With Kai serving his obligatory army enlistment, it’s been simply over two years since I’ve gotten to write down about one in all his solo singles. However now that he’s again, he’s wasted no time entering into the studio. A brand new mini album is on the way in which with pre-release Grownup Swim tiding us over within the meantime.
This isn’t honest to Kai in any respect, however I usually crave one thing completely different from his solo music. The world is so brief on a sure sort of virtuosic male popstar that dotted pop music’s previous. I’m pondering Michael Jackson, Prince, George Michael, Usher — or in Okay-pop phrases, Taemin. It’s way more widespread for these acts to embrace a moodier, vibier sound that feels intentionally modest. To me, this merely belies their expertise. Such is the case with Kai and Grownup Swim. The track appears aimed for optimum virality, hinging on a spoken-word, catchphrase hook that actually anybody repeat. That’s the factor, although. I need popstars to ship work that I can’t replicate. That’s the enjoyable in being a fan!
Even by these requirements, Grownup Slim is sort of slight. Past its mumbled hook, the monitor gives a muted verse over percussion that’s feeling increasingly more generic inside SM Leisure’s current output. The melodies are so-so, killing time however by no means providing fascinating turns or prospers. Grownup Swim begins to choose up towards its finale, however even right here the track depends on clipped, repetitive hooks that don’t elicit a lot of something. In one other world, this model might be repurposed into one thing hypnotic and compelling. However for as thrilling a performer as Kai is, Grownup Swim is doing little or no for me. Perhaps SM ought to have spent his enlistment time crafting the most important, finest comeback track they may discover.
| Hooks | 6 |
| Manufacturing | 7 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7 |
Grade: C-
