While Seoul swelters under a surging heat wave, rookie boy band Close Your Eyes invites listeners into its wild imagination, where snow falls in the peak of summer.

“Snowy Summer,” the title track of the septet’s second EP, imagines a world turned upside down with the boys, who turn into playful ghosts after a sudden and untimely death, and decide to make it snow in the middle of July to fulfill their lost dream of a white Christmas.

“Our natural selves, without much pretense or decoration, have been well melted into both our first EP and this second one,” noted member Jeon Min-wook during a group interview in central Seoul on Tuesday, ahead of the release of “Snowy Summer” at 6 p.m., Wednesday.

“We joke around a lot when we’re together,” Jeon added with a smile. “I think that kind of playful energy might be a big part of what makes who we are as Close Your Eyes.”

Close Your Eyes debuted on April 2, with seven members — Jeon, Ma Jingxiang, Kenshin, Seo Kyoung-bae, Song Seung-ho, Jang Yeo-jun and Kim Sung-min — assembled through cable channel JTBC's audition program "Project 7" (2024). The group’s unique name reflects its artistic vision, as it aims to create music that’s persuasive even when people listen to it with their eyes closed.

The band’s second EP is led by two songs — the title track “Snowy Summer” and another lead track, “Paint Candy” — alongside two B-sides, “You” and “Bubble Tea.”

While “Snowy Summer” blends pop and R&B, centering on a mischievous idea of young ghosts chasing after a white Christmas they never got to experience, “Paint Candy” is a new jack swing-inspired R&B track with powerful choreography.

“With stage performances during our first album, there were things that I wish I could’ve done better,” said Kim. “This time, I worked hard to improve those, gestures, performance skills and such — so, please look forward to seeing new sides of us.”

Now nearing the 100-day milestone since its debut, Close Your Eyes has had a promising start, winning first place at SBS’s music program “The Show” and KBS’s “Music Bank” with "All My Poetry," the lead track for its debut EP “Eternalt.”

Kenshin, the only Japanese member of the group, recalled being overwhelmed with emotion during the first music show win.

“Winning first place has always been my dream,” Kenshin said.

“When I saw our fans’ faces during the encore, I couldn’t help but tear up,” he added with a shy smile.

The members are learning what it means to be an idol, and also what their fans — dubbed Closer — mean to them.

“At first, I thought being an idol meant giving energy to fans,” said Jang. “But after meeting fans through fan signing events and meet-and-greets, I realized that I’m the one that’s been receiving energy and happiness.”

Ma, the Chinese member who ranked first place during the audition program, said that the most memorable thing he’s heard from the fans was, “We will support each other forever.”

“We now have only a few days until we reach our 100th day since debut,” Ma said. “Even long after that milestone, we’ll continue to give it our all.”

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]