Apink made a comeback after one year and three months with Dumhdurum from their 9th mini album, Look. Interestingly enough, they made the music video for Dumhdurum together with the same company that did I'm so sick which is Vikings League. So the more I contemplate about the music video, I become more certain that they didn't use Eung Eung as much reference as they did with I'm so sick this time around. Even though the story in the music video of Dumhdurum follows the story in I'm so sick, it stands on its own.

Apink murdered their SO in I'm so sick MV theory: Click

Apink created their dream partner in their sleep in Eung Eung MV theory: Click

Dumhdurum Music Video: Click

 

To anyone who accessed this right now, I will make a thread about this in Twitter later. I will also add GIFs later.

Dumhdurum (덤더럼) Analysis

As with my other blog posts, I will first start off with a premise then I will lay out everything while adding things along the way.

So my premise is that each Apink member is coping up with their breakup differently while being locked up in their own worlds.

In the beginning, Naeun enters the train with her red luggage while the other members are calm in their seats. There is an ongoing announcement and a lot of noise coming from the outside of the train. After the scene shows the outside of the train going through a dark tunnel, the members are shown minding their own businesses.

The title Dumhdurum (덤더럼, deomdeoreom) is derived from the Korean word 덤덤하다 (deomdeomhada) which means to be calm, placid, or speechless without showing off any emotions. But Dumhdurum on its own, however, sounds like an onomatopoeia for something that is fast. So in the music video, there are parts where it sounds calmer (like in the verses and bridge) and parts where it is stronger (like the introduction, prechorus, and chorus) to represent Dumhdurum’s dual meaning.

A ceiling is shown leaking while the chandelier at the back flickered. A small glass cup collects the water leaking from the ceiling. However, it is not enough to collect the leaking water as the volume is too much. Namjoo drinks the water from the glass. The first verse starts in a calm manner. Dressed in a sophisticated gown along with expensive jewelry, she sits at the corner on top of the counter because the floor of her room is flooded. The blinds in her room blocks the sun and everything outside from entering her room, keeping the inside of her room hidden. Namjoo peeks from the blinds but shuts it right away. The leaking ceiling and flooding shows the insecurity and fear that her breakup left her.

Hey 느낌이 너무 이상한 걸 좀

Hey, I feel something’s wrong

나를 위해 보내준다는 말이

You said you’d let me go because you love me

Naeun poses like a mannequin on display in a shop which is named Marcella, her Catholic name. There are two mannequins behind her that wear the same patterns on her clothes which suggest that everything on display follows what is currently popular. There are also two luggage colors throughout the music video, which are either blue (or aquamarine) and red. The bulk of these luggage are seen on the storefront of Marcella, with the blue luggage on the luggage cart while the red ones are on the floor. This also suggests the two conflicting present moods throughout the song: the calm and its opposite, but they try to carry themselves in a calm manner on every occasion.

직감은 두려워 너무 참 잘 맞아서

Sadly, I guessed right (My gut feeling told me I was right all along)

하루하루 밀어냈던 느낌 그대로

Even though I want to deny it (Even though it’s a feeling pushed to me everyday)

Every time Chorong’s parts in the verses come, an alarm sound effect goes off before she sings her first line which serves as the signal for the incoming upbeat part. The time shown on the clock is 3:03 which is Chorong's birthday. Chorong is seated on a lofty sofa in a luxurious room. Chorong wears expensive-looking pearl jewellery in her princess-like gown as she pets her dog which is a symbol of loyalty but can serve also as a warning for incoming catastrophes due to its keen senses. The h in Dumhdurum can be expressed as the heave of sigh Chorong takes in between her lines and the short pause in the first syllable of dumhdurum whenever it is mentioned during the chorus.

화려해 감춰진 모습

I’ve been masquerading

다 들킬까 봐 겁나 너는 내 맘 몰라

You don’t know how scared I am

The prechorus becomes more upbeat than the verses, building up to the chorus. Eunji sings the prechorus in a much fiercer voice compared to the calmer voice from those who sang the verses. She is seated in a room full of lamps with minimal furniture. Her room also has many books as if she is doing storytelling. Parts of the room are also covered in white cloth which suggests that it has been abandoned for a long time. But even though the room is full of lamps, it is not as bright and vibrant as the other rooms. Eunji’s part in the prechorus when in contrast with the calmer verses gives a different vibe and message which implies showing a dishonest front, as if covering up for a lie. According to @sonaseung (Twitter), Eunji has all the lamps open to cope up with her sadness after losing her light.

걱정 마 Baby I’m so fine

Don’t worry, baby, I’m fine

아냐 아무렇지 않아 괜찮아

Everything’s all right, I’m doing just fine

The chorus starts and Bomi is in a mirror chamber full of spherical lights dangling from the ceiling. She is looking at herself in the mirror but the mirrors inside the chamber reflect her endlessly. She carefully caresses the spheres one by one.

내 맘은 덤더러럼 더러럼

My heart is like dumhdurum

누구보다 차갑던 니가 떠난 거야

You letting my love fall apart left me

잘 된 거야…

Which is good for me

Bye, bye, baby

Bye, bye, baby

The lights present in both Bomi's and Eunji’s rooms show the remaining memories they have of the relationship they had. In the supporting vocal, you can hear a man's voice saying "Oh no no way" whenever they say "My heart is like dumhdurum".

덤더러럼 더러럼

Dumhdurum

별로 슬프지 않아 눈물 흘리지 않아

I don’t feel sad, I don’t shed tears

벌써 다 끝나버린 내 맘은

My love is over

덤더럼 덤덤

Dumhdurum

Hayoung places down the cage of the parrot on top of the luggages while a smaller lovebird was on top of another luggage.

봐봐봐봐 Yeah

Look, yeah

내 맘은 덤더럼 덤덤

My heart is like dumhdurum

The following scenes at the train station show Hayoung being in the foreground while the cage is in the background and Namjoo being in the background while the cage is in the foreground. Hayoung travels freely but is still caged in her own emotions while Namjoo stays locked up inside her room without showing the mess to anyone which shows how they are dealing with the breakup.

Every time Eunji sings the last lines of the chorus, she sings it in a more arrogant and spunky voice to not be found out that she’s lying. Eunji also never sings in this kind of voice. Namjoo also sings this line at the end similarly.

거짓말 같다고 말하지 마

Don’t say I’m lying to you

내 맘은 덤더럼 덤덤

My heart is like dumhdurum

Hayoung walks at the aisle of the train with her small red luggage.

Yeah nananana it’s like nananana

Yeah, nananana, it’s like nananana

어딜 가도 슬픈 노래들뿐

I only hear sad songs

You know this feeling

You know this feeling

Naeun rests on top of her mirror. Looking closely inside the storefront from the earlier scenes, her mirror cannot be seen at all. Naeun wears her earring and shows it off afterwards, a symbol of her status and wealth.

Nananana yeah nananana

Nananana yeah nananana

사랑 못 할 거라 생각해 가끔

I ask myself, ‘Can I love again?’

In Chorong’s room, there is a hand mirror that gives a faint image of the ocean.

화려해 감춰진 모습

I’ve been masquerading

더 예뻐진 거 같아 속으론 더 아파

Do I look better? But my heart is dying

Naeun and Namjoo are contrasted while in the train station because they are viewed differently by outsiders. Naeun is always on display while Namjoo is hidden in her room.

Hayoung calmly drinks as she rides on the train alone at night. The train goes dark as she falls asleep and starts to dream.

Eunji turns off the lamp as the bridge of the song starts. 

Chorong and Eunji are lying down on the floor designed with fishes and a blue background as they sing the bridge. The last line of the second chorus is changed to “No, no, no, no” instead of “My heart is dumhdurum”.

No, no, no, no

No, no, no, no

그리워 매번 잠들기 전에 Yeah yeah

I long for you every night, yeah, yeah

목소릴 들어야 스르르 눈 감았지

I fall asleep listening to your voice

시간이 정말 모든 걸 지워준다 해도

Even if time could heal everything

Someday 다 그렇게 된대도

Even if it could happen to me someday

Hayoung looks out of the window and sees the ocean. She remains unfazed despite the train she is on is drowning. Big bodies of water like the ocean usually stand for the subconsciousness which often represents the sadness within one’s self as one can drown in emotions. But Hayoung lovingly gazes at the ocean with curious eyes.

The music video then comes to a more chaotic turn. Eunji walks in her room with the lamps turned off. The lamps inside Eunji's room are flickering erratically.

Bomi is dancing her heart out on water while in front of an arch. The heavy arches usually signifies the sign of transition that is capable of withstanding  its weight. Despite their feet still submerged in water, they take it as an opportunity of rebirth and transformation as they own their situations.

Naeun pops the confetti as if she’s celebrating, but she remains unamused. She is revealed to be contained inside the store because of the orange paint dripping from the top of the glass pane which as it falls down mimics the bars of a jail cell and all the tears she has bottled up.

The lights in Namjoo's room flicker. Namjoo dances in her room despite it being flooded.

Confetti also drops down in Chorong’s room. She is shown to be inside a jail cell with her dog despite having a luxurious room.

Hayoung wakes up because of the thunderstorm happening outside the train.

A lightbulb explodes and showers Bomi's chamber in sparks. Bomi's reflection can be seen on the floor but more blurry because the tiles are black. She is seated on the floor but she remains calm all throughout the explosions.

The train ride Apink is on is a bumpy one causing the lights inside to flicker as the thunderstorm happens outside, but they remain calm and emotionless in their seats.

Throughout the music video, all of the members except Eunji constantly look at themselves in the mirror. Mirrors can signify the dual nature of the members' personalities. While they say they are fine in the more upbeat parts of the song, they speak their minds about the breakup in the calmer verses and bridge. The mirrors show an inside look to their intimate thoughts and the way they act on the mirror shows how they deal with the break up.

Bomi is surrounded by a lot of mirrors which can mean that even if she tries to act differently in every occasion, her reflection is still the same.

Naeun's mirror is not shown in the storefront, but she rests and clings on the mirror whenever it is with her. This may show how Naeun's way of dealing with the break up is not seen by many as she has an image to protect as the model or mannequin inside the storefront.

Hayoung’s reflection can be seen on the window against the ocean.

Many members wear a pearl accessory. As some of the themes used for the music video are related to the ocean, the members wearing these jewelry hold a meaning that they are the rare gems of the ocean as pearls are hard to come by. Since pearls are buried within an oyster shell, this may present that they are also hiding something. The six colorful orbs which stand for the pearls represent each of the members.

Blue (or more specifically aquamarine) appears in many occasions in the music video for their sadness and introspection into themselves.

The luggages they carry are red as it contains their desire to move on from their breakup. Lovebirds always come in pairs, but only one rests on the handle of the small red luggage.

Yellow also appears throughout the music video which is a symbol for dishonesty.

While orange is a sweet and sour color, it is often the color used to capture the consequences of one’s actions and their transformation.

The rainbow is refracted by the six empty glasses and six orbs in one occasion. Rainbow holds a meaning of good luck, freedom, and a promise to a better future as it appears after a heavy rain due to dispersion of light. But in the music video, the rainbow only appears whenever after they look at themselves in the mirror as if it is their reflection.

By the end the members are seen riding the train emotionlessly while the train is experiencing some problems, because in reality the storm is far from over.

Similarities with I'm so sick (1도 없어) and %% (Eung Eung, 응응)

Extensive use of lights is present.

Water is also used. Pink for Eung Eung.

Eunji turns off both the sign and lamp in I'm so sick and Dumhdurum.

The common running theme in all of the music video is that it's raining in all three of them. Maybe they made it like this to poke fun of Apink's nickname, Rain-pink (비핑크, bipingkeu).

Bonus: Murder of the Orient (2017)

I saw once in the timeline that Dumhdurum MV might be based off the mystery thriller film, Murder on the Orient Express (2017). So I watched it in case it might be actually based of this film.

Spoiler: An acclaimed detective is on the hunt on the murderer who killed a controversial figure in the train. But this person who was murdered also killed a little girl from a known family from way before. So he interrogates every person with them in the train, but it baffles him that he could not find out who did it. By the end of the film, he comes to a conclusion that there is not one murderer as everyone on the train took part in the intricate plan to kill this murderer who killed this little girl as revenge since the lives of everyone involved went downhill as a result of her death. So this detective understood that the scales of justice in that sense cannot always be weighed.

So he says to everyone, “... There are no killers here. Only people who deserve a chance to heal… You are all free to go. May you find your peace with this. May we all.”

 

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This blog post by Myeon is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.