Tag: Park Ji Hoon

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The next album to be reviewed on this blog belongs to Park Ji Hoon, who made his comeback with this particular album, HOT&COLD, at the end of October of this year. Leading the album is the title track Serious, and five other new songs (all of which will be reviewed below). HOT&COLD follows the release of My Collection from earlier in the year.

1. Escalator (Intro) – Kicking off the album is Escalator, a short intro track that felt like you are surging to the top. It is quite upbeat and focuses on a R&B sound. Park Ji Hoon repeats the title of the song a few times before throwing in some other lyrics. But it really doesn’t do much to the song. A pretty average start to the album. (6/10)

2. Serious (Title Track) – Click here for Serious’ full review. (6/10)

3. WANT! – WANT! is a pleasant pop track. It is upbeat, has good rhythm and nice melody. Park Ji Hoon also sounds quite good. But aside from that, I do find WANT! just pleasant, and doesn’t really offer anything more than that. I wished the song went above the general pop boundaries. (7/10)

4. CHEESE – CHEESE is a lot more vibrant than WANT! and I find that so much more appealing. It too falls under the pop umbrella, but I like it a lot more than the previous song (for reasons already specified). I like how the upbeatness, energy and Park Ji Hoon’s tone in CHEESE is playful and fun, further adding to that appeal. (8/10)

5. LOVE GLASS – LOVE GLASS enters R&B territory, revisiting the sound from the title track. I liked the kick the beat gave the song, making it even more upbeat and fun than the pop tracks on this album. Park Ji Hoon sounds really good here, which can only mean that the song’s playfulness and colour can only be more likeable and livelier. LOVE GLASS is also quite catchy, as well. (8.5/10)

6. All Yours – The saying ‘save the best til last’ is applicable for this album. All Yours returns the album to a pop sound, but delving more into the balladry side of music as well. I quite like the guitars in the instrumentation, which provided a great deal of texture to the song. His voice is well used here as well, with his huskier tone coming through. I also like how pleasant All Yours comes across, and here I use the term ‘pleasant’ as a positive descriptor to the song (as opposed to how I used it earlier). (10/10)

Overall Album Rating – 7.6/10

Park Ji Hoon’s My Collection album review was supposed to be release last week. But as usual, I was a little behind (can’t remember why I ended up being behind schedule) and decided to hold back the review for this weekend. My Collection features the title track, Gallery, which was released back in August of this year, along with an intro track (which will be factored into the final album rating) and four other new songs. This is Park Ji Hoon’s fourth mini-album to date and follows his first studio album, Message, which was released at the end of last year.

1. Present On The Stage (Intro) – Personally, I am not a fan of this particular intro track. It isn’t terrible, but just not my cup of tea. While it is pleasant and has a bit of a hip-hop influence to it, I wasn’t liking the drawn nature of the vocals and the stagnant feel it provided. If I had to base the album on the first track, things wouldn’t look too bright. Present On The Stage may have made me skip over this album. (6/10)

2. Gallery (Title Track) – Click here for the full review of Gallery. (9/10)

3. Lost (feat. LILBOI) – Once again, Lost isn’t my cup of tea. I am just not entirely drawn to the song, mainly because it didn’t feel like it got anywhere once Lost wrapped up. I do admit that the pop track was light and rather chilled. Park Ji Hoon brings some falsettos to the song, while LILBOI brought some dynamic energy to the song via his rapping. Neither was enough to convince otherwise about the song, however. (7/10)

4. Strawberry – You might think that I would apply similar comments as the preceding comments to Strawberry. And I would say you are partly right. Strawberry felt pretty linear and didn’t really feel like it developed as it progressed along. However, I do like Park Ji Hoon’s vocals in this song more. His hoarse voice was definitely shown off in this song, and it was a nice accompaniment to the soft R&B coffee shop-like instrumentation. His falsetto notes were pretty nice here, drifting in and out when it was added to the song. (7.5/10)

5. I Wonder – After two paced and vocally driven songs, I Wonder refocuses the album with an upbeat track, which to me is familiar territory for Park Ji Hoon. I much prefer this side of the artist. I will admit the song is pretty plain and simple, but I am sure that the performance for I Wonder would have been enjoyable to watch. I liked the slight dynamic nature that is brought into the song via Park JI Hoon’s vocals, and how upbeat the chorus was thanks to the heavier presence of the synths. It added meat and definition to the song, which I quite enjoyed. (8/10)

6. Remember (파도에게) – Ending the album is Remember. Like the intro track, Remember is also quite pleasant. But electronic synths in the song gives it a nice kick that I thoroughly enjoyed and sets it apart from the into track. Remember bundles all my comments above about Park Ji Hoon’s vocals and rapping into this one song. You get the dynamic nature from his rapping, and the hoarse vocals throughout the song. Both give this smooth instrumental nice and pleasant textures, and everything comes together to be quite dreamy. (9/10)

Overall Album Rating – 7.8/10

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Park Ji Hoon’s first studio album, Message, is next up on the album review chopping block. I wanted to review this, as I felt his recent promotions didn’t get much attention. I really liked the title track, GOTCHA, which is accompanied by nine other songs on this album. And I have been reviewing all of this albums since his solo debut last year, so it will be odd to miss out on the chance to review his first studio album. Overall, the album was definitely a good one. For my more detailed thoughts, keep on reading below!

1. Waterfalls (Intro Track) – Usually I don’t review intro tracks. But Waterfalls is an exception as it contains lyrics and vocals. So, I will be including it as part of the album review. Waterfalls channels hip-hop in a subtle manner within its instrumental and repetitively reminds us to ‘Listen to [his] message’. Aside from that, we are also treated to a bit of rapping, which I am sure will get fans/listeners excited especially if that is the way you were introduced to Park Ji Hoon (which was the case for me). (8/10)

2. GOTCHA (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review for GOTCHA. (9/10)

3. Hit It Off (ft. PENOMECO) – Hit It Off brings back the hip-hop sound in a trap style that ends up being a really pleasant song. I do admit that the instrumental does sound very standard and typical in writing, But I thought otherwise, as the song’s paced approach really helped make the song feel more refined and classy. Adding to that is the successful blend of Park Ji Hoon’s vocals and the out-sourced rapping by PENOMECO. The paced nature of the instrumentation really helps draws out the melodies and helped made both the vocals and rapping shine more. (9/10)

4. Rolling – Rolling opts for the R&B genre, with a jazzy touch to really help bring some additional oomph to the song. I wouldn’t mind listening to this song in a classy wine bar, so other place that has that fancy type of vibe. Rolling manages to showcase more of Park Ji Hoon’s vocals really well. Everything was quite melodic and flowy. I really liked that he managed to incorporate some rapping in the song, and how his rapping was well tweaked for this classy style of music. (8/10)

5. 50-50 (ft. EB) – I didn’t register this until today (oh, how reviewing songs makes me put on a more analytical mindset), but I really liked how Park Ji Hoon used a deeper tone in this song. This was offset by EB’s higher pitched rapping tone, which really brought a nice balance to the song. I also really liked the chorus, where they sing together. While I liked the tropical approach in the instrumentation, I do have my hesitations about this aspect as well. Personally, I wished the producers had went with a more dynamic route to give the tropical some more flair. That would have made 50-50 so much better and given it a bit more energy. (8/10)

6. DRESS CODE (ft. punchnello) – DRESS CODE delivers some additional energy to the album, which I felt was needed. It isn’t really dynamic form of energy, but DRESS CODE has this neat upbeat tempo to it which I will take gladly. But unfortunately, that is the only aspect of the song that really grabs my attention. Everything else didn’t fit well with me or was just forgotten. I pretty much forgot about Park Ji Hoon’s vocals once the song ended (though punchnello fared slightly better). In addition to that, I personally do not like the elongated and autotuned ‘DRESS CODE’ in the chorus. The elongation made it feel childish and the autotune just dulled it for me. Similarly, the rest of the song followed suit for me. (5/10)

7. Whisper (귓속말) – Whisper is one of my picks for Park Ji Hoon’s strongest side track on this album. While it did start off a bit slow-ish, the song does pick up during the second verse (which really helped boost its appeal). I enjoyed everything else about this song. His vocals are heavenly and very appealing to listen to. I also really liked the moments where he diverted for deeper vocals, contrasting for his higher pitch approach during other parts. The instrumental was very light, and I enjoyed the use of synthesizer. (9/10)

8. Tomorrow – If you wanted a substantial upbeat piece on this album, then Tomorrow is the track for you. There is a bit of heft to this song, which I felt has been absent from the album thus far. This ‘heft’ is due to the guitars that is strummed away on top of the usual beat. I also like the bit of bass that they manage to infuse into the song during the chorus via the thumping beat. Park Ji Hoon’s vocals were really good here. I like how he goes in and out of his raspy vocals for this song, giving the song some texture. It also felt like multiple people were singing this song, which gives the song a very inclusive feel. (10/10)

9. Scenario (시나리오) (ft. Sweden Laundry) – Scenario is a sweet song that shows us a more loving side to Park Ji Hoon (miles away from his villainous concept for his GOTCHA music video). His vocals work wonderfully in this song, complimenting Sweden Laundry’s sweet vocals. Like his collaboration with EB in track 5, Park Ji Hoon’s use of his deeper tone (in the form of rapping) was actually quite appreciable and gave the song some balance. The layering was also quite nice. The acoustic nature of the instrumental was also quite enjoyable. (8.5/10)

10. MayDay – From the opening instrumentation, MayDay is a playful track. I like this change up, though I think MayDay would have been better suited for a more upbeat album. It is definitely an colourful outlier that feels slightly out of place on this more mature release. That being said, however, MayDay was enjoyable and had a nice ring to it. (7/10)

Overall Album Rating – 8.2/10

And it is now that time of the week for another album review. Fridays and Sundays are dedicated for the more recent album releases. For example, today we will be diving into Park Ji Hoon’s most recent album release, The W. This is the soloist’s 3rd mini-album since his solo debut last year and it also features the title track, Wing. I have been paying close attention to Park Ji Hoon as his title tracks have been quite dynamic in the past and his albums have been good listens. This one is pretty much the same, so let’s see how it sounds.

1. On The Rise – Usually, I do not review the introductory tracks as there are instrumental-based. Sometimes I do comment on them if they do have a uniqueness to them, but I don’t include them in the rating. But any introductory track that consist vocals will contribute to the rating. And On The Rise falls into the latter category. The song features a similar instrumental as the title track (see the review below), just everything is at a very lower tone and slower pace. Park Ji Hoon also uses his deep voice in this song, which reflects well with the instrumental. The deeper tone does give the song a heaviness, but as it is quite short, it comes off as airy, which is ideal for an opener. The catchy ‘Doom Doom Doom‘ from the title track is featured in this track, but the rest of the lyrics are different. (8/10)

2. Wing (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review for Wing. (7.5/10)

3. Frequency (주파수) – The start to Frequency was quite promising when I first heard for the first time. Unfortunately, the song just didn’t go in the direction I had wanted with that start. I am a little disappointed about this, but the direction it did end up going in was actually quite good. The song opted for a sleek R&B instrumental, which incorporated a really cool piano and squeaky synth combo instrumental break during the bridge that gave the song unexpected life. Otherwise, I would have said that the song went with a slow burning form of R&B. I also did like the rest of the instrumental, when the piano would peek through and there were some funky synths presents to further add some appealing details to the background. Park Ji Hoon actually sounds pretty good here and I liked when he switches to a rap-speaking delivery for a brief moment. Usually, I want more. But I feel like the song does justice with his vocals, which I felt more drawn to. (9/10)

4. Driving – Another great start to a song on this album. This time around, I didn’t have much expectations for it. So Driving ran its course and at the end, I am naturally reaching for the replay button. The song starts with a slow pop type of vibe. It was interesting to note that they returned to this slow pop vibe throughout the track and I liked that, as if they were reminding us of the song’s roots. But what I really liked about the song the most was the fast tempo chorus. In terms of the tempo and melodies, it is quite different to the how the song started and I liked that contrast. The bass helped it become dynamic and energetic. The song would be perfect for when you are driving with the windows down on a nice bright sunny day. Park Ji Hoon’s vocal was very nice. The rapping was good, but I felt that the producers could have taken that sequence up a notch by giving it some more texture in the instrumental. (9/10)

5. Paradise – Paradise combines and mashes different styles, all falling under the realm of EDM. But I think it fits under the house genre, overall. The song seems to play around with texture for a bit. Nothing crazy or concerning, actually relatively tame when you think about it. It starts off with a relatively smooth instrumental and features a very straight forward melody, which made it appeal to those who may want something ‘simple’. The chorus changes up with a more complicated and textural deep house style. At first, the combination of the two seems to not go hand-in-hand, but it slowly grows on you. Unlike the title track, we are eased into the change for a brief few seconds. And this change was minute and didn’t cut the flow of the song, which was an issue in the title track. I liked his husky vocals in this song, which added more texture of the song. (8/10)

5. Let’s Love – It isn’t Summer until you hear some tropical beats in a song. As I have noted in past reviews, it is still in its refreshing stage due to the limited number of tropical 2020 tracks. I do note that the number of these tracks is slowly growing and maybe a few more might remind me of how tiring the genre really is. While that is the current situation for tropical influenced numbers overall, I just don’t hear anything that special with this track to warrant much discussion, apart from the use of piano-like synth in the instrumental. And for that, I find it rather typical sounding. Even Park Ji Hoon’s vocals came off in that manner and probably earns the title for the most skipable track on the album. (7/10)

Overall Album Rating – 8.1/10

Park Ji Hoon’s performance for L.O.V.E is nominated for Best Solo Choregraphy in this year’s KPOPREVIEWED Awards. Support Park Ji Hoon and your other favourite artists by clicking here to vote.

Between now and the end of the year, there will be three more album reviews (inclusive of this one). The first of the final three 2019 albums to be reviewed this year is Park Ji Hoon’s 360. His title track also shares the same name as the album. This is strong album from the solo artist, further highlighting his potential in the industry. Former co-member of Wanna One, Kim Jae Hwan, also participated in the album by co-writing the lyrics of the final track, Strange. To see what I thought of it, keep on reading!

1. I AM (Introductory Track) – Usually, I do not review the introductory track as it tends to be just an instrumental piece of some kind. However, if it contains vocals, I will include it in the review. Based on these criteria, you can tell by now that I AM contains Park Ji Hoon’s vocals. The track kicks off with a soft piano start, before transforming into a full-fledged EDM dance track. I really like his vocals in this song, especially paired with the background vocals and also the way he emphasised the English during the ‘chorus’ of the intro track. I also thought this was a nice and bright lead into the title track, 360. (8.5/10)

2. 360 (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review for 360. (9/10)

3. Whistle – Whistle takes a brighter approach, reminding the listener of Summer. It is super energetic and the instrumental even contains some subtle island sounds, hence why is suits the hotter months of the year. Park Ji Hoon does a really good job with his vocal work. His rapping, on the other hand, felt a tad too heavy and serious for the upbeat sound. I really liked the chorus of the song, with the ‘Whistle, Whistle now, Oh Oh Oh…’ keyed into my memory bank. I also like the fancy piano bridge we got. But it did feel a little ill-fitting for such a vibrant and energetic sound. But apart from that, it is a good track. (8/10)

4. Hurricane – When I saw a track titled Hurricane, I expected something a little more erratic than a smooth sailing track that Hurricane ended up being like. It isn’t a bad track, but I wish that Park Ji Hoon’s production team would be a little more ambitious with his sound. And besides, I feel like Park Ji Hoon would suit an edgy song. The song included some flute work, which did sound nice. His vocals did feel a little tight and I think it would have been a little nicer to hear some space in his vocals during some parts, especially paired with an easygoing and light-ish sound. I did like the chorus and the odd ad-lib that Park Ji Hoon throws in the background. (8/10)

5. Casiopea (닻별) – It seems like my prayers that I mentioned in the previous song’s review are answered. Casiopea is distinctively different to his previous tracks, throwing a whole heap of that requested edge. It has sharp impact to its sound through its snare drum-like instrumentation. I also really liked how they kept on pushing the song by adding to the instrumental. It helped it develop the song and really gave it a dynamic touch. His voice helped inject a bunch of textures throughout the song, which I thought was really cool. His rapping is also quite unique, very unlike his other tracks. (9/10)

6. Still Love U – The last two tracks on the album are the softer tracks on the whole album. Still Love U still has the upbeat sound to it and I can imagine a nice choreography routine paired to it. I thought the beat was cool and consistent, but the instrumental felt somewhat bland. His focus on vocals really showed in this song. As a rapper, there is a bit of a husky and raspy tone in this song, which really helped the appeal of the track. Given the lyrics, it is a sweet song which I am sure would appeal to fans as well. Overall, not bad. (7.5/10)

7. Strange (이상해) – The final song on the album is Strange. It is an R&B track with sweet lyrics, ending the album on a very positive note. Interestingly, the song doesn’t really get into the ‘strange’ territory. There is the odd quirk with a sudden deep autotune twist at the mid-point of the song and few other smaller sections throughout the song. Park Ji Hoon’s shows off several different vocal technique in this track that showcases his capabilities. But whether he nails it, I am not too sure. I really like the chanting part of the song, which was my favourite bit. (7.5/10)

Overall Album Rating – 8.2/10

Things are starting to get exciting for the former members of Wanna One. We are currently in the midst of solo debuts from members of the project group (including Yoon Ji Sung, Minhyun and Ha Sung Woon, with Bae Jin Young debuting next week). We also have NU’EST returning and AB6IX debuting shortly. Today, we are here to look at another Wanna One member’s release, Park Ji Hoon’s solo mini-album, O’Clock, which I think is a very promising release. Congratulations to Park Ji Hoon on his Music Bank win a few weeks back, as well. So, let’s definitely start with this closer look at his album.

1..The Beginning Of... (Intro Track) – Park Ji Hoon starts off the album with the song that ends his L.O.V.E music video. Despite knowing that he was a rapper during his time as part of Wanna One, I did not expect his voice to be this raspy. That isn’t a bad thing, however, as it gives a nice texture to the opening track. I also like the high pitch moaning at the start of the song (and throughout the song). It gives a unique touch which I quite like. The line ‘The Beginning of New Love’ that Park Ji Hoon sings is a little awkward (I didn’t know that he was singing in English until I saw the lyrics) but other than that, it was a nice opener (and music video end-er). (9/10)

2. Us – Us is an R&B track that places a lot of focus on the solo artist’s vocals. I personally do not mind the song but felt it was a weak track. While the song does showcase his voice really well, I couldn’t help think that the instrumental was a little too distant and light during the verses. Usually, I like to think that the instrumental support the vocals in a variety of ways. But in this case, the verses felt bare and lacked a supportive background. For the choruses, this feeling wasn’t there, and it felt like a standard song, which was nice in comparison to the verses. I also felt that Us would benefit from a rap sequence of some kind. I think that could have given a boost to the song and filled up this void that I felt once the song ended. (7/10)

3. L.O.V.E (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review for L.O.V.E. (9/10)

4. Would You… – Out of all the tracks on the song, Would You was the most colourful. So far (and the few tracks that follow) were quite moody, so it is nice to have a track that has really vibrant and bright colours. The instrumental has this feel-good feel to which and it allowed for Park Ji Hoon’s vocals to sound cheerful for once. We also got some rapping in the track, which I think suits the upbeat nature of the track. The chorus also featured a nice melody and I found it to be quite catchy. I also think the track suits the image that I know of Park Ji Hoon, which has always been youthful since his Wanna One days. (8/10)

5. Dawn Moon (새벽달) – I thought the screech-like synths and Park Ji Hoon’s whispering start was rather cool and opens up this track to be quite promising. And he delivers in this aspect. The verses were standard once again but featured a nice build up to a chorus made up of half vocals and half instrumental. I find this particular order to be somewhat refreshing, I also found the chorus to be quite impactful despite it not being as colourful as other EDM based choruses with hard drops. The drop the song went with felt dynamic upon reflection and really made the song progress along. My favourite part of the song has to be the climax in the bridge. The song needed a peak and I think this was appropriately done in this track. (8/10)

6. Young 20 – Young 20 is produced by fellow Wanna One member Lee Dae Hwi (who will be debuting in his own group alongside Park Woo Jin very soon!). It is also another vibrant song but it is no way near as colourful as Would You….I really like the layering of vocals and the harmonies that Park Ji Hoon (and the backing vocals) contribute towards. While I did like the vocals a lot, the rapping was equally as good. It gave the song a punch. I could imagine this track with really fun dance choreography, thanks to the instrumental. Altogether, it is very dynamic, which I think allows it to stand out as a promising contender to the title track. And with this track, I am now looking forward to future Park Ji Hoon and Lee Dae Hwi future releases! (9/10)

Overall Album Review – 8.3/10