Balming Tiger are K-Pop’s alternative stars. A collective of singer-songwriters, rappers, visual artists, writers, producers and directors formed in Korea’s underground scene, they represent a youth scene blending the country’s culture in new and imaginative ways. Spiking K-Pop’s bubblegum bubble with their off-kilter, scuzzy hip-hop beats, Balming Tiger take K-pop’s hypnotic earworm sensibilities and twists them with an off-kilter, DIY attitude. (Their recent single Sexy Nukim – an ode to being Asian, sexy and cool – featured RM of legendary K-pop group BTS.) It’s raw, it’s fun, it’s redefining how Korean music is perceived around the world.

Following the announcement of Balming Tigers’ acclaimed debut record, January Never Dies, we premiere the surreal horror video (created by the group’s visual artist Chanhee Hong) for their latest track, Kamehameha, named after a Dragonball Z drinking game. 

“Kamehameha is a song that expresses the psychology of a heavily drunk character and is inspired by a Korean alcohol game song that any Korean adult can sympathise with,” the band tells us. “The crew compared the feeling of being drunk and full of confidence to Kamehameha, the representative skill of Dragon Ball. This track also contains the meaning of satire that the momentary bravado after drinking alcohol is not the real self.”