Tag: LABOUM

It is time to get back into review mode. There is a lot to catch up on over the last two weeks and before that, but let’s start on more recent releases and work our ways backwards. For this post, I will be focusing on LABOUM’s Kiss Kiss, which officially dropped yesterday. Kiss Kiss is a notable release for the group for a number of reasons. Firstly, the release marks seven years since the group’s debut. Secondly, it is the first release since the release of Firework back in 2019 (they did release a single titled CHEESE in 2020, but never promoted it). Kiss Kiss also follows the resurgence of Journey to Atlantis (one of their 2016 singles) earlier this year; is their first release as a four-member group since Yujeong’s exit from the group, and is their first release under Interpark Music Plus. Definitely a number of changes and milestones.

Pretend there is a spectrum. One end of the spectrum is the group’s earlier cutesy work, such as the recently popular Journey of Atlantis or Hwi Hwi. On the other end, you would find the group’s more refined and mature comebacks like Firework and Between Us (the latter song grew on me considerably since I reviewed it). Somewhere along the middle is Kiss Kiss. In a perfect world, Kiss Kiss would have taken the best of both worlds and created a really nice blended track, and I would have fallen for the track as both ends of the spectrum are favourite sounds from the group. But the resulting Kiss Kiss we did get doesn’t hit the mark. It is a pleasant track, so it isn’t all bad news. But I think that is the furthest extent I would go with describing the song. Kiss Kiss is rather forgettable, and I found that I had to really focus on the song to really get something out of it. The instrumental, while soothing and pretty, did not have any memorable elements within it, leading to a background that felt like a grey blur. If you were listening to Kiss Kiss casually, the instrumental won’t draw your attention. Likewise, the vocals were really nice when you focus on them and have a sweetness to them that made me smile. But the melodies just don’t pull you in as much. Solbin’s rapping was a nice touch and was well incorporated into the softer sound of Kiss Kiss. But like the vocals, not really something to pull you in. The hooks were weak and forgettable, as well. I wish each element really stood out from afar/if you were to listen to the song casually. If this was the case, I am sure I would have found myself gravitating back to the song. But Kiss Kiss just doesn’t do that and may become a victim of the skip button.

The Kiss Kiss music video looks good. It isn’t the most interesting music video, and the sets did look quite cheap (I think the main choreography one is one that we see often). But there were some good shots in there and their visuals were very strong. Like the song, there is a pretty and sweet aesthetic to this video, which made it pleasant to watch. I liked the post-production additions to the video, but I thought the style the producer/editors opted for suited a more cutesy style/concept than Kiss Kiss‘s concept (which I would say is slightly more mature).

The speed at which the choreography was at made the song seem more upbeat than what it felt like if you were to listen to the song by itself. I actually quite liked that. It gives off a different feel, and makes the song a little more inviting (but not enough to really change my thoughts above). I liked the ‘Kiss Kiss‘ part of the choreography (the one that outros the chorus).

Song – 6/10
Music Video – 7.5/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 6.9/10

The number of reviews over the last few weeks have been quite low. I am just so overwhelmed with my work at the moment. But it is always nice to have a break and I thought, why not write one review instead. And that is exactly what I am doing now. Laboum made their comeback earlier today with Firework. It is also the lead title from their very first studio length album. This is their first release since Turn It On, which was released back in December 2018.

Since Yulhee left the group back at the end of 2017, Laboum has gone straight into a mature sound. And while I have liked this change in direction, it seems like it hasn’t really caught on with other listeners. Firework follows the same style and I am not sure exactly how others would receive the song. I personally find the song to have a lot more colour in its sound than their other mature singles. I think that is thanks to their vocals, the rap-like sprinklings and the guitar that dominates the instrumental. Their vocal techniques and the melody was very interesting and very attention-grabbing at certain times. I find the chorus to be very dynamic despite the style they went for. I liked how they upped the volume of their vocals and changed the tempo in the chorus, which both resulted in a lot of boldness and a strong contrast with their more softer verses. I just wanted something a little more explosive, especially with the instrumental, given that the song is titled as Firework. But overall, it was a pretty good song.

With the sound change, their image and concepts have also taken a turn from cutesy to mature. And I think they manage to take it a whole new level with this comeback. It feels a lot stronger in that department. I just feel the video could have been a little more captivating. The video follows the choreography and closeup formula, which can be okay in some circumstances. But I feel like the formula this time comes off bland and boring. I did like their use of lights throughout the video to add detail to the sets or fill up space. But it just didn’t really help out much as a whole.

I think the choreography was nice. Once again, there seems to be a lot of energy in their performance (for the chorus) that was unlike their past mature tracks. I also like the elegance they had during the slower sections of the song. I also think their live performance from today was very strong. From their outfits to the stability of their vocals, it definitely raises expectations for tomorrow and the future performance.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.4/10

If you have yet to vote in this year’s KPOPREVIEWED Awards, do so today! Click here to get transferred to the voting page. 

After their mature Between Us comeback in July, Laboum has returned with a brand new song, Turn It On. This new song features on the group’s 6th single album, which is titled as I’m Yours. Since their last comeback, Laboum has been busy with their Japanese Hwi Hwi debut and ZN completed her promotions as part of UNI.T (but unfortunately did not participate in their final rounds of promotions).

Turn It On takes that mature side of Between Us and combines it with the currently trendy Latin phase that KPOP is going through. What does set this song apart is that Latin sound isn’t too strong, allowing for the mix of some pop influence to be brought into play. Sure, all of these are pretty standard sound in KPOP nowadays but it is rather fresh, if I was to describe the sound of the song.  I did like the vocals in this song. Nothing that special but the vocals did feel a lot more interesting than their previous track. The hooks in the song weren’t as strong as their previous songs but there was a nice melody of them that made them appealing. I did like the bridge even though it was really short. The use of that ‘wide stereo’ filter on top of the voices was extremely fitting for the song, leading nicely to the high note and final chorus. I personally like this song but given the style they went with, I would understand why some people wouldn’t.

The music video starts off with a zombie (played by Jun from UKISS) running after one of the Laboum members (Solbin). Soyeon shoots Jun and the members of Laboum bring him back to their mansion. They begin therapy to take the zombie infection out of Jun and make him human again. They gave him music, food, smells and human touch, which caused his zombie nature to slowly disappear. In the end, however, the girls get attacked by another pack of zombies and become zombies themselves, while Jun returns to human form, not knowing what will occur to him when he meets the girls. The music video overall is quite nice and definitely well invested. The only problematic section is the credits. They could have timed the ending a lot better. The music randomly cuts off when the video ends, cutting the nice flow of the video. But other than that, I enjoyed it.

I thought the choreography for this comeback was quite classy. It plays towards this mature side of Laboum without going overboard, which I think was pretty cool. It also fitted in with the upbeat vibes of the song. I did like the bridge of the performance, which I think was their best moment.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 8.5/10
Performance – 7/10
Overall Rating – 7.5/10

Laboum quickly rose to the towards the top of my ‘favourite artists’ list in the past few years, so with the announcement of their comeback, I was super excited. Unexpectedly, the group has forgone their cute image and gone for a more mature concept this time. This concept is delivered via the song Between Us. Since their last comeback (Only U), Yulee left the group (and is now a mother/engaged to Minhwan from FTISLAND), while ZN re-debuted as part of the project group UNI.T (Haein and Yujeong also participated on the show but did not get as far).

Between Us is an interesting mix of good but also boring points. The mature sound is definitely very appealing in my opinion, showing a different side of the group. And while it is mature sound, there is also this hint of fragility which I find very intriguing for some odd reason. However, as much as I want to enjoy the song, I do find it very stagnant in terms of buildup and lacking in any energy whatsoever. The song does provide some moments in which it cuts the slow atmosphere, such as that squeaky synth halfway through the 1st verse and the buildup to the final chorus. I did like their vocals and thought the chorus was decent, despite the slowness. Overall, I thought the song has potential but it does need some more energy to make it more memorable.

The music video was well shot yet simple for a sensual video. The scenes seem a little cryptic, especially for an audience who doesn’t know the Korean language. For example, why was Solbin kissing the mirror reflection? It did bring my attention to a peak but I wasn’t sure why that was the case. I liked the dark background for the choreography shots and the overall feel was appropriate for the sound and mature concept.

I actually liked the choreography, which was fitting for the slowness of the song. I liked moves featured during the chorus and the bridge.  The issue with the performance was their blue outfit (shown in the music video), which I think was ill-fitting for the song. It screams beach concept and bright songs, not sexy and mature. The dress was more fitting for the concept, overall.

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

Laboum has returned with their second comeback of 2017. They previously released Hwi Hwi back in April and earned their first win on the weekly music shows. Now, they are back with a special Summer album, which shares the same title as their title track, Only U.

The girls join a long list of Summer themed comebacks, which automatically make the expectations of the song quite high. For the most part, I think the song manages to hit that mark. The instrumental just screams Summer from the very start. It has a very nice retro vibe and it definitely makes you smile when you listen to the song. The catchiness of the chorus really does hook you to the song, which I am absolutely loving. I also like how they bring back their cute sound in the song, which I think fits nicely with the style and theme of the rest of the comeback. But honestly, I am a little disappointed. While I did say the song is catchy, I felt like the song didn’t have anything else that was interesting. It felt like it only hit that high standard, rather than overshoot it. Another reason requires me to go back to the vocals in Hwi Hwi. While the vocals here are good, the vocals in this song are not as explosive in the previous song and that does let me down a tiny bit. But regardless, it is definitely a Summer song I am putting onto my playlist.

I don’t mind the video but I think it could have been better. The video shows each girl form a massive crush on the guy, who is waiting for his lover to come (which I am assuming from the two fairy floss sticks he is holding). And that is basically the video summarised in one sentence. Besides the outfits they wear, the video doesn’t feel like it can be associated with the season of Summer. Though, I did think the menu was funny. If you do get a glimpse of the menu, you do notice they sell ‘homemade’ and ‘homemade vegan’. But my favourite: Sno cones.

The choreography is a completely different story. I am totally loving it. While I think they could have gone with a better start to the chorus, the whole thing comes together quite nicely. It does bring back the cute side of the girls that were missed. My most favourite part was the 2:40 mark of the music video. I thought that looked really cool.

Song – 7.5/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 7.5/10 

 

Laboum has returned with a brand new song and mini album. 2016 was a big year for the band as they released multiple songs such as Journey to Atlantis, Shooting Love and Winter Story (didn’t get around to reviewing this song, unfortunately), which all help grow their fan base. Now the girls have returned with their second mini album, Miss This Kiss and the title track Hwi Hwi or 휘휘.

Laboum, in the past year, has consistently put out great songs. And they continue that level of success with Hwi Hwi. Just listening to the song for the first time, I could tell it is a part of another league. No, it doesn’t have a new sound or an element to make it stand out. To be honest, it uses very generic and traditional pop sounds. But what makes it sound so good is that it is done right. It ticks off all the boxes as a fun, addictive and fun song. The whistles and level of brightness that the track starts off with really sets the tone of the song from the very start. I love the overlapping between the raps and vocals just before each chorus. Oh, and don’t me get started on the chorus. It is the definitely the part of the song that shines the brightest, especially with the “Miss This Kiss” part. There may not be anything new in the song, but the song manages to cement itself in being one of the top songs of the years. And as a final plea, do not sleep on this song. I recommend it to anyone who wants to listen to a bright song, that actually also prepares us for the coming Summer months.

The music video is pretty good. The video is shot in a similar style to Shooting Love (i.e. camera angles and cinematography made the video look more amazing than if it was shot with a camera moving back and forth). While I do want something more to the video that really grabs people’s attention, the video’s level of brightness and colour really does fit the song’s vibes. The sets look pretty ordinary, but somehow they managed to make it all look good. Watching the girls perform the song in the video alone brought a massive smile to my face. The song did as well, but not to the extent of my grin after watching the video. Some of the props they used did remind me of a few videos released by other girl groups. I don’t know if I overemphasised them in my mind or if it was intentional, but it seemed like a clever.

The dance is also quite simple, but it goes a long way. I am totally in love with it, as I am with the rest of the comeback. It is cute but it doesn’t overdo it, which is a mega plus. It doesn’t necessary standout, but it compliments well with the song.

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

 

Laboum has returned to the stage with a brand new song. They made their first comeback in 2016 with Journey to Atlantis, which I totally loved. Just 4 months later, they returned with a new mini album and their newest title track Shooting Love. Furthermore, Laboum topped my weekly KPOP chart for last week. That was just my way of sliding my charts into these posts!

They came back with a pretty good song. I have to admit. It was catchy and addictive to listen to. I totally fell for it. But there are a few things that did disappoint me. The song sounds more childish (and at parts, cringeworthy). Journey to Atlantis was still that cutesy aegyo concept, but there was a more mature vibe to it. Parts of Shooting Love sounded like a kid was making shooting sounds. Some parts would have sounded a lot better in cheerleading format, but instead, we got kiddy format. I did like the rest of the vocals. The “Bang Bang Bang Boy” reeled me in pretty fast (though it did take me a while to figure out what they were saying, which I don’t really know why, though). The rap was unnecessary and was probably the other part of the song which I did not like. The pop vibe in the song was pretty great. I liked the instrumental to the song. Consistent throughout and the extra beats added for the chorus came at the right time. Really made me happy to listen throughout the rest of the song (minus the rap).

We really need to address this ongoing use of guns in the videos. I get they try to avoid the rating officials and want something cute rather than violent to be in the video, but honestly, it is getting pretty damn embarrassing and ridiculous. Have no clue on what is occurring the video. I get that they are split into teams. One of the teams comes with bombs and spy gear, while the other team comes with grenades and pink guns. I guess they are competing for someone’s love and trying to eliminate the other team. While my idea is ridiculous, I am going with what I think. And though that is pretty cringeworthy and really childish to watch, I find the video quite interesting and amusing. Plus dropping the bomb in the bin somehow managed to stop the bomb from blowing everything on camera to bits. Yeah, I don’t know. I loved the camera work in this video. It made the video look quite cool at some parts. In regards to the ending, I don’t know if the video was actually meant to be the “shooting of a (terrible) movie”.

The dance was great. The editing in the music video made the dance look quite cool and really made me expect a lot. I was a little disappointed with the stage performances, but only a little bit. Overall, I thought the dance was fitting for the song. Though I do have to ask, what were with the random “place hands under each boob” part of the chorus? Got a little lost there, but I loved the use of the handguns (makes sense) and the imaginary bow and arrow (also makes sense) in the dance. Just that random move I don’t find any sense in it.

Final Rating – 7.5/10

 

Laboum has finally returned. They last promoted Aalow Aalow back in November and December last year (which I failed to review). This time around they have returned with a mini album titled as Fresh Adventure.

Probably one of the freshest songs this year. For some reason, there was this “wave of newness” that probably the reason why this song stood out for me. It had that bright feel and make you picture sunflowers and grassy fields. Okay, maybe not that extreme. But every time I listen to this song, it makes me grin so much. Yeah, the song lands perfectly in the typical KPOP song genre but there is a lot more to it. The chorus is freaking catchy and beautiful. Love how they all sing the chorus, giving it that brighter feel. I am just lip syncing the chorus everytime I hear the song. The high notes at the end (both of them) are stunning. The rapping is very limited (and it isn’t really a rap, more like a chant) but it changes up the song. It fits the season perfectly and it is a shame that it is not getting as much love as it deserves. Overall, I think this is an amazing song and definitely think everyone should listen to it.

I think there is one word we can describe this video and that is: cheesy. Lots of cheese. The girls in the video are bored at home and decide to pitch a tent, pretending as if they are in the outdoors. Who didn’t do that when they were younger? Oh childhood, why did you go away? The girls fall asleep and somehow are transported to their “dream land” or the outdoors. And that is about as intense the plot gets. Yeah, very cheesy. But the sets were nice. They are the ones you see every single time a KPOP video comes along, but they have been brightened up and made to look like they fit into the video. But damn, those outdoor scenes (well, I am assuming they were outdoors and not in some studio) look amazing. I don’t have much else to say regarding the video. It just looks beautiful.

The dance is great as well. They are in sync from start to the end. Loving it. I love the chorus and damn, it is very confusing to follow along. Because that is what I do all day… I watch video and dance to them while sitting down. But it fits that fresh and cute concept they are going for.

For some reason, these girls are not getting love. They need love. Because just listening to this song shows me how capable they are. 9/10