In which I do some comeback fangirling - Shinhwa 10th jib review

On repeat for the past two weeks - Shinhwa's 10th album. Can I say it again? TENTH. Twice the number of albums H.O.T released. TEN.

I noticed that there aren't too many blogs/sites that say how good this album is...I guess they're too busy focusing on the more younger, recent artists that they're forgetting those who have legendary status like Shinhwa. Who knows? I think a comeback of this magnitude can be considered valuable for air time.

Anyway, this is my humble contribution to the appreciation of all things Shinhwa. =)

1. On The Road*
2. Hurts*
3. Venus*
4. Red Carpet
5. Move With Me
6. Let It Go*
7. Stay*
8. Welcome*
9. Be My Love*
10. Re-love
11. Breathin'*
(everything asterisked are songs that I liked)

After two weeks of listening to this album straight (not skipping, mind you!), I think my favorite song for now would have to be On The Road, followed by (yes, you guessed it) Venus.

I cannot really comment on the content of the songs, but I will assume that they're love songs (duh!), but I'm very glad that they decided to update their sound to something that's more recent (i.e. use of the dreaded autotune), and can very well compete with the stuff that the juniors are releasing.

My only reservation (and it can be ignored) about this album is that maybe, just maybe, it sounds like it wants to fit into the mold of the tried, tested, and trusted formula - meaning it did not go against the grain, or it did not try to set a trend. It was...safe. *shrug*

Overall, I don't have a problem with a "safe" album, because what they set out to do was in no way safe (releasing a 10th album after four or so years of no new material, doing a comeback concert, performing in a string of shows against juniors, etc) for a group that consists of their ages (30+ is too old for the standards of their industry - how I wish K-pop could develop their talents even if they're beyond their teenage years). I just thought that it would have been EPIC if they started a trend in terms of musicality, but they did prove that a group from the 90s can survive for 14 years and still release good, solid material.

I  hope that other groups will follow suit. *ehem*H.O.T*ehem*

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Since I touched a bit on the junior-senior thing, I guess I might as well post my thoughts about some memes I've seen on Tumblr that say [young artist] + [young artist] = [older artist]. 

Case in point (and this is the one that occurs most often): Si Won + Zhou Mi = Kangta

I must admit that I get really peeved when I see these posts up on my dashboard. I’m not discounting the similarities between these people (because there are similarities), but I always get the feeling that Kangta is a lesser artist with these comparisons/additions, or he is only equal to the combined “awesomeness” of more recent, popular artists. He isn’t. He’s a freaking SENIOR for crying out loud. He paved the way for these younger artists today. Get it right. 

If there’s anyone who should be added up to Si Won or Zhou Mi, it should be him, not the other way around.

Now, if you mean that the awesomeness of Si Won and Zhou Mi combined equate to Kangta, then I have no qualms with your math. XDDDDD