Seven-member boy band Click-B joined the ranks of g.o.d, Fly to the Sky and Buzz on Wednesday, becoming the next group from the first generation of K-pop stars to make a long-awaited comeback. Click-B debuted in 1999 during the height of the first wave of idol groups, which included H.O.T, Sechs Kies, Fin.K.L and S.E.S, and had enjoyed hits like “Undefeatable” and “Cowboy” before breaking apart to pursue other solo and smaller group projects. 

Their new two-track album “Reborn” would be the first album in 13 years with all seven members.

“We performed together at the DSP concert two years ago, and even while we were performing as a four-member group we always wanted to come back to our full seven members,” said member No Min-hyuk to reporters at a restaurant in Seoul on Tuesday. “This just happened to be the time when all seven of us felt the same way at the same time.”

Although the “Reborn” EP only has two songs -- “Reborn” and “I Miss You” -- the members said that they had looked at “dozens” of songs for their comeback album.

“We had to consider the songs very carefully,” said Yoo Ho-seok, whose stage name is Evan. “We didn’t want (our new album) to sound like our old music, but we also didn’t want to blindly chase after trends. We wanted something that would connect with listeners today, but also maintain Click-B’s color. ... People might feel that we don’t have much to show for all that work, but quantity (of songs) isn’t everything.”

“We thought a lot about what Click-B’s style of music was, what our color was,” said Min-hyuk. “Our group lost members after ‘Undefeatable,’ and our style changed before it had a chance to solidify in the public’s mind. ... We put a lot of effort into finding our color and preserving it.”

The group acknowledged that considering that goal, some people might find it strange that “Reborn” was not an original song written by the members themselves.

“A lot of people ask about that, because our group, more than most other groups, have members who have written and performed their own songs,” said Oh Yeon-seok. “The reason we chose not to write this one is because ... after a decade of performing separately, we wanted to bring all that together into a stronger Click-B style. But there were some clashes between our styles, so ... we wanted to present something better.” 

The song they settled on after “many rearrangements and rerecordings” was “Reborn” from producing team MonoTree, which is a trendy dance song with a strong band sound -- Click-B’s signature combination. 

With this comeback, Click-B decided to forgo on-air stage performances and focus on a comeback concert, with promotions through radio and variety shows. 

“Rather than conveying our music to a wider audience through on-air promotions, we wanted to hold a concert for the fans who waited for us to come back with all seven members,” said Kim Sang-hyuk. “We’re planning on recreating the songs that we had performed back when we were seven members, with new, more stylish rearrangements.”

The Click-B members said that they were surprised, and grateful, for the enthusiastic response their comeback announcement and concert had received. Their Seoul concert, set for Nov. 20, sold out just two minutes after ticket sales opened, leading the group to schedule additional concerts in Daegu and Busan in December. 

“I think we’ve already achieved most of our goals -- the things we wanted to hear, the things we wanted to show,” said Min-hyuk. “Of course, it’s important that our song does well, but we’ve already reached so many other goals, which puts us a little more at ease.”

Click-B’s comeback album “Reborn” was released Wednesday.

By Won Ho-jung (hjwon@heraldcorp.com)