It’s become an expectation that HYBE groups will film music videos for at least two tracks on each album and ENHYPEN are already back with a clip for their song Checkmate. This follows the release of Bloody Paradise released last month and offers a more thrilling sound.
2026 is the year where K-pop’s tempo officially heightened. This has seemingly come at the expense of fully-fleshed out song structures and… well… singing… but we can at least take solace that the industry has rediscovered its place on the dancefloor. Checkmate is ENHYPEN’s most high-octane track since Drunk-Dazed, released all the way back in 2021. Unfortunately, it’s also a full minute shorter and must contend with that clipped runtime. Gone is the possibility of a bridge or any fun diversions that don’t serve the song’s immediate purpose. One could argue that Checkmate even lacks a chorus, though its insistent “check! check!” shout-along hook takes that position.
What we’re left with is a fun blast of energy, pummeling from beginning to end. I love the sound of Checkmate, but I wonder if it might be the audio version of empty calories. Because the track lacks real songwriting substance, it feels like it might peter out quickly. It tastes good in the moment, but I doubt whether I’ll return to it often.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 9 |
| Longevity | 7 |
| Bias | 8 |
| RATING | 7.75 |
Grade: C+
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
It sounds more like a concept waiting for a song than a full song itself. The mood board of a song. On the plus side, the refrain “checkmate checkmate” is an easy one to shout and bounce around to – that’s the main selling point for this ditty.
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I’m glad to see they put out a MV for this, cuz it was my only add from their album. A solid 8 from me.
BTW Nick, will you review the new 1VERSE song? I think it’s up to snuff with their past songs you reviewed.
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Fair enough!
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the more i think abt it that group honestly felt like a yeonmi park ass money laundering front 😭 cuz how else do u explain their whole marketing revolving around them having north korean members who never listened to kpop b4 they defected n their agency saved them or wtv n said north korean members end up going on an indefinite hiatus after expressing being uncomfortable w how much their background got talked abt
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Well at least they were having enough fun at the end of music video as God Knows we were not
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Song is fine/solid, just doesn’t do much beyond the energy of the hook. I was hoping the music video would enhance the experience but I honestly don’t see the point of this mv. Feels very insignificant and like a waste of a potentially striking combination of song+visuals. Oh well, maybe they will promote on music shows with choreography
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Drunk-Dazed is my favourite song of theirs so this is probably my second favourite song of theirs now lol. This type of sound works a lot better with the image they’re going for than most of what they put out, imo.
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