Dreamcatcher deliver pop perfection with “Fly High”, their best release yet

Dreamcatcher got me hyped for their “Fly High” comeback with pictures and videos and trailers, though there was some concern over the sound being lighter for seasonal reasons. While “Fly High” is definitely less dark, it’s relieving that the song itself retains the high quality of the previous efforts while still maintaining the sound they’ve been developing since their rebranding.

Much like “Good Night“, after a brief piano introduction to set the stage for what’s to come, “Fly High” starts off like a bat out of hell serving some kind of action anime intro and/or ‘Final Fantasy‘ boss battle realness. The producers really know the way to my heart, huh? While the upbeat nature persists through the verses, things do calm down a bit to allow the track to breathe, save for the occasional harder guitar riff interjections. The fact that the heavier sounds come in bursts during the verses helps Dreamcatcher keep their edge while still achieving their goal of having a brighter, summery feel to it.

The chorus is truly outstanding, with the driving instrumental helping it surge forward at a breakneck pace while the arrangement of the explosive vocals basically creates pop perfection. It’s not a hook song, but it is memorable, with the last section in particular standing out due to the emphasis put on it with the switch in both delivery and instrumental. After the chorus, the immediate switch in tone to something more sinister was a smart way to work the harder sounds in without it interfering with the more mainstream hook as well.

Furthermore, as the momentum and volume build towards the latter stages of the song, it just gets better and better since almost entirely eschewing the softer, relaxed moments feels natural due to the rock influences. Instead of having to build with a bunch of screaming runs and adding more elements like many idol pop tracks have to, Dreamcatcher just have to incorporate up the pace and volume a bit on what they’ve already used earlier, making it feel a lot more like a natural transition.

As far as the music video goes, I feel like so much of this caters directly to me.

Mother of god, it’s creepy Siyeon fear boner gold.

Speaking of creepy, right?

Siyeon and Sua coming to kill you is cool as well.

Then there’s Yoohyeon for the more traditional visual standout.

So yeah.

Okay, so obviously I’m a fan of Dreamcatcher, but I only became that way in the last six months due to their sound and quality of their releases. That only continues to build now with “Fly High”, because while it does deviate a bit from their other two efforts, I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say this is their best song so far and it will likely be near the top among the best of releases of the year when all is said and done. Dreamcatcher have perfectly melded the line between a pure pop and hard rock sound in Korea, which helps them shine brightly among the sea of girl groups.

While my cynical ass is doubtful, hopefully “Fly High” is the song that propels them to mainstream success in Korea, because this release deserves it.

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