SHINee have spent the last week celebrating their anniversary with the streaming of multiple concerts. This all builds up to a new single, written by (and featuring vocals from) their late member Jonghyun. Though Poet | Artist won’t be promoted beyond a music video, it still feels more notable than a typical fan song. After all, this is one of the most celebrated acts in K-pop and they don’t return with new music often. They also happen to be one of my favorite groups. Ever.
Because of this, it seems almost unfair to critique Poet | Artist as a song. Like other well-loved second-gen groups, it will be enough for most fans that SHINee have released new music at all. But me being me, I can’t help but wish these seasoned acts would return with work that either pushes them forward or recaptures the best of their past output. Poet | Artist doesn’t do either of these things, though I doubt it is meant to. It was originally written for Jonghyun’s second album of the same name during a period in pop music where trends didn’t often align with my personal taste. So, I’m not surprised that the song fails to knock me out. Between its lurching mid-tempo energy to its truncated melodies, the track is simply operating in a space I don’t tend to flock back to often.
Given that this is SHINee, their incredible talent and vocal prowess elevates the material. No matter the song, it’s lovely to hear their tones layered on top of each other, creating that mighty wall of sound that has always made them a force to be reckoned with. They perform Poet | Artist admirably, with flair and emotion to spare. However, I find the song rhythmically repetitive with little melody to grab hold of. If you were to isolate any twenty-second stretch of the song, you’d have heard pretty much everything it has to offer. In this way, Poet | Artist spins its wheels without much development. I have a feeling the stuttering hook will grow more addictive with time and it’s so nice to hear them back together, but on the grand scale of SHINee classics (of which their are many), Poet | Artist is more of a pleasant footnote than a towering standout.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 9 |
| RATING | 8 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
Decent song.
I prefer the more commercial Starlight, lol.
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As it’s a single and not an EP or full album, my expectations were really something around the 8 or above range, because, well, singles aren’t a fully-fledged comeback to me unless you’re Sunmi or Hello Gloom. This is pleasant and sweet, but I can’t help but slam a “10” down for the bias section every time they release something. This will go in a playlist, but more likely a playlist for pleasant fare to listen to while driving.
Starlight is good.
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As a massive Shinee fan I am not going to grade Poet Artist, it’s not meant for that. I am just going to enjoy it and celebrate Shinee day!
Also, Nick I dont know if you enjoy watching Beyond Live shows but if you do, this weekend’s Shinee concert is perfectly suited to your Shinee taste.
It was literally relentless in energy and the set list is insane, not a ballad in sight.
View, Jump, Code, Everybody. Then Hard into Why So Serious into Hitchhiking into Sherlock into Don’t Call Me into Juice (I almost died). Like I know they’re Pop Gods, but they did not leave themselves anytime to breathe. They don’t even stop there. Jojo into Shift, Savior, Identity, I Really Want You, into Married to the Music. It was glorious and that wasn’t even all of it. If your game, it’s truly epic 😉
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I don’t think any of us are ready to rate the gift of hearing Jonghyun’s voice in a new song. What a fantastic anniversary gift the boys have given us. It truly feels like a momentous anniversary in a way their 15th didn’t, with Onew and Taemin doing their own thing outside of SM, Minho finally having a solo album and getting more acting opportunities, Kibum doing literally everything an idol can do, the INSANE playlist of the concerts and this precious gift.
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I like the song but agree with the review. (I really like Starlight) I will say this song seems to have calmed some hearts because over the last year, I’ve seen the consternation of some fans regarding Onew and Taemin leaving SM. I’m hopeful that the group members can focus on whatever they want without comeback demands because it’s okay if they do more what is the norm in the West and wait a few years. From what I saw of their concert, they look like they are having the time of their lives.
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Right??? Like people want them to do everything. They have nothing to prove. If they want to work on solo projects that’s good. Just let them live. They will release music when they release music. Most groups aren’t even around after 17 years. Also the fact that people accused OnMin of not caring about SHINee cuz they left SM was so rude!
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I like this song more for the sentiment than the song itself. It’s so special to hear Jonghyun’s voice and to see them still together as SHINee.
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nice to hear Jonghyun’s voice.
hope we get a SHINee A-Z someday
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unrelated to this specific song, but i’d really like seeing a shinee discography review from a-z someday, if you plan on doing one again!
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I’m hardly objective but I liked the song, though the feeling is definitely elevated by sentiment. What a lovely gift to hear JJong’s voice again, and on a song he wrote & composed, released on their anniversary date. Shinee proved this week with their concert series that they are still on top of their game as performers (the setlist… is actually insane), so here’s to more & more great Shinee music to come!
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I want to give kudos to the producer here, because they had to work with at least two big limitations:
-A demo recording without proper lyrics to integrate with the newer final-cut quality voice recordings of the members.
-Updating the instrumental without getting rid of Jonghyun’s signature sound, since he composed the song.
I think they did a fantastic job!
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This is one of those rare songs that the more I listen the more I appreciate it. SHINee’s vocals are masterful. Hearing Jonghyun’s voice again with the members made me realize how amazing they were together and are still. Watching the concert when KEY explained they opened with Poet Artist as a message from Jonghyun to them and then finished with Our Page as their message to him was so beautiful, touching and a blessing
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It is great to hear an old song with remembrances of an old friend.
Its like the Beatles release of old songs John Lennon laid down to cassette tape. They pull it out and polish it up, and add the unfinished parts, and voila! New song! …. … There were also reasons why that song was not fully recorded back when.
The problem is that the song never lays into its groove. It sounds like it is trying to be a one – KICK – two – KICK. um – AH – um – AH. As a instrumental in theory that should do it, a common enough funk groove. But the vocal melody line actively fights against this groove with an alt groove ONETWO fourfivesiiiix svn ONETWO fourfivesiiix svn. And the two don’t fully sync so your body has no idea what beat to shift the shoulders on. Perhaps if the Call me Poet Artist line was an alt rhythm break? Or perhaps if they piled some real jazz musicians in a studio, and got them all revved up, and said hey groove on these two lines and see what they come up with.
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