Since
SS501’s hiatus in mid-June, 2010, the members have ventured into new projects. Amongst such projects, the leader,
Kim Hyun Joong went solo and has since released his first mini album,
Break Down. The mini album follows a radical image change –a down-tempo, pretty boy—from that of his acting careers in TV drama
Boys Over Flowers and succeeding role in
Playful Kiss, to a sexier, mature image that compliments his future musical work.
A short, two minute intro throws the mini album into action. The short song commences with flowing chords played on church organ that seeps into instrumental journey of synthesizers and bass, sounding like an
Intro is pretty smooth and filled with energy. It’s very catchy!
Break Down starts with a rush of synthesizers and bass: the key components of a large portion of modern day K-pop.
Kim Hyun Joong's vocals in
Break Down sound natural; no auto-tune has been used unlike most K-pop songs. The sounds “ah ah ah” sung during the hook before the chorus bounces between the left and right speakers, and attracts attention. The track overall, is great for dancing or a work-out.
Jebal (Please) coaxes out darker tones in
Kim Hyun Joong's voice. The second track is a ballad, yet the lyrics fueled with regret seem to beg for retribution especially with the last line of the chorus: “cause you’re a cheater, a liar and a killer…” The person within the song seems to search for “why” love didn’t work out in his favour, and for what reason his partner lied and cheated.
The following track,
Kiss Kiss is much gentler and releases any anger or desperateness expressed in
Jebal (Please).
Kiss Kiss is a light, gentle pop track with little focus on the backing track and most of the vocals shining through. Throughout the verses, the backing track sounds very similar to US artist
Chris Brown’s song,
Forever, but in the chorus the melody is altered slightly to stray away from any similarities.
Kim Hyun Joong ends his first solo mini album with a very catchy monotone and auto-tuned vocal track,
Yes I Will. This track is an upbeat dance number, a fast tempo and enough synthesizer and bass to warrant dancing. Most notably, the vocals sound completely different, compared to the previous tracks and sound like a different person altogether.
Overall,
Break Down is a smashing representation of
Kim Hyun Joong’s work and ability as a solo artist by containing variety of genre and tone within the tracks featured on the mini album. Three of the tracks on Break Down include PV’s:
Three tracks from the mini album have official PVs:
Break Down,
Kiss Kiss and
Jebal (Please). Enjoy!
