By ELLA SILVA
On November 10th, internationally famous K-pop group Stray Kids released their eighth mini album entitled “ROCK-STAR”. The album is comprised of six new original tracks, as well as a Korean version of a song that was previously released in Japanese, and a remixed version of the lead single from the album. At this point in the group’s career, they have officially made it big. Selling out massive stadiums in multiple countries, achieving record-breaking streams and views, and performing at multiple music festivals around the world, it’s clear that the group’s catchphrase “Stray kids everywhere all around the world” has really come true.
After the release of their massively successful previous album “5-STAR,” this album feels a little bit like a victory lap for the group, as well as continuing to pave the way for even more success in their future. Since each track on “ROCK-STAR” has its own unique sound and message, I’m choosing to take this review one track at a time.
Track one: MEGAVERSE
As the first track on this album, this song does an amazing job of being an epic opening number. Subject-wise, this song gives listeners three minutes of both rap verses and incredible vocal performances about how epic Stray Kids themselves are. They really are patting themselves on the back for being superstars, as they should be. From a sound standpoint, this track is hard-hitting and loud the entire time but includes a really cool switch-up between the verses and the chorus that proves the group is capable of handling multiple different sounds contained in one song.
Track two: LALALALA
This song is the title track of this album (essentially the lead single) and it shows. In my personal opinion, this song is the best one on the album, and it contains everything that makes a Stray Kid song truly a Stray Kids song. It’s full of their signature sound of fast rap verses, a hard-hitting chorus filled with memorable lines and epic choreography, as well as stunning vocal parts that give listeners chills. Since this is the title track, it’s accompanied by a music video that is full of stunning visuals (all eight members of this group are absolutely stunning), incredible dancing, and silly storytelling that ties this music video into the somewhat extended universe they have running through many of their music videos. If you were brave enough to read this review without already being a Stray Kids listener / watching this video, I cannot stress enough how you should go look this music video up immediately.
Track three: Blind Spot
As a third track on the album, this song provides a nice change in sound from the previous two tracks. It delivers bars about how Stray Kids is always working harder and rising higher while wrapped in an epic, anime-opening-style sound, and overall is just a song filled with joy. It manages to be perfectly inspiring and upbeat, while both highlighting how great they are as a group as well as encouraging listeners to also work harder and climb higher. I really feel like this song needs to be the opening for a sports anime someday.
Track four: COMFLEX
As the song outlines within its lyrics, complex + flex = comflex. And that’s what this song is about. The complex makeup of the group and their individual personalities, and how even the things that others might think of as flaws are actually worth being proud of. And proud of them they are! I think that one of the things that make Stray Kids’ songs about how cool they are stand out from other artists’ tracks with similar themes is how the underlying message can and is intended to be, applied to their fans as well. Like yes! I love the idea of embracing my “flaws” and singing about how flashy and classy those flaws make me.
Track five: Cover Me
This track is a massive switch-up from every other song on this album. It’s a very slow, dramatic song, made entirely of vocal parts with no rap present, and it’s just generally very beautiful. It talks about loneliness, and how nights (metaphorical and literal) are hard. They are yearning for the day, yearning for the sun, yearning for connection. I personally am often not a fan of slower tracks on K-pop albums, but this one is really stunning. Their lines are filled with what sounds like genuine, raw emotion, and I think that’s what takes this song from just a standard ballad to something more moving.
Track six: Leave
A relationship song! As a group, Stray Kids don’t tend to write songs about romantic relationships all that often, but whenever they do they are lovely. This song talks about someone that you can’t be with anymore, but that you miss deeply. It discusses the good and the bad of the relationship, all while managing to be mid-paced and somewhat hopeful sounding. Honestly, the message of the song is a little at odds with its sound, but the sound itself is really catchy, so I can look past how it seems like it doesn’t quite fit with the subject matter.
For the sake of not writing an entire essay here, I’ll keep to just talking about the six new tracks, so that’s the album! If I were to offer any criticism, it would be in regards to the order of the tracks on the album. I just maybe would have preferred to end off with one of the songs patting us all on the back and talking about how awesome they are and we have the potential to be, instead of on what is essentially a breakup song. But otherwise, this really is an incredible album. I have personally never known Stray Kids to make a bad album, but this one feels especially epic, and I’m so excited to see what they do next.
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