SHINee’s Onew returns with his first mini album Flow and the title song beat drum!
Onew is back, baby! I’m unfortunately taking some time off the blog (thank you Lina for your hard work) due to some personal reasons, but I had to come out of my stress bubble to review Onew’s new album under his new agency Griffin Entertainment. It seems that he’s really flourishing and having so much fun in this new agency and he’s been so booked and busy this year, especially this summer that it’s a true joy to see him do what he does best. It’s incredible how many opportunities he’s got after leaving SME and I’m so happy for him. This new album and its title seemed like they would bring us a much-needed Onew groove and a lot of fun so let’s dig in and review!
Now, I love Onew’s ballads and his deeply emotional songs because, biased or not, he’s one of k-pop best vocalists and there’s absolutely no one who comes close to him when it comes to unique vocal tones and this kind of emotion and energy. However, he’s also absolutely fantastic at bringing groovy and upbeat music (he’s in SHINee after all) and maybe that’s why Dice is still my favourite EP of his to date. beat drum continues that specific SHINee-like groove that he truly brings without a problem. From the very start, beat drum has such a fun upbeat instrumental and a rather memorable hook that really makes you want to get up and move along. Onew’s vocals are stunning as per usual and aside from delivering some fantastic vocal moments, he also decided to entertain us to the maximum with this title by adding a rapping section to it as well! I’m having the time of my life listening to this title and truly soaking up the artistic freedom and joy that this album brings with itself. I’ve followed this talented man for over a decade and he has yet to let me down musically – I am quite sure that will never happen. beat drum is just what I needed this week and the kind of sound Onew knows how to bring to life just as well as ballads.
This is a mini-album I was really looking forward to because I knew it would give us some incredible hidden gems to be obsessed with for the rest of the year. The song that immediately caught my attention is Focus because of its unique instrumental and structure – it’s slow but has these interesting instrumental moments that create a fun fusion of different tempos and genres at times. Shape of My Heart (any Sting fans here?) is the lovely, emotional ballad that Onew masterfully brings to us, but the true star of this mini album for me is Hola! and MAESTRO. Hola! is so, so much fun and brings summer back to us during its 2-minute-long run. MAESTRO is just perfect. It’s groovy, and retro-like, with a catchy hook and a stunning melody that really makes you want to slow dance under old-school disco lights. This sounds like the perfect song to listen to while you’re on a night drive with the late summer breeze blowing through your hair. It’s just so stunning and I definitely recommend checking It out. Don’t miss out on these b-sides.
Onew could never disappoint musically, even if he tried. Thank you for new music!