From left: Dreamcatcher members Sua, Handong, Jiu, Yoohyeon, Gahyeon and Dami pose for a photo during the press conference held in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Wednesday. (Kwon Min-seo/The Korea Herald)

Dreamcatcher returned with its 10th EP “VirtuouS,” presenting an energetic performance that embodies the image of heroes, in contrast to the previous release, November's "VillainS."

The focus track, "Justice," is an alternative rock song depicting a hero fighting against evil.

Dreamcatcher is a seven-member band, but due to health issues, the main vocalist Siyeon will not participate in the promotion of the new release.

"Siyeon is the voice of our team and an indispensable member, so it's unfortunate that she can't join us this time. However, the six of us have resolved to work hard so that when Siyeon returns, we can start fresh with an even better performance," said Jiu, the group's leader.

Handong added that she put in a lot of effort during the album preparation to showcase a new side of herself. "'Justice' has a completely different vibe to our 9th mini album's main track, 'OOTD.' I tried to bring out the rock genre with a more intense voice. The composer kept pushing me to sing more forcefully, and I discovered a new side to my voice that I hadn’t heard before."

“I tried a raspy singing technique, and the composer jokingly said it made him angry because it was so good,” added Dami, the group's rapper.

Sua rated the difficulty of the choreography as "8 out of 5," as the movements come thick and fast to match the pace of the song.

“The choreography includes elements that portray a fighter and a warrior, in line with the hero theme,” she said.

The song "2 Rings," featuring sounds reminiscent of a motorcycle and intense guitar riffs, is also full of energy, according to Jiu.

“‘2 Rings’ refers to the two wheels of a motorcycle. It symbolizes Dreamcatcher moving forward fearlessly toward our goals,” she said.

Earlier this year, Dreamcatcher celebrated its 7th anniversary and conducted a world tour in the first half of the year. "Meeting our fans gave us a lot of energy and strengthened our stamina," said Jiu.

Jiu expressed her special feelings about releasing their 10th mini-album. “People say it takes about 10 years to establish perfection in something, and I feel like we're on that journey.”

Lastly, Jiu shared her big ambitions and emphasized that Dreamcatcher's journey is far from over. "Our dream is to enter the Billboard charts and perform at major international music festivals."