album: we made (by i-dle)
WE MADE by I-DLE ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧ ✧
overall: the first thing i'm going to do is defend soyeons right to publish feminism 101 music into a culture that gets women attacked over the pinching emoji. i'm a disgustingly well-established nevvie so of course i loved this, but it's also just fun. i wish we could get a full concept album out of them but as things are i'm still happy to sail wherever soyeon steers us. unfortunately this ep could be better balanced, and i do feel the tension between crow and morning as i-dle's sound evolves.
MONO ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧ ✧
yes: lyricism (used well, communicate clearly what i can tell she intended the point to be), likeability (i honestly do think it's a fun song + the fanchants are cute), musicality (i like soyeon's new producer tag and i like skaiwater's part, really solid thing-that-it-is). no: on brand (lyrically yes, musically this is kind of nothing), earworm (have never hummed it once).
GIMME DAT LOVE ✦ ✦ ✧ ✧ ✧
yes: earworm (i can't even blame the la la la chorus it's 100% miyeon's slow drip like butter), musicality (it is at least a solid entry in this genre). no: lyricism (i mean...), on brand (listen, i loved this song when tyla brought it out. i'm less fond of it from the group that made tomboy), likability (kills me to say this but because it's such obvious theft it's all i can think about).
MORNING ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧
yes: likability (i need you to understand that i'm fighting not to put it on right now), earworm (i NEED you to understand that i'm f), on brand (this feels like a really nice merger of the queencard era into the bass of their old work), musicality (whoever their band is needs several raises). no: lyricism (in its defense it doesn't need to be poetically sound, but i am tired of "i hate insta" being the bulk of the thesis with nothing new to follow it up).
CROW ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦
yes: likability (would have this star for siren minnie returning if nothing else), on brand (and i'm optimistic that dropping it now is a sign that they're coming back to this era), earworm (when it's done well the dissonance on the chorus is like nothing else), lyricism (i do think you can tell this was written around tomboy era because it's so interestingly bitter), musicality (this is where it almost lost a point. i also don't want to be writing this but while it's clear who isn't used to rapping they never manage to ruin the flow).
LOVE IS PAIN ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧ ✧
yes: likeability (the second i heard it i was like oh. oh! okay), musicality (i think being able to strip down to basics and still make a beautiful song is a strength a lot of groups lack right now), lyricism (i just want to say i'm so proud of yuqi for this because it's such a gorgeous chorus). no: on brand (like, obviously, it's a ballad even if it's a really good ballad), ear worm (the only song on this album i had to open up and listen to to review)