Though Xdinary Heroes’s sound isn’t always for me, I admire their willingness to run full charge into new musical challenges. Their discography is vast and varied and almost always carries a confident energy that helps sidestep even the cringiest of sonic adventures. New single ICU is not cringy, but it’s certainly confident.
The guys rock out hard on this one. A pounding drum beat gives the track plenty of drive and makes a propulsive backdrop for shredding guitar and howling vocals. Overall, the song is more straightforward than I expected but draws power from its barreling force. The multi-pronged chorus is effective, delivering enough variety to appeal to just about anyone. As ICU speeds on, the guys pull from old rock touchstones like hair metal and glam. Side note: I need a full album of hair metal tributes from these guys. I don’t know that there’s ever been a K-band more suited to it!
In fact, ICU‘s unhinged final minute makes me want the entire song to go even bolder. Xdinary Heroes are naturally theatrical and those flourishes are the track’s most enjoyable moments. Given K-pop’s penchant for fan chants, I imagine an even stronger chorus that utilizes call-and-response to really get the audience going. Something like DAY6’s classic Deep In Love, maybe. Judging from the potential on display here, I think Xdinary Heroes are getting close to finding their own classic. I mean, just listen to that extended guitar solo!
| Hooks | 8 |
| Production | 9 |
| Longevity | 9 |
| Bias | 8 |
| RATING | 8.5 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
I’ve probably mentioned this before but I think these kids’ music is better appreciated in a live setting. I checked my playlist and most songs I have added are their more sentimental ones (Good Enough, Supernatural, Dreaming Girl, Until the End of Time, Little Things, etc). I did love Beautiful Life earlier this year, but their heavier songs were actually amazing live, but for the life of me I cannot listen to them on my own🤷🏻♀️.
This song probably falls in that category. I bet it’s awesome live, but it’s too heavy for me to digest as a casual listen (or maybe it’s too early in the morning😂). 7.75 for now
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Rock on XdH. I feel like now they are a few years in, JYP is finally let them do their own thing and it shows in the quality of the songs. More them, less crafted and put upon. It sounds like they actually like their own song and fully own it.
Rating is about right.
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JYP ent going strong this October! I hear 2000s j-rock in the instrumental, though I can’t exactly pinpoint why. The song feels laidback and fun in the best way, though Nick’s point about it being an inch away from Xdi’s own classic resonates with me.
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I don’t have much to say on the title track yet, but I have to mention Lost and Found and Love Thug of War because they both kinda stand out within their whole discography tbh, I liked both pretty well.
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*tug, it’s supposed to be “tug”🥲
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I generally like them and I’m trying to not think about Jun Han’s tendency to pontificate about eugenics on Bubble, since they’re evidently not going to kick him out. Or even put him on hiatus on anything. It’s just kinda crazy 😭
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