Asian Junkie Asian pop. Without discretion.
Nine Muses A, a sub-unit of Kyungri, Hyemi, Keumjo, and Sojin, recently released “Lip 2 Lip“.
This was actually surprising in that I expected something closer to Orange Caramel than more of a normal pop affair, and it was a rather pleasant initial surprise. The verses and the uptempo instrumental in particular standout as highlights, establishing a sound that draws the listener in from the start and is easy to get into.
That said, my main gripe is that the track’s weakness lies in the chorus, which sorta killed a lot of my enthusiasm for the track until the verses restarted again. Furthermore, in order to (smartly) mask some of the musical deficiencies of the members, there’s not a whole lot of variety to the track after one cycle through.
Still, I definitely wouldn’t say “Lip 2 Lip” is a step in the wrong direction, I just think it’s a mixed bag and the end result is entertaining but ultimately unmoving.
—–
The music video was also parts amazing and confusing.
It starts off with a campy intro that doesn’t feel like it’s on purpose, which just ends up being cringy and distracting instead. That’s especially so when it completely changes the tone when the actual track starts.
On the other hand, the visuals are there and they’re amazing.
Yes yes, Kyungri is amazing, but Sojin is just stunning.
Always seems like she has a lot of female fans, but she deserves to be lusted over and objectified by men too, dammit. Stan Sojin, thanks.
I also appreciated the reaction shots for humor.
That said, there’s something weird about the concept of four women in their mid-20s gathering around like schoolgirls and seriously acting like a first kiss is a major deal. Like it’s a great tongue-in-cheek concept … but this wasn’t intended like that.
—–
On one hand, in some ways “Lip 2 Lip” was a lot better than I ever expected from this sub-unit since the members were announced. On the other hand, it definitely wasn’t something that made an impact or that will likely change their group’s trajectory going forward. More importantly, with Nine Muses themselves struggling, I have to wonder why exactly this sub-unit was necessary to begin with if they weren’t going to do something drastic and specific to the talents of these members.
