[MV & Album Review] GFRIEND – 'Time For Us'

AKP STAFF

GFRIEND – 'TIME FOR US'

Track List:

1. Sunrise

2. You are not alone

3. L.U.V.

4. GLOW

5. Our Secret

6. Only 1

7. Truly Love

8. Show Up

9. It`s You

10. A Starry Sky

11. Love Oh Love

12. Memoria (Korean Ver.

13. Sunrise (Inst.)

GFriend has just dropped their newest album for the winter, 'Time For Us.' It includes 12 new tracks and an instrumental, and the single "Sunrise." 'Time For Us' is their second album, their first full album since 2016's 'LOL.' Probably to no one's surprise, "Sunrise" has already dominated the charts.

Their lead track is "Sunrise." This one fooled me at first, because it starts out soft, and then picks up steam. This song feels like a classic GFriend song, wistful, emotional, and exciting. It hits all the right notes to claim its place in the GFriend canon. There are some nods to the cute style that their music was trending towards, but that just makes it all the more endearing. "You are not alone" is actually a better song than the title track. I like the bells at the beginning and the way it develops into a more modern pop tune. The song has those lush choruses that GFriend is known for. "L.U.V." is an R&B tune, which is a little different for GFriend. They've done some similar songs in the past, but this drops the pretensions and crosses over into modern R&B. "GLOW" is a danceable, catchy pop tune. I like the staccato nature of the backing track, but there are some bells in the chorus that really makes this electropop-inspired song.

The next song, "Our Secret," amps up the excitement. This album just keeps getting and better. I like this one a lot. It's refreshing and danceable. It just has that beat that I love, and the flute synth in the background just makes it that much more enjoyable. Wistful synths make their return on "Only 1," and a somewhat different chorus. It's a little weaker on the chorus than the previous tunes, but the tune overall reminds me of a lot of their past B-sides. Not like that's a bad thing, of course. It grows on you, and soon you find yourself singing alone. "Truly Love" has a thrumming bass line and just some sugary-sweet harmonies. I like the chord progressions on this one, and it's a pretty tune overall. "Show Up" is where it starts to drag a little. If you've heard a handful of GFriend tunes, you've really heard all of them, and this is where the formula starts to wear thin.

"It's You" is okay, but it kind of suffers from the same problems that "Show Up" does -- it's very firmly a GFriend B-side, with all that entails. The repetition of the hook does nothing for this one. For a change of pace, cue up "A Starry Sky," which is a soft pop tune. It changes up not only the tempo, but it maximizes their vocals. The harmonies on here are simply golden, and it's just a beautiful tune. We go back to club-bangers on "Love Oh Love." The pull out all the stops here. Yes, it's classic GFriend, but after "A Starry Sky," it sounds so much better. Maybe I needed a pallet cleanser to make the rest of it sound so much better. "Memoria" (Korean Ver.) is the Korean version of the Japanese single. I like how it sounds close to a ballad at times. It's not quite as GFriend-esque as you might imagine, but it still has those wonderful expressive vocals that you've come to expect. I think the bridge with the electric guitars really adds a lot to the tune.

This album was intended as a gift to the fans. And it was. Even if, as I said, it wears a bit thin after a while, they still give their full effort on every song. Not only that, but the vast majority are club-bangers. Which I'm grateful for. A gift to me is something that gets my head nodding, rather than nodding off. And if you're a GFriend fan, this is the one for you.

MV REVIEW

“I had a dream yesterday. Even though our time together was short, we were not separated from each other.”

And thus begins the MV for "Sunshine," with narration from Umji. From there we get the members of GFriend performing the tune in various locations, with individual shots, mostly, and the occasional group shot, usually for the chorus. Whether in the kitchen, an apartment, the city, or the forest, these girls show us what they're made of as they make their way through the MV.

That expression, though...

The dancing is quite well done. One clip particularly struck me, where there was one figure in front and the rest of the girls are hidden behind her, extending their arms, and the effect is like looking at a many-armed Hindu goddess. Another move I love is where they lean out (again hidden behind one member) and create a mirror effect. All of this is done in sync and with impeccable timing.

There are some genuinely charming scenes, too, which add to the whole thing. My only issue is they seem to be a bit down, but a reunion in the forest at then puts some smiles on their faces. I've always enjoyed a good GFriend video, and this MV is no exception.