KiiiKiii’s debut year had a somewhat confused sonic landscape, pivoting between quirky sub-genres and meme culture to broad pop brushstrokes that felt more generic. Judging by pre-release Delulu and new title track 404 (New Era), they seem to have regained their focus in 2026 by pivoting toward the dancefloor.
404 (New Era) arrives bolstered by a tried-and-true production team. The guys from LDN Noise worked on the song, and they’re responsible for some of K-pop’s greatest mid-2010s dance hits. Their 90s-influenced club sound is in full effect here, giving the girls a strutting beat to vogue over. Everything about the track leans into nostalgia. However, as important as the beat is, when you think of those great LDN Noise songs of past eras (View, 4 Walls, Lucky One, Dumb Dumb) you also instantly hear their great choruses. This — predictably — is where 404 (New Era) struggles.
As far as spoken word centerpieces go, this one is certainly on the stronger side. The hook here is delivered with charisma and a rhythm befitting the song’s energetic production. But minus an airy pre-chorus, the track is almost entirely spoken. In an alternate K-pop landscape where this wasn’t the go-to for so many girl groups, the approach would probably be quite charming. But in a post-Whiplash world, I long for the type of melody that makes music timeless. Because of its approach, I fear 404 (New Era) will act as fast fashion — enjoyable in the moment but becoming more threadbare with time.
| Hooks | 8 |
| Production | 9 |
| Longevity | 7 |
| Bias | 8 |
| RATING | 8 |
Grade: B-
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
I’m a gay 17 year old so this is my shit😜
9/10🙂↕️🙂↕️
LikeLiked by 5 people
A song full of recycled ideas that wear out within 2 minutes.
LikeLiked by 4 people
Peak comedy is reading the two comments back to back 🤌
Anyways, the song is serviceable, but it doesn’t do much to knock you out. I think a rating of 8 is fairly accurate. (though I’m still confused as to why Not Cute Anymore grew so much on you? It’s still so one note and flat for me, even after so many listens 😭)
LikeLiked by 8 people
🎉 🪩 404 all the girlies to the floor 💃 ✨
And so the saga of talking over a club beat continues into 2026.
I’ll take what I can get, though. It has a bridge! Yay!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Mostly sounds good, but I don’t think they have the nice low vocal tones to keep up with the beat during the “talk singing” verses. It just sounds like a child *trying* to imitate a low voice so it comes off a little jarring. Deep and low vocals like from Azealia Banks or Rochelle Jordan would’ve been PERFECT. This song could’ve just gone to someone else, or just come up with a new composition that doesn’t force them to song this way. The creative director probably just liked the sample but didn’t care if it suited their voices. Sad but not surprising in kpop.
LikeLiked by 3 people
that’s how i felt initially with i do me… the way they pronounced words and the “vocal tones” sounded like little kids imitating jennie. this is kinda the same – just missing grittier voices. i think stayc’s vocal textures would’ve been great on this.
LikeLike
the aesthetics are there but I just don’t get what Starshit is trying to achieve with this group.
I do hope we get a WJSN comeback for their 10th anniversary to make up for it.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Me seeing Starshit announce a full album comeback for one of their artists for February but its for IVE and not for WJSN 😭 the closer we approach that 10th anniversary date and we hear nothing the more nervous I get that we’re not getting anything
LikeLiked by 1 person
I mean, I’d just go ahead and prepare yourself for disappointment now 🫤
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ll hold out the tiniest sliver of hope 🥲
LikeLiked by 1 person
KPOP EMERGENCY!!!!!
https://x.com/exseolbo/status/2016474685584851134?s=20
LikeLike
I like how much energy this track has. However, it’s not something I’d want to replay.
As for the album, I really liked “UNDERDOGS” — it felt creative and well thought out. But aside from that, none of the other songs really stood out to me.
I’m hoping they can bounce back with their next release.
LikeLiked by 3 people
i will give this, they are having a lot of fun with the 2000/10s nostalgia pulls, it feels a little more than just an attempt at y2k nostalgia. also, was that a wonder girls reference in the second verse of that mv? i like it, it’s fun, definitely one of the better attempts at a club beat released this month *cough cough lose your shxt*.
the ep is a mixed bag in my opinion, underdogs and 404 work because there is that energy within the wispiness that the rest of the tracks don’t really get (although I also kinda like mungyang). the character is the concept moreso than the members, if that makes sense. if I had to point to an album that, in part, gets what this ep is trying to do right, it’s sumin/slom’s miniseries 2. sumin holds a versatility in her voice where whether it is soft or holds more power, within the concept of that album, it has its own life that grips you more than the nostalgic aura the concept exudes. if kiikii can balance what they are going for, I’ll be a bigger supporter.
oh, right the track, straight 8.25, 9 on production.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Again, I enjoy this way more than I should. It’s one of those things that, yeah the chorus could be better, but I’m having an adverse reaction where the chorus has grown on me since I heard the mv teaser. I actually wasn’t sure of the spoken-word at first but hearing it in context with the full song makes it much better. Out of every 2000’s pastiche that seems to romanticise the era, this one feels so self-aware and grounded that it’s one of the better examples of the y2k trend.
Also lost my shit when the members just appeared in Sydney in the video.
Anyways, consider me a fan. They don’t have the best stuff just yet but I’m sure their creative team has a direction that I’m excited for them to go in.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Same, I literally went crazy when I found out dancing alone and strawberry cheesegame were done 100% in Canada 😍
LikeLiked by 2 people
404 is a great song. I didn’t expect to like it as well but it is reminding me of the classic SM-esque house sound in 2017-19 and I am definitely hungry for those.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I hear that! It makes sense knowing LDN Noise worked on this song.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Love the fact that they released UNDERDOGS at the same time where society starts romanticizing about 2016, it’s very fitting and makes for great timing on their part.
404 is very repetitive but its still a good track. The EP is THOUSANDS of miles better than their previous one. Uncut Gems was roooouuugh but Delulu Pack is where its at for KiiKii 🙂↕️. Brava to the girls and their team.
LikeLike
i find it hard to fully get on board the kiiikiii train. on the one hand, their creative/brand team is incredible. vision is simply unmatched. but i feel like their music direction is kinda up and down. i just wish they reworked the chorus so it was more melodic. i wish they took a h2h focus approach where it focused more on singing, but tbh, is singing kiiikiii’s main forte/strength? not really… but we had dancing alone which was great in my books soo… i think more interesting vocal tones or more skilled singers would’ve elevated this song, but then again, this song isn’t even trying to achieve this.
b-sides sound better this time though, so i’m looking forward to that.
LikeLike
The 2000s outfits in the video are impeccable. It makes me wish they’d gone for a 2000s sound as well as the look. We need some of that Britney Spears magic back. I was hanging out with some zoomers the other day and they hadn’t even heard If You Seek Amy…..
LikeLike
I see the creative vision, it is definitely enjoyable for me. Will I seek out the song, NO, but I won’t skip it either.
LikeLike
Love it! The whole album is fantastic I have it on repeat for 2 days now. I surprisingly enjoy KiiiKiii much more than I thought I would. Debut Song and BTG were really not my cup of tea. I understand that some people loved that and are disappointed with this direction, but I think it’s the right choice. If you want that kind of music, you have Young Posse doing a much better job. This song slaps! I only wish Le Sserafim would do more like that.
LikeLiked by 2 people
While Dancing Alone is my favorite of theirs, and I was disappointed at first in this direction for them, this song bewilderingly grew on me big time.
At first I was all like 7,7,7,7 but now I’d probably say it is 8,8,8,8
Underdogs is the best b-side this time. The rest are nothing to get too excited about, but aren’t terrible.
LikeLike