After dropping their pre-release Allergy last week, (G)I-DLE are back with their newest title track Queencard (퀸카). These two songs are linked thematically, but their overall sound is also consistent. The group has built upon the success of last year’s Tomboy, taking rock elements and giving them a fashionable K-pop sheen.
This works well when accompanied by the cool, unbothered delivery that anchors verse one of Queencard. But, it falls apart when the song embraces simple chant-like structure for its chorus. The group is clearly attempting satire, but at such a surface level that the track threatens to devolve into the exact thing it’s attempting to satirize. I admire how (G)I-DLE have meaningful things they want to express in their lyrics and sound, but to be frank the songs need to be stronger, subtler and more incisive for this approach to work.
Instead, Queencard feels like Tomboy redux, minus the punchy guitar that made that song so catchy. I wish we could’ve gotten an entire song that sounded like Queencard‘s first minute. When at their peak, (G)I-DLE have an effortless sense of style that stands apart from their peers. But, the cartoony elements often characterizing their hooks make it difficult to fully enjoy their music. It becomes more “novelty” than “biting critique,” and that’s an uncomfortable place to be.
| Hooks | 6 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 7 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7 |
Grade: C-
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
It’s been 5 years and I still can’t stand this group’s sound.
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I loved their first two releases (LATATA and HANN) but everything after those, with the exception of HWAA, is just straight up bad and comes off as tryhard
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are you me?
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maybe I AM? 😉
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Like how nobody cant stand you, even your mother says so.
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LOL low-effort trolling
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Hi Nick, how do I post a comment directly on the post, I was only able to reply and not write a comment but I completely agree w the review, I was rly looking forward to the song and everything else is good BUT the chorus, it felt kind of cringe and underwhelming like a waste of a good song tbh.
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There should just be a comment box at the very bottom of the post under “leave a reply.” Does that show up for you?
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you are a grown ass adult
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L+Ratio+bozo
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tell em
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I want to like (G)-IDLE so much more than I do. Tomboy, Nxde, and now this comeback all have these really cool underlying ideas that could have been great if executed well, but instead have all been executed in a way that, if I’m being fully honest, gives me secondhand embarrassment.
Also – I usually try not to fault kpop groups for poorly written English lyrics, because really who am I to judge. But at this point with how international the market for kpop has gotten, is it really too much to ask for you to run these lyrics by a native speaker before recording?
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I know. Just run it by someone. Surely they must know someone.
To misquote an old favorite movie: “Inconceivable!” “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”
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The current fan theory is that since Soyeon has been criticized in the past for how bad her English lyrics are, she wrote the worst English lyrics possible as part of the theme of the song. So again, not a bad idea, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired, which is a shame.
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The idea of her writing intentionally terrible lyrics feels like a bit of a stretch to me! I guess I don’t know enough about the group beyond just their music to assess if that’s plausible, but it does strain credulity. And, you’re right – even if it was on purpose, that could have been fun! And yet it wasn’t!
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Someone said she wrote the lyrics into the form of a chess piece.. idk if that is a coincidence, but if it’s on purpose, I guess that explains why form/concept >> lyrics
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“Fan theory” or excuse?
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You put it into perfect words.. secondhand embarrassment. The music feels so juvenile and lacks the depth that I want in both its lyrics and composition. Not every song has to be stellar but if you’re going for concepts and MVs like this, then the music should be just as good.
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@KpopEnglishProj has you covered on Twitter.
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I am surprised that you reviewed this, Nick, as this group is one of the few that draws drive-by commentators who re-style the comment section into a demolition derby.
The song is “fine”.
I have very similar thoughts to Nick to add. I suppose this is what some people think is empowerment. I suppose some people think this is a deeply ironic rejection of the Page Six standards of beauty boobs and booty and all, but it is far too literal to be that in truth. Is it just a straight ahead “I’m hot” song? Or is it “I’m stating this is the standard while rejecting that standard”? That does not actually happen. I think it thinks it is, isn’t. It is just a dumb noisy song. Hardly the clear cut call out of Pink’s “Stupid Girls”, or Rammstein’s recent “Zick Zack”.
The chorus bears a passing resemblance to SuJu’s old b-side “Rockstar” which I think is coincidental and not intentional.
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Thank god it’s less than 3 mins
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Yep, it’s a wonder how anyone could endure 3+ minutes of Soyeon’s poor attempts at making mEaNinGfUl, enjoyable songs.
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I didn’t fall in love with Tomboy or Nxde, but I like this one. It does sound like a Tomboy redux, but with all the self-seriousness stripped out. Instead it’s just big dumb fun.
BASICTASTES, I agree with your comment on the English. (G)I-DLE are always big offenders here. I’m fine if the English isn’t perfect, but pronouncing “booty” as “boot” is just confusing.
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I didn’t have the same issue with the hook. sonically I’m in love with this song, every part. However the lyrics make it difficult to sing along and I’m not really sure what message they’re trying to send. I have the same critique of the video very fun moments but the story was lost on me
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Exactly my thoughts! The song is great, if not for the lyrics I would be fully on board TT
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Yea nah you’re giving that hook too high of a rating. Like all of (G)I-dle’s post-debut releases, this song fails to change my opinion on them: Soyeon is just not a convincing songwriter & producer and (G)I-dle’s music might be far less ear-grating and annoying if they just let outsiders make songs for them and adjust the members’ style of singing (Minnie in particular).
I’d give this 5/10 at best.
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my boob and booty is hot
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Decent beats, mediocre melody and chorus, pretty much that’s it
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Sometimes I just wished they didn’t rely on the “self-produce” title so much and try using works from outsiders. Many groups don’t produce their songs, yet they still succeed. The unreasonably high standards they put on themselves seem to block their own growth.
I am currently into songs from the good old time these days and seriously the song doesn’t bring me the vibe at all. Just… cringe, messy and lousy, all gathered in just one single song.
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… I’m sorry, are we asking Cube out of all companies to have a good A&R?
That is exactly why their best groups are becoming their own A&Rs.
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IMO Beast is by far Cubs’s best groups. They have some truly great songs under their belt (“Fiction” is pop perfection, change my mind), and they also have one very capable vocalist (Yoseob) to help elevate those songs.
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It’s the sort of mess that doesn’t take itself seriously and I guess I can appreciate that. However it simply isn’t compelling enough as a whole. Maybe I’ll end up liking it but the chances are slim.
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I can’t tell if I enjoyed this or nxde more, and I dislike both songs which says a lot. I think I’d put this below nxde just because I enjoy the instrumental from nxde. This song is a solid 6/10 👍
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Nick hates (G)I-DLE and love IVE… Thats enough to tell you who this writer is all about.. predictable and superficial
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No Nick has a personal preference and said personal preference resonates with enough people for him to have a lovely audience on this blog. Nick has let us know time and time again what makes him tick and what keeps his hopes up musically
So what if Nick likes IVE’s music more than GIDLE? He likes INFINITE more than both XD
Please try to comment respectfully and in a relevant manner to the music instead of trying to make shallow “predictable and superficial” comments towards someone who runs a blog for fun! :))
Have a nice rest of your day :))
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I’d take “superficial” pop songs with great energy and even greater melody over pretentious,fake-deep spoken words (G)I-dle have been putting out for years any day.
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Not many people have problems with songs that weren’t produced by their own performers, yet we have Neverlands and their “supremacy” over literally most kpop groups for the tasks supposedly belonging to producers themselves.
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IVE absolutely demolishes anything (G)I-DLE has ever released
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“Predictable” (as in predictably obnoxious) and “superficial” (all style, no substance) is (G)I-DLE’s music in a nutshell.
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L+ratio
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Idle are the peak of superficial. Their english lyrics read like this shirts that look cool from a distance, but when you actually bother to read the text on them it’s a bunch of mumbo jumbo
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This has me conflicted.
The lyrics do not work for me at all. If they were meant to be satirical, it is not coming across well in the delivery. If they were meant to be hot and confident, lines like “my boob and booty’s hot” completely sabotage that.
However, I love the rest of the song. The rock touch, the beat, even the delivery in some parts and, yes, the chanting. The result is a frustrating experience of grooving along but constantly being interrupted by an automatic cringe response to one of the lines.
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May I suggest SuJu “Rockstar” as an alternative, since the chorus vibe is similar though a bit more EDM hype. This is a regular in the Super Shows.
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An absolute banger. I can hear some of the similarities, especially in the vocal delivery, but it doesn’t quite have the same vibe for me productionwise. Still, I’ll add this to my playlist because it bops.
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Surprise, surprise, after Tomboy and Nxde I like this. Like, so much. It’s like doing Pink’s “Slut Like You” but in a tamer way.
It also feels like a dumbness counterpart to Macarena since I kinda laugh at the lyrics too. Finally a Cha Cha Cha to my Tattoo.
Having this in Eurovision for Ukraine or Slovenia would be a joyful experience!
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*girl group counterpart. Kinda miss that one while sending it.
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Oh my goodness a Cha Cha Cha reference in my kpop comment section? (I was totally rooting for him to win, too. Tattoo isn’t bad though).
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I love Cha Cha Cha but I was totally on Team Tattoo 🙂
(Love Belgium’s entry, too. And the schlock rocker in me enjoyed Australia’s.)
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I mean… seeing it songwriting-wise, Tattoo is just not that good and probably another Melfest rushed demo. But if you like it, then I’ll respect it.
I’m mostly on team EAEA, anyways.
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Songwriting/lyrics on Eurovision songs is not all that good in general, I feel. At least the ones in English. Eaea was pretty interesting, probably didn’t have the right audience to appreciate it fully.
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It’s generally not that good, most of the time it was beige/generic. There are some good ones, at least one per season (i.e. Cornelia’s Hold Me Closer or Dihaj’s Skeleton).
The songs in native languages are ones having better lyrics and much more diverse production choices, though. Like EAEA, Ai Coracao, Amar Pelos Dois, Voila, etc.. They’re usually better than their ‘English’ competitors but it’s much riskier to send.
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I don’t know why I keep being surprised that my taste is so similar to yours. Belgium and Australia were in my top 5 :’ )
I think Tattoo is the objectively better song (and Loreen the better singer), but it’s so safe and beige and normal to me. Cha Cha Cha is almost all performance and wacky charisma, it’s very iconic and recognizable. In the context of Eurovision, I prefer that over a good song that I could’ve heard anywhere.
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Tattoo is just pure nostalgia for me. It feels like the kind of songs I loved in the 2010-13 EDM era and they just don’t make many of those anymore.
Agree that Cha Cha Cha is more daring, but it’s also more novelty imo. Even so, Finland was the overall winner of Eurovision season. They had soooo many great songs to choose from. I’m happy they got such a great result.
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Voyager are a fantastic band. I’ve been a fan since 2017 when they released Ghost Mile. “Promise” is admittedly far from their best song but it’s such a good time.
Recommendations to get started: “Hyperventilating”, “Runaway”, “Brightstar”, “Misery Is Only Company”, “The Meaning of I” honestly I just like Voyager’s music.
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Wow, I love this Eurovision thread in the kpop blog’s comment section. I feel so seen. 😭
I was team Cha Cha Cha. What a gift. Even though he didn’t win, we will always have the time we spent together.
I was also on the Belgium train from day 1. I love that they placed seventh. And I didn’t like EAEA as a song, but the performance moved me deeply! I wish Spain had fared better.
I had such a good time this Eurovision season and am already excited for the next one.
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im now gonna put on my hazmat suit to prepare for the JC person’s comments
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It’s not satire, it’s just bad.
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Cannot and will not ever get past the lyrics enough to listen to this again, but I do dig the chorus (in every way except lyrically, haha). I think it’s refreshing and a little unexpected coming from the verse/prechorus — just wish that, if they’re going to make songs with lyrics like these, they’d keep them in Korean! Even if I understand Korean lyrics, there’s a disconnect that makes this sort of thing a lot more tolerable.
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I like it more than nude and tomboy, but it doesn’t come close to Hwaa, which is where I feel they peaked.
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I saw this as a twitter post first and someone mentioned the doctors dancing
The doctors reminded me of CHANMINA
And then it hit me
GIDLE, to me, is very reminiscent of what CHANMINA does with her music
Idk if I’d go as far to say a girl group version of her
But musical taste is weird in that I enjoy a lot of her songs than GIDLE
Anyway as someone said, it’s been 5 years and I haven’t exactly fully vibed with a single release from them
Love that they’re popular but I just don’t think I get it???? (this one included, but I’m hoping the satire will make me love it more in an oddly campy way?)
Hopefully Skz’s comeback doesn’t turn out like this one since I cannot stop thinking about the comparison between the two since the case 143 review
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it’s not boring i can say that much at least. the mv also looks fun. the chorus was…funky. it does possess all the subtlety of a chainsaw (pretty consistent with recent releases) and even if it is purposefully bad written as so many people are claiming the delivery just falls flat, doesn’t really fall into satire and teeters the line of gimmick. also is it just me or has soyeon’s intonation/inflection bled into the rest of the group? they sound very similar in that regard in this track especially. another (g)i-dle project that just isn’t for me.
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Hmm, not too shabby, and the opening verses are pretty on point! I love the pop-rock style they are gearing up on, but… Allergy did it way better as the title track! And that says a lot!
That being said, the chorus lacks that umph in the chorus that makes me want to replay it. And also, literally every b-sides outperforms Queen Card. Lucid’s is my personal favorite. The dark, moody atmosphere and thumbing bass line is made ready for the club!
The English is a huge turn off! Soyeon needs to stop bending the member’s inflection and intonation when she produces.
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Nick hates (G)I-DLE and loves IVE. One has the chutzpah to be different and the other is predictable and fake.
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Appreciation and enjoyment of music is a lot more nuanced and multifaceted than “hate” or “love.” Please don’t use sweeping generalizations like that. You’re assuming a lot…
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I’m copying other replies to your earlier comment here.
– “Predictable” (as in predictably obnoxious) and “superficial” (all style, no substance) is (G)I-DLE’s music in a nutshell.
– Idle are the peak of superficial. Their english lyrics read like this shirts that look cool from a distance, but when you actually bother to read the text on them it’s a bunch of mumbo jumbo.
I’m SOOO tired of G(I)-dle and their fans’ shoving their “we’re-not-like-other-girls” agenda down our throat. We get it, your music and skills are comparably weak to many of your peers so you have to rely on this aggressive branding to make up for your shortcomings.
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Sorry … very sorry …
I just starting hearing “I’m turkey on the runway” at 1:10 in the chorus and now I can’t unhear it.
my apologies
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I prefer that over the actual lyric, so thank you.
I also hear “my boob and booty’s soft”. Not an improvement at all.
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Honestly it’s not even the lyrics as much as it is the vocal delivery that confuses me with their recent title tracks. I’m possibly just noticing it more because of the heightened English phrases being used as hooks, but I don’t think their vocal delivery was this… stylistic before? Not even Soyeon who’s always had a recognisable rap tone. Latata, Hann, Hwaa, Uh Oh and Lion – all of these had vocal delivery which I feel actually suited the song.
But the recent trifecta with Tomboy, Nxde, Allergy – and now Queencard – has this very explicit style that the others are also using to bite off the ends of half of the sentences they say, so it’s not understandable and confusing and doesn’t match with the beat. Parts like “I’m a hater of Instagram and TikTok”, “self-made woman”, “why you think (that) about nxde”, “why ain’t I pretty”, etc. are delivered in a certain way which makes them stand out, sure, but it’s a bit jarring to hear.
I agree with most of the other comments that I wish the song itself would have matched the kind of well-defined concepts they’ve had recently.
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Blame Soyeon lmao. Like I said, all good producers know what vocal delivery works best for each part of the song. Soyeon is not one of them.
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Hmm this song is less chanty than Wave from IVE which felt like the entire song just repeated W A V E. Wonder what went wrong here in comparison?
Regardless I prefer Allergy over Queencard, but its certainly growing on me on repeat. Just need some translations on lyrics to see if it’s actually making a statement.
9/10 definitely hoping to see more rock elements, Yuqi’s influence no doubt
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I agree that the ( english
) lyrics have room.for improvement however i quite like this song , the b sides are really good too , i take this over IVE’s title tracks everyday tbh
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I just think Ive is such a funny group to compare to in this comment section when all things considered, the two groups share very few traits
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right? first of all IVE has consistently good music
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They don’t even make the same *kind* of music…
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now why lie
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Why is everyone mentioning IVE here?
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Relatively recent comeback (JP), chanty chorus, non-big 4 extremely popular 4th gen gg. Closest comparison, other big groups wouldn’t work as y’know, label privilege
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Because they like comparing apples to oranges to make them feel that they favorite group is better than the other.
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I am a hundred percent these comments are targeted at you. You’ve given IVE stellar reviews and they’re pretty popular as well, so they feel as if insulting them is gonna make you pissed or throw a tantrum or something.
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at least it makes me laugh.. but i will not be relistening
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When they said Queencard I thought they meant a credit card, not a queen card from a set of cards! Anyways, the song is decent, I just wish there was a proper bridge. Also, I’m just curious to know how music shows will make them sensor some of those lyrics. (I’ll never forget when they made TVXQ change Mirotic’s lyrics from “under my skin” to “under my sky”. Like I get it’s risqué but it kind of ruins the vibe and doesn’t make a lot of sense. At least “2 baddies, 1 squad” instead of “2 baddies, 1 porche” made sense despite not flowing well lol)
The album was much much better than their previous ones in 2022 and Lucid and Paradise are my personal standouts. The outfits and visuals were very pretty but did anyone catch that queerbating scene during the 2nd verse with Yuqi and Shuhua? Like just…why?
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Correct me if I’m wrong but you real people cannot queerbait, it is a term that applies in fiction even though it has been used otherwise in mainstream media recently.
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Lol real people can definitely queerbait it isn’t just reserved for fiction.
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I still don’t know how I feel about the song but it made me laugh and I guess it did its job. Someone on Reddit says it’s Jopping-level memeable and (aside from Jopping being delivered super-seriously) I kinda see it in a way lol
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I like “Allergy” more than this one. However, the CD as a whole is pretty good.
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This one doesn’t fully work for me. I like the vibe and I like the idea, as usual. Sometimes I like both enough for that to carry the songs through. But I do really agree with everyone saying Soyeon is not at a high level as a writer rn. Now, I don’t think she should stop writing completely at all: she has things to say that, while not new or revolutionary, remain relevant to a young woman’s experience, even more so for those exposed to the public eye. I don’t know enough about Korean culture to know how new or repetitive they might feel there, but the themes she covers are worth repeating anyway. And they might be new for many young audiences.
However, I think working alongside someone more experienced who helps her polish her lyrics, maybe dig a little deeper, would benefit her and help her grow as a writer.
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I find the song to be fun, silly, and catchy. So, a solid 8. Yes, it reminds me of Tomboy, strangely a little bit of BP’s whistle too, but I think these are good points for such a clear party song. About the satire being too surface-level, I don’t mind it… it’s kpop after all, who wants to twerk to some serious social commentary? It doesn’t take away my enjoyment of it, maybe if the song sounded a little more somber or pensive, I would. On the poor-written English lyrics… I just roll with it as I do with every Yoo Young Jin-penned song.
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Well I don’t even speak English on a daily basis so I don’t care about the lyrics, like I don’t care about the korean lyrics.
It’s an OK song, but I have fun with it
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Bro, I know whatever I am gonna say will obviously sound hypocritical. I’ve been kind of an ass in the comment section, like so many times. But after like three years, I think I’ve slightly matured and stopped being weird. So I just wanted to convey my personal opinion, I think the comment section on posts of (G)i-dle, BTS and Blackpink are usually very uncalled for.
I’ll clarify this right here, I think (G)I-idle’s music is garbage, like very, very bad. But that’s just my personal opinion on their music, and whatever soyeon tries to do is by her own creative intention (please bear with me, my English is bad). And as we know, music created is based on one’s own taste and insulting her, saying how she doesn’t know how to produce and stuff is kind of mean and crude. The messages she tries to convey in her songs are good, but the execution and delivery of such messages may not fit to our taste and that’s fine, maybe she wanted it to be represented in polarizing ways and if she didn’t, then that’s sad. But at the end of the day, the way how she wanted to display her art was her way itself. Pointing out the reasons why you don’t like the song is justifiable but outright bashing her is just not the way to go? (Bruh I don’t know how to talk I am trying).
I find the critique on their fans very valid and some criticism’s here on the music is actually beneficial in helping the art improve. We shouldn’t revert to random, mean insults like “Soyeon doesn’t know how to produce” or “The group is superficial”.
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I haven’t seen anyone here outright bashing her. And if they did, it’s technically giving her too much credit since she is yet to compose a song on her own, and I doubt that will change now that she isn’t personally involved in most of the group’s album tracks now either, passing the baton to other members, songwriters, and producers. So I don’t think anyone can pin the success or appeal, good or bad, on her alone, since she isn’t the only driving force behind their music.
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Sigh… I’m waiting for any girl group to throw down the pop rock and punk gauntlet. I can’t hold my breath for idle doing it since there seems to be very little long term planning for their musical trajectory. Wondering what their next release will sound like is like playing those gacha games, you never know what you are going to get (so a box of chocolates works too lol). I actually liked Tomboy quite a bit as just a fun song, but aside from that, only their two first songs and Hwaa have really stuck with me.
I feel like part of the problem is that g-idle is far more reliant on their marketing and the way they frame their song releases rather than the songs themselves. Call me lazy, but I don’t want to feel like I’m sitting through an Intro to Philosophy class every time they have a comeback, especially since the issues they try to tackle are done so surface level that if feels like a parody…. or when you are reading a book and an inexperienced author tries foreshadowing only to have it give away the ending before you even get there.
On the bright side, I will take Tomboy 2.0 over Nude 2.0 any day, so that’s a plus. The only thing worse than a grating song is one that also gets stuck in your head.
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I cant think of a more inconsistent/frustrating group than G-Idle. They’ll range like great with Hann, Latata and Lion to meh like Oh My God, this and I didn’t like Nude all that much either
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