As promised, the next album review here. And it is for WEi’s fourth mini-album Love Pt.1: First Love, which was released back in March of this year. The mini-album consists of 6 tracks, including the title track Too Bad, which also dropped on the same day of release of the mini-album.

I find Love Pt.1: First Love to be a fair mini-album. No knockout tracks, but there are a few gems on the release that I think should get recognition. I had the idea of bumping up the rating of title track for this album review, simply because Too Bad caught on and I enjoy it even more than when I first reviewed it. But I stopped myself, given that this isn’t the time and place to do it. I will consider it later on, to see if my thoughts on the song actually have changed and put it into a whole different segment on this blog. But more on that in the future. In the meanwhile, check out my thoughts on the tracks below.

1. BLOSSOM (피어나) – From the start of BLOSSOM, I thought the song was going to be more of an ethereal and atmospheric track. But it ultimately ended up being a soft pop rock track. Not the development I had in mind, but it was still a great track nonetheless. I enjoyed the softer tones of BLOSSOM, while the melodies and hooks were very satisfying. My favourite bit of the song were the pre-choruses, where that soft pop rock influence just creeps in to be more profound. Overall, BLOSSOM kicks off the album in a very pleasant fashion. (8/10)

2. Too Bad (Title Track) – Click here for the full review of Too Bad. (8/10)

3. Super Bumpy – Super Bumpy is a bit of an oddball, in my opinion. But I mean that in a good way. I didn’t expect such a smooth and delicate pre-chorus in the midst of such a cool and bumpy synth line. The same comment can be applied to some of the harmonisation we get in the song. I do think the members could have been a bit more dynamic and bolstered with their delivery, just to give Super Bumpy a bit more of a oomph factor and to make it more exciting, on par with the instrumental. (7.5/10)

4. Know Ya – The sleek but subtly dynamic house-based chorus to Know Ya steals the show for me. I also enjoyed the sleekness and sensual vibe that comes from the member’s R&B centric vocals, especially in the chorus. The breathiness and harmonies were really on point. All of these components came together to create a low-key song. But in terms of execution and delivery, Know Ya spoke volumes to me. (9/10)

5. Bad Night – Bad Night tones down the mini-album, but it does so in a strong fashion. Bad Night turns to acoustics at the start, before a slightly softer pop approach takes over. I like the touch of brass added to the song. It is kept soft and light, fitting in with the overall sound of Bad Night. The vocal line really shown in Bad Night with their higher pitched parts in the chorus and harmonies (once again). (8/10)

6. Bouquet (꽃다발) – Bouquet is this album’s ballad. It is classically instrumented and is a beautiful piece. All the members do a great job with their vocals, and the melodies make me sway along – just how I like it. I did think the melodies could have been a bit more memorable, however, just so the ballad can have more of a drawing point than beautifully executed vocals and instrumental. (8/10)

Overall Album Rating – 8.1/10