Following the announcement that Stray Kids will be sticking around for a little while longer (Stray Kids renewed their contracts with JYP Entertainment earlier this week), they have made their long awaited return with their latest mini-album, ATE, and the lead single Chk Chk Boom. This comeback follows the release of ROCK-STAR (lead by LALALALA) and their first English single Lose My Breath with Charlie Puth. Into the future, the group will be embarking on their third world tour and featuring in the soundtrack for the latest Deadpool movie.

Going back and forth over the song, my main critique about Chk Chk Boom is around the song’s imbalance in some areas. The autotune in Chk Chk Boom felt heavy-handed and excessive. I wish this was toned down in the studio version of the song. The live performance does tone this down to make way for their actual vocals, and it makes Chk Chk Boom sound so much better. On the flip side, the vocals sequences in the verses failed to stand out. Listening back, they lacked intensity that the title promises, and I wished that was turned up. I felt the chorus warranted similar comments, but with a more explosive effect. Additional listens has helped warm me up to the chorus and made it sound more explosive, but I felt the members could have turned up their delivery to give the centrepiece more oomph and reflect the Chk Chk Boom‘s title better. But there were some definite strong elements in Chk Chk Boom. I do like the groovy undertones in the instrumentation, especially during the chorus and in the chanty end of the song (which is actually my favourite part of Chk Chk Boom). It came through prominently during these sections and fits in with the current trends whilst also maintaining Stray Kids’ signature synth-heavy dance sound. CHANGBIN and JISUNG’s rapping was definitely intriguing and different from how they usually present themselves in the title tracks, but in a good way. They are my pick for the standout members in Chk Chk Boom. The inclusion of Spanish in the lyrics made the song interesting, though some refinement in their delivery (i.e., less slurring) would have made this stand out stronger. Overall, Chk Chk Boom is a great track, with certain parts needing some tweaks to be even better.

Unexpected cameos from Ryan Reynolds (as himself and Deadpool) and Hugh Jackman (as Wolverine) are definite highlights to the music video. Not sure if anyone saw this coming, but this definitely showcases Stray Kids’ reach worldwide. I do think a fair amount of the budget was spent on getting both of these famous actors in the music video, as the visual effects in the video did not feel as bold and memorable as in past music videos. We still get some, but they just do not amaze me as much. That being said, Stray Kids hold the ground with their charismatic and intense looks and choreography, which do make up for lesser presence and prominence of visual effects. I did like the comedic flair that the cameos brought, as well as the Deadpool-like theme the music video had.

I was excited for the choreography from when the music video teasers were released. While the song could have used more intensity and explosive energy, the members make it all up in execution on the stage. I have already mentioned their live vocals in the song section of the review. Now, it is time to shout out the members’ kicks, jerky and synchronised execution of the choreography routine, which just had so much of that intensity and explosive built into it. I really like the chorus routine, in particular.

Song – 7.5/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8/10