• Home
  • Korean Ent
    • Korean Music Reviews
    • Korean Drama and TV Reviews
    • Korean Interviews
    • Korean Film Reviews
  • Japanese Ent
    • Anime
    • Japanese Music Reviews
    • Japanese Interviews
    • Japanese Drama and Film Reviews
  • Chinese Ent
    • Chinese Music Reviews
    • Chinese Drama and TV reviews
    • Chinese Interviews
  • Misc.
    • Light Novel
    • espressOH!
    • Editorials
    • Gaming
  • Join Us
No Result
View All Result
OH! Press
  • Home
  • Korean Ent
    • Korean Music Reviews
    • Korean Drama and TV Reviews
    • Korean Interviews
    • Korean Film Reviews
  • Japanese Ent
    • Anime
    • Japanese Music Reviews
    • Japanese Interviews
    • Japanese Drama and Film Reviews
  • Chinese Ent
    • Chinese Music Reviews
    • Chinese Drama and TV reviews
    • Chinese Interviews
  • Misc.
    • Light Novel
    • espressOH!
    • Editorials
    • Gaming
  • Join Us
No Result
View All Result
OH! Press
No Result
View All Result

REVIEW | BLACKPINK Is Back With the Sassy “How You Like That”

Are We Really Gonna Like That Though?

ladyandsansa by ladyandsansa
July 3, 2020
in Korean Entertainment, Music Reviews
0
BLACKPINK

BLACKPINK’s pre-release track “How You Like That” is their first comeback in over a year, which is pretty much their MO since debut. I was not a big fan of “Kill This Love” and so I approached this with an abundance of caution. Suffice to say, it’s always safe to lower your expectations so that you’re not too disappointed after…

Release Date: June 26, 2020

Tracklist:

  1. How You Like That

Total runtime: 00:03:03

Recommended for: those who like BLACKPINK’s noisier tracks

NOT Recommended for: Those who are waiting for BLACKPINK to switch up their sound; fans of their older songs like “Whistle” and “Playing with Fire”


TRACK REVIEW

What I love about BLACKPINK is that they often give their all. I had a lot of fun watching this music video and a lot of my issues with the song evaporate when I consider the sheer star power that the girls exude. Speaking of the song, it’s got problems but some parts work too. I really like the verses, especially the first two with Jennie and Jisoo. I also really like the bridge with Rose and Jisoo but wish that the last beat drop wasn’t a part of the song. Teddy really cannot find a way to end a song that isn’t a rehash of Big Bang and it shows. YG groups tend to have the most predictable song structure and BLACKPINK is the most affected.

The music video is aesthetically pleasing. I love the variety of outfits shown here and even the more unconventional looks are good. I haven’t generally been impressed by BLACKPINK’s choreography for some time but it’s fine here. Definitely do like the move they do at the “you gon’ like that” part of the chorus. The ‘killing part’ of the choreography works well for what it is. The only problem I have with this video is unfortunately the same problem I have with the song itself. I understand that this is a look they are going for, but BLACKPINK’s music videos have become quite stale. There’s not much to differentiate them anymore. This problem started with “DDU-DU DDU-DU” and has persisted to this day. It seems that the entire team behind the group is getting lazy which is really disheartening.

The biggest problem with this song, it has no chorus. 2020 has been a pretty good year for K-pop groups and even the no-chorus songs have generally been good. However, “How You Like That” repeats the same problem in recent BLACKPINK titles. In fact, I cannot think of a single BLACKPINK title track that does not have an empty chorus. Teddy seems almost immune to giving these girls a chance to sing and I don’t understand why. A few empty choruses is fine but when your whole discography is littered with them that’s a problem. Luckily, the refrain is catchy and it saves this song from being a noisy mess. The instrumental around the chorus has grown on me and actually sounds quite good when I have a strong pair of headphones.

The truth of the matter is, despite the fact that YG managed to cram an impressive amount of star power into one group, BLACKPINK still has the least rewarding discography among the top 3rd generation girl groups. Where their peers keep evolving, always to varying degrees of success, BLACKPINK is stuck releasing the same dated music they released back in 2018. They have not evolved at all and in some ways keep regressing. It seems that this does not matter to YG. He knows that no matter the quality of music they are putting out, the girls will undoubtedly have smashing success. Thus, there is no thirst for innovation. There is only complacency and the promise that Teddy’s last two music-making bones will carry BLACKPINK throughout their entire musical career.

Let’s be honest, the best YG groups make their own music. BLACKPINK’s discography probably won’t stand the test of time, but maybe that’s okay. Maybe their role in Kpop’s grand scheme of things is to fulfill the fun girl group role and leave innovation and musicianship to the competition. So far, this has been working out for them just fine. But how do I like this status quo? Not very much.

The Review

2.5 Score

"How You Like That" starts off strong but goes on a downward spiral once the chorus hits and never really picks up after that. My 2021 wish is for YG to get BLACKPINK a new producer. Teddy just isn't cutting it. However, I will give credit where credit is due. That refrain is really catchy and grows on you. Plus, the girls look amazing!

Review Breakdown

  • Replayability
  • Originality
  • Cohesiveness
Tags: blackpinkHow You Like ThatHYLT
Share132Tweet83
ladyandsansa

ladyandsansa

✿ The Princess will now have the Poweh of the Bleck Pentha Stripped Eweh! ✿

Related Posts

OH! Press Picks | Favorite Songs of 2022
Editorials

OH! Press Picks | Favorite Songs of 2022

January 1, 2023

2022 has been a never-ending rollercoaster year for K-pop as a whole. K-pop’s popularity has grown to an all-time high during the pandemic, especially for girl groups. K-pop in 2022 featured a lot of nicely, diverse produced music and...

Top Kpop Girl Groups of 2022
Featured

Top Kpop Girl Groups of 2022

December 18, 2022

They year end list is here! See if your favourites have made it! The list is based on recorded physical sales. It includes sales from Korea, Japan, and overseas. These are the girl groups that made the list of...

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

About Us

OH! Press

OH! Press

Asian Entertainment Bloggers & Translators

We offer unsolicited yet correct opinions as well as other exclusive and original content on Asian Entertainment.

Categories

  • Anime (42)
  • Announcement (10)
  • Beauty & Fashion (8)
  • Chinese Entertainment (87)
  • Drama Reviews (72)
  • Editorials (237)
  • espressOH! (48)
  • Events (11)
  • Featured (151)
  • Featured Corners (33)
  • Film Reviews (10)
  • Gaming (30)
  • Guides (1)
  • Interviews (39)
  • Japanese Entertainment (240)
  • Korean Entertainment (814)
  • Light Novel (42)
  • Light Novels (72)
  • Manga (47)
  • Manhwa (2)
  • Music Reviews (247)
  • New Music (34)
  • News (41)
  • OH! Chart (128)
  • OH! Press Picks (3)
  • OH! QUIZ (6)
  • Op-Ed (11)
  • Other Asian Entertainment (6)
  • Translations (74)
  • TV Reviews (24)
  • Unboxing (2)
  • Uncategorized (1)

Popular

  • Food Wars: Meeting the new Elite 10 Council of Totsuki Teahouse Culinary Academy!

    Food Wars: Meeting the new Elite 10 Council of Totsuki Teahouse Culinary Academy!

    36273 shares
    Share 14509 Tweet 9068
  • Is the ending of Reply 1988 really that unbelievable?

    9829 shares
    Share 3932 Tweet 2457
  • The Ultimate Guide to the Different Positions in K-Pop Groups

    5812 shares
    Share 2325 Tweet 1453
  • The Ultimate Guide to K-Pop Albums and its Types

    5390 shares
    Share 2156 Tweet 1348
  • Classroom of the Elite Volume 3 – Prologue

    5280 shares
    Share 2112 Tweet 1320
  • Home
  • About
  • Press Team
  • Forums
  • Contact

© Copyright 2020 OH! Press – Bringing you exclusive and original content on Asian Entertainment.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Korean Ent
    • Korean Music Reviews
    • Korean Drama and TV Reviews
    • Korean Interviews
    • Korean Film Reviews
  • Japanese Ent
    • Anime
    • Japanese Music Reviews
    • Japanese Interviews
    • Japanese Drama and Film Reviews
  • Chinese Ent
    • Chinese Music Reviews
    • Chinese Drama and TV reviews
    • Chinese Interviews
  • Misc.
    • Light Novel
    • espressOH!
    • Editorials
    • Gaming
  • Join Us