Given the time of year, you’d expect more spooky offerings from K-pop comebacks. Luckily, pre-debut group AM8IC is here to fill that void, though they’ve gone for a more upbeat, funny version of Halloween tropes. Like Dongkiz (DKZ) back in 2019, they’ve taken inspiration from the iconic Ghostbusters franchise. For me, this almost always ends well.

My first thought upon listening to Buzzin was: “wait… this sounds like K-pop!” That should not be a rare takeaway from this industry, but with so many tracks emulating western pop trends it’s refreshing to hear a song burst forward with a confident sense of showmanship that echoes the great idol groups of decades past. Buzzin harnesses a banging electro-funk sound favored by everyone from EXO to Seventeen, and while the song doesn’t quite reach the heights of those classics it’s extremely polished and successful given AM8IC’s pre-debut status.

Frustratingly, Buzzin is held back by its short runtime. It could have easily done with an extra minute to fully tease out the track’s bright funk beat. We get a tease of this during the climax, when the thrilling synth takes center stage for a fun flourish. Similarly, the chorus could use some development. After an exciting ascent during the harmonic pre-chorus, the spoken-word hook underwhelms. But on the whole, Buzzin is one of K-pop’s best surprises in awhile and certainly has me looking forward to AM8IC’s upcoming debut.

Grade: B+