[MV & Album Review] Oh My Girl � 'Secret Garden'

AKP STAFF

OH MY GIRL � SECRET GARDEN

Track List:

1. Secret Garden
2. Love O`clock
3. Butterfly
4. Sixteen
5. Magic

It's been nine long months, but at last Oh My Girl is back with their newest release 'Secret Garden.' They prepared hard for this one. Jiho even injured her ankle in the process! The title track is slaying the charts, though, so it looks like their hard work is paying off.

"Secret Garden" is a gorgeous track. Ebullient and catchy, with no gimmicks and an awesome chorus. One of my new faves, I think. "Love O'clock" is possibly better than "Secret Garden", I love the clock noises in the beginning and how they still feature in the background some. It's cute in the main, and the pre-chorus is lit. The raps are equal parts attitude and adorable.

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"Butterfly" is a faux folk tune, with a guitar as the main accompaniment. It's a pretty sweet track�and is notably slower than the first two tracks. The guitar flourishes are really what makes this song pop. "Sixteen" dials up the cute to 11, and just has that feeling of being in love for the first time. And the chorus is more chanted than sung, which just adds to its charm. "Magic" is a simple, quieter tune. It has some raps�and is fairly endearing.

Every song is a total bop. These are sweet, and they even experiment with different sounds, which I like. They still haven't strayed from their original concept, and I think that's what makes this enchanting. And they've topped themselves with this release, particularly with the first two songs. And I raise a glass to their first taste of success. Bravo girls!

MV REVIEW

The MV itself makes little sense, but that's not the intent. It's chock full of magical happenings and superb CGI, even recreating clownfish, whales, and jellyfish in a bedroom (scaled so they don't crowd Hyojung out of her own room). There are even cosmic scenes, with planets and stars in view. The only narrative is that occasionally magic things happen around these girls.

The dancing is impressive. They did train well! Knees lift, skirts twirl, hands slice through the air gracefully and swiftly. They did an awesome job with the choreo, and the girls were up to the task.

The costumes were a bit odd. They were definitely proper (except in the dancing scenes), and some looked old-fashioned. But they were all tied to roles, like students, artists, etc. Mimi apparently worked in a restaurant. When they were dancing, the costumes were ornate and stunning, particularly the black ones.

I have to say they did an outstanding job with the MV. I wasn't all that into it at first (other than I like the band), but pretty soon I was shaking my head and rubbing my eyes. They did a good job of merging the magical with the mundane. That stag was a nice touch! Give these girls props! Great MV!