Category: Reviews

[Review] PARADISE – TREASURE

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Earlier this month, TREASURE made their comeback with their 4th mini-album, Love Pulse, led by the title track PARADISE. TREASURE’s comeback follows on from their Pleasure special mini-album and single YELLOW from February 2025, as well as news of a leadership change to Junkyu and Asahi and early contract renewals with YG Entertainment.

TREASURE’s PARADISE is a pop track that suits the summer season quite nicely. It’s bright, upbeat from the onset and a lot of fun, particularly thanks to the brassy elements in its instrumental. There is potential for PARADISE to become super-infectious in my life because of these brassy elements, had I put the song on repeat in the last week. I just didn’t have the time to do that in the past week, with me wrapping up some work and reviews to take a break. That being said, the instrumental is probably PARADISE‘s strongest asset. While I do appreciate the vocals and rapping in the track, PARADISE isn’t the most definitive showcase of their abilities. The hooks and melodies are also quite bright and lively, but they also aren’t TREASURE’s best effort to date. But altogether, everything in PARADISE comes together to become a pleasant summer listen with a light pop bop instrumental.

I quite enjoyed the music video. TREASURE does a good job of making me want to dance along to the music when I watch this video. The mood is also extremely bright and smiley throughout, which helps convey the constant desire to dance and makes their music video even more likeable and enjoyable. PARADISE is about escaping to a place of pure happiness with someone special, hence why we see a lot of imagery of the beach, sunset and fireworks throughout the video.

Like the rest of the comeback, the performance for PARADISE is just as energetic and bright. I liked the dance break during the bridge of the song. The “P to the A to the R to the A” move kind of reminds me of the “Woo to the Young to the Woo, Dong to the Geu to the rami” move from the 2022 Extraordinary Attorney Woo K-drama.

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

[Review] Goodbyes & Sad Eyes – MOON BYUL (MAMAMOO)

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With MAMAMOO being inactive as a group, it has felt like it has been a while since we have heard from the group or the members. It probably doesn’t help that I don’t cover their solo comeback as soon as they occur. MOON BYUL recently made her return with her 3rd mini-album, Laundri, and the title track Goodbyes and Sad Eyes. MOON BYUL also pre-released the single ICY BBY (also from the new mini-album, but I yet to review). Her last comeback was last year’s Is This Love?.

Goodbyes & Sad Eyes is MOON BYUL’s answer to the ongoing rock trend in KPOP. There have been some good songs of this style lately, with the potential for Goodbyes & Sad Eyes to join the ranks with its electrifying guitar riffs in the verses. These riffs amps up and intensifies the song greatly. I am totally for exploring this sound further in the song. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, as the rest of Goodbyes & Sad Eyes opts to hold itself back to sit more generically in the pop-rock realm. While I appreciate the cleaner sound and how well it showcases the resultant melodies of Goodbyes & Sad Eyes, I just feel like the chorus missed an opportunity to give us something more powerful, cooler and explosive as the centrepiece. MOON BYUL does sound great throughout the track. But like the instrumentation, her vocals loses the edginess that she builds into the pre-chorus. The pre-choruses and bridge slows down Goodbyes & Sad Eyes into soft territory, but I like how we get to hear MOON BYUL’s familar rapping style before launching into the choruses each time.

Goodbyes & Sad Eyes celebrates an eventual break up, with that being the vibe carried through to the music video. There is no upset or sad MOON BYUL throughout the video. Instead, she is having the time of her life, choosing to look beyond the breakup and enjoy what she has in the moment. She is going out to the club, dancing around while packing her bags, but most importantly, she is genuinely smiling through everything. I do like the little anime sequences that appear at each pre-chorus sequence in the song. Definitely very cool to watch, but I also liked how it shows her at ease with the situation she is in.

I liked the energy that MOON BYUL and her dancers exude during the choreography. For the stage performances, she chooses to focus more on her live vocals, which shows us her immensely growing confidence in her live performances. It does mean that she tones down her participation, but the dance performances I have seen of Goodbyes & Sad Eyes was good to watch overall.

Song – 7.5/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 7/10
Overall Rating – 7.6/10

[Review] Rendezvous – AHOF

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Once again, there have been several debuts that I have not yet gotten around to reviewing. I am hoping that I will be able to cover more of them in the coming weeks, but to start things off is a review for the AHOF’s debut single. AHOF, which stands for All-time Hall Of Famer, is a nine-member male group formed through the survival show Universe Legend, consisting of Steven (former member of Luminous), Jeongwoo, Woongki (former member of TO1), Shuaibo, Han, JL (former member of Filipino group Pluus), Juwon, Chih En, and Daisuke. They made their debut on 1 July 2025 with the mini-album, Who We Are, and the single Rendezvous.

To be honest, I didn’t pay too much attention to AHOF when they first debuted. I don’t think it was for a particular reason, but rather I had a bit going on work-wise when Rendezvous dropped. It wasn’t until their song kept on appearing on shuffle, and more specifically the punchiness of the “Hold me back, Hold me back, Lost in a dream and falling fast” line in the bridge, that I started to pay more attention to Rendezvous. In addition to being quite punchy, there is also a slight edginess of that particular line, contrasting with the rest of the track’s pop-rock and dreamy atmosphere (which was a powerful and characteristic aspect of Rendezvous), that really put the song on the map for me. Pleasant melodies within Rendezvous, combined with the instrumental, calls back to 2nd generation KPOP, which was the generation I started to listen to KPOP (and have been here ever since!). There was some nice vocals and rapping throughout the track, though I wished there was something to make them a little more pronounced. Altogether, Rendezvous comes together quite well to produce a song that both puts the group and nostalgia out there. I definitely am looking forward to what comes next for AHOF.

Rendezvous is a song that reflects on what it feels like to start from nothing (or from struggle) to reach one’s dream. In the music video, we see the members experience struggles (isolation, feeling lost or tired, stuck in one place etc.) before coming meeting another member feeling a similar struggle and rejoining the rest of the group. The colour palette chosen during the moments of struggle was rather muted and dark. But once the members became united, there was bright tones in the video’s colour. I also liked how their own logo was used to show them being connected and give them a sense of belonging. And as a newly debut group, this also speaks to their identity as a new group.

I quite like how the stage performance for this comeback develops. For the first portion of the routine, the choreography was more aligned with the pleasant melodies of the song. But it changes gears once we get to the bridge, increasing in intensity and energy. It feels very similar to story that they were portraying in their music video.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 8.5/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 8.7/10

[Review] EXTRA VIRGIN – YOON SAN-HA (ASTRO)

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YOON SAN-HA made his solo comeback back in July with his second mini-album, CHAMELEON, and the single EXTRA VIRGIN. It is his first solo release since his solo debut last year with DUSK (led by the single Dive. He also made his return to acting recently through the Korean drama My Girlfriend Is The Man!. Meanwhile, fellow members MJ and JINJIN have formed a subunit, ZOONZINI (their debut single, Some Things Never Change, dropped last week – review to come), while CHA EUN WOO recently enlisted in the military.

EXTRA VIRGIN is such a snazzy track. Right off the bat, it is hard to avoid the extremely funky and upbeat nature of the song. Amongst this, EXTRA VIRGIN brings us groovy percussion, a tinge of country twang and interesting synth choices that consistently have made me think my phone notifications were going off, when in reality my phone is always on silent mode. YOON SAN-HA is extremely charming throughout EXTRA VIRGIN. His delivery was very bright and energetic, capitalising on his youthful personality. While the chorus did feel inherently strong, particularly with the shouty beginning, I did think stronger melodies would have strengthened the chorus further. But my personal favourite part of EXTRA VIRGIN was the bridge. The instrumental break was enjoyable, while the build-up from YOON SAN-HA that follows was really satisfying. The ad-libs at the end were also great, but I think there was room to be even punchier and not feel as constrained.

EXTRA VIRGIN‘s meaning is funny yet abstract and different, with YOON SAN-HA confirming the song is about being premium and top-tier, similar to how ‘extra virgin’ olive oil is relative to other types of olive oils. In the lyrics, YOON SAN-HA expresses the idea that he can be anything his partner wants him to be, proving himself to be of a premium standard. The music video sees YOON SAN-HA attempt to find a way to get into the city from outside the town. I suppose the country twang in the song and the cowboy hat he wears during the video imply that YOON SAN-HA starts off in the countryside and wants to be a city person, to be with the person he is pursuing. That is only what I got out of the video and lyrics, so I could be totally wrong with my interpretation of it all.

YOON SAN-HA was awesome on stage throughout this comeback. Just like what the song calls for, the choreography is energetic and upbeat. But the main selling point was how YOON SAN-HA really got into the performance. His facial expressions gave off a mischievous vibe (which was what he was going for, as confirmed in an interview that I read for this comeback), which adds to the fun vibe the song had.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8.7/10

[Review] Dream Bus – DAY6

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DAY6 celebrates their 10th anniversary through the release of their fourth studio-length album, THE DECADE. Leading the album are the single INSIDE OUT and Dream Bus (focus of this post). The album follows the release of the digital single Maybe Tomorrow from earlier this year and the news that the band has re-signed with JYP Entertainment. Yay to more years with DAY6. But for now, let’s celebrate with my review of Dream Bus.

Dream Bus also tickles the DAY6 nostalgia, just like INSIDE OUT. But where INSIDE OUT felt relatively more mellow and emotionally driven, Dream Bus is more uplifting and positive in both sound and message. The song itself has been described as “a pop punk track with melodic chords”. I enjoyed the upbeat and energetic nature of the chorus, which pairs so nicely with the band’s warm vocals. You don’t need to know Korean to know that Dream Bus speaks to an encouraging and (as mentioned earlier) uplifting message. The instrumental and vocals just give off this exact feeling. I liked how the drumming and keyboard feel so pronounced in Dream Bus. The synths chosen for Dream Bus just give it such a well-rounded feeling. If you have been reading the blog for a while, it is obvious that I prefer more upbeat material. So it should be no surprise that I prefer Dream Bus over INSIDE OUT. But I love that both songs feel nostalgically DAY6.

The lyrics of Dream Bus likens the path to our dreams to a bus ride. Some of the lyrics make reference to holding onto bus handles, with the motions of the bus that causes us to sway on the bus whilst holding onto handles representing our the challenges or hurdles to get us to those dreams. In the music video, the bus is actually a caravan and the DAY6 members plays ordinary people – SUNGJIN as the carefree character, YOUNG K as the office worker, WONPIL as the curious minded and DOWOON as the young kid at heart who believes he has telekinesis superpowers (the dream). They all live and travel together, and we see pretty ordinary day-to-day interactions with one another. In the end, they stop in the midst of a meteor storm (which only WONPIL recognises). Some time after, we see DOWOON back in the caravan, successfully blowing up a pile of trash, showing us that his dreams came true. I really liked his smugness about it at the end, giving us a little comedic touch to the video.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 8/10
Overall Rating – 8.6/10

[Review] Hold My Hand – HAN (Stray Kids)

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Stray Kids recently made their comeback with their fourth studio album, KARMA, led by the title track CEREMONY. But I still have a backlog of song reviews that I have yet to post relating to Stray Kids, namely the solo tracks from their Hop mixtape and the unit tracks from their Mixtape: Dominate album. I have already made a start on this backlog, with HAN’s solo single from Hop, Hold My Hand, up next. For the other reviews of Stray Kids’ solo songs from the Hop mixtape, see the links below the music video.

If I were to pick an all-rounder in KPOP, HAN from Stray Kids is one of the idols I would definitely think of and perhaps even put forward as my ultimate pick. He is definitely known for his rapping, but he boasts a set of vocals that rivals the main vocalist of his group. Hold My Hand showcases both his rapping and singing spectacularly, alongside an explosive rock-based instrumental that is bound to get you out of your seat and just to ‘dance it out’ to. His rapping is energetic and has excellent flow, and adds to the dynamic flair that the electric guitar gives the song during the verses. But HAN really takes the cake with his soaring vocals in the choruses. I liked how you can tell he really pushed himself towards the end of the central piece of Hold My Hand via the way his vocals become raspy. It just gives off a nice texture in the song. Towards the end of Hold My Hand, through the line “‘Cause all I want is you, not your tears“, we hear the two forms of HAN’s delivery merge together as the vocals remind me of his rapping voice. Overall, I think my praise for Hold My Hand speaks to the fact that it is a strong contender for best song on HOP.

The lyrics of Hold My Hand speak to wanting to bring happiness (and not sadness) to the people he cares about, which some fans have theorised to be a continuation of his past SKZ-PLAYER songs – Alien and Human. In the music video (and this is just my theory), we see HAN struggle to place his own song on the jukebox machine, which causes him to feel anxious and as if he is letting down the people who depend on him. But he soon learns that his music doesn’t need to be on the jukebox. Instead, it needs to be expressed in his own way, which leads to him performing the song in the alleyway. It isn’t the easiest way, but it is a sure way to get his music out there.

Song – 10/10
Music Video – 8/10
Overall Rating – 9.2/10

I.N’s HALLUCINATION | SEUNGMIN’s As We Are | FELIX’s Unfair | HAN’s Hold My Hand
HYUNJIN’s So Good | CHANGBIN’s ULTRA | LEE KNOW’s YOUTH | BANG CHAN’s Railway

[Review] body – DAYOUNG (WJSN)

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Despite most WJSN members renewing their contracts with Starship Entertainment in 2023 (LUDA and DAWON left Starship, but remain as part of the group), there has been minimal music release from WJSN or the members themselves. The only member to release music since 2023 is SEOLA with her solo debut single Without U in January last year. Over a year and a half later, DAYOUNG is the next member to release her solo debut single, body.

I don’t think any KPOP song released this summer has earned the annual title of a Summer hit. Maybe Soda Pop from KPOP Demon Hunters, but I don’t consider that to be KPOP. With that said, perhaps DAYOUNG’s almost-all-English body potentially has what it takes to earn that title. Both the dance pop track’s instrumental and DAYOUNG herself sound refreshing and upbeat at the same time. For the instrumental, I enjoyed the bouncy bass and beat in the background, while the synth work feels very cool and chill. body also benefits from being straight forward and easy on the ears. As for DAYOUNG, I enjoyed her vocals. Like the instrumental, she was also very straight forward in her delivery, but she also brought a lively touch to body. The rap-sing in the second verse did take a couple of listens for me to warm up to (as it felt very plain at first), but it works fine now. body‘s hooks in the chorus are extremely pleasant and catchy, and I find myself easily humming along to the chorus when body plays. Personally, I would have liked for something a little more dynamic towards the end, just to offset the potential risk of repetitiveness and the main hook becoming monotonous . But that is something I can overlook, which will help body to edge closer to becoming that yearly summer hit in my books.

Looks as if the music video was shot in the USA, this visual aspect of body embodies the summer season quite well. The location is extremely bright, with the house chosen for the video having a lot of open space and tall windows to emphasise the presence of the sun. I liked the summery outfits worn by DAYOUNG and the dancers. I also liked how sexy the video got during the bridge, with DAYOUNG and the dancer’s silhouette being the main focus.

As mentioned earlier, body is upbeat and dynamic dance pop track. DAYOUNG and her dancers do a great job of showing just that on stage, and also have a blast while they are at it. I liked how there was something different in each chorus, but it all came back to the same moves. The performance looks best when everyone is on stage dancing together.

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

[Review] INSIDE OUT – DAY6

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DAY6 celebrates their 10th anniversary through the release of their fourth studio-length album, THE DECADE. Leading the album are the singles INSIDE OUT (focus of this review) and Dream Bus. The album follows the release of the digital single Maybe Tomorrow from earlier this year and the news that the band has re-signed with JYP Entertainment. Yay to more years with DAY6, but for now, let’s celebrate with my review of INSIDE OUT.

I personally found INSIDE OUT to be a great song, as it tickles the DAY6 nostalgia within me. It revisits pop-rock territory and has the right elements to make it feel like familiar to me. But there is still a bit of freshness to the song, which comes mainly in the form of the groovy, thumping first half of the chorus. I found this part of INSIDE OUT to be very unique, and I liked how the second verse briefly revisits this in the first instance. The second half of the chorus brings a rush of upbeat energy that makes the song exciting and there is a comforting feeling to thanks to DAY6’s vocals. INSIDE OUT‘s melodies are fine and pleasant, though I think they could have done more in this department. It felt a little too ordinary, but this shouldn’t deter you from listening to INSIDE OUT at all.

INSIDE OUT speaks to how someone cannot keep their feelings for another person hidden any longer, leading them to a love confession. In the music video, we see DAY6’s lives at a standstill due to keeping these emotions bottled up. We see nerves, sickness and even the idea of their relationship (and perhaps their friendship) not working out, as represented by the dancers dressed up as crash test dummies and the messaging of ‘failure’ in the pool scenes. As the video progresses, the members build up the courage to confess, leading the finale where the test dummies explode, which suggests that the fear from earlier probably did not eventuate. It is a bit of an abstract concept, but I think it works well in telling the story that the members were once worried that their confession could lead to the breakdown of their friendship with their crush.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 9/10
Overall Rating – 9/10

[Review] CRZY – HAECHAN (NCT)

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As of yesterday, HAECHAN has become the 7th member of NCT to make his solo debut, following TAEYONG, TEN, DOYOUNG, JAEHYUN, YUTA and MARK. HAECHAN’s solo debut comes in the form of a studio album, TASTE, led by the single CRZY. More recently, HAECHAN has been busy promoting as part of NCT DREAM through their BTTF and CHILLER singles, which form part of NCT DREAM’s 5th studio album, Go Back To The Future.

HAECHAN is most known for being the main vocalist of the NCT subunits he is part of. And so, it should be no surprise that his solo debut title track shows off some of his vocals. His tone is consistently refreshing throughout CRZY, complementing the R&B pop dance genre that CRZY delves into. That being said, I do feel like the material within CRZY could have done more with his vocals, especially on the melodic front, which felt plain in CRZY. I do appreciate the smoothness and sleekness of his vocals and the melodies that we did get. But it wasn’t exactly the amazing material I had expected from a main vocalist. CRZY does give us a different side to HAECHAN that we don’t usually hear much of – some rapping. I appreciate that this is something different for HAECHAN, and it gives us something more to talk about. Instrumentally, I liked how upbeat CRZY got via the rhythmic guitar and percussion. It definitely made CRZY feel cool and suave.

CRZY is about the influence someone you are attracted to can have over you. In the music video, that person is likened to a piece of art that HAECHAN find in an art gallery. At first, we see HAECHAN admire it and then graffiti the art gallery around it, showing the influence the art (or someone) can have on him. By the end of the video, the art piece itself is replaced by another (representing that the someone mentioned earlier has left his life), and leaves HAECHAN wondering what life could have been like had that someone stayed in it. I liked the concept of the art gallery, and it speaks to the fact that art (in whatever form) can be powerful and influential to the point that it can affect people.

I wasn’t really sure what I was expecting on the choreography front for CRZY. So I guess I can say I was genuinely surprised by how good HAECHAN pulled it all off. Though considering that he is part of NCT DREAM and NCT 127, which are known for their dance performances, should this really have been a surprise? Anyhow, I really enjoyed the smooth moves that HAECHAN and the dancers pull off during the chorus, while the term ‘crazy’ was slightly elongated. The MJ influence was also unmissable, and I love how controlled those spins were throughout the routine.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8.2/10

[Review] Rich Man – aespa

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The last two reviews are for releases from the start of the previous week. I now skip forward to the end of the week to review aespa’s new title track, Rich Man, which serves as the title track of the group’s 6th mini-album of the same name. This is the group’s first release since June’s Dirty Work.

Production-wise, Rich Man is a fantastic song. I love the hard rock influence the group goes for in Rich Man. The guitar work has a grungy quality that lends the song character, and it pairs well with the synths chosen for the song. The resultant instrumental piece is very energetic and dynamic, yet different from aespa’s usual output (which has been more synth-based). However, the disappointing thing about Rich Man is that it uses a lot of the same hook. While the members sound nice delivering the line “I’m a rich man” over and over again, the repetitiveness loosens Rich Man‘s power that has been building up throughout the song. It also doesn’t help that another side of Rich Man‘s hook is the “La La La“. After hearing something that channels power, the softer and delicate “La La La” hook just doesn’t feel like the logical follow-through to really push the song further. From the first presence of this hook, Rich Man has to rebuild itself, which just doesn’t deliver the same result as before the hook. Overall, Rich Man is a strongly instrumented track with weakening material.

The music video shows the members being independent and not needing a ‘rich man’ as they continuously iterate throughout the song. We see the members driving a race car, playing American football against a dog (unsure if this is a real-life occurrence) and alongside an actual team, fixing and supporting a vehicle without a lift, and taking on other typical male professions (this video chose a camera operator to showcase this). Later in the video, we see the members on a farm, demonstrating self-sufficiency (whilst the city in the background burns down). Out of all these locations and sub-concepts, I think everything that revolved around the race track and football was more fitting with the music, compared to the farm scenes.

On stage for Rich Man, their confidence and charisma, as well as their robust and (sometimes) complex dance moves, make for a performance that is worthwhile to check out. If that isn’t enough for you, their performance is also full of a sassy attitude that the song allows for and makes this performance even better.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.8/10

[Review] N the Front – MONSTA X

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Earlier this week, MONSTA X made their first album release since 2023 (as the majority of the group were carrying out their respective military enlistments) with their 13th mini-album, The X. The mini-album celebrates the group’s 10th anniversary since their 2014 debut. Leading the mini-album is the title track N the Front, and the pre-release Do What I Want (which I have already reviewed).

While it has been almost a week since N the Front dropped, the song has left the same impression on me during every listen I have given it thus far. Put simply, N the Front is shouty and boastful, but it does so without much to it. While shouty and boastful can make a strong song (and this is definitely the potential N the Front has), I just felt the repetitiveness in this song leaves only the hook in mind and makes you forget the rest. If you were to ask me about what else is going on in the song, I couldn’t tell you about it. And that says a lot, given MONSTA X themselves and their songs are powerful. That is how I would describe the synth-based instrumental that forms the basis of N the Front. However, I couldn’t fully describe it without relistening to the track and tuning out the repetitive hook. Even the members themselves appeared to be overshadowed by the hook, though re-listening to N the Front for the purposes of this review has made me realise that the raps in particular are pretty strong, while the vocals were okay at best when away from the song’s hook. Obviously, the hook is where the members are their strongest within the song.

The music video shows the force and power behind MONSTA X, telling people around them not to mess with them. Otherwise, you might turn into green goo like the guy they tied up and relocated in the van via loud music. Other parts of the video convey a message that they are different and should be allowed to be themselves. I actually liked the various premises of the video, which include taking over a TV studio and commandeering a junior taekwondo class. The best part of the video has to be the bridge, as JOOHONEY and I.M are delivering the lines “Make the ground shake, bring the earthquake, Feel the floor crack, we are not fake“, and the people we see in the video are stomping along with the music. It is a very cool and commanding part of the video, which is why it is my favourite part of the song.

Despite recently going on hiatus for back pain and treatment, it is nice to see I.M participate in the promotions for the comeback. While he isn’t performing the choreography, he is still actively joining the members on stage throughout the performance to deliver his parts of N the Front. As for the choreography, it is definitely a powerful routine with a hip-hop influence that looks cool. I also enjoyed the bounce in the routine during the chorus.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 8.5/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.7/10

[Review] ICONIK – ZEROBASEONE

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ZEROBASEONE is back with their 1st ever studio album, NEVER SAY NEVER. The album is led by the title track, ICONIK, following last month’s SLAM DUNK and the earlier single BLUE, (plus the mini-album BLUE PARADISE, which I have yet to review). This release is timely, as their original 2.5-year contract (starting in July 2023) leaves the group with less than 6 months remaining. But in some exciting news, WakeOne (the company that manages ZEROBASEONE) is looking to extend ZEROBASEONE’s contract. So there is hope for more music from ZEROBASEONE, potentially including another studio album.

ICONIK is a song with the potential to be awesome. It has only been a couple of hours since the song’s release, so it needs a few more listens to develop. However, with a strong first impression already made, ICONIK will likely grow on me easily. Throughout this dance track, the group incorporates funky and groovy elements boldly with its disco-pop style. I really liked this direction of ICONIK, but I just wish the chorus had a bit more time to breathe. It felt too tightly strung together. While it worked well in terms of intensity and boldness, it also made ICONIK‘s chorus feel like a fast-paced blur, preventing us from fully taking it in. The obsession with keeping a song under 3 minutes might have been a driver for this, and while it has helped make repetitive songs feel less so, I don’t think it was necessary here. The melodies in ICONIK ultimately fall victim to the fast pace and tightness, feeling slightly undeveloped and rushed at certain times. But it isn’t all bad news. Vocally, I felt ICONIK is strong, while KIM GYUVIN’s rapping was very sleek. I was very impressed with MATTHEW’s bridge, HAN SUNGBIN’s high note and KIM TAERAE’s ad-libs at the end.

According to SOOMPI, ICONIK “represents the path ZEROBASEONE has walked down as artists and expresses their determination to shine even brighter.” In the music video, we see the members in the midst of their journey they speak of in the song’s message, stopping at an airport along the way that serves as a midpoint of their trip. Their destination is probably wherever that floating jewelled star is. It may represent stardom, as we see one of the members grab onto a microphone and jump off it. I really liked the styling of the members throughout the video, as well as the cool post-production. I also liked how the producers ensured the energy in the video matched the song, which makes it very appealing to watch alongside the song.

I like how the choreography captures that funky and groovy side of the song, creating a very energetic performance to watch. The best part of the routine is undoubtedly the transition between the bridge and the final chorus, where the deep rumbling synths take centre stage, and the routine intensifies in that moment.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8.5/10

[Review] XOXZ – IVE

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IVE made their return at the start of the week with their 4th mini-album, IVE SECRET, and the lead single XOXZ. It is their first overall release since their July Japanese comeback with Be Alright and their first Korean comeback since their 3rd mini-album IVE Empathy, which featured singles REBEL HEART and ATTITUDE.

Except for last year’s Accendio and TKO from their previous mini-album, whenever IVE has promoted a song with an edgier and darker style, it has been a miss for me. The new single XOXZ appears to follow that trend. The choruses were the biggest miss in the entire song, in my opinion. It was very dry and lacklustre. There was some good to be found in the chorus, such as the dramatic flair in the instrumental and the whispery delivery of the XOXZ title. However, somehow, putting all of that together just didn’t have the desired impact and created a fizzler of a centrepiece. The fast-spoken lines should have been an intriguing component, but the execution just didn’t stick with me and was easily overlooked. A similar comment can be applied to most of the song. However, it isn’t all bad news for XOXZ. I really liked the ethereal pre-choruses. It is just a pity that the follow-through (i.e., the chorus) was a let-down.

The music video for XOXZ unfolds as a dream, starting with a truck crashing through the window of a high-rise apartment. This is then followed by the dream version of IVE taking the sleeping member on a journey of her dreams. I really liked IVE’s edgy looks throughout the music video, and I feel elements of the video call back to IVE’s Accendio‘s music video (i.e., the goat horns). The only aspect of the video I didn’t like was the dings that start to appear during the bridge portion and in the ending card. It just made the video feel overly cheesy.

The performance aspect of the comeback was pretty good. Nothing stood out on its own, but rather the choreography (as a whole) did a decent job of encapsulating those edgy tones from the song. I also enjoyed the balance between the members’ cuteness and power in the routine.

Song – 6/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7/10

[Review] HER – MINNIE (i-dle)

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I made a promise on the blog a while back to review MINNIE’s solo single ‘soon’. Well, ‘soon’ has come as I am finally getting around to reviewing MINNIE’s official solo debut single HER, which is featured as the lead single off her debut mini-album of the same name. An album review for this mini-album will follow, after I’ve reviewed some of the other singles with accompanying music videos. I haven’t decided whether to review all of them separately before the album review, but you will find out soon enough. (Note: ‘soon’ has been used this time around to mean soon, and not a couple of months away.)

HER leans into the groovy and upbeat pop music trend that we have been hearing a lot in KPOP (now and back when HER was released). I find the instrumental to be pretty simplistic, with a hefty beat and those groovy tropes serving as the main elements of HER‘s background. MINNIE’s vocals throughout the song are light and delicate, which I find to be well-balanced with the instrumentation. I did wish MINNIE had been given material that made her sound stronger to give HER some additional oomph and dimension. Yet, somewhere along the way, both vocals and backing come together to make HER sound sophisticated, which suits the concept the debut went for (more on that in a second). What I have always liked about the song is how catchy it is. The chorus plays the repetitive card, but it was effective and has allowed the song to stay strong in my books. Overall, a strong solo debut track from MINNIE.

The music video sees MINNIE play 3 versions of herself. The first version we see, MINNIE dressed in white, is actually MINNIE herself. She goes on a drive at the start of the video, but returns home later on presumably to deal with the other two versions of herself. Left behind at the mansion are playful MINNIE (dressed in pink) and serious MINNIE (dressed in red). They are polar opposites, representing two distinct halves of MINNIE’s mind and personality. I like how they are continuously clashing, though I wish it were more physical than verbal clashing. I also like MINNIE’s final expression in the entire video, clearly fed up with her alter-egos.

I liked how MINNIE embraces her sensual and seductive sides for their accompanying performance. I liked how sassy the chorus felt, both on stage and within the music. It was definitely worth checking out.

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

[Review] CEREMONY – Stray Kids

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The biggest release of the day is Stray Kids’ fourth studio album, KARMA, led by their newest single CEREMONY. This is their latest release since April’s Mixtape: Dominate (which features the Korean version of GIANT) and their Japanese comeback single Hollow. I am in the process of reviewing their solo tracks from their mixtape mini-album, Hop, which featured the single Walkin’ On Water.

CEREMONY is probably the first Stray Kids title track in a while to get a lukewarm first impression from me. Each time I have listened to the song since its release a couple of hours ago, I’ve consistently felt like a lot was held back in CEREMONY. The usual bombastic energy common to their title tracks was missing, and none of the members really stood out for me. I am surprised that you have to wait for the end of the song for the chorus to really give some impact in CEREMONY. And finally, the song just ends in such an abrupt and unsatisfying manner. Had the song been more robust and stronger in these areas, CEREMONY would have been much more appealing. That being said, I did like some elements in CEREMONY. The “Hip hip” by BANGCHAN, followed by the crowd’s “Hooray” that started off the first and second choruses, definitely had the engaging energy intended to get a crowd to join in. And I liked the hip-hop twist they gave the subsequent “Hip Hip … Hooray” in the chorus. The instrumental was rather intriguing, and I liked how it showcased that some hip-hop flair. The bombastic energy I mentioned as being missing could have been delivered by sharper beats, but I did appreciate the percussive and detailing synths. Overall, CEREMONY could have been better.

What I really enjoyed about this comeback so far is the sports concept in the music video. The intensity, especially from their focused/serious looks, as well as their competitiveness with one another, in the music video was definitely very pronounced and delivered very well by all members. I liked how the balls somehow connected all sports in the music video, even if the sports were all very different. And of course, the music video would not feel complete without some sort of celebration scene, which is precisely what the group gave to us towards the end. The music video closes off with a surprise cameo from professional gamer FAKER (If you didn’t see the group’s reaction to the music video, they were also shocked by his cameo.) Definitely very cool, and it adds e-sport to the mix of sports referenced in the music video.

The accompanying performance for this comeback shares similar intensity to the music video. I also get the impression that the members are excited for this comeback, based on their enthusiasm and the energy they put into their moves. I really liked the footwork, bouciness and the hip-hop motif in the routine.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8/10

[Review] Do What I Want – MONSTA X

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It has been over two years since we last heard from MONSTA X as a group through their 2023 release of Beautiful Liar, the title track from their 12th mini-album REASON. Since then, the group has been on hiatus due to military enlistments, while those who finished their enlistment (Shownu) and those who had not enlisted yet (I.M) focused on solo activities. Now that all members are available, they will be celebrating their 10th anniversary as a group with the release of their 13th mini-album THE X on 1 September 2023. In anticipation of the album release, MONSTA X has dropped the single Do What I Want.

The new single is quite different to what I remember of MONSTA X pre-2023. While the track does sit within the hip-hop realm, like most of their past title tracks, Do What I Want distinctively draws upon Brazilian funk, which is very unique and different for the group, but also KPOP in general. And the final result is definitely something fun, energetic and lively. There is also a club beat in Do What I Want, which I appreciate for keeping the single grounded and giving it some bite. But at the same time, it is quite generic and so does zap some of the fun and energy from those livelier and funkier moments. Do What I Want also lacks a strong hook. The song’s spoken hook in the song’s centre does have a catchiness to it, but it felt underbaked and does not necessarily reflect the song’s energy. It does create some contrast (i.e., between the low and high tones), but it wasn’t enough to be the song’s main selling point. The group’s delivery (i.e., rap and vocals) is sound, but without that strong hook, I don’t really remember much of the delivery. Overall, Do What I Want is refreshing and different, but I miss the old MONSTA X edgy hip-hop dance sound that we heard previously from the group.

I do appreciate the group doing something utterly different music-wise. And to match the completely different music, the group has gone for a very wild and chaotic visual to accompany the new song. The members are horned and sharp-eared creatures in the music video, which is very unusual. I am not entirely sure what these horns represent, but it’s possible they’re connected to the upcoming music video for THE X‘s title track. Regardless, the members are seen vibing along and being very free with the music and each other in a home video-style video in a summery fashion. This seems pretty normal. But while being perplexed isn’t the way I expected MONSTA X’s first music video in a while to go, I will admit it is very memorable for obvious reasons.

There might also be some choreography to the release, with the routine being shown slightly alongside the second and final choruses. However, I don’t think there is enough for me to comment on it. If it is the accompanying choreography, it does share that wildness that I mentioned earlier with the flailing arms and such. So, I won’t include it in the ‘Overall Rating’ for the time being.

Song – 7.5/10
Music Video – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.7/10