ATEEZ – 'TREASURE EPILOGUE: ACTION TO ANSWER'

Track List:

1. Answer

2. Horizon

3. Star 1117

4. Precious

5. Outro: Long Journey

ATEEZ has just dropped their newest mini-album, 'Treasure Epilogue: Action to Answer.' The EP has a total of five tracks, including the title track that fronts the album. This is their 4th mini-album.

"Answer" is a strong start to the EP, starting with raps and deep-voiced vocals. And while the chorus is just the start of the song, it still keeps that energy that they establish early on, with marching beats and a fierce singer. Almost tribal-sounding, "Horizon" is an EDM-laced trap fest. I like it a lot because it sounds different from "Answer," but it still has those pounding beats and copious raps that help make this club-banger a real bop.

"Star 1117" really showcases their vocal abilities. Or, at least, their ability to emote. Which is right on point here, actually. They do a good job of translating heartbreak and profound emotions into vocals and play on your heartstrings. The song "Precious" is a push and pull between soft and hard, with raps filling out quite a few of the main verses. It's quite an epic-sounding song, possessing a gravitas the lyrics don't quite match. It's still a great tune, though.

"Outro: Long Journey" is the final part of the journey begun on 'Treasure EP. 1: All to Zero,' on the song "Intro: Long Journey." Like the original, it has Maddox doing the spoken word thing on this one too. And his words are uplifting and chilling at the same time. He did a good job, considering it's entirely in English.

After listening to this, I see why they're generating more buzz as a group. I like the EDM nods here, and the willingness to experiment with a wider variety of sounds (like the faux-tribal chants on "Horizon," and the spoken word genre on "Outro"). Not to mention putting out a well-rounded, tight collection of tunes. This gets my thumbs up.

MV REVIEW

The MV is kind of a mess. While it looks better than some at MVs, it still defies description and leaves you with more questions than answers.

Like is that snow or ash in the beginning and end sequences? And are those scenes meant to be someone who's visiting a now-deserted area? Is it meant to be post-apocalyptic? And what happened to ATEEZ? Even asking these questions, we still don't know.

And the MV doesn't answer these questions, either. Most of what we see is the boys dancing or posing against backgrounds of billowing fabric and a few lighting tricks. What's the story of the guy searching in the desert? Or the dude in bondage leather in the beginning and ending sequences? And the band's counterparts in gold chains and fedoras? I'm guessing there was a battle between the fedora ATEEZ and the band? And maybe there were no survivors? We don't know.

It's not a total loss, however. The dancing is rather amazing, as you hope it would be for a boy band. And the backgrounds are interesting and colorful if you don't look too closely at what's going on. It was compelling to watch, at least to figure out what might be happening. The images are all dynamic and fascinating. And maybe sometimes that's the best we can hope for.

Score

MV Relevance...........7

MV Production..........9

MV Concept..............8

MV SCORE: 8.0

Album Production.....8

Album Concept.........8

Tracklisting...............8

ALBUM SCORE: 8.0

OVERALL................8.0