BOYNEXTDOOR have approached their debut in a similar way to NewJeans, releasing a series of songs and music videos in the lead up to their single album. It’s an exciting way to unveil new talent, though the rollout hasn’t felt nearly as buzzy this time around. After a strong opening salvo, I was less impressed with last week’s One And Only. New track Serenade doesn’t do much to assuage my hesitance.
The track shares plenty of connective tissue with But I Like You. Both songs feel as if they could have been performed by an indie rock band, and I appreciate hearing a distinctive sound from this group. But in this case, the vocal affectations are a bit grating. Serenade is an old-fashioned crooner, requiring the guys to belt out melodies in a way that feels plaintive and emotional. Listeners need to believe them, but the track is riddled with Zico-esque phrasing and delivery that obscures true heart and soul.
I want to love BOYNEXTDOOR. The industry is crying out for a new, exciting boy group that marches to the beat of their own drum. But — along with most of what HYBE touches — their music so far feels overly calculated to appeal to trends. It’s meant to sound loose and free, but comes across as the opposite.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7.5 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
How to tell a debut is overhyped in one easy step: Scroll down the suggested youtube feed and count how many clickbait reaction videos are out already. Indonesian First time reacting with shocked faces and a fire emoji!
I counted 14 of these before I got to a video about the song “Boy Next Door” from the old Judy Garland musical “Meet me in St Louis”. Good musical that. Besides the title song, the soundtrack includes “Skip to my Lou” “Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and The Trolley Song. Zing zing zing went my heart strings.
Song is okayish. I don’t know why they made the boys’ vocals sound like they are in a tin can, but they did. The sonic and visual styling is acoustic guitar meets a rockabilly One Direction dressed up in expensive old jeans. It takes a lot of money to sound and look this casual.
I was thinking heavy Zico influence as well a la “Any Song” and late BlockB circa 2017-2018, but he has no credits on this one. Perhaps the ones that do have credits are trying to please the boss.
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Every one of their songs has sounded focus-tested within an inch of its life for maximum “fun” and they just all ended up sounding like One Direction demos. Worst part is I don’t think this got anymore buzz than, say, Xikers.
Anyway, on the other hand, the new Sakurazaka single Start Over is exciting and unique and unexpected! Will we get a review of that today? 👀
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Not today, but I really like it! I may write about it later in the week and will definitely feature it in the J-pop post on Sunday.
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Aww, I think this is adorable and charming. It sounds fresh to me, but I haven’t been listening to kpop long enough to hear trends come back around. I also like their voices. I am rather cynical about the way idol groups are created, developed, and marketed. Companies carefully tailor a concept and, if the group comes off as genuine,somehow hidden the seams.
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I find the way they “sing” most of this track SO off-putting and annoying. it was even worse in the performance. I liked the other two tracks a lot more. I hope Zico/HYBE can give them different producers next time
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‘https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtgeI0eIPmE
Said singing performance is pre-recorded, perhaps on those same mics to sound live. Isn’t. (“Visuals? check. Dance? check! Vocals? OMG So stable!”) Hybe perfected this style of production with the later BTS oeuvre, whether BTS needed it or not, they got it.
I wrote the above as joke. Isn’t. Here is one commenter:
“The fact that they all have such strong vocals, even the members who seem like main/lead rappers! This is totally a vocal-centric group. This is such a powerful debut for a boy group, AM A STAN NOW!!”
So, I guess Hybe gets it right for the kids who have not developed ears.
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YouTube replies especially big channels are filled with spam bots so I just don’t bother reading them LOL
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Hmmm. I don’t know, this song should feel really fun and cozy, kind of like Seventeen’s Snapshoot. I can see what they were trying to go for, but something about it doesn’t work. The song sounds too.. empty?
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I liked their 3 songs 😀 They are all light and fun. And the boys have this really adorable charm to them. The song is cute and easy as well. I honestly liked this vibe – it fits their youthful vibe and they all sound really nice too.
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Hybe Vocal Robot is back with a vengeance in this one.
Robotic voices have no soul.
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Song is super boring, but aside from that, I was actually really interested in the idea for the music video. It feels like the same idea as War of Hormone but with a polar opposite tone. However, despite the fact that this MV is in full color and being released almost a decade later, it fails to be anywhere near as vibrant or full of character as WoH was. The members seem very stiff and almost nervous, as if they are being held to a specific standard for how their performance is supposed to look, instead of having the freedom to be creative and express themselves the way that BTS did. All this to say that it is pretty sad to see a company more or less failing to execute the way they did such a long time ago despite having more resources and experience this time around.
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its funny because i really agree with what you said. tbh war of hormones video is almost a little cringy at times but thats the whole charm of it. it doesnt take itself too seriously and thats why its fun to watch. kpop really feels so calculated in this current era and thats why everything seems soulless because it quite literally is. im a firm believer that part of what made kpop so likable in the past was that all the groups went thru an awkward phase esp at debut but watching them grow out of awkwardness is part of the appeal imo. none of the groups that currently debuted in the past two years will ever have a period of their career where they were awkward.
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Honestly one of the best debuts I’ve ever seen!! I love how all the songs were lined up like a cute story ❤️
But I like you – I felt the song was super short but also it’s beautiful ❤️
One and only – a complete vibe!! I just love the chord progression and sungho’s ending high notes after the bridge ❤️
Serenade – I thought I won’t like this after the teaser but i was wrong!! I just love the soothing vocals of leehan and woonhak 😁
In conclusion, 2023 has some good debuts but have to say BND are definitely my favourite of this year 🤌
Can’t wait what they’ll have in store for us later!!
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I know, people are throwing so much shade at them but they just started, and also the debut doesn’t need to be the best song you ever heard. Take BTS for example, their debut was No More Dream. Even if it was their first song, doesn’t mean it should be their best. I like the song and am going to stay tuned for the next ones because I have a lot of faith in them. BOYNEXTDOOR, Fighting! ❤️
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personally, i enjoy the debut! they have this fresh, young feeling to them, almost like they are the male counterparts of new jeans. i dont really detest the idea of them not singing live, just yet sense they only debuted yesterday. and even though they haven’t gotten much coverage, who’s to say that they’re going to flop? it’s only been a couple of hours sense their debut, they have plenty of time! say stray kids for instance, they didn’t get their first win until nearly a year after their debut, and now they’re a global sensation. i really enjoy bnd music, it’s something new ( that i’ve seen ) brought to kpop. it suck that people already have a negative opinion about them.. especially sense it based on only three songs.
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