WEKI MEKI – 'HIDE AND SEEK'

Track List:

1. OOPSY *Title

2. Moya Moya

3. The Paradise

4. Youniverse

5. DAZZLE DAZZLE

Weki Meki has just released their newest mini-album, 'HIDE and SEEK.' It has five songs, including the title track "OOPSY." It's the band's third EP.

"OOPSY" is the title track. It reminds me a lot of "Picky Picky," but maybe that's just me. It's not formulaic or slavish, it's just a feeling I get when I listen to it. On the other hand, you can't deny it's a Weki Meki track. "Moya Moya" gave me serious second-gen vibes. That was my jumping on point for K-pop. And this song is perfect in all sorts of ways. I think I like it even better than the title track.

They bring us slow and easy in "The Paradise." This is pure R&B, for all of the modern stylings. Weki Meki really knows how to bring it. Their harmonies are seductively smooth, and their vocals in the chorus are positively angelic. "Youniverse" is a more slow R&B. But this time slower, more of a ballad than anything else. I like this track because it's very soothing and relaxing, and we get more of those lovely vocals.

They jazz it back up on "DAZZLE DAZZLE." It's a single released back in February, and a banger in every sense of the word -- fun, playful, danceable, and catchy as all get-out. The cute parts of this song had me smiling.

Weki Meki has made a name for themselves over the past couple of years by cranking out some extremely satisfying pop tunes. About half of this is R&B, but they make it sound so good. And the bangers they include are truly worthy of the name. Is it surprising? It should never be surprising when a good group turns out an excellent product.

MV REVIEW

If I said the album was good, it turns out the MV is not as good.

It seems to be largely a performance video, with some individual shots highlighting jewelry or various pretty dresses. And while there's nothing purely wrong with that, I would have liked to see a little more than we got.

And maybe I shouldn't be so harsh. The girls were gorgeous, and some of the shots were fairly artistic. Rina's turn had some of her figure slightly out of sync (an interesting CGI trick), and Sei was silhouetted in a veil against an orange background. Suyeon in that chain headdress, the diamond-studded feather in a cage... You can't fault them for trying.

It got better as time wore on. It just seemed that some of it seemed to be uninspired. And I really can't give it top marks for that. But I can reward them for what they did right.

Score

MV Relevance...........8

MV Production..........8

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

MV SCORE: 8.0

Album Production.....9

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

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

ALBUM SCORE: 8.3

OVERALL................8.1