Tag: GWSN

Another returning group this week is GWSN, who made their comeback yesterday through the release of BAZOOKA!. This is their first release since wrapping up their Park In The Night and debut trilogy with Red Sun (021). This is also their first release since moving to a new label (MILES), which is a sub-label under their original entertainment company, Kiwi Media Group. For those who may have noticed, the group is down a member as SoSo is sitting out due to an injury since earlier in the year. Hope she makes a fast recovery!

Through their previous promotions, the group has developed a very strong association with the quirky and upbeat side of EDM and house music. And I feel like the group could have continued on with this sound and style through their future releases without replicating a carbon copy of their three previous title tracks. BAZOOKA! steps into a different direction entirely, which I am quite sure they have chosen this route to show off some variety in their discography. But I do feel like they stepped into that questionable ‘typical’ region with this new song. It partly conforms to what we hear from other female groups and as a result, I feel that they lost that individuality that they kicked their careers off with. But it isn’t all bad news. They do show off their strong cards in this song. BAZOOKA! is a very bright and upbeat pop track. There is a subtle retro root to the instrumental that I did enjoy. There is also good energy that does keep the song from becoming overly boring. I also like the song’s catchy hooks, particularly the ‘Watch Me, Catch Me‘ repetition and cutesy sounding ‘Play BAZOOKA!‘ that they ‘shout out’ during the chorus and post-chorus hook. Their vocals are what I am a little torn about. The more cutesy parts seem okay (I know, I can’t believe that I enjoyed it), but their other vocals seem a little plain (and is one of the drivers to the early ‘typical’ direction complaint).

The music video opens up with the line ‘Ever have that feeling where you’re not sure if you’re awake or dreaming?‘, which actually sent me chills. It sets the scene to the video and help connect the song to the music. At first, I thought the video had an Alice in Wonderland theme, which is the go-to fairy tale for KPOP video producers to play with. But instead, the members of GWSN had to go around through different doors to find special keys to open the universe, based on the lyrics. There was also some hidden gems of their previous video, such as the symbol on the book and the number 021. I didn’t pick up anymore, but I assume there would be others. The lighting and colours were also helped make it a fun video to watch, while that urban background to the setting helps make the video feel modern.

I thought the choreography was very nice. There was definitely a lot of energy in this performance, as its was jumpy and the music was very upbeat. I really like their ‘BAZOOKA!‘ move and the other hand movements that they do throughout the performance.

Song – 7.5/10
Music Video – 8.5/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.9/10

GWSN is one of those girl groups that you know has so much potential. It hurts me to know that there are people missing out on their talent. Their last comeback, Pinky Star (Run), showed it all with a catchy song, an amazing concept for this music video and a choreography routine that was so different to everyone else’s. And today, the girl group from Kiwi Pop returns with a brand new track, Red Sun (021). Let’s see if the group can repeat the same effect their previous comeback had.

Red Sun features house-based instrumentation and wooden xylophone-like percussion, very similar to Pinky Star. It concerned for a little bit that they were gonna ‘clone’ their previous comeback track. However, as we get further into the song, it starts to change. The song featured a complete slow down for the pre-chorus and a heavier EDM drop for the chorus. This alone changed the atmosphere completely, allowing for the distinct differentiation between the two title tracks. I also found the rapping in this song to feature a hip-hop instrumental backing, which made the rapping even more powerful. The vocals were also quite good. I find it quite interesting that they managed to use the exact vocal sound for all their songs thus far.  I think the decent hooks and melody in the track were the weakest point. They aren’t automatically ear-catching like Pinky Star. But given the dynamic nature of the instrumental, I think a few extra listens will be enough to engrave this song into my mind alongside its predecessor.

The group continues their puzzling music video concept with this one. I am in no way capable of determining the storyline behind this video. But my biggest guess thus far is that this is somehow connected with the music video for Pinky Star (and possibly Puzzle Moon as they are all part of one album series). The main reason why I think this is that the tree growing in the book in this video resembles the white tree that we observe in the Pinky Star music video. The way the video came was shot gave me similar vibes (which I enjoyed). I am also reading elsewhere that the video shows the members coming together again, signifying that they will be departing from this concept as a group and will return as a group with a new concept. There seems to be a little more to the story than that and I would love to hear some interpretations.

The group moves around a fair bit. But observing their performance, I saw them snap back into their right positions and move in sync with one another. While this is now an ordinary thing in KPOP, I still think this is a cool aspect that some groups just cannot show in their dances or achieve. So it is definitely worth mentioning. On top of that, I found their formations to be very unique throughout the performance, all contributing to a captivating stage.

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

GWSN is back with their very first comeback! The female group made their debut last year with Puzzle Moon and it featured a very puzzling music video. Now, they return with Pinky Star (RUN), which is the title track off their second mini-album, The Park In The Night (Part 2). They also seem to continue with their puzzling concept with this title track (but more on that later). While it has been fairly quiet from the group since their debut, they did participate in the rookie dominated MAMA Stage held in Korea last year.

Pinky Star is a very interesting song, as there seem to be many separate bits trying to reel you in. The good thing is that it all works in harmony and I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the track. It features house-based instrumentation, which was littered with a number of effects to really draw your attention. The wooden xylophone that was layered on top of the house instrumentation during the first verse was very nice. I thought it was rather intriguing how the xylophone came back for the second verse but it was metal instead. It then progressed back to the wooden ones for the dance break (also need to mention the tempo during the dance break. So fast paced). The scratches give the song various textures, which kept the song from becoming too overwhelming. The other interesting bit was the vocals. I love the chorus to this track. The conjunction of those cutesy vocals during the first half of the chorus and the more general delivery of the second half was rather dynamic. The rapping was also commendable, as it felt just right for this track.

As mentioned previously, the video has this puzzling theme attached to it, similar to Puzzle Moon. Unfortunately, my literature isn’t as great and I have no idea what is going on in the video. The video opens up with a line that says ‘ We may be someone greater than we think we are‘ and ends with the quote ‘If you possess unique strength, it must be used for good‘ from The Doors of Perception (There is a good chance that the video may just be based on this book, as I can see some similarities between the video and what I briefly read on Wikipedia. It feels like a reach in my head, however, unless it is a very loose adaptation). But based on a comment regarding superpowers (see below), it seems like the members are awakening and using their members throughout the video (i.e. they become greater through their unique powers and we don’t see them use it for any bad purposes).  But the interpretation of the video is still up in the air. Aesthetics though are amazing and I really like the rooftop scenes with the members doing their own thing, along with the performance occurring at the same time.

I am amazed by this performance. It is really good! I really liked the short movements during the first half of the chorus. I thought it was very fitting for the music. I liked how they gave that section a somewhat cutesy vibe to really match what I said about that section above. The dance break was very intense and worked well with the fast tempo of that section.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 7.5/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8.6/10

It is time to look at another newly debut group, fresh from their trainee days. GWSN is a seven-member girl group formed by Kiwi Pop Media Group who made their debut last week with Puzzle Moon. The group is made up of Seoryoung, Miya, Seokyoung, Anne, Minju, SoSo and Lena and is a described bymultinational group with Korea, Japan and China represented by the members. Interestingly, each member has a Korean, Japanese and Chinese stage name, which I think is the first group to do that from their debut.

Puzzle Moon takes on that minimalistic trend that has been present in a few KPOP songs I have reviewed in the past week, though further elements are added as the song progresses towards the end. It works surprisingly well and gives off a unique vibe. The instrumentation felt like it was elements from a really cutesy song. But instead of going full-on cute, everything in between was stripped away, which goes back to my comments about how unique the song feels. I really like the simple chorus, though instead of ‘Make It Moon‘, it sounds like ‘Naked Moon‘ to me. Vocals also seem like it suits for a cutesy song so it goes well with the instrumentation. The rap has to be the winning moment of the song, as it is definitely the most intense section of the song. It gave the song some texture and intensity, which was what it needed. For a debut song, it definitely shows the group has potential. I hope they continue to make future comebacks so we can see what else the group can do!

It is clear how much the company has invested in the group. The quality of the music video is something I expect from an established group who have multiple comebacks and hits under their belt. Instead, the sets were pretty elaborate and better than sets from some other artist’s music videos. I loved the set for the choreography scene, which looked so damn good. As for the plotline of the video, I am not too sure what is going on. The ending shows the member making their descent to the moon (or Heaven possibly) after obtaining the right runes for the key. I have scrolled down into the comments on their YouTube video but I can’t find anything that explains the music video. So I am hoping someone else can interpret the video and share their thoughts! It looks very interesting and the way it was shot felt fitting for the song.

The choreography looks simple but there is a fair bit going on. I like how some of the members split away from the main group to do their own thing during the chorus and the spinning moon was really cool. I like how in-sync they are with each other, making this a very promising group (with all the aspects combined).

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 8.5/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8.4/10