| Seo Taiji and Boys III | |
| Type: | studio |
| Artist: | Seo Taiji and Boys |
| Cover: | Seo Taiji and Boys third album.jpg |
| Released: | August 13, 1994 |
| Studio: | Conway Studios, Techno Taiji, Atachi Studio |
| Genre: | Rap rock, alternative metal, pop |
| Language: | Korean |
| Label: | Bando Eumban |
| Producer: | Seo Taiji |
| Prev Title: | Seo Taiji and Boys II |
| Prev Year: | 1993 |
| Next Title: | Seo Taiji and Boys IV |
| Next Year: | 1995 |
Seo Taiji and Boys III is the third studio album by Korean musical group Seo Taiji and Boys. With over 1.6 million copies sold, it is one of the best-selling albums in South Korea.
This third album switched gears to being much more heavy metal and rock driven. It was partially recorded in Los Angeles using American session musicians.[1] The danceable tunes are nearly non-existent except "Balhaereul Ggumggumyeo" (발해를 꿈꾸며, "Dreaming of Balhae"), an alternative rock song which indicates a hope of reuniting North and South Korea. Instead, songs such as the controversial "Gyoshil Idea" (교실 이데아, "Classroom Idea") with death growl vocals by Ahn Heung-chan of thrash metal band Crash take center stage.
The version of the album included in Seo Taiji's 15th anniversary box set adds a remix of "Gyoshil Idea" and six live tracks, including a cover of "Farewell to Love" originally by Seo's previous band Sinawe.
See main article: article. The songs "Classroom Idea", "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" and "It's My Business" highly criticized the older generation of Koreans and their education system.[2]
"Classroom Idea" was extremely critical of the education system and the pressure placed on the country's youth to succeed academically. The fact that Seo is a high school dropout himself added to the discussion, with the group labelled as a negative influence to young people.[3] [4] The song was banned from TV and radio, even though the government run Public Performance Ethics Committee gave the song a pass.[2]
Shortly after the album's release, the group were accused of backmasking Satanic messages in their songs, specifically in "Classroom Idea". Although the mainstream news media later proved these accusations to be based on extremely tenuous evidence, the moral panic proved difficult to eliminate.[4] [5]
Seo Taiji and Boys won a Golden Disc Award for "Balhaereul Ggumggumyeo" in 1994.[6]
In April 1996, Billboard reported that the album had sold over 1.6 million copies.[7]
Kyunghyang Shinmun ranked the album number 57 on its 2007 list of the Top 100 Pop Albums.[8]
English titles are based on the official translations provided by the Seotaiji Company for international markets.