Since their late-2020 debut, BAE173 have cycled through various boy group tropes — some more successful than others. To me, they’re at their best when revisiting an overwrought, emotional second-gen sound. Tracks like Annoyed and Loved You give them their own niche in the current K-pop landscape, albeit one that’s borrowed from fifteen years ago. Still, what comes around goes around and it’s nice to hear a group tackle the cathartic side of dance pop.
New single Fifty-Fifty splits the difference between BAE173’s various forms. It ties the energy of their hip-hop tracks to a dramatic instrumental and layered vocals that give it a dramatic twist. The beat has a nice kick, especially when the chorus gets going. I love the synth strings during this segment. They give the song a great sense of movement that compensates for some of the lesser melodies. This sense of theatricality has always been an integral part of K-pop and Fifty-Fifty knows when to juice its sound with that extra little oomph.
The song also makes room for that rarest of 2024-era pop structures: a bridge! This is used to build toward a satisfying climax that delivers on the promises the track has set up. There are a few points during the song that break the overall tension, but I imagine this will be a big grower over the next few weeks.
| Hooks | 8 |
| Production | 9 |
| Longevity | 9 |
| Bias | 9 |
| RATING | 8.75 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
Nice, I can see this growing on me too. Best K-pop song I’ve heard in a few months, really.
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I think it is Good++.
I wish the vocals had more punch. Or were at least louder in the mix. They sound like just another instrumental percussive line buried in the whole gamish, and not an entity unto themselves. Or perhaps, rethink the actual percussion line which occupies the same sonic space as that vocal. Do the same rhythmic accompaniment but lower in tone. Give it some space, some air.
Example, another old school one. When I think of the contemporary skittering percussion sound, my mind goes to Stewart Copeland of the Police who was more percussionist than drummer. (This is played by one guy in one take, not multitracked takes.) Sting’s lead vocal is tripled and quadrupled up to lay on top of that driving beat.
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