[Album & MV Review] Nine Muses A - 'Muses Diary'

Hyemi, Hyemi, Gyeongree (Kyung Li), Sojin, Keumjo, Nine Muses A

Nine Muses A - 'Muses Diary'

Track List:

1. Your Space

2. Lip 2 Lip

3. Shh!

4. Monster

5. Lip 2 Lip (Inst.)

Nine Muses joined the fad of K-Pop group sub-units, forming their own four-member sub-unit called Nine Muses A. It's not for certain what the 'A' stands for, but at least the name is easy enough to remember.

Nine Muses A consists of four out of six Nine Muses members, including Kyung Li, Hyemi, Keumjo, and Sojin. Unsurprisingly, the sub-unit is formed by the main vocalists/vocalists of the group to showcase the girls' vocal prowess.

The album starts out with a dramatic-sounding opener titled "Your Space," an instrumental that is the build up to the title track "Lip2Lip." "Lip2Lip" is an easy, lighthearted dance pop track featuring a sassy, upbeat guitar-based melody. Though the vocals didn't leave that big of an impression, and the breathy, high-pitched style of singing grew a tad grating to the ears, it wasn't entirely intolerable - props to the member who belted the high note ad-libs at the end.

"Shh!" is, in my humble opinion, the true gem in the album. The track starts off with a siren blaring, military drum cadence, and symphonic-style synths that remain subdued in the background. That is, until the chorus kicks in fully, springing into an incredibly catchy, uptempo refrain that will automatically make your head bop and go, "Aw yeah, that's the stuff!" It's a classic K-Pop style track, overwrought with dramatic instrumentals, a glitzy chorus, and of course, a memorable hook. I think I'll even declare "Shh!" my personal favorite off the album!

The uptempo beats come to a screeching halt with "Monster," where they take it down a bit. "Monster" deserves more praise as well, and I think it could have served just as well as the title track rather than the rather basic "Lip 2 Lip." Though the girls get less vocal range than in "Shh!" the song's delicate, wispy harmonizations is a gentle lull to the ears, providing for an overall pleasant listen.

MV review

To be perfectly blunt, there was nothing special about this MV. The girls look sexy and all, and I like the neon color schemes, costumes, the always on-point makeup, the cute sets and props; unfortunately, there isn't much going on. It's a pretty typical Korean MV, featuring the banal, run-of-the-mill plot of growing feelings for a guy who (big surprise) turned out to be two-timing. And the song is just okay, especially for a title track, so all in all, Nine Muses A's debut track was a bit of a letdown. I highly recommend the other two tracks on the album, however. They are worth more of a listen, and don't get tiring as fast as the generic effort of a debut/title song that was "Lip 2 Lip."