Cube Entertainment’s girl group that’s not (G)I-DLE continues their ‘one comeback a year’ streak. I don’t mean this as a diss to LIGHTSUM — more as frustration with agency’s ability to promote them properly. How are you supposed to develop a fanbase with such infrequent releases? Making matters worse, their ranks are down to six after members Huiyeon and Jian left last October. This puts new single Honey Or Spice in a precarious position as a reintroduction of sorts.
With this framing, the song could stand to be much more interesting. Its playful, percussive beat feels familiar from the start, playing off familiar girl group tropes. Much of the track is devoted to sing-talk rap and/or chanting — two approaches that rarely work for me. The chorus offers a funky take on this style, playing with tone and rhythm to create an engaging flow. But overall, there’s not quite enough to distinguish Honey Or Spice from other like-minded efforts. I wish the production went easier on its plonky percussion and focused on the blasts of synth that pop up occasionally. A funkier backbone would have given LIGHTSUM more to chew on and teased out the natural groove of the track.
| Hooks | 8 |
| Production | 7 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7.5 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
Welp, I don’t think this is going to turn their career around.
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They had that sad documentary just to release this garbo?
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Well, I like this way more than I should, for no good reason. Of course, I am the one who liked “juice juice juice juice juice” from a few years back.
Add another to the guilty pleasure list.
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Another faceless group that sadly couldn’t compete in the k-pop landscape that has shifted to favor girl groups IVE, NewJeans, tripleS, aespa, fromis9, lesserafim, etc —thanks to their branding and production quality.
I don’t know the members personally but I feel bad for them.
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I like this a lot. Alive is still more up my alley and this delves a bit into Cube gg girl crush™️ territory but still with that quirky side to them. Juhyeon is so versatile and deserves a lot of love, been a fan of hers since her The Unit days. Nice to see Hina get spotlighted.
Not My Style is buried treasure potential. Uses their vocal line very well in the chorus.
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I have no beef with singtalking usually and love chanting – I like this a lot. Not groundbreaking but very fun.
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This will get either 8.5-8.75 from me. Genre-wise it’s been done so many times but the production is home-run for me. The intro, the verse 2 switch-up, and the bridge helped making the song more interesting. The brass sample is also, so SATISFYING.
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I think the song esp. In view of the vid shows Honey 🍯 as something sweet and approachable, and Spice🌶 as an edgier, confident, hard-to-get side. I’m intrigued by both of these being in play ▶️ . Nayoung’s (나영) voice I really like in this.
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now imagine if all those incessant trap beats in this song were replaced with janet-like new jack swing beats instead
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