After countless weeks of promises, here is the first of many Japanese music reviews to come in the following weeks.

GFriend is another one of those groups that have had a busy year. They kick-started 2019 with their Sunrise comeback, followed by their Japanese single, Flower, and their latest South Korean comeback, Fever.  And just last week, the 6-members female group has returned to Japan once again this year with the release of their 1st studio length Japanese album, Fallin’ Lights. The main title track from this album shares the same name as the album Their Japanese releases have been great so far, so let’s see what GFriend has to show us this time!

Once again, GFriend returns with a dance track that is infused into classical instrumentation. This isn’t unexplored territory for the group. However, I would consider this a ‘return to form’ scenario as it felt pretty much like their earlier days. The only difference is that they have obviously matured and this comeback showcases this maturity. The only thing missing (that I would also argue that the tracked needed) was some sort of electric guitar riff during the final chorus to take it full circle and add to the classical aesthetics in a modern way. I felt the latter happen during the chorus, where they amped the chorus up with a beat that drew me into the song even more. Besides the instrumentation, the other aspect of the song is the vocals. Two members stood out for me, but that isn’t to say that the other four members were not exceptional as well. Umji’s filtered part that opened to the track and featured post-hook worked exceptionally well, giving the song some texture. I find how Yuju not going down the high note road to be quite smart. The song doesn’t build much and a typical high note would not really go well with the classical aesthetics that they have gone for in this song. This is definitely another standout Japanese track from GFriend!

Something that I try to do with the majority of the music video section of my reviews is look for a plotline or theory behind the video. Sometimes the story feels a little more obvious, other times I rely on theories that I can get my hands on to write up the review (could be too complicated or press for time).  The latter happens to be the case this time around, so I have pinched (props to Nukimen) a theory from the YouTube comments sections that look like a lot of people are agreeing with or liking.

I have to say the video is rather plain this time around. I know I can’t really expect anything flashy after reading through that theory post (see above) as it tries to create a relatable connection to us by looking a lot more ‘normal’, I just feel that it could have used a little more work in the visual department.

The dance is very elegant, fitting with the mature sound that GFriend has opted for. I thought the formations and how they move about during the performance were really cool this time around. I wish that there was a dance version up, which I am sure will contain additional sections that are equally as elegant as what we have seen.

Song – 8.5/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.7/10