I can’t even process Kingdom’s Coup D’Etat without remembering the classic G-Dragon album of the same name. I also get a little self conscious because I can never remember where to place the apostrophe in “D’Etat”. Yes, this is the level of stumbling block I push through to deliver song reviews on the daily. Poor me, I know!
Kingdom’s concepts have long been more interesting than their songs, and Coup D’Etat continues that trajectory. The guys are still dining on their cultural sampler platter, this time to some of controversy. But removing context from the equation, Coup D’Etat is just another boring, blustery boy group banger. The production includes a few interesting flourishes, but they’re squandered on a shout-chant chorus we’ve heard a million times before. No matter how towering the energy, this style of song structure just doesn’t work for me anymore. K-pop creators can do better and fans owe it to themselves to demand more creativity and sonic diversity.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 7 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7.25 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
I wish they would have released X-Game as the single because it has such a fun Arab Trap filtered through K-pop feel. The b-sides are excellent as usual. I just shrugged my shoulders at Coup d’Etat. Every time it started to go somewhere good, nope. Wrong answer.
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The instrumental is great, tho.
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*sigh*
That is all I got.
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this is an interesting song here. 7.5/10
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Once again (for the 7th time in a row, it’s quite a strike), poor Kingdom are assigned the wrong title track while having a much stronger b-side, that in this case is On My Way.
Although they still remain to me one of the less talented boy group around – and Peak Time proved it –, they probably had some of the best b-sides ever, and I’m sincerely sorry they keep on playing the role of the charming-joseon-rookies ever and ever because their title tracks aren’t up to their concept.
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To judge a groups talent on one performance, of one song, that is not even theirs, is a pretty poor way to judge anything. If we judged every group this way there wouldn’t be very many left standing.
I know you will not take my word for it since you seem determined to ignore their skills and efforts, but I have seen them live and I can tell you they are in fact very talented; and I kind of think the very large crowd of people I saw them with might tend to agree with me.
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Thank you for saying this! ❤ As biased a fan as I am, I also acknowledge that their songs and concept may not be for everyone – yet I really don’t think that should be used to define their talent.
As a group they DO excel beyond their concept as well – just that in the current scheme of things their concept is what sets them apart from other bgs and I feel that’s exactly why they push it forward so prominently in other contents like Peak Time and extra performances etc.
I feel they are extremely talented – they still have ample potential to grow ofc and while I’ve never had the fortune to see them live I’ve seen many of the clips and especially from that one live they did at the fest in India I could see how really well they could fill the room and hype the crowd!
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I’m kind of relieved that Kingdom is now released from making the same title track over and over. On the one hand, it got repetitive and never quite lived up to its potential. On the other hand, without their concept, they’re pretty much lost in the sea of nugu bgs. Maybe they should just rename/rebrand themselves? And this time hope that Mnet isn’t doing a show with the same name.
Agree that On My Way is the best b-side of the bunch. I can also see Sandcastle (which has an SVT “Run to You”-type guitar riff) getting a special MV with concert footage as a thank you to fans.
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The MV was really good and I really loved the aesthetics and clothes. I’m not even going to pretend – I’m biased asf towards Kingdom so I really like this 😂 I really liked the pre chorus parts and the raps too – also a lot of cool references for fans of their older songs in both the MV shots and lyrics – so it felt nice and nostalgic.
It marks the end of their history of Kingdom era so it feels pretty special in that sense. The chorus admittedly felt extremely repetitive (if I remember right it’s as repetitive as Dystopia was) – and I was hoping atleast there would be a change up or fantastic finale (Long Live the King’s finale is still unbeatable in that sense). Whelp I didn’t get that but still gonna grow on me 😂
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Looks like I’ll be riding the Kingdom train alone but that is fine. I’ve long since accepted that my love for Kingdom hinders my ability to look at anything they release very critically and with that said I quite like the song. It wont be my favorite Kingdom title track but its definitely not my least favorite either. The b sides as usual are great with on my way and sand castle being a stand outs for me.
Additionally, I do try not to say anything negative on here since I enjoy this blog so much but I do want to say that dragging the album cover controversy into this, followed by saying the release is poorly timed seems needlessly negative. The album cover was fixed and was a very poor mistake on the companies part but one that has nothing to do with the members or the music itself. Secondly, I am not entirely sure but if you are saying it is poorly timed due to current world events, the lore of this album comes from India and has nothing to do with current events. (If I am wrong about this I apologize in advance.)
To mention both of these while also failing to mention that this release is the final album in the seven part history of kingdom series, which is a pretty amazing achievement, especially for such a small group is kind of in poor taste. I get that you are thoroughly sick of this kind of music but Kingdom have worked exceptionally hard to complete this series, and that alone deserves praise even if the music is not often to your liking.
With this release Kingdom has completed their seven part History of Kingdom series containing seven mini albums, 34 full songs, seven intros, and eight MV’s which detail seven separate yet interconnected stories lines in less than three years and that’s a truly an astounding feat.
Personally I have had a great time following Kingdom’s Journey over this seven part series. They have improved tremendously and I have loved every minute of being their fan. True it was the lore that initially piqued my interest but it was the effort, skill, heart, and some pretty darn good music that won me over and keeps me here. So, whether their future arcs be mythical or modern I am firmly seated for the future!
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Slightly edited the review because, yes this was me not fully doing my research and equating things that should not be equated. 😞
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You’re definitely not alone here!
I’m so glad they went from what they did at the start, to finally able to shoot the Jahan MV in India.
Kingdom has a big ambition behind them and I’m so glad they completed 7 EP of HOK series. Here’s to so much more, here’s to longevity, soon to the promised 12 years of lore 😊
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I’ll keep this brief, but I feel like I have a lot to say about this song, and especially the MV as an individual of Indian descent.
First, not sure what you mean by the timing being off, Nick. If you’re referring to Israel-Hamas’ ongoing war, India has like nothing to do with Palestine. The Mughal dynasty was Muslim, but that was about their only similarity with contemporary Palestine. Their culture was a mix of Indian, Iranian, and their ancestral Turkic culture.
But, I don’t blame anyone for the confusion, the MV seems confused too. Glad they decided to film a bit in India, but their shot locations were confusing. Wearing shoes in temples is considered disrespectful in India, and minus the step-wells, nothing was near the Mughal heartland. Why was there a desert randomly inserted in the shots?? Like no really, the Mughals were based in the fertile Indus-Gangetic Plain? Expect me when I’m free to write a post on this MV, and all the other Kingdom MVs, and what worked and what didn’t.
PS: The funniest thing is the shot at 0:33 where they tried in the Indian Devanagari script “Kingdom of the Sun” in English, but whoever wrote it clearly didn’t know the script at all, as they wrote, and I kid you not, “Kemgadam Aanph Soon” if pronounced directly. Like why? They couldn’t have just asked a Hindi speaker? That was amusing and confusing….
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I edited the review slightly because in my haste to cover all of today’s releases I definitely didn’t research properly and ended up equating some weird things…
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Thanks for the edit Nick, always appreciate some effort like this 🙂
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Coup de-de-detat is just so awkward. Dy-dy-dy-dystopia was another awkward chorus. What the heck? Stuttering choruses. It’s a failure of imagination on the songwriter’s part. I like the rest of it, though.
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I respect this group! I’m looking forward to see what their next steps will be.
Just for the record, I think they are as talented as their peers. I also saw them in concert and they were great. It was interesting and fun to listen to their TT live because I think that’s where those songs thrive.
I have zero of their TT on my playlist but a whole bunch of bsides have made it and stayed.
This album follows the same pattern for me… a TT that will probably be better appreciated as a performance, with a whole bunch of really nice bsides.
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Amazing song.
Looks like Kingdom is finally coming into their own.
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