Welcome to the first album review of 2018 and we are starting off with the last major release of 2017. EXO returned on the 26th of December with their 2017 Winter album, Universe, which has become the fourth Winter album release of the band. The track has yet to be performed on any of the weekly music shows but was performed at the MBC Music Festival that occurred on the 31st of December. This album has caught me off guard with its high quality and has officially become one of my favourite releases of 2017. Scroll down and read the review to find out why I think so!

1 & 2. Universe (Korean and Chinese Versions) – Click here for the full review of Universe. (10/10)

3. Been Through (지나갈 테니) – To me, this is the best song on the entire album. It grabbed my attention from the very start with its addictive nature and the overall aesthetics of the song. The vocals were really smooth, with some of the members using a huskier voice. The use of their voice has an added layer of percussion after the chorus added a nice touch and ‘o-whoo’ was oddly fascinating. The song had a nice launch into the chorus and it leaves you breathless. The instrumental was a show-stealer with its hollow effect and sounds. (10/10)

4. Stay – The song starts off like a ballad but it slowly builds up to something quite upbeat. In a way, this make the song unique because it still manages to hold back its energy and not overwhelm the listener with too much energy. The song has extremely strong chill vibes. The speed of the rap sequences contrasted with the mid-tempo pace of the song but I felt the autotune was unnecessary. The way the song ended with the ‘Stay’ sung by Suho, accompanied by the piano, was haunting but well done. (9/10)

5. Fall – Fall features a guitar dominate instrumental. There were a few subtle synths thrown into the song around the rap part and they surprisingly fitted in well with the song. Once again, the vocals and raps were on point. The chorus was probably the main highlight of the song with its dramatic ‘Fall’ repetition (also my favourite part of the song). The addition of the ad-libs in the second and third choruses kept the song from getting too repetitive. (9/10)

6. Good Night – This is the least interesting song on the entire album. But that being said, it is still a decent song to listen to. It is a soothing ballad, with all the members singing and shining in the song. The ad-libs that were layered on top of the main vocals of the song gave the song a more artistic twist. (8/10)

7. Lights Out – EXO ends their album with the vocals of 4 members (Suho, D.O, Chen and Baekhyun). The song does feel a little stagnant as the instrumental doesn’t really develop in any way. However, the vocals were the main driving force of the entire track. The falsettos which made up the chorus really gave the song some character, while the slight use of the choir in the background made the song feel more intense and aesthetic. Overall, it was a breathtaking song. (9/10)

Overall Album Rating – 9/10