Tag: V8 (SEVENTEEN)

SEVENTEEN is at the point in their careers where some members need to enlist in the military. So the number of members currently actively promoting is dwindling, making it hard to promote as a group. Thus, SEVENTEEN have been focusing on unit activities more recently. SEVENTEEN have successfully launched BSS (which is now inactive, given HOSHI has enlisted), JxW (made up of JEONGHAN and WONWOO, also currently inactive), HxW (HOSHI and WOOZI, also inactive), CxM (S.COUPS and MINGYU) and DxS (DK and SEUNGKWAN). Yesterday, SEVENTEEN debuted their latest unit, V8 (VERNON and THE8), with the single singasong and their eponymous mini-album, V8.

singasong delves into electronic and hyperpop. I thought it was a pretty decent track and enjoyed it on my first listen yesterday. singasong had a catchy and very hummable hook and a fun video game vibe from its background to remember it by. I also feel like there was enough of a club beat to give singasong some much-appreciated oomph. But the new song isn’t perfect – singasong is repetitive, which places it in a neutral state of flow. I also wish VERNON and THE8’s vocals were not as low-key as they were. It was an interesting choice, and I do realise that they played to their strengths by keeping themselves low-key and processing their vocals the way they have. But the song needed some variety, and the pair are overpowered by the background many times throughout the song. But overall, I think the stronger aspects of singasong help overcome the weaker aspects, which is why I enjoyed the song nonetheless.

The music video sees VERNON and THE8 being carefree and hanging out with their peers and each other. This reflects well with the lyrics, which are about ‘charging forward without hesitation, embodying the spirit of youth breaking free from rules and limitations’. From the start, we see the pair break away from the idea of Korean music at that club and the karaoke set. Things get wild and unexpected from there, with the pair embracing it all to represent the lyrics visually.

Shuffling is back! Personally, to me, this dance style feels rather dated, given that it was big whilst I was growing up. But certain trends will re-emerge (for better or worse – shuffling has already made a few comebacks since then), and I can see V8 bringing it back again by simply promoting this routine. Their movements across the stage, whilst shuffling, made the routine look very cool.

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