVE ME 2 DEATH.” Group leader and drummer Gunil describes the song as “soulful” and “raw,” and the group’s heartache bleeds into every aspect of the track—including the syllables of the lyrics.

“I thought that I [should] start the chorus with, ‘Can’t you see my pain?’ It’s very straightforward,” Gunil says, adding that there’s extra emphasis on the “C” in “can’t” and the “P” in “pain.” Though it’s a minute detail, it’s an incredible display of dedication to their craft.

The closing track, in particular, is Xdinary Heroes’ interpretation of “what a twisted love would look like,” Gunil continues. Though the concept of a twisted love may seem oxymoronic by nature, he explains that U.K. rockers Bring Me The Horizon set the perfect foundation for their approach to the subject.

“We were influenced by how they express and explore the theme of love,” Gunil says, adding that his recent interest in psychology only added fuel to the fire.

Though tedious at times, the creative process for LXVE TO DEATH also proved to be the breeding ground for new lessons on love in all its forms. Having recently studied attachment styles—which refers to the ways in which our early relationships with caregivers influence our adult relationships—the drummer was especially captivated by how an anxious attachment style might manifest in an imperfect love.

“When someone has that style of attachment, they’re always anxious that someone is going to leave and they become obsessive,” Gunil says.

Moving Beyond Borders

In July, the group released the single “FiRE (My Sweet Misery),” a metalcore track driven by warped synths and staccato guitar riffs. Alongside the EP’s second all-English track “Spoiler!!!,” the song joins a growing list of full-English releases that make the group’s intention to go international crystal clear.

As South Korea continues to grow its rock scene, the group finds value in connecting with the scene abroad. When asked about the importance of their English releases, Gunil responds in flawless English: “As a band, we always want more people to listen to our songs, and because we want our music to make the world a better place by giving strength, giving [fans] a place to lean on.”

“Even in our Korean songs, we use a lot of English because English is one of the most globally used languages in the world at the moment—and I think that’s one of the best ways to connect with international fans,” he adds.

September presented Xdinary Heroes with the opportunity to open for U.K. rock legends Muse during the latter’s time in South Korea. The band had previously cited Muse as one of their musical influences, and the experience has stuck with the members since the moment they stepped on stage that evening.

“The audience was so massive—it was the biggest audience that we’ve played for so far,” Gunil says. Though the crowd was a mix of both groups’ fans, he humbly admits that the ratio was about “99% Muse fans and 1% Xdinary Heroes fans.” However, the group isn’t deterred by this in the slightest. “I want to make that 99% Xdinary Heroes fans, as well,” he says.

As the band nears their four-year anniversary, their hunger for success has yet to waiver. With each passing milestone, they continue to forge ahead boldly—one might even say heroically—and they’re making sure they enjoy it every step of the way.

“I think as a rock band inside the K-pop hemisphere, only good things exist,” Gaon says. Keyboardist O.de agrees, acknowledging that they often act as an introduction to the rock scene for K-pop fans, a responsibility they don’t take lightly.

“I think it’s a great opportunity, and I only see upsides,” he says.

Their advice to aspiring musicians is simple but not necessarily easy. “My practical advice is just practice as much as possible when you’ve got time,” says Gunil. The drummer admits that being an instrumentalist is by no means easy.

“When we are writing lyrics, our brain hurts,” he says. “And when we are writing [for] our instruments, our body hurts. It’s all painful.” Even so, these boys are all gas, no brakes. “No pain, no gain,” O.de says.

LXVE TO DEATH is the best of Xdinary Heroes—a culmination of their devotion to their craft and the exploration of a turbulent love through their own eyes. Each song is meant to make listeners contemplate their own experiences with love.

“We try to explore love in a multidimensional way,” says Jun Han. “When our fans listen to our album, I hope it becomes an opportunity for them to ponder ‘What kind of love am I in?’”