I gave the whole album a proper listen, and I decided that indeed, it was worth a whole review. It would only be fair. This is easily one of the strongest albums released of 2023. It definitely deserves to be called ‘REBOOT’- given how this is easily their best album to date.
NOTE: This will not be including ‘BONA BONA‘ and ‘MOVE‘ as I have made separate posts on those songs already. However, I will mention that my impression of BONA BONA has improved since my review already, I would now give it an 8.5 instead of an 8. Additionally, I think ‘MOVE’ is ready to be promoted to a legendary song so its score has increased from a 9.75 to a 10. These updated scores will be taken into consideration when giving the overall album rating. Also, I want to try something new and include a few key points that I took down when I listened to each song for the first time to give a general idea before reading the more in-depth description.
I Want Your Love
- Sleek and polished production
- Self-assured vocal performance
- Hook could be less cringe (“don’t kill my vibe ye” is a bit :/)
The first thing that stands out when I listened to this song is how well-produced it is. The mixing is clean, the instruments are clear, the different sections are distinctly divided without the song feeling disjointed, and the percussion is insistent in driving the song forward from beginning to end. It is quite impressive, honestly. The song would further improve if the main hook was not so cringe, and if the melodies following the drop are equally as strong as the immense pre-chorus, which uses a continuously ascending melodic line that adds a distinct flair to the melody. TREASURE themselves sound amazing.
I recently found out that this is also produced by member Junkyu, who is responsible for the excellent ‘MOVE’. He is quickly becoming one of my favourite idol producers.
Hooks – 8
Production – 10
Vocal Delivery – 9
Overall – 9.25
RUN
- Strong chorus and melodies
- Production swells with the melodies
- Creative key CHANGEEEEE 😀
While RUN suffers from minor inconsistencies, with some sections working better than others, most of the song does not fail in giving a euphoric rush of uplifting emotion.
I really like the choice of the chords within the song, particularly the first verse which flirts with major-minor interplay to great effect, intensifying the emotions conveyed considerably.
Like ‘BONA BONA’, the tinny-sounding toy drum makes its appearance once more, but it was used far more effectively. Instead of using it as an introduction to the drop in the chorus like in the title track, it was inserted as a tool to lay the foundation for building up the song in the pre chorus. Paired with the sustained singing with a strong choice of chords, it makes for a very satisfying and emotive build-up.
The chorus is very strong, keeping it grounded in spite of the less melodic and more percussion heavy sections. The section contains some of the strongest melodies the whole album.
My favourite part of the song is the interesting key change, which was transitioned into through a sung sliding note, and upscales a whole step rather than a half step. This makes the difference in atmosphere (the sense of uplift) even more apparent and the climax feel incredibly satisfying. Few K-pop songs do that these days.
Hooks – 10
Production – 9
Vocal Delivery – 10
Rap Delivery – 9
Overall – 9.5
G.O.A.T (RAP UNIT) ft. Lee Younghyun
- Trumpetsssss – Greatest showman esque?
- Rap-Chant heavy
- Grande song
- Good showcase of the rappers
Honestly, my main problem with ‘G.O.A.T’ is really only one thing- it doesn’t have enough hooks. Sure, it has a grand production that is almost The Greatest Showman-esque, with its trumpets and the rhythm that is used as a foundation for other epic-sounding songs (reminds me specifically of ‘This Is Me’, although not fully). It is performed convincingly by all the rappers, and of course, the legendary Lee Younghyun from the OG YG Girl Group (which was vocal based), BIG MAMA (which most K-pop stans would likely have never heard of, I was fortunate enough to have been introduced in online communities). Her power belts are one of a kind within the industry. Absolutely stellar. Despite being such a great listening experience, there is not much you can remember about ‘G.O.A.T’ melodically, and it is a real shame. And if I am being nitpicky, I still think that the production could have used more dynamic contrast. Nevertheless, it was pretty darn epic already, so I’ll take what I can get.
Hooks – 7
Production – 9
Rap Delivery – 10
Vocal Delivery – 10
Overall – 9
STUPID
- Guitar base
- Classic melodies
- Production has geometry dash music elements
A lot of ‘Stupid’ sounds familiar- almost too familiar. It strongly harks back to Big-Bang’s work without stepping out from its comfort zone. It is performed well like every other song in the album, but it is not enough to make me come back to this song in particular. The most interesting thing about it is the ‘geometry dash’ elements in the chorus (note: geometry dash is a mobile game that uses a lot of electronic music in conjunction with navigating through the game map). This makes it somewhat fresh. Overall, not my favourite from the album. It is perfectly serviceable, but I’d rather listen to something else from Big Bang instead.
Hooks – 7
Production – 8
Vocal Delivery – 8
Rap Delivery – 9
Overall – 8
The Way To
- Emotive Ballad
- Real Piano
- Clean yet Raw Vocal Mixing 😀
- Strings in the bridge 😀
- Strong Vocal Performance
- Swells slightly, drops then the KEY CHANGES
- Dynamics 😀
This, by far, is one of my favourite ballads I’ve listened to from a K-pop group in a long time. It only needs stronger melodies to truly make it exceptional.
I’m very happy with the song’s production. It used real instruments, minimal vocal processing, just a touch of reverb to help create the song’s atmosphere. It fulfils my idea of what a ballad should be. Most K-pop ballads fail to commit to being true ballads. At their core, they are meant to seize your heart and make them feel emotions you didn’t know you can feel- and ‘The Way To’ really commits. I’ve emphasised time and time again about how much I love a good dynamic swell and a key change, and this delivered completely. I will always be very biased to these kinds of songs. And I love me a good violin too. Bonus points for that.
Again, the melodies could be stronger. But that’s it!
Hooks – 8
Production – 10
Vocal Delivery – 10
Overall – 9.5
WONDERLAND
- Lacks hooks?
- Tropical beat
Not bad, but not great. I am particularly frustrated about the main hook that is followed up its admittedly nice tropical-sounding beat drop, as the more it repeats in the song, the more one-note it ends up sounding. Yet simultaneously, the more I listen to the song as a whole, the more appreciate it. I think I need more time to make up my mind with this one, so I am giving it a flat 8 for now.
Hooks – 8
Production – 8
Vocal Delivery – 8
Rap Delivery – 8
Overall – 8
B.O.M.B
- Feel-good, hard to hate
- Already feels like a classic
How is Junkyu so good? I am left speechless. After this and ‘MOVE’, it has become official. I will always be eagerly looking forward to the songs he produces.
I will admit, when I assessed B.O.M.B through my usual biases (more dynamic production, interesting musical choices, etc.), I was not too impressed. However, when I readjusted my expectations to what the song is- a straightforward piece of feel-good pop- I was able to see the gem of a song B.O.M.B is.
The whole production feels like a warm hug- fuzzy, cuddly, and comforting. It is the fireplace after you walked out in the cold for far too long, welcoming you home with open arms. The choice of chords are not even particularly interesting, but they are indeed ‘tried and true’, and it works very well. For a song like this, it fully delivered in what it wanted to be. This makes it successful.
The melodies are easily the strongest, if not the strongest within the album. It already feels like an instant classic- which is not something I say for many songs. It only helps that TREASURE feels fully in their element. Even though they have proved their versatility in ‘REBOOT’, I still think they are at their best when they handle material like ‘HELLO’ and ‘Darari’, and ‘B.O.M.B’ feels like a natural successor.
Hooks – 10
Production – 10
Vocal Delivery – 10
Rap Delivery – 10
Overall – 10
LOVESICK
- More one-dimensional than the rest of the album
If there is one word to perfectly describe ‘LOVESICK’, it would be ‘sincere’. Every single aspect about it feels ‘sincere’. Its melodies and delivery is straight to the point, no shortcuts or distraction throughout- and fully focused on delivering its message. In a sense, you can argue that it makes it sound more one-dimensional compared to the songs in the rest of the album, but nevertheless, it has its own charm. It won’t be something I will seek out too often, particularly because I find that there is too little variation in rhythm to sustain my interest. Perhaps this would also benefit with more time, so for now, a flat 8 sounds about right.
Hooks – 8
Production – 8
Vocal Delivery – 8
Overall – 8
Overall Thoughts
While ‘REBOOT’ has inconsistencies here and there, as a whole, it still makes up for a strong and cohesive body of work that lives up to its name. In particular, member Junkyu was able to shine extremely bright through his work on this album’s production, with standouts in the form of ‘MOVE’, ‘B.O.M.B’, and ‘I Want Your Love’, all of which I can see playing for the rest of the year and beyond. ‘REBOOT’ has successfully reignited my interest in TREASURE, quickly shooting them up to one of my favourite active boy groups of the moment. Particularly, in spite of my misgivings with ‘BONA BONA’, I think it was the right choice for title track as its moments of brilliance tell me that ‘REBOOT’ is only a taste of their best to come. And I believe it.
Overall Album Rating: 9.0
K-pop Evaluated 
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