For the primary time in years, I listened to Teen High’s first full album No.1 yesterday. Other than some basic singles, the album itself is simply okay, nevertheless it opens with a hilariously overblown intro that made me miss some 2013-era Ok-pop’s inherent silliness. Teen High are one of some second-gen teams who nonetheless pop up with new music occasionally, however these songs often exist within the shadow of their best hits.
I’m certain there are logistical points at play, however I can’t perceive why beloved older-gen teams can’t return with their common collaborators in tow. Teen High are so synonymous with Courageous Brothers that it’s nearly unusual to listen to them engaged on a track by anybody else. New single Cherry Pie feels as if it might have been executed by any boy group, which isn’t the impression you need from a long-awaited reunion monitor. The track plods alongside on a reasonably rote beat that occupies that unusual middle-ground between dance banger and vibey midtempo. As such, it finally ends up feeling fairly colorless.
To Teen High’s credit score, their efficiency simply competes with any of right this moment’s hitmakers. They’ll nonetheless churn out a refined Ok-pop product and Cherry Pie doesn’t make any actual missteps. The issue is that each aspect — from melody to manufacturing — is so plug-and-play generic that the track finally ends up grow to be a complete nothingburger. There’s nothing right here I can’t get in a thousand different locations and this overly acquainted sound finally ends up draining the colour and character from Teen High’s efficiency. It’s as in the event that they’ve been pressured to compete in right this moment’s panorama with a Produce 101 model mission track that was by no means tailor-made to them within the first place.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Manufacturing | 7 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 8 |
| RATING | 7.5 |
Grade: C
