LE SSERAFIM Unveils Dark Creature Concept for Second Full Album, Including Kazuha's First Short Hair

LE SSERAFIM dropped the first concept photos and video for their second full-length album on the 12th, revealing a visual direction called BIRCH SCAR that marks a clear departure from the group's prior aesthetic. The release, scheduled for July 22 under Source Music, arrives as the group has been moving toward darker, more conceptually layered presentations, a shift that has been gradual across their most recent promotional cycles.

The BIRCH SCAR concept is built around a dual-state narrative. Members first appear in period costume inside a forest rendered with a distinctly unsettling atmosphere, a mise-en-scène meant to evoke 19th-century classical cinema. As night falls in the visual sequence, each member transforms into a creature figure, marked by odd-eye makeup, sharpened nails, and metal ornamentation. The concept statement frames these transformed states as visualizations of fear and inner lack, rendered through creature imagery. The sutured-wound makeup worn by some members draws an unmistakable line to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein as a reference point.

The individual member cuts carry their own details worth noting. Kazuha appears with a short haircut, the first time she has worn the style since the group debuted, which accounts for much of the early reaction to the drop. Kim Chaewon is styled with long blonde hair, shot in a pose that emphasizes the grotesque quality of the concept's creature design. Sakura wears a split odd-eye look combining red and blue. Huh Yunjin exposes dark, elongated nails with deliberate visibility, while Hong Eunchae's stitched facial markings most directly carry the Frankenstein motif across the individual framing.

The second full album will contain 11 tracks in total, including the title track BOOMPALA and CELEBRATION, which was pre-released last month. Notably, all five members have writing credits on the album, a point Source Music has highlighted, as member participation in the songwriting process has become a more prominent part of how the group's identity is being positioned. The album drops at 1 p.m. KST on July 22.