Those hoping Dreamcatcher offshoot UAU would pick up the rock torch and act as a continuation of Dreamcatcher Proper seem to be out of luck. Instead, UAU has adopted a more dance-friendly sound. This is in keeping with many Dreamcatcher’s b-sides, which just so happen to be my favorite songs from their discography. However, UAU has a problem of incompleteness. So far, none of their music feels totally fleshed out.
New track Gene suffers a similar fate to last year’s 2 Months. The song borrows popular dancefloor elements. Its instrumental thumps with resounding electro percussion and the occasional tropical flourish, but the final product feels weirdly undercooked. The verses do a nice job setting up the central drop, though their melodies fail to command attention in the way you’d hope. It’s the monotone chorus that truly neutralizes Gene‘s potential.
To me, this hook feels like a placeholder from a demo before a topliner gets in the room to compose an actual chorus. Its fragments of barely-there melody trace the lines of the instrumental drop, which itself isn’t that unique or notable. The song just kind of lays there, refusing to do anything dynamic or exciting. To be honest, I’m a bit baffled. With all the talent involved, how can a track end up so middle of the road?
| Hooks | 7 |
| Â Production | 8 |
| Â Longevity | 8 |
| Â Bias | 7 |
| Â RATING | 7.5 |
Grade: C
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
I have to agree. I was honestly horrified by their release last year. All of the tracks were produced with a lower quality than we’ve come to expect with Dreamcatcher. They sounded rushed and it felt like Ollounder was struggling to adapt to UAU’s sound.
While this album as a whole is an improvement, they may benefit from working with other producers. Ollounder excels at harder rock and metal sounds, but he can’t translate his skills well into dance pop seemingly.
Also, I can’t help but notice that the budget for this release seems to have decreased dramatically. The MV appears to have been done with a bare minimum budget. While the CEO is notoriously strategic about allocating funds, this development feels a bit concerning to me nonetheless.
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If I did not see the Dreamcatcher name on the posting, I would not have guessed this is an offshoot of Dreamcatcher.
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I as excited for UAU’s comeback since I really liked 2 months’ vibe as a song overall (tho I did forget this was coming out since most groups I follow don’t generally release on a wednesday EST time), and while I don’t like the chorus as much as 2 Months, I do like the verses. it seems like this release is playing it similar to 2 Months with most of the lyrics being in English.
it’s a serviceable summer-ish song to me.
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Definitely like this better than 2 Months but that was the worst song on the last EP so I have higher hopes for the b-sides.
But yeah. Like with a lot of recent music if the peak of the production here during the chorus was the baseline during the verses and everything had just a few more layers and a little more energy I’d be much more into it.
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