Release Date: March 27, 2017
Track List:
01. I`ll Be Yours
02. Thirsty
03. Love Again
04. Kumbaya (Come By Here) (소진 Solo)
05. Truth (Minah Solo)
06. Don`t Be Shy
07. I`ll Be Yours (Inst.)
Total Runtime: 00:20:56
Recommended for: People who like dance music and ballads
Not recommended for: Rap/hip-hop fans or anyone who likes indie music
Girl’s Day has had some huge hits, including the 2014 smash hit, “Something”, and its predecessor, “Expect”. Increasing digital power and physical sales put them among the top girl groups, but 2015 might have diminished their hype after they released “Ring My Bell”. Although it went on to sell almost a million digital copies, the group went on a year long hiatus. Finally coming back in 2017, will they reclaim their former glory? Or will they fall victim to the fall of the second generation girl groups?
Track Review:
Title Track: “I’ll Be Yours”
“I’ll Be Yours” is a predominantly jazz track. Something about this track that may not necessarily be a negative, is that it is quite similar to Ailee’s musical style; the only difference is that Girl’s Day features rap whereas Ailee seldom does. The highlight of this song is definitely Minah’s powerful vocals immediately after the chorus. Sojin also contributes to the pleasant vocals behind this track and isn’t easily overshadowed. However, the biggest weakness with the song comes with the MV and the dance accompanying it. Unlike their past releases, the MV is quite poorly produced and the choreography choices are rather underwhelming. All things considered, this is definitely title track worthy!
Track 2: “Thirsty”
The immediate impression from this track is its trap influences. It does have a bit of a hip hop and R’n’B feel, but it is not overwhelming. What Girl’s Day does right here is that they allow their vocals to shine here, and the focus is on the entire group; the ad-libs also contribute to the honey vocals behind this song. Another thing to note about “Thirsty”, is the wonderful blend between the English lyrics and the rest of the song. The English lyrics do not stick out like a sore thumb, which is quite the accomplishment by the lyricist.
Track 3: “Love Again”
This is an acoustic track. However, it is not too slow, nor is it all that upbeat. It has a nice blend that keeps the listener engaged without having to use various gimmicks. The only casualty, is that the girls lose a bit of individuality. Their voices are almost indistinguishable and it is difficult to identity changes in tonality (which only changes in the second half of the chorus and is lost for the rest of the song). Other than that, this is a wonderful acoustic track that highlights Girl’s Day’s vocals.
Track 4: “Kumbaya (Come By Here) – Sojin Solo
Sojin’s voice is quite pleasant in this track. She is the most underrated of Girl’s Day’s vocalists and this slow song really highlights her wonderful vocal tone. What stuck with me is that she did not overdo it. She remained in a comfortable range throughout and only belted out when it was necessary. This is one one of the more memorable tracks in the album.
Track 5: “Truth”
Minah is Girl’s Day’s strongest vocalist, and “Truth” shows us why. She flaunts different vocal registers in this track and gives a memorable high note toward the end of the song. While the song is meant to showcase her strong point as a singer, the chorus leaves much to be desired. Overall, the track is a nice showcase of what she can go but it doesn’t push her to the limit and feels too safe.
Track 6: “Don’t Be Shy”
“Don’t Be Shy” follows the typical trap trend. The vocals in the verses are nice, but are ruined by the rap parts in the chorus. There’s nothing special about this track, and even the vocals seem lackluster in comparison to the previous songs on this album.
Girl’s Day had held their own in a slew of digimons and trendy groups, and has maintained top ten positions in almost all charts and peaking at #6 on Melon and #2 on iChart. Their hiatus has not affected them too much. It remains to be seen how their physical sales will fair on, but this is a strong comeback after such a long time.
