[MV & Album Review] SISTAR - 'Lonely'

AKP STAFF

SISTAR � LONELY

Track List:

1. LONELY
2. FOR YOU

SISTAR has dropped their final album, a single called 'Lonely.' Both the title track and a song called "For You" are on the album. This is a treat for fans, who get one last chance to hear new material before they march off into the K-pop sunset.�

"LONELY" is an interesting track. I thought it was going to be a ballad, but they fooled me. It's fairly unique, with sampled murky vocals ("lonely") a guitar track recorded backwards. It takes talent to make a backmasked track sound good, so there is that. The girls do their best on this one and it doesn't disappoint. Hyorin and Soyu sing their hearts out on the chorus. It may not be a ballad, but it's no less bittersweet.

"FOR YOU" is a self-composed song, but it's not the goodbye you might be hoping for. It's a re-purposed love song, and don't tell me it's not. Me and SISTAR don't get excited to see each other (I think that goes one way, likely), nor do we hold each other. Regardless, it's a serviceable ballad, a little faster and more powerful than normal, but still full of the same warm feels.

It's with a�heavy heart that I write this. We've seen too many good bands depart the scene this year and last.� And now SISTAR is gone -- the last of the bands that ushered me into K-pop in the first place (and got me addicted). They've had a good run since their debut, and we'll still have their music to remind us who they were. These are worthy additions to the SISTAR canon. Even if there are no more SISTAR songs, their output can still ring in our ears (and on our devices) for years to come.�

MV REVIEW

The MV is actually surprisingly upbeats some of the time. We're treated to a city scene, with plenty color splashed all around. The girls look beautiful here, and half the video is them standing alone, looking as lonely and forlorn as the title suggests. And the other half is seriously #friendship goals, and the smiles they sport are warm and seem genuine.

For a goodbye video, it seems a bit cheerful, though they may have wanted to leave on a high note rather than a low one. It almost positions itself as a behind-the-scenes vid, but it doesn't actually reveal anything behind the camera. Instead, it gives you the shots that I've already outlined above.

As they're in street clothes, the wardrobe stands right out of the way here. There's nothing elegant or crazy to stick out like a sore thumb. And that is a good thing. Too, being a concept video, there's no dancing. I think that was a good move, for in an MV like this it would just seem like an artificial distraction.

The scenes are particularly poignant during Bora's rap. Bora in the water, eventually sinking from sight while Soyu stands stony-faced was where I shed a tear, a stark reminder that we will see them no more as a group.

The most amazing thing I've seen? No. But it was still highly watchable. The colors were awesome, there was some gravitas to the way it was filmed, and what fan would miss one more chance to see the band in action? Goodbye SISTAR, hopefully we'll get to see you together again in the future.