Lap Steel Shock and the Great Band Dissolution

Just like trading songs back and forth in Invasion from Seoul, the rest of the band members chimed in with choruses, shouting along. With a sparkling, glittering guitar solo, the vocalist clapped and urged the crowd into a sing-along, drawing thunderous cheers from the audience. The repeating chorus kept building. Even the bands seated in the audience, watching the stage—whether for broadcast reactions or just the vibe—stood up, dancing and cheering along. But even that endless-seeming chorus was drawing to a close. The vocalist's voice grew softer, fading into a gentle hum as strength ebbed away. The guitar sound that had filled the stage vanished, and with a final drum fill, the noise gradually receded.

"Thank you."

At the performance-ending greeting, the audience erupted in applause, cheers, and shouts of support. The reaction continued until the MC climbed onstage.

"Did you all enjoy the show? If you did, give a huge round of applause for Ulrim Stones one more time!!"

The cheers poured out again. Seizing the moment, the MC smoothly cut off the audience response and opened his mouth to continue.

"First matchup: 2MAJOR versus COTRA! What a fun battle. And second matchup: Ulrim Stones versus Group Sound!"

The MC paused briefly, perhaps to draw the audience's focus. Taking advantage of the gap, she—who had been snapping photos of her faves 2MAJOR and Han Seungyun from the edge of the seats—unconsciously turned toward the stage, following the MC's lead.

"If the first stage was this thrilling and exciting, we can surely expect great things from the second!"

Ulrim Stones, huh? They were pretty decent.

She hadn't paid much attention at first. She'd only looked them up when they became opponents in the loser revival round, and even then, they hadn't left much of an impression. But this performance? Even to her untrained ears, it felt like they'd sharpened their blades. They'd trimmed the original's loose intro, kept the vocal parts, structured it with a clear build-up, turn, and climax. It was fun and energizing—even for someone like her who didn't know much about rock.

Can those girls beat this stage?

For some reason, that thought crossed her mind. She'd seen their Round 1 performance live, heard the rumors about Round 2. The preview episodes 0 and 1 had shown insane performances... but in the main tournament, they weren't shining. As she shoved her camera toward Han Seungyun, she found herself quietly rooting for Group Sound. Hoping for a killer show.

"Now, onto Group Sound's stage! Give them a big welcome!"

In the meantime, the setup wrapped up. Four people took the stage. Drums and keyboard in the back, bass—unusually—standing center-left with a mic in front.

Is that girl doing vocals this time?

And next to her... the guitarist with her head slightly bowed, as always: Ha Suyeon. She reflexively raised her camera and snapped Suyeon's photo. That's when she noticed something next to Suyeon. It looked like a desk, with a chair behind it for sitting.

What's that?

"Hello~ We're Group Sound! Today's vocalist is me, Choi Iseo. Nice to meet you~"

Whoa, she's adorable!

Suyeon fiddled with her guitar briefly, then sat at the chair, tinkering with something. In Suyeon's place, the bassist grabbed the stage mic. A voice she'd never heard before. Completely opposite to her sturdy build and rugged features.

"Ulrim Stones put on such an amazing show that we're super nervous now~ And maybe because of that, the instrument Suyeon's brought isn't setting up right. This kid gets tense easily, so if you could just wait a bit... Huh? Not nervous? Oh, nope, she says not~ Anyway, if she says so, that's that~"

The exact opposite of Suyeon's no-nonsense, straight-to-performance style. Her soft, friendly voice and warm tone melted away the slight tension in the air. The camera, entranced, zoomed in on Iseo.

She's got a lot of accessories going on.

"Looks like setup's done! Alright, let's get started. We're doing the same song: Laying Brocade in My Heart. Enjoy!"

The venue quieted. Unlike Ulrim Stones, a bass line started—seeming to preserve the intro intact. But the tone was nothing like the original's blunt, simple "bass" sound. What rang out was a slapped bass with the lows cut back. It left echoes, like a ping-pong ball bouncing wildly in a giant plastic box, creating a totally different vibe from the original.

Then a sharp guitar cut in. Not the usual one Suyeon played—a yellow-and-black guitar. The ear-piercing sharpness bounced along with the bass, building unease. The arpeggios and cymbals that slipped in matched it perfectly. It was hard to believe this was the same song Ulrim Stones had just done.

Is this really the same track?

The intro before vocals felt like a different song from the vocal section later. She'd heard the song intro during early filming announcements and listened a few times since Group Sound was using it. But this felt way different. Meanwhile, the song's mood shifted gradually. The long, boring intro—overwhelmed by unheard-of sounds—passed by unnoticed. Rising pitch. Faster tempo. Slightly altered bass and guitar riffs. With the drum fill signaling the moment, vocals finally flowed from the speakers for the first time.

But it wasn't the explosion everyone expected. The buildup screamed for a vocal burst. Instead, from Iseo's mouth came a monotonous hum. As that "highlight" vocal part unfolded this way, quiet sighs escaped the crowd. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠It was a fresh arrangement, new sounds, a good song... but disappointing.

In the midst of it, she realized the guitar had stopped. Onstage, Suyeon had set her guitar aside and was playing with her hands at the desk-like thing. Then it exploded skyward.

"What the hell is that?"

One band member shot to his feet, yelling. Mystica's vocalist, Kim Seungjae, squinted and craned his neck. A sound utterly unlike any normal guitar—intensely powerful. Rising and falling, trembling yet relentless, it tricked the ear into ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠thinking strings like violin or cello were being played onstage.

"Bottleneck slide?"

"Nah, looks like a lap steel guitar."

No one in his band answered Seungjae's mutter. Instead, it came from the band next to them. WEKIDS, was it? From a major agency, she recalled.

"Lap steel guitar?"

"Yeah, the kind you play with a slide. Just stroking it with her hand is the performance."

Mid-explanation, he awkwardly extended a hand.

"WEKIDS' Taeyoung."

"Kim Seungjae."

They shook, and Taeyoung refocused on the stage. Seungjae considered chatting more but turned back to Group Sound's performance himself.

Yeah, I don't wanna miss this either.

The original song climaxed with vocals. A structure where the intro built up to explode through the singer. Ulrim Stones had ditched the buildup, using just vocals for upbeat modern rock. They got cheerfulness and energy from it. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠But that approach had downsides: lost explosive weight without the intro.

Group Sound went the opposite way. A psychedelic buildup bordering on ominous—guitar and bass panned and delayed to madness.

That's why they chose that.

Seungjae thought. Heavy buildup demanded heavier impact at the climax. Vocals alone would've felt too light, like the original. They delayed the expected vocal burst with a hum, took an extra beat... then detonated impact via an instrument most (even band guy Seungjae) didn't know.

The lap steel's wail soared endlessly, peaking and resolving. Reverb layered on like fog, disorienting. A soft chorus had settled onstage. Band sounds faded with shrinking voices. Intersecting it: sporadic applause from the crowd. One person's clap woke ten; ten woke twenty.

Seungjae scratched his head. Same applause, but he knew the difference. Earlier cheers were encouragement. These? Gratitude. Praise for the show. Even other contestant bands applauded. Seungjae clapped too, inwardly groaning.

Damn, those girls are strong. So how do we beat them? Depends on the next mission...

After the loser revival performances ended and the audience cleared out, the mission flashed onscreen in the empty venue.

"Does that even make sense?"

Myeongjeon muttered at the screen. It was in Korean, but so baffling he doubted his eyes. He got it, technically. But understanding didn't make it any less insane. Why this mission?

"Am I seeing this right?"

The MC's mutter voiced what every band in the filming site felt. He could hardly believe it himself.

"O-okay... Let me introduce it again. Round 3 after loser revival! The Round 3 mission is... Free for All!"

Despite the flub, the proceed cue came, and the MC pushed on. The round format appeared onscreen.