I. Introduction
Golden Age is NCT's fourth full studio album and was released on August 28, 2023 with a pair of title tracks, "Golden Age" and "Baggy Jeans." It is part of the NCT 2023 project which saw all 20 of the current NCT members collaborate on a full-length album release. All members of NCT 127, NCT Dream and WayV participated in the album.
II. Background & Release
A full-unit NCT album was first announced during SM's blueprint of its new organizational structure in February 2023. The album was again mentioned in May as an August release. It was also announced there would be the first all-unit concerts, NCT Nation.
Members added spoilers, including the announcement of a new song for the original NCT U "The 7th Sense" unit (Taeyong, Doyoung, Jaehyun, Ten and Mark) and Taeyong and Ten's NCT pairing of "Baby Don't Stop."
The album was officially announced on August 9. This was the first NCT album to feature all active members since the NCT 2020 Resonance albums. Teasers began rolling out on August 14, featuring members in locations around the world that were shot on the group's respective tours and special location shoots.
Teasers for the album were also spliced with teasers for the NCT Nation concerts including snippets of dance practices.
One of the title tracks, "Golden Age" was released as a prerelease single on August 23. The song followed the trend in classical samples by reinterpreting Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 8 in C Minor, Op. 13 Patheique - Il. Adagio Cantabile.
Songs from the album were previewed through the NCT Nation concert in Seoul on August 26. Taeil was absent from the concerts and album promotions, including the track videos, due to a motorcycle accident and subsequent medical hiatus.
The album was then released on August 28 with the other title track "Baggy Jeans." Track videos were released in the following days for "The BAT", "Kangaroo," "Alley Oop," and "PADO." Additional performance videos for the songs from the NCT Nation concert were also released.
The album came in two versions, Collecting and Archiving, as well as a special edition with the U.S. chain Target. This was the first NCT album not produced by Lee Soo Man and Yoo Young-jin, who departed the company at the beginning of the year. It is also the first NCT album without songwriting credits for the members.
"Baggy Jeans," the song with the 7th Sense unit, was promoted on music shows.
All 20 active members in NCT at the time appear on the album: Taeil, Johnny, Taeyong, Yuta, Kun, Doyoung, Ten, Jaehyun, Winwin, Jungwoo, Mark, Xiaojun, Hendery, Renjun, Jeno, Haechan, Jaemin, YangYang, Chenle and Jisung.
III. Track List
| Title | Members | Lyrics | Composition | Arrangement | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Baggy Jeans" | Taeyong, Doyoung, Jaehyun, Ten, Mark | Wutan | Brice Fox, Griff Clawson, Jurek Reunamaki, Jinbyjin, Bobii Lewis, Moa Cazzi Opeia Carlebecker, Anne Judith Wik | Jurek Reunamaki, Jinbyjin | 3:31 |
| "Call D" | Taeyong, Ten | Jung Il-li (Jam Factory) | 1-800-Rudeboy | 1-800-Rudeboy | 3:36 |
| "PADO" | Johnny, Taeyong, Jaehyun, Mark, Xiaojun, Hendery, Haechan | Lilijune (153/Joombas) | Humbler, Davey Nate, Timothy C Minor Zimnoch | Humbler | 2:58 |
| "Interlude: Oasis" | Yuta, Jaehyun, Winwin, Jaemin, Chenle | Park Yoo-eun (Jam Factory) | Tia' Pickrom, Charles Anderson, Michael Foster, Pacific Zagabe, Thomas Lumpkins | Tommy Parker, Social House, Pacific Zagabe | 2:07 |
| "The BAT" | Taeil, Johnny, Yuta, Jungwoo, Hendery, Jeno, Jisung | Wutan | Brandon Arreaga, Jackson Morgan, Kaelyn Behr, MZMC | Styalz Fuego, MZMC | 2:50 |
| "Alley Oop" | Yuta, Winwin, Hendery, Jeno, Jaemin, YangYang, Jisung | Danke (Lalala Studio) | Greg Bonnick, Hayden Chapman, Justin Starling, Josue Janv'ier | LDN Noise | 3:38 |
| "That's Not Fair" | Johnny, Taeyong, Ten, Mark, Jeno, YangYang | Hash Swan | Evan Magee, Parker James Nomes, Gigi Grombacher, Tony Ferrari, Noah Conrad, | Noah Conrad | 3:01 |
| "Kangaroo" | Taeil, Kun, Renjun, YangYang, Chenle, Jisung | Clan (153/Joombas) | El Capitxn, Vendors (Zenur), San Yoon, Casper, Yuki | El Capitxn, Vendors, San Yoon, Casper, Yuki | 3:36 |
| "Not Your Fault" | Taeil, Kun, Doyoung, Ten, Jungwoo, Xiaojun, Renjun | Moon Ji-young (Lalala Studio) | Tiyon TC Mack, Tesung Kim, Gibum, Ryu Jin-wook, Lee Kang-sung | Tiyon TC Mack, Tesung Kim, Gibum, Ryu Jin-wook, Lee Kang-sung | 3:21 |
| "Golden Age" | All members | Jang Han-bit | Jake K (Artiffect), MCK (Artiffect), Moa Cazzi Opeia CarlebeckerEllen Berg, Josh McClelland, Ryan Lawrie | Jake K, MCK | 3:38 |
IV. Spotify Playlist
V. Videos
VI. Concept Photos
Unlike previous releases, there are no concept photos with all of the members together. Concept photos were of individual members rather than a group photo, as well as a concept photo for "Baggy Jeans."
VII. Reception
Golden Age debuted at #1 on the Circle and Hanteo charts, making it the fourth NCT all-unit album to top the chart. The album also topped the Circle monthly chart. It also debuted at #6 on the Oricon chart. Following the trend for SM albums, it will debut internationally a month after its Korean release date. However, five of the songs did debut in the U.S. Billboard Hot Trending songs chart. "Baggy Jeans" debuted at #74 on the Circle chart, then climbed with promotions to a peak of #57.
