EXO, one of South Korea’s most commercially successful K-pop acts of the past decade, released its eighth studio album, Reverxe, early Wednesday on the U.S. West Coast, marking the group’s first full-length release in more than two years and its most complete return since members began cycling through South Korea’s mandatory military service.
The album became available at 1 a.m. Pacific Standard Time, according to SM Entertainment, and follows the group’s 2023 release Exist. Six members—Suho, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai, Sehun and Lay—participated in the project. Sehun, the final member to enlist, completed his service last fall, clearing the way for the group to resume coordinated activities, beginning with a fan meeting late last year.
Reverxe contains nine tracks led by the title song “Crown,” a hard-driving dance record that blends Atlanta-style trap rhythms with heavy metal guitar lines and EDM synthesizers. Lyrically, the song frames devotion through imagery of sovereignty, comparing a cherished presence to a crown worth protecting at any cost.
Other tracks include “I’m Home,” a winter-leaning song built around warmth and restraint, and “Suffocate,” which approaches the theme of separation through muted, tightly controlled arrangements rather than overt melodrama.
A music video for “Crown” was released alongside the album, featuring choreography centered on crown symbolism, with repeated gestures of grasping and placing a crown that visually reinforce the song’s theme of possession and resolve.
The release returns EXO to an industry that has continued to globalize and intensify during its absence, underscoring how established groups adjust after prolonged pauses driven by South Korea’s mandatory military service.
