There are few K-ballads I’d write a review for, but I’ll make an exception for any member of Infinite — especially one of my all-time favorite vocalists. Nam Woohyun has released a live album and included the studio recording of new track Sunshine (눈부셨다) as a special treat for fans. This comes mere weeks after Infinite released another gift for fans in the form of anniversary single Flower.
I don’t want to seem ungrateful, but what this fan really wants is a killer group comeback. I know that’s a different matter entirely, but these special releases simply have me hungering for something more substantial. Nevertheless, Sunshine catches Woohyun in fine form. His vocal power seems to have returned completely after last year’s health issues and he belts out this track with aplomb. There are few things better than a hearty Woohyun power note, so I can’t complain there.
As for the song itself, Sunshine doesn’t do much for me. There are many Infinite ballads (even ones sung solely by Woohyun) that hit me both emotionally and on a technical level, but the melodies here just don’t register in the same way. So while I’ll gladly listen to Woohyun passionately sing anything, I’m still waiting for another song (ballad or otherwise) that knocks me off my feet.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 7 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 9 |
| RATING | 7.75 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
I can’t be too disappointed, because we did get this great song a few months ago:
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We need more like that!
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Yasssssss. The sung harmony at 2:03 just kills me.
I see your Beautiful OST and raise you another Beautiful OST. The video and audio are a bit out of sync, but it is a live vocal. Gah, he just knows how to shift effortlessly from mixed to head voice, 3:08 to 3:23 is a master class how to do pop vocal. If I had to quibble, I wish he would hold the notes at the end of each line in the prechorus.
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As for this song, I think its great. I think the problem is that he makes this song sound easy. Another master class, Nam Woo Hyun just shifts effortlessly from mixed voice to full belt to roll over and up to head voice and back again. The way he just charges through the bridge, hits the high note, then softens. Its instinctual for him, but actually requires a lot of practice.
I am sure the recording is EQ’d but live live Nam Woo Hyun knows how to use a mic as he shifts in volume and tone. Mic skills, the sign of a true seasoned singer. Many years ago on youtube, I watched some duet of Ailee with a young child from the audience, and the kid was really good. One of those hey wow variety moments. But what was on full display was that Ailee having years of practice could use the mic better than the kid. The kpop kids these days with their fancy mics and pre-recordings have no idea how to use a mic, so when they need to such as during the encore stages, they have no idea.
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I still want something more energetic like Hold on Me, but I like this song a lot than Baby Baby.
In fun news, it looks like Woohyun and Sungkyu are labelmates again. It’s extremely confusing because Blade Entertainment (Woohyun’s company) apparently changed their name to Billions Entertainment while keeping “Blade” on their accounts, but Sungkyu (and his Double H Tne labelmate YongJun) was announced as Billions’ new artist, and Sungkyu can be found on the artist section of Blade/Billions website two rows above Woohyun. I haven’t seen any posts from DHTNE and he’s supposed to be holding another concert series with them, so not sure if it’s another merger or co-management or regular contract expiration — and I’m really confused what’s going to happen with Infinite since DHTNE helped a lot with managing Infinite activities, including the fanmeet they just did — but guessing we’ll see even more of Sungkyu and Woohyun together and maybe we’ll finally get a proper Infinite V album!
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