Wooooow I did not expect this to take so long. I'm extremely sorry for being so slow on this; college work has been a bitch recently and I've had barely any free time. But now... I finish for Christmas break next week. And I've got a lot of post ideas. 😉
[This is a two part review - part 1 can be found here!]
Anyways, continuing on with the comeback reviews:
GIRLS' GENERATION OH!GG (소녀시대 OH!GG) - LIL' TOUCH (몰랐니)
Talk about a pleasant surprise. And from Girls' Generation, no less!
I had little to no expectations going into this, not gonna lie. I was still kinda heartbroken about Tiffany, Seohyun and Sooyoung, since GG were the group I got into K-Pop with. So when Oh!GG became a thing, I was... conflicted. But oH MAN I'M SO HAPPY WITH WHAT WE GOT.
Firstly, I feel inclined to mention the subunit name. "Oh!GG"? Any and all nods to "Oh!" are super fucking okay with me. That was the first proper K-Pop song I heard, and I still love it. 💖
But "Lil' Touch" could not be any farther from a cutesy song like "Oh!" - it's got this pulsing, SUPER strong beat behind it that keeps the song thundering forward. And that's just the tip of the iceberg - there's a phenomenal distribution of lines between every member; Sunny is finally being allowed to sing with her real voice again; the verses have a nice fast tempo to the lyrics that's super addictive; the choruses are catchy and powerful, yet boppy and funky at the same time... this is three and a half minutes of snappy Girls' Generation goodness.
These girls don't even have to try and show off any more - they're so well-versed at what they do by this point that they just instantly come across as goddesses. And with the reputation GG have? They damn well deserve to.
Oh, but that's just the song. I didn't even mention the dance. And OOF. BIG FUCKING OOF. I am so damn pissed we don't have any official videos or fancams of this, because from what I can see in the video, this👏 dance👏 fucking👏 slaps👏. It's sharp, fast, and precise, yet the girls make it look effortless! I reeeeeeeally hope they perform this at an SMTOWN concert so we can see the full thing. I need that shit in my life.
And then there's the lyrics... jeez, this review has gone on for a while. But don't worry, I'll keep it short and give you a little three-word summary:
And then there's the lyrics... jeez, this review has gone on for a while. But don't worry, I'll keep it short and give you a little three-word summary:
Big dick energy.
YEAH. I'M DEAD SERIOUS WITH THIS.
Didn't you know your heart already wants me?
Hurry to me quickly, la la la la la
Quickly, la la la la la
There's no seducing to be done here. She just walks in, goes, "yeah, you already want me", and BOOM she's got a boyfriend. THIS IS THE TRUE POWER OF A GROUP OF QUEENS Y'ALL.
So yeah, this song managed to blow past my low expectations. It's really damn solid, and I'd be more than alright with this subunit making a return in the future!
SOYU (소유), SIK-K (식케이) - ALL NIGHT (까만밤)
(Yes, I'm spelling her name S-O-Y-U. The extra O is unnecessary. Fight me. (ง'̀-'́)ง)
Ah, Soyu. She was always my bias in SISTAR. The day I found out she was going solo I was really happy! ...then I forgot the damn song came out and never listened to it. Oops. But I made a special effort to listen to "All Night" to make up for it - and I am forever glad that I did.
The concept itself suits Soyu perfectly, since she's always had this graceful, slightly airy tone to her voice - and here, she really gets her chance to be sultry in a very likable, mysterious way. That's helped by a damn solid guest verse from Sik-K - I've never listened to him before this, but I'll definitely be listening to him in the future. His voice isn't grating or annoying, it's actually quite nice (it suits the autotune quite well actually, and trust me when I say I mean that as a compliment). And his rap isn't half bad, either! He's got a good sense of flow that matches the beat of the song itself. Since rap sections can sometimes feel out of place in K-Pop, that was a nice surprise!
This song's lingering sense of mystery and intrigue carries over into the lyrics, which are honestly beautiful. They're so... descriptive, and full of very promiscuous curiosity. I love them!
In this strange tension that wraps around us
The heart-fluttering feelings grow thicker
With no room to breathe, it captivates me
So yeah, the song and lyrics are great. But does that apply to the dance too?
Umm. Yeah. It does.
It's by no means outstanding or anything like that, but it's really graceful in an intense kinda way. It's got the right sort of vibe to it to match a song like this. Plus, major bonus points to Soyu for performing this routine barefoot - that is by no means easy, and she looks great doing it too! She seems really confident to me, so I'm glad to see she's enjoying herself. 😊 (I have no idea why the rap part was cut in half though...)
Overall, this was a huge surprise that ended up blowing me away! (This song will be making a reappearance soon on this blog because I like it so much... it's nothing too big, but you'll see what I mean eventually. 😉) I really, really hope Soyu continues with this concept, because it suits her super well. Not to mention, it means we can (hopefully) keep getting songs as good as this!
WEKI MEKI (위키미키) - CRUSH
For anyone that reads the blog, you might know that I listed Weki Meki's "La La La" as one of my favourite dances of this year. So I had somewhat high expectations going into "Crush". That begs the question - did it live up to the hype for me?
...eh? Kinda? Let me explain.
"La La La" was, by no means, an outstanding song on its own - it relied on its other components (like the dance) to make it great. But "Crush" is one of those songs that demands your attention the minute you start listening. And that's because Weki Meki have returned to the mixing of styles that they tried with "I don't like your girlfriend".
And... it works a bit better here, honestly. It's something Weki Meki are good at. I LOVE the synth segments in the choruses - they are what make this song so damn addictive and catchy for me. But the rockier guitars in the prechoruses make it sound a bit like a misguided Dreamcatcher song. And that's not to mention that infernal high-pitched squeal in the verses. Seriously, who thought that was a good idea?? The trap section in the middle works alright though. It's not overpowering, it just does its job and leaves again. Which I'm fine with.
The lyrics though... they're a disappointment, if you ask me. The girls themselves take a much more lovey-dovey approach, as you'd expect with a song called "Crush". But I got the impression from the teasers that this was going to be a confident, in-your-face song... and the lyrics certainly don't have that. The girls are very... cutesy, and the lyrics kinda imply they're being a bit of a pushover because they're so in love with this guy.
Without even knowing, my heart started to pound
How is it like that every time I see you?
I’ve fallen into this puppy love
Yeah, it's not a theme for the entirety of the lyrics - there are some confident sections which I like - but overall, they're very... tsundere in a way. It really clashes with the confident image the girls are going for. So... since I'm not the biggest fan of cutesy lyrics and concepts, these lyrics really don't do anything for me. Sorry. 😐
But you know what does do something for me? THE DANCE.
God fucking dammit whO IS THE CHOREOGRAPHER FOR THESE GIRLS. I WANT TO MARRY THEM.
These girls are consistently at the top of their game when it comes to dance, and "Crush" does nothing to stop that train from rolling. I initially saw a bad showcase fancam of this and thought it was underwhelming, but now that the official practice video is out, I'm so glad to say I was wrong. It's kinda similar to "La Vie En Rose" in that the opening moves IMMEDIATELY snatch your attention, and they get you focused in on what the girls are doing. It's powerful and commanding. Y e s.
Weki Meki are always fantastic at nailing all the little details in their choreographies, and they're no different here - they're fantastic dancers, every single one of them. They're in perfect sync, they don't ease up on momentum even in the song's slower parts, and their performance is thunderingly brilliant from start to finish. These girls are one of the best girl groups for choreography in K-Pop right now, if you ask me. It doesn't leave me speechless like "La La La"'s choreo did, but it's a pretty fucking fantastic routine nonetheless.
All in all, while I do wish the lyrics matched the powerful dance and song, "Crush" is... alright. It's not amazing, it's not awful, it's just... yeah. It's just alright. Good, even. I don't know how long it'll stick around in my memory, but it's a fun song with some great aspects to it.
SUNMI (선미) - SIREN (사이렌)
Sunmi has undeniably been a hot topic since she rejigged her solo career. After "Gashina"'s INSANE success last year, she came back this year with two songs - "Heroine" and "Siren". And... not gonna lie, I adored "Heroine" from start to finish. It was beautiful. So does "Siren" follow up on that for me?
...not really, unfortunately. It's probably my least favourite solo song Sunmi's had - and I'm including "24 Hours" and "Full Moon" in that too. 😕
Don't get me wrong, it's by no means a bad song. It's just... not got the same power to it that we've seen Sunmi display in the past. It doesn't do anything interesting for me. It's got an 80s style synthwave vibe to it in parts, which I admittedly really like; it's very retro and charming. Yet, at the same time, it feels like Sunmi is just retreading old territory here. She's really damn good at confident breakup songs, but that was why I liked "Heroine" so much - it deviated from the norm she had established with "Gashina". This... just goes back to that style. It's a watered-down, more synth-based "Gashina" with a lot less impact and force. Oh, and an out-of-place trap section to boot.
Lyrically, this song isn't all that special either. It's just the same, flippant kiss-off we've seen in countless break-up songs before. And again, I don't mean to compare the two so frequently, but... Sunmi did this image better in "Gashina".
You know that I'll hurt you
The beautiful me of your fantasies doesn't exist
(Can't you see that, boy?)
Continuing the trend of being underwhelming, "Siren"'s dance is just that - it's a bit of a let down.
I mean yeah, there are some good sections - the main point dance (pun not intended) in the choruses is pretty cool. But... there's nothing really interesting about it. It's a bit weird, honestly. The props go underused, the positions are cool initially, but turn out to be nothing too special, some of the movements feel like they just don't fit to me... considering how good of a performer Sunmi is, this had me wanting more. And not really in a good way.
But... yeah. This was a disappointment for me. Maybe it's because Teddy didn't produce it this time around? I don't know. But either way, it doesn't negate how fantastic Sunmi is as an artist, and I have no doubt she'll come back in the future and blow me away all over again.
So that's all the songs I had planned to cover for the main body of the review... but I figured I'd throw in a bit of a bonus. Because MY COLLABORATION DREAMS HAVE COME TRUE Y'ALL.
DUA LIPA & BLACKPINK (블랙핑크) - KISS AND MAKE UP [BONUS]
Let me give a bit of context here.
I don't listen to a lot of mainstream artists, since, y'know, K-Pop is a thing in my life. But for those that I DO listen to, I stan them with the entirety of my being and I would actually die for them here and now. Enter Dua Lipa - I remember hearing "Hotter Than Hell" on the radio two years ago, falling in love, and looking her up when I got home. And she's never, EVER disappointed me. She is a fucking phenomenal performer, with a really nice vocal timbre to match.
(She's also,,,, rEALLY DAMN GORGEOUS. Like, she's one of my ultimate frickin crushes. HER BOYFRIEND IS SO DAMN LUCKY.)
And, obviously, I'm a huge BLINK. So when Dua teased us by saying this on Twitter (note the use of the black and pink hearts, as well as five angels - 4 BLACKPINK members plus Dua is 5)...
...I didn't believe it. I didn't want to believe it, because I knew that if it wasn't true then I would be absolutely gutted.
But then I remembered that Dua met Lisa and Jennie after her Seoul concert.
Then I started to think maybe this could actually happen.
...nahhhh. No way, right?
BUT THEN IT HAPPENED.
And I then proceeded to lose my shit and flip every table in my vicinity. No joke, I actually cried listening to the song for the first time. When Rosé's adlibs overlapped with Dua's lines leading up to the first chorus, it kinda hit me all at once that this was actually happening.
But what about the song itself? Is it any good? ...well, I'm immediately inclined to say yes because I'm biased, but I actually really do like it!
Dua's always had a talent for writing lyrics, since she writes a lot of her own songs (or at least assists with the writing). And "Kiss and Make Up" is about the reunion after a breakup, yes, but the lyrics at least show why that reunion is happening - she's scared. The only reason she's getting back together with this guy is because she admits their relationship is incredibly important to her. It's showing a bit of vulnerability, and not in a grating way. It's done effectively, and it's done right.
And I'm tired of talking
I feel myself saying the same old things
But this love's important
Don't wanna lose, don't wanna lose you this way
Speaking of that last chorus, "Kiss and Make Up" actually has a good sense of momentum behind it! The percussion slowly builds upon itself as the song goes on, and makes for quite a nice listen. It's got the power needed to make an impact, for sure - and considering who the artists behind the microphone are, that's no big surprise.
On a different note though, I did see a lot of people mention when the song came out that the autotune sounds a bit funny in places? But if I'm being honest, it's never really bothered me; the only times where I find it to be a problem are with Jennie. Her "how about we leave this party" and "tired of hearing sorry" sound real weird. But that's not her fault, that's the producer's - other than that, it's fine! Rosé actually sounds gorgeous. This is probably my favourite vocal performance of hers to date.
I don't quite know how to end my little rant on this song, since... I never thought I'd get to talk about it. 😌 But I will say this:
PLEASE LET US GET A DAMN MUSIC VIDEO.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
•••••
IT'S DONE. FINALLY. IT'S FINISHED.
Again, sorry this took so long - I hope the length makes up for it! I've got a lot of content planned before the year's out though - I've got two album reviews and some year-end lists to do! Hopefully they'll be up soon - I plan on uploading my year-end lists on New Year's Eve, as is fitting. The album reviews... well, the first one will be going up soon. We'll see about the second one. 😉
ALL SOURCES FOR THE ENGLISH LYRICS I USED IN THIS REVIEW:
