Become A Music Monster Overnight! [EN]: Chapter 89

Thus, Painkiller & Black Tiger’s second project officially began.

As Marvin’s produced Black Tiger version of “Provocation” was rapidly climbing the charts, rumors about their second project started to circulate among paparazzi, further intensifying fan interest.

And their interest exploded as soon as the source that Marvin would be playing himself was leaked.

-Oh my god, the day I get to hear Marvin play again is coming!-

-Rumor has it that YC is producing this project?-

└If that’s true, I’m so excited!

└Well, I’m against it. That kid is producing for Marvin?

└I feel the same way! It always feels like Asian guys throwing money around!

└Wow! YC is a kid? Do you even know who he is!

-God damn! There are so many stupid people in this glorious country!-

-Treating YC like just another Asian musician!-

└If there’s nothing wrong with your eyes and ears, there must be something wrong with your brain.-

The problem was that not long after the rumors about Marvin’s performance spread, it became known that Youngchan was the producer of this project.

Thanks to this, Youngchan faced significant criticism from Painkiller’s extreme fans, some of whom displayed racist attitudes.

Of course, apart from being criticized, he didn’t suffer much hardship.

This was because Black Tiger’s core American fan base had grown considerably by this point.

In particular, many of YC’s fans were so extreme that Painkiller’s extreme fans were getting beaten up online.

In many ways, these incidents caused quite a stir, which helped “Brilliant Struggle” maintain its long-term reign.

It took first place for the 5th week, surpassing the 4th week.

But no less surprising was that the song ‘Level Up’ from the first full-length album newly ranked 6th on the Billboard Hot 100.

This was probably due to the highly popular Pop rock genre and the renewed attention.

Of course, the main reason was that the song itself was so addictive that you couldn’t help but hum along.

In fact, many of those who listened to ‘Level Up’ didn’t even know the band name Black Tiger.

Regardless of the noisy external circumstances, Painkiller & Black Tiger’s second project was progressing smoothly.

However, apart from the smooth progress, Marvin couldn’t hide his bewilderment from the start as he began to discuss collaboration with Youngchan in earnest.

“You’re going to compose with piano and drums?”

“Yes. No matter how I think about it, I think this is the best combination.”

“…….”

Marvin was speechless at Youngchan’s confident face.

The song “Painkiller” was based on heavy metal. As such, he naturally expected it to be a collaboration between guitar and drums.

He definitely thought so, and he was looking forward to the collaboration.

That’s because Youngchan’s guitar was a form of guitar he had never heard of or even thought of before.

So, the collaboration with the guitar suddenly changed to a collaboration with a classical piano, so it was understandable that he was so bewildered.

Youngchan was not flustered by his reaction.

‘The reaction is better than I thought.’

Perhaps because playing heavy metal consumes a lot of energy, Marvin showed a surprisingly calm appearance in activities other than music.

If he had made this offer to other musicians, he would have immediately been cursed out for joking.

“It’s hard to understand by just talking.”

Youngchan said that and got up and walked towards the Steinway piano that was firmly in place in one corner of the studio.

‘When did you install that?’

Only then did Marvin discover the huge piano, and he had to watch Youngchan sit in front of the piano with complicated feelings.

As soon as Youngchan sat down, he turned to Marvin, who was looking at him, and said.

“My practice is insufficient, so the level of completion is low. Please keep that in mind when listening.”

“…….”

When Marvin nodded silently, Youngchan briefly showed a smile and then turned his head and took a breath at the same time.

As his face became endlessly serious, his two hands were placed on the piano.

-Ta-da-da-da-dan!-

And the silence that seemed unbreakable collapsed in an instant like a lie.

-!!!-

Marvin couldn’t come to his senses with just the first note of the piano that broke the silence.

He felt like he was floating on a cloud every moment throughout the performance.

When Youngchan’s fingers swept across the keyboard, a sigh escaped him, and he could only breathe after his pedal was lifted from the floor.

Every time angular touches, fierce octaves, and brilliant agogic [a performance technique that expresses various and rich changes in tempo] unfolded, a thrilling sensation like electricity flowing through his body was felt.

By the time the sound, so beautiful that he couldn’t even shed tears, had ensnared his soul, he came to face the end of the performance, which was like an endless, dazzling golden scribe.

-Drip, drip, drip-

Tears were flowing uncontrollably from Marvin’s eyes.

Youngchan had given him such shocking emotion, but he didn’t seem very satisfied with his performance.

‘There were more mistakes than I thought.’

There were many wrong things that would have made a pianist sigh if they were in this place.

Everything stemmed from a lack of dedicated practice.

The song “Painkiller” wasn’t an easy piece; it demanded more than a week of focused rehearsal to truly master.

Performing such a complex piece with only an overnight practice session inevitably led to mistakes.

‘Still, I’m glad I managed to showcase everything I wanted to express.’

Performing solo and performing as part of an ensemble are vastly different experiences.

Furthermore, blending heavy metal with classical piano and drums required a significant amount of effort and innovation.

“But Marvin will be fine.”

It wasn’t surprising that Youngchan felt this way.

Marvin was pushing his boundaries, and his drumming skills were approaching the pinnacle, even among seasoned professionals.

Therefore, Youngchan believed he only needed to concentrate on his piano performance.

As he gathered his thoughts, he turned to where Marvin had been, only to freeze in surprise.

“…Where did he go?”

He hadn’t anticipated Marvin’s reaction and was genuinely taken aback for the first time in a while.

The logical assumption was that his piano performance had been so unsatisfactory that Marvin had left the studio without a word to collect himself.

However, in reality, Marvin was so deeply moved by Youngchan’s performance that he had to leave to process his overwhelming emotions.

This misunderstanding took longer to resolve than expected, and as a result, Youngchan approached the project with even greater determination.

When he announced his intention to create a heavy metal song with an ensemble consisting solely of piano and drums, many expressed concern.

Logically, the combination seemed so incompatible that it was difficult to envision, making their apprehension understandable.

Even Taylor struggled to suppress the urge to dissuade them.

Of course, there were also unexpected opinions.

“Taylor! Don’t worry so much.”

“Yeah, we just have to accept it. How can we possibly understand a crazy genius?”

“He’s not just a monster; he’s a beast!”

“Wow! I’m already excited. A classical piano and drum ensemble for heavy metal?”

“There’s going to be a lot of buzz when it’s released, one way or another, right?”

The individuals expressing these surprising opinions were none other than Black Tiger’s bandmates.

This wasn’t simply a biased judgment stemming from affection for their nephew.

They had been repeatedly surprised and amazed during the ensemble’s development, reaching a point where they believed nothing could shock them, only to be proven wrong time and again. Therefore, their judgment was well-founded.

Youngchan casually produced inspiration that others would spend a lifetime contemplating, as if it were a simple game.

And what was truly remarkable was his ability to reassemble those inspirations into something even more extraordinary.

‘It’s impossible for a mere human to comprehend what such a ridiculous monster is doing!’

Jang Taeshik, who likely understood Youngchan better than any other member of Black Tiger, considered this a given.

And Youngchan invariably proved him right once again.

“Painkiller,” which had been secretly in development for over a week, was finally released.

-Chijijijijing! Chijijijijing! Dudududung!-

-Dadadada! Dandan Dan!-

-!!!!-

Everyone present wore expressions of astonishment.

The music’s quality far surpassed their expectations.

To hear music of this caliber, one would likely need to attend a performance by a world-renowned orchestra like the Berlin Philharmonic.

The piano evoked the performance of a top-tier pianist, and the drums, harmonizing and weaving between the piano’s melodies, were so incredible that they seemed almost superhuman.

But what was truly astonishing was Youngchan’s voice, which soared above the instrumental sounds.

His vocals, reminiscent of a seasoned vocalist, played a crucial role in intensifying the heavy metal flavor, as if by magic.

“Oh! Jesus!”

Taylor, belatedly realizing the song had ended, couldn’t help but invoke a higher power.

‘They were right. YC is even more extraordinary than I thought.’

He felt ashamed for having doubted Black Tiger’s colleagues’ reactions, thinking they were exaggerated.

Youngchan had truly accomplished something remarkable.

As a producer, pianist, and vocalist, he would silence the critics who had previously judged them with arrogance.

“Maybe it’ll cause quite a stir in the classical music world too.”

Since they were even more arrogant, Taylor was already anticipating the reaction.

Youngchan finally smiled when “Painkiller” received more praise than he had anticipated.

He had been uncertain, partly due to Marvin’s sudden departure from the studio and partly because he had been working silently and intently ever since.

Fortunately, after the recording was complete, Marvin praised him even more enthusiastically than the others.

When Youngchan realized that the events had been a misunderstanding caused by coincidence, he felt relieved and regained his confidence.

Thanks to this, the mixing process was completed faster than expected.

Not long after, “Brilliant Struggle” maintained its number one spot for the sixth consecutive week.

A nuclear bomb had dropped on Billboard [American music and entertainment magazine].

This event created a massive tectonic shift in the music industry, miraculously breathing new life into the struggling rock genre.