On September 7, Taemin released his third full-length album Never Gonna Dance Again: Act 1 and the music video for the title track ŌĆ£Criminal.ŌĆØ This new title track highlights TaeminŌĆÖs rebellious charm. It is a synthwave-based song that combines suspenseful rhythm with a newtro sound, creating a more sensual atmosphere. Prior to his full-fledged promotions, Taemin delivered his thoughts on his comeback and his new song through his label.
Q1. How do you feel about our comeback? I have put in a lot of affections to this album, so IŌĆÖm both nervous and excited. ┬Ā Q2. How was the storytelling of this album created? At first, I wanted to make a special album, so I tried to get inspiration from watching various movies. And I thought it would be fun to make the album itself as a movie with a story, so I chose ŌĆ£movieŌĆØ as a reference. Then I developed it through meeting with the staff and got to complete the storytelling of my own story. ┬Ā Q3. One word to express ŌĆśAct 1ŌĆ▓? And why? Maybe ŌĆ£thriller movieŌĆØ? (laughs) Because itŌĆÖs terrifying in a way and acts as a link to the next album ŌĆśAct 2.ŌĆÖ ┬Ā Q4. How did you feel when you first heard the title track ŌĆ£CriminalŌĆØ? I thought the song fits well with the overall concept of this album. So, I raised the perfection of the song by adding the voice that resembles the news, which wasnŌĆÖt there at first, and also modifying the ad-libs in the last chorus to make the song more dramatic. Q5. Please introduce your ŌĆ£CriminalŌĆØ performance. I wanted my performance to have a clear narrative. So I created the performance thinking about the songŌĆÖs flow, and thatŌĆÖs why I use a ŌĆ£laceŌĆØ at the beginning. Personally, the choreography from the bridge, which is the climax, to the end of the song is impressive. ┬Ā Q6. I heard you actively participated in the ŌĆ£CriminalŌĆØ music video from the planning stage. Movie trailers are about the same length as music videos, but I felt that their story was more focused, so I worked to ensure that the storytelling was clearly visible. ┬Ā Q7. If you choose your favorite song in the album. Title track ŌĆ£CriminalŌĆØ and non-title track ŌĆ£Nemo.ŌĆØ I naturally formed more affections for ŌĆ£CriminalŌĆØ as I worked on it, and ŌĆ£NemoŌĆØ is a song that you can listen to comfortably. ┬Ā Q8. Words to your fans. ItŌĆÖs an album where I have melted in a lot of my thoughts, so I want to make good memories and finish it well and safely. Thank you so much to the fans who waited for me, and I will repay you with better performances. Source (1, 2)