By Emily Garcia
You may know many different Korean groups, commonly known as K-pop, being run by a company and having five or more members in a group. Though I’m not here to talk about K-pop groups, even if they are well known around the world, I’m here to talk about a small project that’s on YouTube called Alien Stage. Similar to K-pop, some of their songs fit into the genre of pop, which may sound similar to songs you’ve heard before. Even though there are only a few songs right now, with new ones coming every couple of months, the project is very interesting due to its plot and how each song fits the characters' personalities. Some even cover the songs with a different tone, and the beat of the song is either played softly or remains the same.
The overall plot of Alien Stage involves aliens holding a reality audition program where humans are the contestants, singing to survive through each round. Whoever wins the round moves on, while the losing contestant gets killed off. It’s implied through music videos, comics, or art that there have been multiple rounds where contestants sing, fighting for their lives.
In the introduction to Alien Stage, we are introduced with a pop song where one of the characters sings, showing the six main characters in the story, with the lyrics fitting each character differently. Toward the end of the music video, we see that both humans and aliens on Earth are watching the reality audition, which mostly entertains just the aliens. The first video doesn’t show much of the songs we have so far, but it does introduce the characters and offers clues you can analyze about the project.
The next video features the two main girls, Mizi and Sua, competing against each other, thinking they could at least tie in the first round. Their song is a soft ballad about their love for each other. While the lyrics are in Korean, you can tell from the subtitles and some English words that appear throughout the song. My Clematis really shows how much they care for each other, as they don’t focus on the competition to see who survives. However, one finally loses by just one point, and dies to entertain the aliens, as it is a reality show for them. Mizi moves on to the next round, continuing to sing toward the end of the song as her voice softens and the instrumental fades away.
In the next round, we are introduced to another character, Till, who seems determined to win each round. He sings louder and doesn’t even give his opponent a chance to sing, immediately winning. His song, Till the Unknown, is much different from the previous songs we’ve heard. His performance is more intense, as he yells and sings about his past love and hate for someone. Unlike the soft songs before, this one is rougher, almost resembling rock.
Moving on to the next round, we meet another character, Ivan. His song, Black Sorrow, is softer than Till the Unknown but similar to Sweet Dream and My Clematis. It begins with Ivan softly singing about his feelings for Till, as seen in the music video. Ivan knows Till doesn’t feel the same way, and he expresses his unacknowledged emotions through his song. Both Till and Ivan’s songs convey their emotions with contrasting tones and instrumentals, as Till's song is for Mizi, asking her to ignore what he’s going through, while Ivan’s song is about unreciprocated love.
In round five, we are reminded that Mizi advanced after Sua lost their duet. Mizi now faces Luka, and they have a duet of their own, with the focus shifting to Luka’s song. The song has a delicate feel, with instruments like drums, piano, and even a ukulele in some parts. While we would expect one to advance and the other to die, Mizi goes missing after punching Luka in anger, seeing him as imitating Sua throughout the song.
In the latest song so far, Cure, we have another duet between Ivan and Till. While we would expect Till to sing loudly like in Till the Unknown, this time, he starts off softly, gradually getting louder but never as intense as before. When it’s Ivan’s turn, he mirrors Till’s softer tone, and the two sing together, both getting louder as they compete for survival. Ivan is killed off at the end of the song. Throughout the performance, a soft guitar accompanies them, growing louder as they sing. Ivan’s part introduces a piano instead of a guitar until he begins to sing louder, reflecting the different tones of each character.
So far, these are the only songs from Alien Stage, but while we wait for new releases every few months, the voice actors have released covers of the songs. These covers often have different tones or instrumentals. One of the most requested covers, released on September 30th, is a version of Cure by Mizi and Sua. Their rendition has a much softer tone compared to the original by Ivan and Till. The guitar chords remain the same, but they follow the softer vocals of Mizi and Sua. The lyrics are clearer, as the guitar doesn’t overpower their voices.
Another notable cover is Sua’s version of Ruler of My Heart. There’s no whistle like in Luka’s version, and the piano plays in a higher tone, though the chords are the same. Sua’s soft voice fits perfectly with the instrumentals, offering a much calmer and gentler take compared to Luka’s rougher voice. The difference in instrumentals highlights the contrast between the two versions.
There’s much more to analyze in Alien Stage beyond just the songs, from the music videos to the characters' personalities and why they sing in a specific tone or with certain instruments. Though the final round is coming up in just a few weeks, the creators have announced that more content is on the way. So, we can look forward to new songs and more to analyze or simply enjoy.
You can analyze much more than just the songs this project has when you can even analyze the music videos they have of the characters, and wondering why it may fit them as they sing in a specific tone with the specific instruments they have. Alien Stage is still going on even if the final round is coming up in just a few weeks, they have said there will be much more in the near future meaning there will be more songs later on that you can analyze or just listen to for fun.
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