(Warning: Long Review!)
In my review of ‘SHEESH’, I observed a disconnect between the girl-crush persona that the BABYMONSTER members put on and their more childish and juvenile sounding voices particularly when they start chanting or singing in unison, which is mildly distracting if one pays attention. This can also be observed in ‘BATTER UP’. Due to the pure girl-crush nature of those two tracks, I realised that if BABYMONSTER took a step towards embracing this childish quality as a part of their future releases, it would largely benefit them. After all, from their branding and their age, it just seems appropriate. Many have mentioned how some members don’t seem quite natural when putting this persona, for they lack the maturity that their seniors BLACK PINK had when they debuted. I personally agree with this criticism to an extent, though ironically, the youngest member, Chiquita, who this critique should apply most strongly to, is one of the members who I strongly believe fully embodied the concept convincingly. Just a few months later, ‘FOREVER’ seems to be the answer to these criticisms, proving to the world that they can do the girl-crush concept while not trying to forgo their youth.
‘FOREVER’ is by no means a perfect song, jarring some listeners due to the somewhat abrupt transitions between certain sections, some more jarring than others. Particularly, the transition into the second verse and back to the pre-chorus is quite the jump. I think the track would largely benefit from taking notes from IVE’s ‘HEYA’, where transitions from section to section are absolutely seamless, and some of the best I’ve seen in a K-pop song. I understand what they were going for- they want to show the different sides to them- and it worked! I mentioned Chiquita in the introduction, and she proves my words in her dance solo while her fellow band member ASA delivers a rather hype rap verse, with the charisma and facial expressions to match. It is just the framing of this idea lacked some elegance- which is rather ironic considering the fancy music video that matches the aesthetic of IVE’s ‘I AM’ MV (no surprise considering both MVs were produced by the same studio).
With that out of the way, I can finally discuss what makes ‘FOREVER’ successful in spite of these weaknesses. Firstly, the melodies hit. Quite immediately too. At this point, I shouldn’t be surprised given how immediate BLACK PINK’s melodies (usually) hit for me too, but ‘FOREVER’ stands out because this applies not only to the pre-chorus melodies, which is usually the most melodic part of BLACK PINK (and BABYMONSTER’s) songs, but in its chorus as well. Nick from thebiaslist (in his review) compared ‘FOREVER’ to BLACK PINK’s legendary ‘As If It’s Your Last’, and while the atmosphere and vibe of both tracks couldn’t be more different, both have extremely melodic choruses, though ‘FOREVER’ doesn’t quite get there. The chorus embraces this juvenile quality whole heartedly, with the girls dropping their fierce persona and embrace their youthful smiles, appropriately matched with its cute hook (which will be a hit or miss for some, ‘fore-e-e-e-e-e-e-ver’). I wasn’t sure of it at first, but upon further listens, I’ve grown to embrace it. Secondly, the song just keeps getting better especially towards the end, with the girls delivering a stand out bridge and a particularly moving climax, utilising the individual strengths of the different members to a great effect. In this point of the song, I finally found what I had been looking for from BABYMONSTER- a moment where the talents of the girls were finally maximised. Rami used her head voice rather than a belt, giving it a soaring float less quality that perfectly synergised with the cathartic key-change. The transition into the key-change by Asa, who is arguably the most charismatic member in BABYMONSTER overall, just amplified the effect to the max. There may have been a bit too many adlibs used in the song in the finale, with some landing more than others, but the overall effect was not diminished. Ultimately, the song leaves me incredibly satisfied in a way many recent K-pop releases haven’t. Because of this, I’m even willing to forgive most of the song’s limitations.
Delivery-wise, I’m mostly satisfied. I am quite happy to say that I think Pharita may gradually be getting better as a vocalist. Ever since ‘SHEESH’, her belting has always left me wanting more from her, and it seems to me that she has been quite favored to be one of the group’s most prominent vocalists along with Rami, getting more of the high notes. She has some of most high belts in ‘FOREVER’, even more than the main vocalist, but I think she managed to deliver the effect that the song needed at the time. In ‘SHEESH’, she didn’t ‘scratch the itch’, but this time, she did. However, I must say that while she did the pre-chorus justice, Ahyeon’s rendition actually eclipses it. Something about her execution is so soulful and emotive, delivering the maximum effect. Her rapping did the job, though I still think that she would be better off focusing more on her vocal talent. The girls did a great job all-round. I’ll hold back on the perfect score for now, because I realised that I’ve been giving ’10s’ too often, and I’ll be moderating my scoring in blog more moving forward. It may rise in the future depending on how I feel about it in the context of the evolving K-pop soundscape.
Overall, ‘FOREVER’ is the song that I’ve been expecting from BABYMONSTER since their debut, where not only a good portion of their potential and talent feels translated into their music, but the juvenile quality of their chanting voices becomes incorporated into their sound and doesn’t act as a distraction. It is truly a step in the right direction.
Hooks – 9
Production – 9
Vocal Delivery – 9
Rap Delivery – 9
Overall – 9
K-pop Evaluated 
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