I wasn’t sure if I was going to review SHINee my initial lukewarm reaction to ‘The Feeling’, but after the release of the controversial ‘Hard’, I think it would make for an interesting post to pit the two songs together.
SHINee is undoubtedly one of the most beloved (and still currently active) 2nd get acts in K-pop. Their discography has been absolutely stellar to say the least. From meme-inspiring ‘Ring Ding Dong’ that represents some of the best of experimental K-pop, to classic tropical house done right in ‘View’, to the funky ‘Atlantis’ that is quite unlike any other K-pop song out there, SHINee have proved themselves to be undoubtedly versatile. They are able to elevate any release, even if it may not be outstanding, to a different level just because it is them pulling it off.
This remains true for ‘The Feeling’. Its production emanates classic summer flourishes, dipping into a nostalgic piano chord progression that makes up the foundation of most of the song. Paired with the almost hazy vocal mixing and airy vocal delivery, it quite literally screams ‘summer’. It is quite cliche, but the song emanates what every young adult author would write when describing the atmosphere that precedes a summer romance, or just the stereotypical idea of summer in western ideals.
Perhaps this choice to emulate the summer feeling also slightly backfired on the strength of the song’s hooks. In the moment, it is very pleasant to listen to, but as soon as the song ends, I no longer hear the song’s melodies resonating at the back of my head like I do with many other K-pop song’s released this year. I think this can be partially attributed to the lack of development in the song’s post-chorus which would have nicely rounded off the melodic development (less of the oh-oh-oh-oh).
One of my favourite things about the song is the inclusion of the trumpet solo riff in the chorus breakdown following the vocal melodies finish doing their thing, and bringing it back at the very end with more melodic variation. It is pretty rare for K-pop to include instrument solos, so I this earns it quite a bit of bonus points.
Another thing I particularly appreciate about the song’s production is the way it takes it time and does not rush from section to section. These days, most songs are in a hurry to move from one section to the next to make it more appropriate for TikTok and streaming purposes. This trend practically eliminates these opportunities where the production could have time to develop itself and for moments of the song to take a short breather, with producers instead choosing to work within this more limited time frame and show their their prowess here. Hence, this change is refreshing, as seen as how after the chorus, there is about 4 bars of just the instrumental bleeding through before the second verse starts. These seemingly small inclusions were what led the song to clock at around 4 minutes, yet it felt much faster. This is a testament to how immersive and effective the song’s production is.
I think ultimately, it is hard to deny that ‘The Feeling’ has many strengths. Because of the song’s somewhat weaker hooks, I’m not going to be as inclined to play it again and again. But this song succeeded (over the last 2 weeks of listening to it) of becoming my go-to song when looking for the particular summer sound that it emulates. Because of how important the song’s production is in making it as good as it is, I shall double the points from the production to make up for the lack of the rap verse.
Hooks – 8
Production – 10
Vocal Delivery – 10
Overall – 9.5
I’ve been lurking around the K-pop review community and witnessing the many mixed reactions to ‘Hard’. Honestly, it is completely understandable. Wherever you stand, I am with you. Both sides have made quite valid points. At the end of the day, music ultimately comes down to personal preference. As for me, ‘Hard’ hits more of my criteria than it does not, which makes it difficult to it to get a particularly low score. (in my blog, the lower 8s is considered a ‘low’ score because I rate much higher than the average person).
It is hard to deny the NCT influence/inspiration within the song. No matter what anyone else has said so far, especially after becoming a huge NCT fan around late last year, it is hard to separate certain production choices and vocal delivery to being NCT-esque, particularly from the 127 subunit.
Im a big fan of NCT instrumentals in general. The innovation, and interesting samples, the big switch-ups, it is easily one of the main reasons why I became such an NCT fan. The instrumental of ‘Hard’ excites me in the same way NCT instrumentals do. It does the unexpected, more often than not. I enjoyed the opening piano riff (that is strangely reminiscent of 127’s ‘Sticker’ which I adore), the funky piano chords that come in at around 0:22, and the sudden shift in tone as the piano scrambles with a sense of urgency and desperation as it transitions into the pre-chorus. I also enjoyed the way the pre-chorus started in a way what one would expect from a typical SM pre-chorus, all smooth and connected, only to drop the legato and introduce propulsive beats in a descending pitch that builds the song up in a very short time with surprising potency. It is only from NCT, or more accurately, SM productions where these sort of interesting musical choices happen.
I can keep on going about the little things that made me smile in the song. The choir sample at 1:03 to finish off the chorus. The sudden shift of energy at 1:14 when Key comes in. The scrambling piano making a comeback at 1:56. It’s just good stuff. I’m very biased when it comes down to these sorts of things.
On the other hand, I am not particularly happy about the section starting 2:22 where the song just went dissonant for no apparent reason. I don’t like when experimental choices feel unneeded or unnecessary. Additionally, I am also not fond of the production within the opening verses as it felt pretty flat.
Now, here comes an important question as this was the dealbreaker for many people- did the song need a proper climax? It is quite understandable where the criticisms come from. The song just sort of ended. It probably is not as satisfying as it could have been. However, given how dynamic the production was throughout, especially if one cares a lot about this sort of thing, it still felt quite satisfying. It does prevent me from giving full points (as I usually would for NCT productions), but it does not prevent me from wanting to listen to it again.
So far, all I’ve been talking about is the production, so what about the delivery? SHINee are charismatic and seasoned performance no doubt, but this kind of style has not been done too often by them. Yet of course, they were able to pull it off quite convincingly overall. What prevents me from fully loving it however, are small things. For example, I’m not sure if their delivery was fully authentic. What do I mean by that? (especially when I just said they were pretty convincing) What I mean is that some vocal delivery choices seem to conform to more modern trends, and does not fully feel like ‘SHINee’. This, along with the song’s production, is where all the ‘NCTification’ accusations stem from. Let’s look at an example. The bridge, which begins exactly like how a 127 song would, opens with Taemin’s airy and delicate vocal delivery. While he does a good job, I’m simply not full impressed. Why? Because this kind of delivery is essentially NCT 127’s Doyoung’s specialty. He holds the crown for this kind of sound, and I cannot help but compare the way the two do it, and it is undeniably similar. This makes Taemin feel almost like a caricature (SORRY TAEMIN) of the sound. This kind of comparison can be made in other instances within the song. Overall, I’m left feeling like their delivery isn’t fully authentic, despite objectively, they have done a great job. This prevents me from fully appreciating the song.
Lastly, it is quite easy to guess that the song’s hooks are the weakest part. The chorus contains surprising funk with each listen, but its verses leave something to be desired. Not much for me to say here compared to the other two criteria.
Overall, ‘Hard’ is a successful but ultimately inferior attempt on NCT 127’s sound. It is not a failure by any means, but one can’t help but think that this is not SHINee at their best.
Hooks – 7
Production – 9
Vocal Delivery – 9
Rap Delivery – 9
Overall – 8.5
Conclusion
Ultimately, I think that SHINee is at their best when they stick to tracks that emphasise their vocal prowess and their individual flairs like ‘The Feeling’. ‘Hard’ is a successful experiment, but I don’t think that SHINee is at the point where they feel truly themselves when attempting a 127-esque song. I think their next steps, especially given the chance that they will continue this kind of direction in the future, would be to find a way that they can separate themselves from their brothers in NCT in a more apparent manner without losing what makes the NCT 127 sound work in the first place.
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