MASC – KPOPREVIEWED

MASC has finally returned with their first ever comeback. If you have forgotten about them, they made their debut last year with Strange.

I am not entirely sure of my thoughts in regards to this song, but I think it is a pretty good song at the moment. The song has a nice rock sound, fitting with their debut single. This song, however, is more upbeat and vibrant. There is a lot more elements in this song that make it interesting, such as the trumpets blaring after the chorus. Even though what I described doesn’t necessarily sound classy, the song overall felt very classy but tough at the same time. The vocals were good. But like the previous review for SF9’s Roar, I thought the rap segments were the highlights of the song. But nonetheless, everyone stands out in the song. There is a part of me that feels that the song is borderline “typical” in South Korea though. Beside my compliments and highlights that I have pointed out, I felt the song just didn’t stand out that much when it is compared to with other songs. Sure, the song had class and a tough vibe, but they need something to set them apart and be different. To me, they have moved into the spotlight with this song, but they just need a push (aka. a unique song that suits them) to be the main star of the show.

The video is very boring. Reading the comments, apparently, the video has been uploaded 3 different times due to sound issues. At least it sounds like their company is committed to bringing the highest quality for their group and fans. I really like the classy and edgy concept the video was going for. It was very fitting for the song. The only problem is that there isn’t much going on in the video. There are scenes where the members act alongside the female lead, but you can’t really tell what is going on in those scenes. That made the video boring and uninteresting to watch.

The choreography was pretty good. Probably the most memorable part of the whole choreography was the rap segments after the choruses. They looked cool and with the song, it packed a punch, giving the stage something worth looking forward to.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 5/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 6.5/10

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TaLnT8FNn4

[This review was written and scheduled a few months back in preparation for my absence in December. The standard posts for the end of the year (comebacks I have missed in November & December, the end of year charts + KPOPreviewed awards) will be written and posted after my return. No weekly charts will be uploaded for the last week of November and all of December.]

Another debut that I missed this year. But better late, then never! MASC is a 4 member boy group currently under JJ Holic Media. They made their debut back in August this year. The four members includes Woosoo, 26, A.C.E and Hee Jae. They debuted with the song, Strange, which was part of their first mini album.

Unlike the title, the song is not “strange”. In fact, it is a classy track that has a very smooth instrumental. The song has a very nice electrical guitar sound and also having a nice hip-hop / RnB vibe. The style does remind me of Beast’s songs back in the day. The vocals and rapping of this band are quite nice. I love how the song slows down at the bridge and then it just goes back to being upbeat and smooth with a simple curse word that is bleeped out. In KPOP alone, this is probably one of the few tracks that do contain a bleeped out curse. Would I say they are geniuses or are cool for doing that? Probably not. But because the bleeping out of a word is quite rare in KPOP, it does capture your attention. The song is quite catchy and it becomes addictive for a while. The song just became overshadowed by other songs released then. Overall, I think the song is quite up my alley.

The video is a little confusing. I pieced together the lyrics and what I saw to get a story. The guys have all fell for this girl, who ends up cheating with someone else. Everyone is pissed or heartbroken when they found out what she was doing. In the video, we see another member fall for her and he gets furiously angry. Besides the plot of the video (which isn’t any more interesting), I found it very boring. They went with a tough guy concept, but their facial expressions look frozen the whole time, especially when it came to the choreography scenes. The acting is a little weird as well. It just was not interesting enough to watch.

Along with their facial expressions, the rest of the choreography look a bit bland as well. I think the song makes it a little hard to show off more of the dancing side to the band. Maybe if they have a song that shows off the dancer side in the group, I think they would look more awesome on stage.

Rating – 7/10