Yonghwa - 'One Fine Day'




Yonghwa, leader of the band CNBLUE, tries to reassure us it's 'One Fine Day' with his debut solo album. His pedigree as a singer-songwriter is already well-established as he penned and arranged many of the band's hits and was involved in creating CNBLUE's unique sound from the beginning. Here, he collaborates with several artists of various musical styles to create 'One Fine Day.'
   
The intro song, rather prosaically named "Intro," is an instrumental ballad. Largely played on string instruments, it has a high-sounding melody that could be a theme to a movie or TV show. It's very mournful and introduces the next track nicely.



Next up is the title track "One Fine Day." The piece describes remembering places that he and an ex used to visit -- the lakeshore, a quiet park in front of her house, etc. -- and being lonely. His voice is full of melancholy as he sings: 

"Even if you forget me
I endlessly let it flow
The memories dried of tears
Memories of us in love
Those precious days
I still can't forget them."

The "One Fine Day" he talks about is the time they were together, "a day [he] can never go back to." It's quite moving and a testament to his skills as a songwriter.

"Cruel Memories" is a collaboration with rocker Yoon Do Hyun and is essentially a power ballad with electric guitar being the most recognizable instrument. They both sing on this track and, despite having different voices, they work quite well together -- it's not as jarring as you might think. Overall, this is not a style I've heard much of in K-pop, and it's refreshing.



Yonghwa picks up the tempo with "Energy," a rock song with acoustic guitar. He taps in Verbal Jint for the rap on this track. "Energy" is a confession of sorts, and Yonghwa begs the girl to get back together with him because she energized him. It's a more playful track than we've heard so far, and the two pull it off well.  

"Mileage" is another playful tune, somewhat similar to "Energy." My understanding is that the song is inspired by an anecdote told by YDG, asking his wife for a boy's night out because he already has done what he's supposed to as a husband -- he has "mileage." I like it, and the lyrics are pretty funny: 

"I haven't said anything and accepted all your nagging
My mileage is building up slowly
Yonghwa is asking if I wanna get a drink with skate fish
Honey, what do I do?" 

I have to say, I don't care much for YDG's delivery here. He sort of mumbles his lines, which doesn't really do anything for me. I don't know if it was deliberate, but it made the tune uneven and threatened to ruin an otherwise standout track.



The next track, "Checkmate," kicks it up. This is a straight-ahead rocker, complete with electric guitars and powerful-yet-smooth vocals. I like the imagery in this tune:

"No way no way
All around this place are swords and shields
People become enemies, piercing, ripping, disappearing
Go away, go away
In this world, there are foxes and snakes
Spewing red lies and poison, everything's being ruined"

Despite the devastation described, the song talks about Yonghwa being there for his girl. I think the constrasts in this song, destruction and hope, are brilliant.

Yonghwa mellows out for the piano-driven ballad "Without You." It's very soothing, and he lies here throughout the song. He keeps saying how he's fine without her, that everything's good even though she's not in his life. At the end of the song, the truth comes out with a confession that builds gradually into full-on longing. I like that, how he kind of hesitantly says, "I think it'd be a little better," and then, more honestly, "I wish you were here." It's a nice touch and quite clever.



"Last Leaf" starts out as an acoustic number and, during the chorus, it hits power-ballad-mode. The tune is a little more upbeat than "Without You," but the lyrics tell a different story, talking about her "blackened heart," and that he'll "be a leaf" at her side. As I see it, the girl has been hurt before to the point that she's cynical, and he's trying to reassure her that he'll be there. It's kind of a bouncy tune and easy on the ears.

The mid-tempo "Goodnight Lover" almost sounds like an accordion is in there for accompaniment. He repeats over and over how he can't get her out of his head. Nothing amazing here, but it's a fairly catchy song.



"27 Years" is a collaboration with American blues guitarist Peter Malick. A piece of medium-tempo R&B, Yonghwa expresses a longing for his youth. He wants to go on school trips, he wants to see his friends from his kiddie days. I like it; it's a sort of self-reflection we don't see too often in K-pop, much less in popular music. His delivery is sweetly-sung and lends a feeling of warm honesty to the track.  

Overall, this album seems to suck you in and keep you satisfied. I'm not sure what I expected, but in the end I was pretty happy with the results. The official page and press materials keep stressing it's a collaboration, but that doesn't diminish the songcraft here. Yonghwa is a very gifted songwriter, and the lyrics don't quite express what you'd expect. There's a wittiness running through the tracks, too, a dry sense of humor that I love. There's nary a gimmick to be found on this disc either, no dubstep breaks or up/down-pitched vocals, and the album is better for it. At the time of this writing, his MV for "One Fine Day" has hit nearly one million views. "Mileage" has over a million views and counting. He's getting his due--fans are noticing. This album opens quietly and just as silently ends, but the songs stay with you, just as top-notch art should.

Recommended tracks: "Mileage," "Checkmate," "27 Years." 

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