izna - Not badly produced

I saw the Mamma Mia comeback by izna and thought, ‘Hmm, well that’s not good’. Then I forgot about it, but Youtube kept shoving it back in my face and I said ‘fine, I’ll check out that mini album’!

So here it is, the review of K-Pop band izna’s mini-album Not Just Pretty.

Supercrush

Yeah, this is good. Well produced bubblegum pop that I expect from K-Pop. I think Teddy of Black Pink fame is involved in production? They’re on a sub label of his TheBlackLabel, I think. Anyway, whoever produced this is smart and knows what they’re doing. The Lalalala bit gives me Kylie Minogue vibes, but that’s not bad. K-Pop is best when they’re stealing from the best.

Mamma Mia

Njet. I don’t like this. Why was this chosen as the comeback song? Sounds too corny, with too little self-awareness. After Supercrush I expected better. This is a letdown. Also, what’s with K-Pop and spanish/italian phrases? There’s Senorita by G-idle and Adios by Everglow, to name a few. Probably exotic sounding to the peeps in South East Asia.

Racecar

This was the second single release, eh. Also too kitsch without being entertaining. Pass.

빗속에서

Yeah, this is cool! City Pop vibes, excellently produced. Can you say ’excellently’? I don’t even know if that’s an English word. It’s good. I wonder what that song title is, I don’t speak Korean. I’m taking the bus and I like it, Hanging out in the city centre, Walking on the promenade, etc. that’s what it sounds like.

Sign (Remix)

Sign is pretty good on its own, but this Remix tries to amplify its sombre notes. Sounds like a mashup that sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t. I mean Sign is not bad, so why not.