Stray Kids - Voices
Stray Kids are back with their second mini album titled I am WHO. While their first album, I am NOT, showcased their intense energy, Stray Kids say this follow-up album expresses their sincere emotions and struggles, questioning who you are and how you can find who you are.
I don’t want to be another person who compares yet another group to mega-star group BTS, but with the touting of self-production as a key ingredient in the success of rising groups, Stray Kids is arguably even more self-reliant than BTS in the production of their music. While BTS’s main contributing members RM and SUGA are big enough to collaborate with any international producer they want, it’s very clear with Stray Kids that it’s just their subunit 3RACHA. Look up the credits to both their albums and Mixtapes and it’s mostly leader Chan, Changbin, and Han (Jisung) doing the heavy lifting with support from the rest of the members.
With that being said, “Voices" is definitely one of my favorite tracks on the new album. To think it almost didn’t make the album makes me wish even more that they saved it to be a title track for another album or mixtape (they say they dragged and dropped the audio file into the trash bin multiple times!). It’s a hybrid of emo-kpop with their usual edgy Stray flair. But it’s their choreography, vocal performance, and emotional delivery that really elevates the song. Anyone who loved their pre-debut single “Hellevator” will love “Voices,” and comparing the two in such a short amount of time just shows their sheer growth and development so far as producers, vocalists, and performers.
- Julie
(G)I-DLE - HANN (Alone)(한(一))
Following the success of their debut album, monster rookie group (G)I-DLE, returns with their second single, “HANN (Alone).” Self-produced by leader and rapper Soyeon, the dance-pop track takes the group into a more daring, haunting territory. Relying on a catchy whistle melody somewhere between a western movie and a horror story, the members lull and croon their goodbyes after a biting betrayal.
In "Hann," they’re really showcasing what each individual member contributes to the group. We get some verses (and a dance solo!) for Shuhua, whose only line from their first single was the “latata latata.” I don’t know why I was so surprised that her voice has such a muted, breathy quality that works so perfectly with Minnie’s higher airiness. I also didn’t realize that I needed Yuqi’s low-key melodic rap. Her lower register is so crucial to the balance of (G)I-DLE’s full vocal range, and makes an amazing counterpart to Soyeon’s rhythm. Miyeon seems to have a solid and clear voice, while Soojin offers a much more sultry range - the contrast is very much like the music video which transitions between the members in all black attire and bright, flowy florals.
Released only 4 days ago, the MV has racked up about 7 million views and counting. They just finished a quick stop in New York City to perform both on the stage and on the streets, and they’re preparing for the KBS Music Bank in Berlin world tour and KCON Thailand in September. (G)I-DLE is definitely on everyone’s radar, and I’m excited to watch their rising popularity.
-Julie
Super Junior-D&E - Bout You
For the first time in three years, Super Junior D & E have released new Korean music. Due to their military enlistment, Donghae and Eunhyuk put their music careers on hold, both as a sub-unit and as a part of Super Junior. Now that they’ve completed their mandatory service, the two members have returned in full force, releasing music as part of Super Junior and as D&E. As D&E, they've put out one Japanese song a month, from November 2017 (only 4 months after being discharged) until May 2018. They then released a full length Japanese album in August 2018 and subsequently embarked on a Japanese concert tour. They’ve also appeared on various shows, such as Why Not The Dancer, performed at KCON NY and with Super Junior, created their own variety show called SuperTV, already on its 2nd season. Needless to say, they’ve been busy. ‘Bout You’ is the title track to the mini album of the same name. Released on August 16th, the sub-unit traveled back to South Korea, taking a break ("break") amidst their Japanese concert tour, to promote this album. The title track was co-written by Eunhyuk and Donghae and co-produced by Donghae and frequent collaborator J-Dub. It is set against a upbeat hip hop melody with some synth altered vocals (try to get that ‘wow wow wow wow’ out of your head) and modulated instrumentals.
The MV was filmed in NYC, right after Super Junior's appearance at KCON, and is a huge explosion of color, right down to Eunhyuk's hair. The music has a playful beachy feel to it and really fun choreography to match. With variations of every trendy dance you can think of, the choreography is clean and simple, something that fans could happily follow along with.
While the two members stated (jokingly or otherwise, it’s hard to tell with them) that SM Entertainment wasn’t a fan of this song as it didn’t fit with the company’s sound, they decided to promote it anyways. It's a true testament to the nature of the group - both Super Junior and D&E - they tend to make their own way and not give a hoot about what anyone says.
- Kerry