“Special” albums can mean a few things in K-pop. For GFriend, it meant two new songs. Today, for ONEUS it means a handful of new material and a ton of re-recorded hits with their current five-member configuration. Last month’s Rupert’s Drop is also included in the tracklist, while IKUK acts as the title track.
Buoyed by their stint on Kingdom, ONEUS take the opportunity to pair this song with a performance-heavy video reminiscent of their excellent stage on KBS’s year-end song festival. It’s been awhile since we’ve seen them promote something upbeat, and IKUK hinges on many of the sonic hallmarks that have made their music successful in the past. The song has moments of potential but doesn’t come together for me. For every time if bursts into a funky celebration, it also dives into an irritating breakdown or unsuccessful tempo shift. This has been a concern of mine for many of the group’s tracks. It’s like they’re trying to do too much at the expense of continuity and momentum.
The biggest thing holding IKUK back is its chorus. The melody itself doesn’t work for me, but then the guys pair it with an irritating vocal effect that’s meant to sound retro but actually just pulls their voices up into a grating register. Because of this centerpiece, it’s hard to enjoy everything else swirling around the track. Parts of the verses have great flair and the pre-chorus unveils a satisfying groove that should have gone on to underline more of the instrumental. The production is just so piecemeal and stop/start. It’s hard to gain a foothold.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 7 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7.25 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
I think I heard like 3 different songs in this. The production is like trying new things every 30 seconds cant tell what the climax was trying to be. It is groovy tho so I cant diss it too much
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this was almost 3 minutes and felt like it ended in a minute…
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🤔
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I strangely like this song, for no good reason, but I’ll take it anyway.
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I was expecting something totally different when I heard the previews of this song. Listening to it now your music sounds like as Nick mentioned, it sounds fragmented. And, my Jesus, their vocals are very shrill in this production. OneUs is a group that I particularly admire a lot, and I associate a very sophisticated profile with the group, but this isn’t working
Rating: 7.5 (8, 7, 7, 8)
Eight points in segmentation and eight points in my fascination. Just to clarify, my four evaluation criteria are different from the ones Nick uses (i.e. Hooks, Production, Longevity and Bias), maybe later I will comment on this here, although I feel like no one is interested in how I evaluate my songs 🤷
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I liked it enough, but definitely one of their weakest songs with a video. As far as the video is concerned, the choreography is so good but they filmed it in some random auditorium/ recreational center. It doesn’t go with the styling or staging at all, it’s so frustrating
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I think their company is being skimpy with funds.
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I have a high tolerance for vocal processing, I guess. I also love Enhypen’s XOXO. The Oneus sound is immediately recognizable, and I like that about them. They don’t sound like anyone else. One negative is I could swear I’ve heard something similar to this in their previous discography. Some musical phrase in their seems so familiar… I’m not sure what the random orchestration is in aid of, but I’ll take it. All in all I would give this an A-. I’ll definitely find a place in my playlist.
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The vocal processing that kicks in for the post-chorus is definitely a big snag for what would otherwise be a song I actually enjoyed a decent amount.
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