this book has turned into mostly music reviews but i'm not mad about it :P
song: young, dumb, stupid (nmixx)
rating: 5/10
comments: wow, they actually got a normal-ish song! the girls are so talented and i'm always disappointed with how jyp wastes it on terribly produced songs. this one's definitely better than their debut and first comeback but it's not amazing either. the vocals are spectacular as always and the dance/styling/mv was cute. the production is okay but the composition is questionable. the pre-chorus is pretty good and the verses are okay, but the nursery rhyme throws off the entire song. i won't be listening to it or adding it to my playlist, i only gave it so many points because of the girls' talent and vocals.
song: love me like this (nmixx)
rating: 5.5/10
comments: and a normal title track, too?? although i didn't really like this comeback, it was leaps and bounds better than anything else they've put out, and it's definitely a step in the right direction for them as a group. the verses were enjoyable, as was the instrumental. the chorus is just horrible, though. it was extremely repetitive and boring, and it rhythmically didn't make much sense. it would've made more sense if they had one less "love me like this, love me like that" before they got to the end of the chorus where they say (it's not really singing) "and i'll love you right back". the vocals were amazing of course, but i would only listen to the song once every couple of months, if that.
song: kitsch (ive)
rating: 9/10
comments: this is an amazing pre-release single! i'm super excited for the album!! the prechorus is by far the best part of the song, the background vocals feel so whimsical. the switch to the strong, engaging chorus feels natural, and the rest of the production is top-tier. the bridge and verses are mediocre, but the rest of the song makes up for it. the styling and dance look great from what i've seen so far, too. there's not much singing, but the rappers really shine and i'm glad they're getting the attention they deserve. also my bias is rei and she really ate that chorus part up and left no crumbs (her pink hair is also super slay), this is definitely her era. i'm disappointed that liz has literally only one line, although it's not a vocal-heavy song, the distribution could've been a lot better. i'm hoping she'll get a lot of screen time and lines for the title track!
song: ay-yo (nct 127)
rating: 9/10
comments: okay, i know this came out a while ago, but i saw all the hate it got and i just needed to say something about it. i don't stan nct 127 or any nct group, but i listen casually to some title tracks, mostly nct dream and nct 127. ay-yo is the best title track i've heard from any nct group. yes, the verses are absolute garbage (why i had to take one point off) but the chorus is absolutely amazing and the instrumental-- i can't even tell you. the instrumental is not only the best nct instrumental but one of the best instrumentals i've ever heard (and i've heard a lot). i want to write a paper about it for my music theory class, it's just that good. especially after the pile of shit that was 2 baddies (it was somehow six times worse than sticker??), i thought everyone would eat this up, but i guess i was wrong. i'll definitely be streaming it, though.
