Tag: P1Harmony

Just over a week ago, P1Harmony returned with their 7th mini-album and latest title track, both of which are titled SAD SONG. This latest comeback follows their Killin’ It era earlier this year.

SAD SONG has been growing on me ever since its release. I didn’t think much about the song during my first listen, mainly because SAD SONG‘s Latin-tinged instrumental was on a repetitive loop that didn’t feel all that enticing. However, since its release on 20 September, additional listens have warmed me to the repetitive loop. The repetitiveness is still prevalent, and there will always be the risk of it making SAD SONG feel overdone the more you listen. But I don’t mind it as much now. Instead, I now enjoy SAD SONG‘s upbeat energy, thanks to P1Harmony’s dynamic rhythm and flow during the verses and choruses. They helped compensate for the instrumental’s repetitiveness and keep SAD SONG on its feet. KEEHO and THEO’s vocals in the pre-choruses and the bridge feel so satisfying. There is also a punchy feel from the members during the choruses, which helps drive up the song’s appeal and makes it memorable. I actually find myself humming the choruses’ rhythm a fair bit now. Finally, I feel wrong for saying this, but I find the Latin tinge somewhat refreshing. Don’t misunderstand – there is nothing wrong with the Latin influence. However, it has been so overdone in KPOP so many times before. There is a reason why we don’t hear much of it anymore in KPOP. Overall, SAD SONG is another strong song from P1Harmony.

The video’s official description confirms that the song is about the “emptiness and loneliness that came to P1Harmony, who became a HERO after saving the world and restoring peace.” The video depicts P1Harmony having those feelings, allowing the visual component of this comeback to continue from their DISHARMONY and HARMONY series. I think the members could have done with more emotion in the video. However, the music video does have a hard job of balancing that emotion with the upbeatness of the song.

I liked the choreography for this comeback. I enjoyed the punchiness and sharp movements throughout the routine. The chorus’ routine strongly displays both characteristics.

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

In addition to pre-release and other promotional tracks, I have a backlog of title tracks and debuts to get through. P1Harmony’s February comeback with Killin’ It (the song) is a victim in this backlog. So much so, it has been haunting me constantly at the back of my mind every time I go and review another song that isn’t it. But today, I am finally getting around to writing its review. Killin’ It is also the title of their first studio album, which I will be reviewing at a later date. It follows on from their 2023 JUMP comeback, which is featured on the mini-album HARMONY: ALL IN.

P1Harmony goes loud and striking in Killin’ It, The group keeps to their usual genre of choice for their title tracks, hip-hop, with a side of attitude and playfulness that feels very much like a P1Harmony track. Killin’ It‘s instrumental features both a clangy and brass-like motif, both of which comes together cohesively to create that loud and striking nature that I already mentioned. I would have liked a bit more variety in the backing of Killin’ It to give it more depth and colour, but it is decent enough as it is. Killin’ It‘s chorus was also quite loud, with the layering of the members shouty delivery coming off quite defined and bold. It is catchy and addictive, hence why Killin’ It has remained on my mind ever since its release. The rapping delivery elsewhere in Killin’ It is definitely a highlight, giving off that P1Harmony attitude and personality quite well. The vocals were also decent once we got to those parts and helped smooth a bit out Killin’ It. Otherwise, the aforementioned rapping and shouty chorus could have been too much. I do feel like the song does lack that something extra to really have it break ground. It is good and all, but a little bit more (perhaps some electric guitar riffs) could have taken Killin’ It to the next level.

In the lead up to the comeback, the group dropped a teaser that featured news report about a mysterious change to humanity where peace had suddenly came about. The teaser then sees P1Harmony come out of nowhere to disrupt said peace (taking someone’s doughnut and crashing one of the news reporters’ live feed). I am not entirely sure how the music video fits in, but I am going to take a guess. While the music video doesn’t reference the events of the teaser as much until the very end of the video where P1Harmony is being interviewed and questioned about being heroes, the video does see more of that disruption of peace. P1Harmony attempts underground dentistry, change up a game of curling and set of sparks that is bound to cause some subtle chaos in the world. Most particular to the profession of dentistry, the sport of curling and the peacefulness of the night sky. Now, I am sure there is a proper explanation to the video, as the above is just my wild guess. But I do like what we immediately get from the video is a portrayal the attitude and playful side of song.

Two things strike me when I watched the performance for P1Harmony. Firstly (and this is also reflected in the music video) was the styling of the group. Everywhere I look, I see a lot of praise of the styling for this comeback and I agree with that! The second aspect is how fun the performance looks.

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

P1Harmony made their comeback yesterday with their latest mini-album, HARMONY: ALL IN (their sixth to date), and their latest title track JUMP. They also released the English version of JUMP today. All of these releases follows on from their November 2022 release HARMONY: SET IN and Back Down and July 2022’s HARMONY: ZERO IN and Doom Du Doom.

There is a lot of potential behind JUMP. A subtle yet groovy underlay makes the instrumental lively, while the choruses employs a playful set of synths to sound fun. This all conforms to the alternative pop genre, with a clear feature of hip-hop influences infused into the song – all of which can be heard most vividly during the song’s final instrumental sequence at the very end of JUMP. For majority of the song, the members adopted a deep or low tone in their vocals and rapping, which aligns quite well with the instrumental and gives JUMP a consistent vibe throughout its 2:43 minute run. My favourite showing of this is KEEHO’s vocals in the first verse, where he drags out the ends of certain lines in such a intriguing and sensual fashion. The hooks of the song were quite catchy and worked well with the rest of the song. My biggest gripe with JUMP is that it fails to go that next mile, which ultimately made JUMP feel “held back”. Personally, I felt JUMP needed a more profound peak or moment of concentration towards the end to really take it to the next level. This could have lead to an explosive final chorus that would have amped up the song. Alternatively, the song could taken on a vibrant element throughout it run to give JUMP a bit more zing. We get a teaser of what this could have looked like through THEO’s vocals in the bridge (though this is quite brief). While I do think something extra is needed, it must be carefully crafted to fit in with the pre-existing elements of JUMP, as everything that we do get in JUMP already definitely shows promise.

The music video was pretty good. The song speaks of the message of enjoying the moment, which we see the members do whilst performing on stage and in the midst of the crowd. I did like the idea of a boombox flooring and walls, which both looked quite cool. The “jumping in the water” scenes were also looked awesome, especially as the camera captures the falling water droplets/splashes. The stage set was a good set-up, but I think the crowd element around the stage would have been more interesting. I also think the actual stage could have also been more bombastic and dynamic through some cooler lighting or a stronger background on a screen (think of a screen like in TREASURE’s I LOVE YOU music video). I am not entirely sure of the scenes where the members are in a bubble in space. Feels a bit random to me.

The performance was super great. Not much jumping happening in the choreography, as that would have been a massive undertaking whilst also performing live. Instead, the performance focuses more on a subtle approach to things, which works well with the song. I did like the footwork that could be seen in the performance, especially in the final chorus. Also at the end was the presence of a skipping rope. This would have been an interesting element to the performance (and quite relevant, given that it involves the idea of jumping). But it was such a brief moment at the end of the performance that just doesn’t feel like it could have been appreciated fully.

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

Support P1Harmony in the Best Overall Artist and Song categories of the 2022 KPOPREVIEWED Awards by clicking here to vote and nominate today!

As flagged the other day, another P1Harmony review is finally here. Following their Doom Du Doom and HARMONY: ZERO IN promotions, the group more recently returned with their fifth mini-album release last month, HARMONY: SET IN, which is led by the single Back Down (the focus of this review post).

P1Harmony turns back to a very energetic form of hip-hop energy for this comeback. We have heard the group tackle the hip-hop genre in similar fashion before in the past (e.g. Do It Like This). It just Back Down goes in a bit harder and it doesn’t ‘back down’ in anyway as the song progresses, which I appreciate. It is a hype track from start to end, and doesn’t stray away from its foundation. I personally quite enjoyed Back Down. The rapping in the verse was quite cool. The first verse could have been a bit more thrashed out, but the second verse rap had a more of a memorable tinge to it. The vocally sung pre-chorus was a definitely a highlight and showcases the vocals of Theo and Keeho quite well. I really like the swing they brought to the song, which helped made Back Down a little more interesting and gave Back Down a sense of depth. Then comes the choruses, which were rather catchy. The chorus is the main reason why I have pushed the review to be written much sooner than other releases. It does get a little repetitive (and hence one-dimensional), especially when the same refrain is repeated for the final chorus without much change. I wished they had added something to the final chorus, just to signal the end, like a high note of some sort. But overall, Back Down manages to show the consistent potential that P1Harmony has in the industry.

I think of this music video a bit of a villain origin story for some of the members. Unfortunately, after accidently plugging in the wrong wires into the wrong holes, the entire P1Harmony are zapped. A fight ensues between the two halves of the group, one of which is determined to press the button, while the other half is advocating for the button to not be pressed. A dance battle and fight follows. But in the end, two sides become diplomatic. But it turns out fate has other plans when a light fixture comes crashing down and hits the button instead of any of the members. The entire group is zapped again, leading them to pass out. Afterwards, the group regains consciousness, correctly swap the wires and plug them in correctly, before all pressing the button. But the video cuts out right afterwards, so we don’t know what the button actually does. I know what a rollercoaster ride of a video. But I managed to find it interesting and thought it was a fun one. I really liked their outfits throughout the video.

The choreography was pretty decent. It wasn’t exactly the most memorable routine out there. But it does have its charm and fits in with the hype and hip-hop energy that Back Down exudes. Not exactly sure if I am describing the moves correctly (do I ever?), but I liked the fight- blocking moves that come during the choruses.

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

Support P1Harmony in the Best Overall Artist and Song categories of the 2022 KPOPREVIEWED Awards by clicking here to vote and nominate today!

Another track I am finally getting around to reviewing. P1Harmony returned in July of this year with their fourth mini-album, Harmony: Zero In, and the lead single Doom Du Doom. It follows the group’s earlier comeback in January with Do It Like This and their collaboration with Pink Sweat$, Gotta Get Back. More recently, P1Harmony returned in November with their fifth mini-album and the single Back Down. I will be reviewing that in a future post, which will be coming soon. Also keep your eye out for Harmony: Zero In‘s impending album review, which I am looking to post this weekend. But for now, here is my long overdued review for Doom Du Doom.

I am of the opinion that Doom Du Doom could have gone harder and concentrated itself into a better track. It is already a great track as it is, but I find that it is missing oomph which would have really bolstered up the track and given it an even more memorable ring. Doom Du Doom had a very catchy and playful chorus, which was an expectation formed after hearing the opening refrain. I enjoyed the simple hook and monotonous delivery of the first half of the chorus (which ultimately came off as stylish to me), and the second half of the central piece of Doom Du Doom turned the song into more of a pop piece by amplifying the instrumentation and going with a heavier dose of vocals that flowed well from the first half of the chorus. I did think there was a missed opportunity for the group and their producers to really make the move from the first half to the second half of the chorus more explosive and energetic, just to give Doom Du Doom more of a wow factor. Also, the track is pretty light on when it comes to definition and intensity, which is a slight letdown given that rock tinge thanks to the electric guitar riffs and the amazing rap segments (courtesy of Intak and Jongseob) that appear in the song. An instrumental that features a bit more intensity and some sort of definition would have really aided in bulking Doom Du Doom up and just make those parts a bit more epic. But despite my extra wants and wishes of Doom Du Doom, I still found the released Doom Du Doom to be a fun and memorable track from the group.

The music video jumped on board with that playful side by showing a play on the Olympics. But instead of the Olympics, P1Harmony are participating in the OOOOOO Games and the standard sporting events have been adapted to be more urban and street in this version of the games. Taking boxing choreography, electric guitar baseball, traffic sign throw, cart racing, drone shooting and breaking window (with a grenade) as examples of events at the OOOOOO Games. Much more interesting that the Olympics. There were also opening and closing ceremonies to these games that are pretty low budget, but also make you give off a fun laugh. I definitely enjoyed this video.

The choreography for this comeback was definitely fun. I really liked the isolated moves when it came to the first half of the chorus (and the blank facial expressions made it look funny, which I think was a perfect match for the song). In the routine, Soul got his time to shine, with a dedicated solo freestyle moment in each performance during second half of the second chorus. He amazed me in the performances I have watched with his skills and his flexibility. My bones may be aching when I watch his freestyle, but it is still worth watching given his energy and abilities.

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

Next up is P1Harmony’s comeback single, Do It Like This, which is featured on the group’s third mini-album since debut, Disharmony: Find Out. This release is their first comeback in eight months, following the likes of Scared, which earned them a nomination in the Best Rap & Hip-Hop Song and is one of my picks for Best Song in the 2021 KPOPREVIEWED Awards. I will be announcing the official winners of the 2021 KPOPREVIEWED Awards (voted by the fans) later this month, so you will need to wait and see if P1Harmony emerges victorious. In the meanwhile, check out their latest song!

From the get-go, Do It Like This steps back into a more generic territory of hip-hop dance music. This thought registers even before I started comparing the new song with Scared (which holds onto its title as P1Harmony’s best song). Compared to Scared, Do It Like This is definitely less innovative and individualistic. But even though I describe it as ‘generic’ simply because Do It Like This is exactly what I think of when I think of hip-hop and dance together, it isn’t a terrible song whatsoever. Do It Like This is a fun, energetic and party-anthem like song that feels just right. Nothing in the song did not disappoint. The vocals and rapping were nailed perfectly by the members, delivering as much energy and drive to the song as the instrumental had. And while on the topic of the hip-hop dance instrumental, there was a nice sense of groove to the song that made Do It Like This so much more appealing to me (and that is saying a lot given that I am not too much of a hip-hop fan). The hooks make Do It Like This lively and memorable, which adds an additional layer of appeal and catchiness to the song. Furthermore, I think the hooks and overall energy to the song are growing on me, so I see myself diving deeper into the song in the coming days and weeks. The vocal bridge is the section with the biggest question mark for me. I find it doesn’t fit the rest of the song’s hip-hop vibes and would have liked if they went with something more appropriate sounding/fitting. Overall, while a step in a generic direction might have been the case here, Do It Like This still manages to deliver.

I am not entirely sure what the story line for this video is, but it seems like it has something to do with the start of a new age. Piecing the music video and the prologue together, it appears the members finding the place where ‘the light divided from the darkness’, which is where the group ‘resets’ their watches to realign them with the ‘first day’. In other scenes of the video, it appears that the members are partying it up prior to finding that location (based on the dusk like lighting we get) and the night time scenes. And there seems to be some celebration after finding the location, based on the scenes in the day time with the dancers.

The synchronisation is insane in the stage performance for this comeback. It is definitely a highlight for me. Other parts of the choreography that also stood out to me was the platform (made up of the dancers legs) at the start of the performance, the lead member at the start of the chorus rejoining the rest of the members/dancers after having a mini solo moment (again, insane timing and synchonisation here) and the airplane formation we get in the second verse.

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

The next comeback to occur, and be reviewed, this week was made by P1Harmony. P1Harmony returned on Tuesday (once again, apologies for the delay in the review) with their very first comeback since their debut six months ago in October 2020 with Siren. This latest comeback features the group’s second mini-album, Disharmony: Break Out and the title track Scared.

Right off the bat, Scared really appealed to me with its intense and high level energy. As mentioned in the past, hip-hop isn’t my preferred genre in general, let alone in the Korean music scene. But like all things, there are always exceptions and Scared falls into the latter category for me. I have to admit that I was weirded out by the instrumentation when I first heard the song. The constantly clashing instrumentation, which sounds like a lot of metal falling on top of one another, felt a bit much for me at first. But as I continually replayed the song the next day, it grew considerably on me and it is the element of the song that I look forward to the most when I play the song now. I really liked how that even while the clashing like metal is not explicitly in the foreground of the instrumental, they are still present in the background but in a very muted fashion. It ties everything nicely together, creating a robust backing for this song. As the song delves into the hip-hop genre, the members that flourish the most are the rappers, and their delivery is definitely top notch during the verses. I was definitely head banging my way through the song. I am a little disappointed come to the first and second choruses, as I wished the rappers were more powerful with their delivery in this vital part of the song. They easily could have hit a home run if they were more dynamic. The instrumental in the chorus was definitely energetic, though could have been heightened further in my opinion. This would have helped tie the song together even more tightly. On the other side of the spectrum, the vocals were equally as good. While the rappers did flourish, the vocalists were not shorthanded during their parts of Scared. I mean, Kijung’s vocals during the latter was just on point and quite smooth. Overall, Scared is not song to be scared of. It may overwhelm at first, but it will grow on you.

I am not exactly sure what the story behind the start (and all the relevant scenes throughout the video) were about. My best guess is that each of the people who we see that are non-members were at one point scared of something. But they have joined this cult or following lead by the members of P1Harmony, which tells them not to be scared of anything. Even if the world around you is falling apart. Aside from my botchy storyline, I really like the underground vibes of the music video. It really worked well with the song and really complimented the subtle intensity those additional scenes from the start and throughout the video had.

What a performance! The incorporation of the football into the choreography was a really unique touch. The way the performance goes full circle by bringing back the football at the end, and the whole routine we saw at the end with Theo’s slide and Jungseob’s jumps over the dancers, was amazing. Throw in the choreography we saw throughout the routine, and you have a cool looking dance performance that emphasizes the intensity of the song. If that wasn’t enough, then Soul’s dance break would have been the icing on the cake. And this praise hasn’t factored in the fact they performed the entire performance with live vocals.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 10/10
Overall Rating – 9.2/10

It seems like FNC Entertainment, once the home of famous KPOP bands, have moved onto producing KPOP groups. P1Harmony is the latest addition to the company’s lineup, which includes AOA, SF9, Cherry Bullet (the KPOP groups), N.Flying, CN Blue and FT Island (the KPOP bands). The new group is a six-member male group consisting of Keeho, Theo, Jiung, Intak, Soul, and Jongseob. Based on their profile (I get all the details of various KPOP groups from KProfiles), it seems like P1Harmony is one of the few new groups nowadays that are not connected to the Produce series or any other trainee survival show in some way. Just a little observation I made while looking them up for this review. The group also made their debut on Wednesday with Siren and the mini-album, Disharmony: Stand Out.

P1Harmony’s Siren is a hip-hop centric dance track, something quite different from their labelmates’ sounds. The verses could have used some oomph in the instrumental department. The background was bland for my taste. One good thing about the instrumentation during the verses was how it contrasted with the chorus, making the latter standout by miles. The chorus instrumental is very dynamic and robust, with the brass-like synths comes together to form an edgy and energetic punch. For those who may know, hip-hop centric sounds are not really my jam. But there is something very alluring about Siren that has me excited to see what is next for the group. It might be due to the fact that Siren really shows off some edgy flair and showcases a lot of potential. As it is a hip-hop sound, the song is mainly focused on the rapping. And boy, the members’ rap all added a lot of energy and intensity into the song, especially during the verses where I made an earlier comment about it being bland. The standout moment has to be the member that pulled that insanely fast paced delivery just before the final chorus. That really shocked me, but in a good way. Between the rapping, there was really good vocal moments. They don’t necessarily steal the limelight, but do help bring some balance to the song. The anthem-like delivery when it came to the chorus made everything in that section catchy and uplifted the energy to even more dynamic levels. Overall, another strong debut and one that puts P1Harmony on my radar!

The group and the producers of this music video were quite ballsy having so many people in one particular place, given the current circumstances worldwide. I was a bit nervous watching the music video because of this. Hopefully all people involved are okay. The graphics and post-production of this music video is definitely on another level. The apocalyptic scenes that kicked off the video was so intriguing. I wanted more of that in the actual music video, but it seems like that would be far too complicated to infuse into the rest of the video. But hey, those opening scenes made me stay and brought my attention to the members and song.

This group definitely has some performance skills up their sleeves. There was twist and turns, footwork and syncness to really help the group standout. The energy that come off from their choreography is something many other groups would envy. Even their facial expressions seemed relaxed and didn’t give off any newly debut feels. Definitely a strong impression was left on me by this group.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 10/10
Overall Rating – 9.2/10