It’s nice to fall in love with a group’s music right off the bat, but I also love when an act wins me over bit by bit until I become a huge fan. Such is the case with NEXZ, whose Beat-Boxer impressed last year but just kept growing more and more addictive as the months went on. I’m now very much into their quirky dance sound and chaotic energy. New single Mmchk seals the deal.
Mmchk is all over the place, and I mean that as a compliment. It takes the messy “pots and pans” criticism so many of us have about modern boy group material and transforms it into something very fun. The opening verse alone is absolutely bonkers, sounding as if it’s about to fall off the rails at any moment. NEXZ keep it on track through sheer force of personality, delivering a rapid-fire flow that matches the breathlessness of the production. From here, we move into a more tightly-structured hook that blooms into a brief melodic climax. I love the variety on display here. There’s so much going on, yet each element compliments each other well.
The keyword here is “energy.” Mmchk doesn’t slump for even a moment. The song may be short, but it packs as much as it can into its taut frame. I’m impressed that they were even able to throw a bridge into the mix. I guess that’s what happens when a song is so speedy throughout. JYP Entertainment’s A&R department is on a roll this year and Mmchk may just be their best release yet.
| Hooks | 9 |
| Production | 9 |
| Longevity | 9 |
| Bias | 9 |
| RATING | 9 |
Grade: A-
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
A rare case where a spoken chorus works well! Especially when there’s short but fun burst of melodies right after! It’s bonkers, I highkey fw it! Might grow on me
8.75 (9, 9, 8, 9) to be safe.
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I think they’ve finally found the silly/hard balance here. Despite falling in love with so many of them on Nizi Project 2, I haven’t enjoyed most of their music. But this is really fun. A well-deserved 9.
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Possibly their strongest single yet. It doesn’t do anything new per se but uses older motifs and samples in very good ways – good curation and taste.
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Thank god for the energy on display in today’s releases lol. I like the variety on display here, but at the same time I’m left wanting more time for each distinct piece to be fleshed out more.
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I don’t know, it doesn’t work as well for me. An 8-8.25. The outro and the second part of the chorus are the best parts,
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ALERT: SOMEONE HAS PERFECTED THE POST NEOSOUND!
This is a renewal. This is what I have been asking for, this is hip-hop post-NCT and honestly this is the sound that will take the genre back to where it was pre-2020 for me.
Let’s stop trying to instill radicalism in commodification of our arts. It’s time to reject the notion of minimalism and atonality just to stand out. Not everything needs to be noisy and paradoxically organized chanting for it to be “alpha”.
This is fun, idyllic in the sense of you can hear yourself in an alleyway in the 2000s and the commerce is going on in the back. This is all of hip-hop from the past and the present — deconstructed but rebuilt. This is honestly miraculous, I guess now I have to give NEXZ its dues this is needed and this is such a breath of fresh air. This is definitely going on my best of the year and honestly this is inspiring. 9.5/10
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forgot to pay homage to those who contributed to this sound namely: ARrC, idntt, ALL(H)OURS, IDID, BOYNEXTDOOR, EVNNE, POW
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WOAHH i loved this but i actually wasn’t expecting a super high rating! nexz is one of my favorite groups atm, and any song of theirs i didn’t like initially has grown on me bc of their performances. i knew it was gonna be catchy from the teaser but i’m so happy with the chorus after hearing the full song
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I played these guys a ton last year. Over half a dozen big hits for me, and all their releases were no-skips. They took time to grow on me though, which I think will be the case here as well. I agree that it’s some well-balanced rambunctiousness on first listen.
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This is so fun! Can’t wait to watch the performance, as NEXZ are such good performers. The chorus almost reminds me of Sean Paul shenanagins in the best way but they also have standout vocal melodies surrounding it, and then other extra goodies all over the place.
I love this song! 10,9,9,10 = 9.5
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