EXO have been inaugurated into my “K-Pop A-Z” feature, which means anything they release automatically gets a full review. To be honest, I’ve regretted that rule over the past few years since I haven’t vibed with the group’s albums since 2018.

Is there new work REVERXE any different? Read on to find out!

1. Crown // 2. Back It Up // 3. Crazy // 4. Suffocate // 5. Moonlight Shadows // 6. Back Pocket // 7. Touch & Go // 8. Flatline // 9. I’m Home

BACK IT UP

I have a bone to pick with how SM Entertainment describes their songs. They teased Back It Up as a “dance track.” I guess that’s true if you’re performing a full-on choreographed routine, but when I think of dance music I imagine something I can put on and… dance to. Songs like this feel waaaayyyy too slow and lumbering for dancing. It would be more accurate to call this a “song to creep around in the dark to,” but I guess that doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue.

EXO performed this track at the Melon Music Awards back in December and I didn’t think much of it then. To be honest, I still don’t. I appreciate the relentless energy, though as already stated that energy is crushing aggression rather than euphoria or wild abandon. The instrumental lurches along, blending tinny trap influence with heavy, distorted percussion. To me, this style works best when contrasted with a more melodic topline, but the tune here (such as it is) is just as pulverizing as the music. I can’t say I love the repetitive “back it up, back it up, stack it up” chant. If SM were choosing between this and Crown as the title track, they definitely picked the right song.

Grade: C