[Album & MV Review] Taeyeon - 'I'

Track List:

1. I (Feat. Verbal Jint)
2. U R
3. Gemini
4. Stress
5. Farewell
6. I (Inst.)

Famed for her voice as well as her beauty, Girls' Generation leader Taeyon debuts as a solo artist at long last. Fans have been waiting for this for a while! Her new mini-album consists of six tracks, including her self-penned title song "I" featuring rapper Verbal Jint.

Sweeping and anthemic, "I" is a fantastic tune. It's largely acoustic with Taeyeon's voice featuring as the main attraction. Verbal Jint has his spot early on, and in another section, he raps the lyrics simultaneously as she sings, giving the tune even more depth. Her voice is used extremely well here, soaring all over the track. The song is about living well despite obstacles.  

"U R" is a ballad that showcases Taeyeon's ability nicely as her voice rises to eclipse the instrumentation. The production they threw at the later parts of the song serves to enhance the effect. She really lays bare the emotion as her vocals crescendo. The song itself is an ode to a lover.

"Gemini" is stylistically different from "U R," her voice more measured. It's still a slower song, but with gentle claps and a medium tempo. The vocals range from sweet to strong when appropriate, and it's got a nice, singable hook: "Come to me baby / Come come to me baby." The lyrics are tender, and speak of being together. 

"Stress" is the high-tempo tune on the EP with a pounding drum and insistent piano riff. The way she wraps her voice around the verses is breathless with some nice belts during the chorus. The song itself is awesome, about a bad guy that she just can't resist, and it freaks her out.

"Farewell" a sweetly-sung ballad, reminding me a lot of a lullaby. The lyrics are about a breakup, but they're a little different from the standard. She asks "Are people who walk alone like me?" and suggests that "maybe I should have shown you my shabby self first."

This is a strong, mature debut. The tunes are a bit different than I've heard before; there are some songs with a unique structure, and, in some cases, the lyrics are not quite what you'd expect. Throughout the EP, word choice is evocative, which is just icing on the cake: her voice tells you exactly how she's feeling. Her songwriting talents are terrific -- the title track tells you that much. Taeyeon just crushes it here, which is lucky for us fans.   

Take in the countryside in Taeyeon's new MV, "I."

She's in Auckland, New Zealand in the Portland Public House as a waitress. You don't see as much of that as you do the New Zealand landscape, which is painted in various shades of green and glorious to behold. As she stands in a field, the wind whips at her hair and she simply looks radiant. There's even a tad bit of plot, as she considers what's important in life and figures out that it's her freedom and dignity.

The costuming here is interesting and mostly appropriate. Far from sticking her in revealing clothing, she's garbed in sundress and sweater, and, at times, in turtleneck and cloak, and, of course, her waitress outfit. The acting is pretty well spot on. She sports a grin through much of it (except at the pub), and her expression is warm and inviting most of the time. There are times where she's taking in the scenery with a contemplative resting face.

The visuals are intense and grandiose, with sea cliffs, sheep running across a field, winding country highways, wet moors, and gently rolling hills. There's a quiet majesty to it all that is quite captivating, and you can practically hear the song echoing through the valleys there.   

Overall, this MV is a pleasure to watch. There's no cheap tricks here, no obvious cut corners, just an epic show married to an equally epic track, and a lovely young woman at the center of it all.

[Album and MV Review] SISTAR - 'Shake It'

SISTAR - SHAKE IT

Track List:
1. Shake It
2. Don't Be Such a Child (feat. Giriboy)
3. Good Time
4. Bad Guy (feat. Mad Clown)
5. Go Up

It's summer, and SISTAR has dropped their new album, 'Shake It.' The great thing is that I get the idea this was planned. For the last few years, SISTAR has released something for the summer. The title track has apparently hit a perfect all-kill, so how does the rest of the EP stack up?

"Shake It" is a pseudo-retro track with mindless hooks ("na na na") and accompanying horns. Also there's an absolutely simple rap by Bora, which isn't playing to her usual abilities. It took a few listens, but it grew on me. I'm still not comfortable with the rap for the record.

The girls scold their boyfriend in "Don't Be Such a Child." It's a playful track, much calmer than "Shake It." Of course Giriboy doesn't take this laying down, and tells them, "I don't wanna argue, just let it go." It's actually kind of funny when you listen to it, light-hearted and catchy.

The bouncy, exuberant "Good Time" bids a boyfriend adieu and is trying to convince him that it's over. A sample of the lyrics: "Good Time, Good Time. I'm happy don't worry." This must be the cheeriest breakup song ever. Hooky as hell; not only that, I found the song amusing, probably because of the tempo.

And that's where "Bad Guy" comes in, to reassure us that breakups aren't joyous affairs -- especially when the guy cheats. It's not entirely what we'd expect from a SISTAR ballad; it's a typically soaring track, with stops and echo effects to jazz it up, not to mention raps by Mad Clown and Bora.

"Go Up" is a jangly, energetic track tailor-made to make heads bob and feet dance. It's 80's pop writ large, and it has a pleasant, danceable sound. At times, it also sounds like some of f(x)'s 'Pink Tape' album. As you might expect, it's how a guy is driving them crazy.

 This definitely feels like a SISTAR album. We've got several dance tracks and a ballad, which is par for the course. If you're a lover of light, fluffy pop like I am, then this disc is for you. Very radio friendly, with enough danceable hooks and good vibes to make this album worth a spin this summer.

To quote Jerry Lee Lewis, there's a "whole lotta shakin' goin' on."

The girls of SISTAR go through their moves as they engage in high school hijinx. Barely there outfits, bright colors, and even some animation (with speech bubbles and the like) give this video some definite eye candy.

I'm not really down with the undue emphasis of the posterior. When they were singing about shaking it, I didn't think of "it" as the butt. Now someone's going to point out they do say "rump" in the beginning. They do, true, but it's not throughout the piece. Here, we get some butt shaking every 20 seconds or so. Not that it's a bad thing to do that, but here it just felt extreme.

And I felt it ruined what could have been a good dance. Ever since "Give It To Me," the dances have gotten simpler and cheesier. In the show '4Minute's Travelmaker,' SISTAR was able to drop into a pretty professional dance routine at the drop of a hat. What happened?

Regardless, it's not a terrible video, but it was less than I was hoping for.