In preparation for Kim Wooseok’s new single, I looked back at his previous solo comebacks and realized that none of them have made any impression on me. Yes, I reviewed the songs. But, they came and went so quickly that I hardly remember them. Beyond the bubble of Produce 101 hype, I’ll never understand Top Media’s decision to have Wooseok and fellow UP10TION member Lee Jinhyuk go solo (and stay solo!).
In Wooseok’s case, I think he shines much more as part of a group. That isn’t a read on his skill or charisma – some idols are just a better fit for solo work than others. New single Switch is aptly titled because it makes me want to ‘switch’ to another song halfway through. There’s just nothing interesting happening here. I mean, there’s a melody and some shuffling percussion. Wisps of synth float around the arrangement. Guitar adds texture. But, the track feels smoothed of every edge, making it impossible to gain a foothold.
Wooseok’s vocals don’t do anything to help the situation. His performance is impossible light – more air than voice. Even if Switch boasts some enjoyable moments, it has no dynamics. The song needs to pull back and push forward to create the highs and lows that might compel interest. Instead, it simply bops along without consequence, vaguely embracing the popular tempo of the moment. It’s a shame, because a sonic makeover could easily turn this into a standout rather than another characterless bump in his solo career.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 7 |
| Longevity | 7 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
oh god this year is becoming the first half of 2020 all over again
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Very much so, unfortunately…
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If we end up getting a 2nd half of 2020 all over again…i just might be fine with it
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The back of this month the potential to be great so…fingers crossed on that
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very much well said, funny thing is i did switch songs and listened to golcha compass instead.
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Oh, I LOVE Compass!
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… Well at least OST season for the idol vocal lines is pretty good this year. Ab6ix Lee Dae Hwi and Jeon Woong released an uptempo this morning “I’m Crazy” which isn’t as crazy it sounds and has a nice tempo change into and out of the chorus. Jihyo of Twice “Stardust” is great to sing along to. Lats month my guy DK of Seventeen and Taeil of NCT both had nice songs out too. Filling the ipod with OST’s!
This song here? Its not a bad song, just kind of bland.
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Twenty Five, Twenty One delivering some killer OSTs it seems.
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Thanks for the OST recommendations – I’ll check those out!
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Also, if you, like me, enjoy the soft strummy stuff and are a sucker for some swelling strings, Dvwn’s “What A Wonderful Day” from the Rookie Cops OST is very nice.
Also, the alliteration was totally unintentional. 😀
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I should have said it was very sweet. Or satisfying. Both would have been true.
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Oooh, found another one: Onew “Mind Warning” from Forecasting Love and Weather. I believe Nick sometimes refers to this style of song as “coffee house music”, which could be a positive or a negative.
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My cousin has a little band. This sounds like something he would sing.
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I liked Wooseok’s previous main title tracks before, but somewhere along the pre-chorus, I thought “This isn’t doing it for me”
The song seems very forgettable, indeed. I do agree that he does better with the group
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I loved Red Moon because it was just mood, mood, mood. And I loved Sugar because the vocals sounded like they were sung by actual cotton candy. This has some good bits, but it’s really scattered and Wooseok actually sounds kinda bored. There are some weird little gems on the album, and Satisfied is 1:31 of roller disco perfection.
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I have never heard of a single kim wooseok song before but I surprisingly like this. the guitar reminds me a bit of iu’s ah-puh. the chorus is very easy listening but I wish they went grittier went he goes “it’s not fair” because apparently it alludes to him giving up his x1 dreams or something? and I think it’s an interesting concept to touch on.
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Hi Nick! I’m sorry to be out of topic, but will you review Adora’s new song “The Little Name”?
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Eh, it’s okay. I was listening to Eric Nam when I saw this review posted so clearly I’m predisposed towards this sound, but even so I only grabbed a couple tracks for filler on my r&b playlist – I don’t think anything here is higher than three stars. My favorite track is probably “Satisfied”, which is only a minute and a half for some reason but has a little extra groovy oomph and reminded me that I haven’t listened to the Hamilton soundtrack in a while.
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I really like Satisfied too, wish it were longer and a title track.
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Every single one of these reviews on him feel heavily biased. You spent an entire paragraph complaining about him not returning to the group then want me to take this review seriously… It has nothing to do with the music itself
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