Kim Hyung Jun – “Girl”
While boy band SS501 (or rather, the behind-the-scenes business chums running the show) get their acts together, members of the group have been releasing solo material to keep their fans’ – and probably their own – spirits afloat this year. It was only last month when fellow band-mate Park Jung Min released his impressive solo single, “Not Alone“, and now it’s Kim Hyung Jun’s turn to shine in the high-speed arena of the K-pop music scene.
Kim’s solo single, titled “Girl”, is exactly what you would expect from a male singer in K-pop, especially of one who has branched out from a boy band. This song is swarming with catchy melodies, a pulsing beat, and the always gratuitous K-pop spelling chant – “L-O-V-E!” The pace feels just right, and in fact, “Girl” flows so well that I kept forgetting I was only listening to 1/5 of SS501.
As for delivery and style, it’s clear that Kim Hyung Jun is idolizing his female counterpart through this song, so I would have loved to hear more strength throughout the chorus and in the verses; but maybe it’s just the mix. It’s rare to hear a male idol sing with hair-ripping passion when it comes to L-O-V-E, especially on a recording, so perhaps that’s what I’m looking for. Then again, it’s probably a safer move to keep a K-pop singer’s vocal performance tame, since they’re most likely going to be dancing their butts off in mind-bending choreography three times a week, anyway. I mean, the simultaneous work seems to have become a daunting task for today’s crowd of K-pop idols.
Overall, “Girl” seems to have been cast from the standard pop-song mold, but there was enough embellishing details (like the sweet electronic chimes and Kim Hyung Jun’s smooth singing) which helped keep this song alive and spinning. And with that instrumental, this song is just begging to make it onto my work-out playlist.
