GFRIEND - the discography rate ☾ #14

codecat

codecat

he/him
@Serg. @eliminathan @BEST FICTION just wanna let you know that @junglefish said that you guys are *retches* stinky dinky for these God Whisper scores

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soratami

soratami

junglefish said:
I really like the new video for Me Gustas Tu.

Hmm, that GFriend song is incredibly bland. Let me play Pingatip.

The new GFriend is... a little disappointing to me. I'm devastated about it, but I have hope that it will grow on me soon. It lacks the bombast that all of their singles have had so far that makes them amazing.

I think it'll grow on me but it's not the best of their school girl bops. Rough & Navillera still knock so they didn't really top their best with this one.

This is such a step back for them. I don't mind that they've chosen to revisit their debut sound, but this had none of the excitement of their previous releases.

Love Whisper is boring.​
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Ok but we need names to go with these observations, see if people changed their minds since then

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junglefish

junglefish

he/him
61.png

It's sweeter than chocolate
I'm melting, I'm falling for you.
sweety.png

8.211

Buddies: 10x4 @ysev, @Attis, @RUNAWAY, @nikkysan) 9.25x1 (@thommyh) 9x3 (@eatyourself, @Crisp X, @Music Is Death)
Antis: 6.5x1 (@Serg.) 7x4 (@M24, @Wills, @junglefish, @Cotton Park) 7.25x1 (@Vixen)
Hosts:
@junglefish: 7
@savilizabeths: 8.25
5 voters: 29
10 voters: 41
15 voters: 56
20 voters: 58
26 voters: 61

THIS beat Love Whisper? THIS??? Okay. I'm trying to be a gracious host but you gorls are making it hard!

I don't even hate Sweety, it's a perfectly fine album track especially in the context of its parent album but it's just very, huh, mid.

Anyway. Sweety is track numero tres on GFRIEND's special summer mini, the aptly titled 'Sunny Summer'. As we can guess by its title, the song produced by M.I.O is sickly sweet. It sticks to your teeth, it tastes like artificial strawberry flavor and it's coated in a thick layer of powder sugar. And if that wasn't enough, the lyrics are enough to give anyone Diabeetus, using chocolate, vanilla and fondant as metaphors for lurv.

Now, since when do I dislike sugary sweet songs? Since never! Like I said, Sweety is okay, it's not bad at all. I really enjoy the production which is full of twists and turns and never gets boring. The unexpected trap-ish elements are, well, unexpected and against all odds work quite well. Good for you M.I.O! Good for you. Good for you and that random guy you plagiarized. The girls sound *cough* good but it's easily one of the least memorable vocal performances from the group. It all seems a bit phoned in which, again, is okay. Yuju deserves a break from time to time.

Honestly, I think for me the biggest problem with Sweety is that it beat Love Whisper.

@eatyourself (9) : The production is to die for!!! I wish there was a bit more of the garage beat from the intro and pre chorus.

@M24 (7) : Another quirky, Twice-lite song. I much prefer Creme Brulee (which has smarter food related lyrics ddd) and Contrail to both of those (much more catchy to my ears). It's still good!

@Attis (10) : Why K-pop don't do more bubblegum bass songs like this ?

@Wills (7) : This one’s fast!

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junglefish

junglefish

he/him
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Season of Glass
Glass Bead
Neverland

Flower Bud
Me Gustas Tu
Under the Sky

Snowflake
Rough
Say My Name

LOL
Fall In Love
NAVILLERA
Compass
Gone with the Wind

The Awakening
Hear the Wind Sing
Fingertip
Contrail
Crush

Parallel
Ave Maria
Life is a Party
Red Umbrella

Rainbow
Summer Rain
Rainbow

Time for the Moon Night
Time for the Moon Night
Love Bug
Flower Garden
Tik Tik

Sunny Summer
Sunny Summer

Time for Us
Sunrise
You Are Not Alone
L.U.V
Glow
Only 1
Our Secret
Truly Love
Show Up
It's You

Fever Season
Fever
Mr. Blue
Smile
Wish
Paradise
Hope

Fallin' Light
Fallin' Light
Emotional Days
Memoria
Flower
My My My!

回:Labyrinth
Labyrinth
Crossroads
Here We Are
Eclipse
Dreamcatcher

回:Song of the Sirens
Apple
Eye of the Storm
Room of Mirrors
Tarot Cards

回:Walpurgis Night
MAGO
Love Spell
Three of Cups
GRWM
Better Me
Night Drive
Wheel of the Year

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junglefish

junglefish

he/him
*crickets*










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You're my dreamcatcher, dreamcatcher
Make me wait for the night.
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8.230

Buddies: 10x5 (@boombazookajoe, @junglefish, @RUNAWAY, @vague, @Music Is Death) 9.5x1 (@savilizabeths) 9x3 (@eatyourself, @ysev, @Slice of Life)
Antis: 4.5x1 (@Serg.) 6.5x1 (@Attis) 6.75x1 (@M24)
Hosts:
@junglefish: 10
@savilizabeths: 9.5
5 voters: 58
10 voters: 41
15 voters: 60
20 voters: 58
26 voters: 60

This elimination is so fucking stupid.

Composed by Kim Yeon-seo (IZ*ONE's Eyes, TWICE's Love Foolish, BVNDIT's Dumb...), dvwn (Chanyeol's SSFW, SHINee's Heart Attack...) and minGtion (Red Velvet's Good, Bad, Ugly, Weki Meki's Tiki-Taka...), Dreamcatcher is the penultimate track of GFRIEND's EP 'Labyrinth'. On top of being the first album of the '回' trilogy, 'Labyrinth' was also the first release of the group under Big Hit, which is apparent when you look at the list of collaborators which is full of new names.

Dreamcatcher definitely benefits from that influx of new collaborators. What could be the typical obligatory K-Pop ballad becomes something delicate and poignant in how restrained it is. The instrumental, light and breezy, meld r'n'b influences with a dash of acoustic-singer-songwriter vibes and a generous serving of electronic beats. The result is one of the most beautiful songs in GFRIEND's repertoire, managing to be as emotional and nostalgic as their dramatic violins and big chorus and high notes songs while being the complete opposite. My favorite part of the song is of course the stunning you're my dreamcatcher, dreamcatcher hook that is sung once by Eunha, once by SinB and once by Yuju. All of them do a stellar job, their voices lazily trailing along to the beat.

There's something so relaxing to Dreamcatcher. Even the girls sound like they're ready to doze off and rest under the loving gaze of the eponymous dreamcatcher, here referring to someone they long to see and wait for every night. I know, I wish this song was about the group of the same name but alas... It wasn't meant to be. No Siyeon x Umji pairing for us.

Unfortunately, you decided it deserved to be the first song to leave the top 60, so here we are. Let's see if some of you at least had something to say to justify your poor scores!

@eatyourself (9) : This should have been a b-side to Apple! It's so sultry and magical and fairylike.

@M24 (6.75) : It starts off so hauntingly, and I wish the song had carried that vibe all along. The end result is still lovely, I just don't find the chorus too special.

@Wills (7) : I wonder what “GFriend” by Dreamcatcher would sound lik– oh wait it’s just BOCA again



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junglefish

junglefish

he/him
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Gently holding each other's hand
I want to walk down this path with you.
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8.240

Buddies: 10x2 (@codecat, @ysev) 9.5x3 (@boombazookajoe, @Slice of Life, @savilizabeths) 9x2 (@RUNAWAY, @Music Is Death)
Antis: 6.5x1 (@Monado) 7x2 (@M24, @Attis) 7.25x3 (@junglefish, @eliminathan, @Vixen)
Hosts:
@junglefish: 7.25
@savilizabeths: 9.5
5 voters: 46
10 voters: 50
15 voters: 50
20 voters: 56
26 voters: 59

Hmm. So... Did I underscore Fall in Love? Yes. Do I think it's a good song? Yes, I do! Do I also think it's a bit unremarkable? Yeah... Am I sad to see it leave? Not really.

Now that all that is cleared up, let's move on to the writeup! Fall in Love is the opening track of GFRIEND's first full length album, 'LOL'. Yes, the album that opens with an intro that samples bits of NAVILLERA and for some reason decides to follow that intro not with NAVILLERA but with Fall in Love. I mean, what the hell is that? Was SouMu already trying to sabotage GFRIEND back in the day? Because it didn't make sense back then and it still doesn't. It's actually infuriating but whatever, let's move on, it's not like Fall in Love is reponsible for its spot on the tracklist.

Composed by Oreo, a team of composers who worked with Red Velvet, Lovelyz and the former top girl group in the Korean peninsula Melody Day, Fall in Love is... cute! It's a very bubbly and sweet song that does what it set out to do very well. It's the kind of song that makes you want to fall in love for the very first time, feeling those butterflies and all that. From the instrumentalisation to the girls' vocals, it's the equivalent of cotton candy in musical form. A cotton candy your crush bought for you at the fair, one you know is gonna leave your hands all sticky and gross but whatever, you love it.

My issue with Fall in Love is that once it ends, I never remember what it sounded like. It's one of the rare GFRIEND songs I don't start to hum when I read its title, which explains the middling score I gave it. It's missing that little spark that's so often present in GFRIEND's discography, especially when they tackle this kind of sound. If it had only been up to me, Fall in love would have left a few eliminations ago but #59 seems fair.

@eatyourself (8) : Sunshine, seashore, the scent of sunscreen, popsicles, flip-flops.

@M24 (7) : Some lovely string melodies here! Unfortunately, the production sounds very similar to other stronger songs in this album, so it gets a low-ish score from me. It's still enjoyable when it comes on, for sure. I'm only just now realizing how much I like LOL as an album.


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soratami

soratami

junglefish said:
Anyway. Sweety is track numero tres on GFRIEND's special summer mini, the aptly titled 'Sunny Summer'. As we can guess by its title, the song produced by M.I.O is sickly sweet. It sticks to your teeth, it tastes like artificial strawberry flavor and it's coated in a thich layer of powder sugar. And if that wasn't enough, the lyrics are enough to give anyone Diabeetus, using chocolate, vanilla and fondant as metaphors for lurv.​
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junglefish said:
Composed by Oreo, a team of composers who worked with Red Velvet, Lovelyz and the former top girl group in the Korean peninsula Melody Day, Fall in Love is... cute! It's a very bubbly and sweet song that does what it set out to do very well. It's the kind of song that makes you want to fall in love for the very first time, feeling those butterflies and all that. From the instrumentalisation to the girls' vocals, it's the equivalent of cotton candy in musical form. A cotton candy your crush bought for you at the fair, one you know is gonna leave your hands all sticky and gross but whatever, you love it.​
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I'm living for these evocative food metaphors. George R R Martin whomst?
 
junglefish

junglefish

he/him
57.png

(TIE)

But like the rain that stopped
You had disappeared.
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8.25

Buddies: 9.5x1 (@aux) 9.25x1 (@Wills) 9x6(@boombazookajoe, @Slice of Life, @Crisp X, @Serg., @Music Is Death, @Remorque)
Antis: 7x3 (@soratami, @eliminathan, @thommyh) 7.5x3 (@M24, @Cotton Park, @Vixen), 7.75x1 (@BEST FICTION)
Hosts:
@junglefish: 8.75
@savilizabeths: 8
5 voters: 53
10 voters: 53
15 voters: 46
20 voters: 52
26 voters: 57

Two songs share the 57th spot and I've decided for no particular reason that Red Umbrella would be the first to fall! No 10s here but six 9s and not one score lower than 7! Pretty impressive for a bside from an era most people ignored because they didn't like the single.

Composed by Heuktae, who's worked with the group before and also collaborated with Lovelyz and Apink, Red Umbrella is inspired by Shibuya-kei, a genre of music that mixes jazz, electro and soul and had its glory days in the 90s in Japan before knowing a kind of resurgence in Korea, thanks in part to the amazing Clazziquai, comparable to the resurgence of City pop only on a smaller scale. But anyway, we're here to talk about Red Umbrella, not Shibuya-kei which is too bad because I don't really have anything to say about it!

Don't get me wrong, it's catchy, well produced and all in all a great track, it's just never been one of my favorites from GFRIEND or even from Parallel. It's the kind of song I love when I listen to the album in its entirety but I wouldn't seek out by itself. Still, like I said, the production is very good here and you can hear those shibuya-kei influences, but what I get even more from it is some kind of... disco-for-beginners vibe which I love. The lyrics are very sweet, talking about sharing an umbrella with someone during a rain shower and growing closer to that person in that short moment. Kinda bittersweet too actually, as that person leaves once the rain stops, but hey! Just keep your eyes on the weather forecast and you might meet them again, who knows?

@eatyourself (8.75) : I looooooooove the production but I want another chorus!!

@M24 (7.5) : I really like this, I just wish the instrumental were a little more playful like in the intro. I didn't realize the lyrics were so sad, because the song is quite upbeat.

@Attis (8.5) : Love the little bossa nova influence

@Wills (9.25) : The chorus melody on this is so lovely: soothing but never sleepy


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