There are vastly different expectations for promotion and release dates between Korea and Japan. While it’s expected that everything (song, mv, album) will drop at once for a Korean comeback, Japan tends to announce release dates very far in advance and dribble out pieces of the project over the space of weeks or even months. Irene & Seulgi’s Cheetah, for instance, has been available on streaming since September. Fans have probably already played the song out. But now, a month and a half later, the music video and physical album has finally been released.

Red Velvet have a pretty strong — if small — Japanese discography. It’s nice to see them continue to release material, even if it’s in the form of a sub-unit. Cheetah is much sleeker and dancefloor ready than the group’s summer comeback Surfin’ Boy. The song follows the now popular electro-house trend, bounding along a thumping beat that feels almost more suited to a catwalk than a dancefloor. This style of instrumental is never unwelcome in my book, but so far K-pop (and J-pop) has had a difficult time tying equally enjoyable melodies to the track.

This is Cheetah‘s main issue, as well. There’s nothing wrong with the song, but it lacks a killing point when it comes to melody. The songwriters try a few catchy little earworms, but none stick as well as they need to. Because of this, Cheetah pounces by pleasantly, carried by energy and the ladies’ assured performance. But once the song is finished, very little about it resonates strongly in memory. In this way, it might as well be background music to a day out shopping (or maybe a shopping montage in a K/J-drama).

Grade: C+