The Return of the Regiment
So now we know it to be true. The biggest K-pop bands never die, they just regenerate.
The hiatus of the OG Korean boy band superstars since 2022 was dictated by the barracks, not the boardroom. All South Korean men are required to complete a period of military service before the age of 28, and with their eldest member Jin rapidly approaching the end of a deferred deadline it was decided that the group should halt work and go be citizens instead. Not since Elvis Presley had a pop performer's career interruption for their social duties been so widely publicised and documented.
You could have forgiven everyone involved in the project for deciding that was as good a place as any to end the work and move on to the next generation of performers. But clearly BTS' owners employers felt there was life in the old dogs yet. And so this week they are back. Spectacularly so.
Taking them to the top of the Official UK Albums chart for the third time, their comeback album Arirang clambers over the rest of the market with some style. The album moves over 41,000 units, 13,000 of them from streaming but the rest from purchases, be they physical or digital. That's easily their highest first week sale of their career, easing past the 38,000 posted by Map Of The Soul: 7 back in 2020, the last time they managed to top the charts.
And you may care to note this finally snaps the year-long streak. BTS the first non-British act to score a No.1 album in 2026.
The Art Of The Bulk Buy
What was fun to see was the way the band's label was careful to ensure that fan enthusiasm did not dent their chart prospects in any way. Drawing back a curtain to open a forbidden door into the strict application of the chart rules, their official site carried stern instructions that no more than two purchases of the same item should be made in any one transaction for fear of not being counted for chart purposes. This is all down to the very first chart rule covering Genuine Transactions, rule 1.1(b) noting that purchase of albums "other than as a genuine consumer transaction" is not allowed.
The secret is out: buy more than two at once and you risk being flagged as a non-genuine consumer. Although that doesn't apply to special edition multiple formats which you suspect are indeed acceptable to be bought in batches.
Duck Intact
BTS singles charts performances have always been sporadic, and so it proves this week. They duly land themselves three Top 40 hits - but only just.
Speculation that they might enjoy their first ever No.1 single was a little wide of the mark, for of course this is the era of Reign Me In, and only Harry Styles has the super power to beat that. So it is that Sam and Livvy are comfortably No.1 for a fifth non-consecutive week. And the bloody thing continues to grow in sales too, its total of 62,300 chart units the highest of its now 40 week chart career to date.
But no matter, because BTS still have their highest charting single ever in this country. Prior to today, they had hit No.3 three times: Dynamite in 2020, Butter in 2021 and alongside Coldplay on My Universe later that same year. Their No.1 duck is still to be broken, but they can at least now claim a No.2 hit as the album's biggest cut Swim debuts smartly in second place.
But long term readers will know what I am going to say. This first week spike is entirely fan-led just like all their other ones are. Dynamite plunged 3-13 (disappointingly), Butter moved 3-7-13, My Universe taking a 3-12 tumble as that initial surge of interest wore off. Swim is not a bad record by any means, and their choreography is as smart as ever in the two(!) accompanying videos. But it isn't a great pop record, it is a great BTS record. And appeal outside those who love BTS is set to be minimal.
The album's other two cuts don't fare quite as well: Body To Body is No.28 and FYA is No.39.
Still, we can at least thank the superior seven for giving the Top 5 a bit of a kick. Without them things would look naggingly familiar as last week's 2-5 tracks all shift down a place in order. Alex Warren's Fever Dream is the only track making Top 10 progress as it rises back up to No.7 in its best showing since it too debuted at No.3 three weeks ago.
That also means we have a slight glass ceiling situation developing outside the Top 10 as Dominic Fike's Babydoll rises two to No.11, with Tame Impala enjoying the same rise as Dracula hits a new high of No.12. Fike continues to look over his shoulder at his second hit of the moment - White Keys (lest we forget a year newer than the virally revived Babydoll) is also moving in the right direction at No.17.
A Performance In Search Of A Meaning
Time to hit the thing I'm very fond of saying. No, not the Olivia Dean thing. The fact that no matter how much you love RAYE it will never be as much as she loves herself. The high priestess of self-preservation is back on the chart once more with her second hit in four weeks. Click Clack Symphony is as epic as its title suggests, a dramatic piece scored by a co-credited Hans Zimmer that swoops and swirls just as her own vocals do. Like all the best RAYE tracks it showcases her talents to perfect effect. But like all the worst ones it is a performance in search of a meaning. You find yourself sitting through five minutes and ten seconds of it waiting for the track to find its hook or deliver some kind of meaning. A Florence + The Machine for a generation that’s forgotten how a chorus works.
Click Clack Symphony is the second highest new entry of the week at No.18, besting its predecessor Nightingale Lane by two places. But its purposes isn't necessarily to be a smash. It instead serves as a nice warm up for the release of her new album This Music May Contain Hope which is almost certain to make its own No.1 debut this time next week.
The Ghost Of Girl Groups Past
And that's really all I have for you this week, possibly just as well as these words are written as I'm heading out the door on holiday. So assuming a connection next week I'll come to you from exotic climes. To finish this week, a rueful note. Girl group threesome FLO took the industry press by storm in 2023 as they were hyped to the hills by those convinced they were the next big superstars in waiting. Only for the public to respond with a collective shrug, leaving their singles to wither while their debut album vanished after a solitary week.
Anyway, that still gets them a second bite at the cherry with a new album in the works and the hype machine cranked up once more. New single Leak It can't quite make the Top 40, charting instead at No.45. Maybe I'm wrong to be so cynical, maybe this is the year that sees Stella, Jorja and Renee become the new Mis-Teeq. I'm dubious.
