A much shorter gap than compared to last time again! Not yet ‘on a roll’ status, but I am hoping to smash out more of these International Song Reviews posts over the next few weeks to make sure I catch up on them as soon as possible. Last time, I focused on DRIPPIN, Rocket Punch, Kep1er and KANG DANIEL’s international releases from 2022. Today, I am still focusing on 2022 releases, but the attention is focused on ITZY’s Blah Blah Blah, JAMIE’s 3D Woman, what appears to be LOONA’s final song ever (:( aka. LUMINOUS) and Rocket Punch’s DokiDoki Love. Let’s go!
Blah Blah Blah – ITZY
Language: Japanese
Release Date: 5 October 2022
Album: Blah Blah Blah (2nd Japanese Maxi Single)
Ahead of their impending Korean comeback at the end of the month, it is time that I review Blah Blah Blah, ITZY’s latest Japanese comeback track which was released in October 2022. Blah Blah Blah is a song that shows off a more intense side of the group. The instrumentation of Blah Blah Blah definitely feels more abrasive and textural. However, I am particularly not a fan of the more typical and squeakier synths that were used as bookends in the introduction and end of Blah Blah Blah and post first chorus. The members did a great job with their vocals and rapping. The more chanty approach helped made Blah Blah Blah charming and appealing, as well. As for the music video, I really liked the colours in the video. The music video primarily used black and white in its sets. But the members’ outfits and some post-production elements present in the latter half of the video introduces small amounts of colour that really pop out. ITZY themselves looks amazing throughout the video, and I liked how the video’s concept brought out their intense and fierce sides. The choreography was definitely cool, and shows off a confidenct and sassy side which works well with the rest of the comeback.
Overall Rating – 8.3/10
3D Woman – JAMIE
Language: English
Release Date: 5 October 2022
Album: One Bad Night (3rd Mini Album)
JAMIE made her comeback with 3D Woman, in October of last year, following on from her Pity Party release from earlier on in 2022. The track showcases a mature sound and side of JAMIE. It features a slow and sensual vocal delivery from JAMIE, and an alluring and hypnotic trap instrumentation. It does get repetitive as it progresses, but it is still a strong foot forward for JAMIE. However, had the final chorus not been too much of a repeat of the what we heard earlier in the song, 3D Woman could have been a bold hit. As for the music video, I didn’t know exactly what was going on. But it was definitely a sexy music video to watch. My best guess about the plot is that the video depicts JAMIE as a femme fatale, who is part of a group of empowered and confident woman. A guy at a club is seen making a move on a particular lady at the club (whom I think is identified as a possible new recruit at the start of the video), but three ladies whom are at the club with JAMIE get in the way and drag her away from the guy. The guy ends up being distracted (and later gagged and bounded) by JAMIE, while the lady whom he was making a move on taken away and recruited to be part of the team of empowered and confident females. The video ends with as a group of ladies, including the newly recruited lady, walking by the bound and gagged guy. She takes one look at him and leaves him behind with her new friends.
Overall Rating – 7.4/10
LUMINOUS – LOONA
Language: Japanese
Release Date: 28 September 2022
Album: LUMINOUS (2nd Japanese Single Album)
As mentioned above in the introductory paragraph to this post, LUMINOUS potentially could have been LOONA’s final song ever following the group’s lawsuit against and departure for Blockberry Creative earlier this year. There may be potential for a regroup, as the members have predominately stayed with one another as they signed with new companies. But I guess, we will have to wait and see. Back on topic, LUMINOUS is an awesome track. I really like the bold energy that came off the song and the confidence that the song instills on you (which without a doubt works extremely well with the lyrics). LUMINOUS has drive and this really helps make the song appealing for me. Admittedly, the instrumentation is a bit repetitive and the vocals could have been through less processing. But the combination of both manages to offset each other and create that bold energy that I already mentioned. In terms of the music video, I am not a fan of the portrait frame. I think their previous Japanese track (Hula Hoop) was also shot in a similar manner. I guess it helps with the current form of videos we see (i.e., short form) and relates to the mobile phones (product placement perhaps?) in the video. The catwalk feel of the video matches up with the song very well and I like how their members’ message of confidence on the catwalk gets heard by the ordinary people/their fans who become confident as the video progresses. The choreography did look good, but I think better sychronisation would have made the performance I saw look better.
Overall Rating – 7.9/10
DokiDoki Love – Rocket Punch
Language: Japanese
Release Date: 5 October 2022
Album: DokiDoki LOVE (1st Japanese Studio Album)
DokiDoki Love is a track I did not expect to enjoy as much as I did when it was part of the Weekly KPOP Charts post. simply because it sounds very cutesy in passing and that isn’t my cup of tea. As usual, there is always exceptions to this and DokiDoki Love is probably one of the most recent additions to that exception list. I just remember finding the chorus super catchy and fun one day, and DokiDoki Love‘s appeal snowballed from there. The synth instrumental and subsequent pop energy that comes off the song was extremely likeable, and the members did a good job at executing the song. Come to the think of it, the song is quite summery – well suited for the current season (or in my case, my desire for the summery season). My favourite part of the song, overall, was the post-bridge/pre-final chorus Doki Doki chant. Brief, but it was a memorable part of the song. The music video was very bright and colourful, which is what you expect with this type of song. It is more on the typical side, but it works. Similarly, the choreography is cutesy and upbeat, exactly what you would expect with this type of song. Overall, a solid comeback.
Overall Rating – 8/10
KPOPREVIEWED 