2NE1 - 2NE1

There is no doubt that the debut of this girl group was more than anticipated. Named the "female" Big Bang long before their debut, they have managed to impress the Korean music scene with their fierce attitude and style. Their first mini-album proves that the hype leading up to their debut was well-deserved.

The self-titled mini-album consists of seven tracks, each one quite different from the others. Filled with versatile sounds, from rough R&B to cutesy pop, this album is a strong debut that is easy to like.

It's especially easy to be charmed by their first single from this mini-album. Fire is a song that crackles and burns with energy, just like its name. Heavy beats mixed with a popping electronic sound and fierce vocals lend it an unusual yet strong sound. The cockiness of the girls' voices is empowering and the little change of sound in the middle is fun. This combination results in a fast paced song that is neither annoying nor unbalanced.

The second single from this album is I Don't Care, a song that is very different in style and sound. Where Fire is innovative and cocky, I Don't Care is a nice mix between pop and hip-hop. The pace is slower and the true characteristics of the girls' voices is truly shown. A song that is adorable yet filled with attitude, the lyrics tell of a girl, tired of her boyfriend's infidelity, kicking him to the curb.

The tempo is taken down a notch with In The Club, a song that is almost a ballad had it not been for its beat. The charm of this song is in the way it is sung; The voices are soft yet filled with feeling. It is not hard to distinguish the girls from each other and one will fall for the great differences of their voices.

Let's Go Party starts off in a cute way with different languages being mixed together. By the name one might expect a fast track; In fact there is something special about it, partly in its slow beat that later is accelerated just a bit. Although the name implies that this is a fun song, it belies the sadness in the lyrics. The feeling can be heard even while the infectious beat will have you nodding your head to the music.

The tempo rises slightly and the beats are a bit more rough in Pretty Boy. Intersting thematically, track five is a song about mocking a “pretty boy" and insists women need a real man. With a beat that sounds like someone is getting a right hook, it is a fun song with plenty of attitude.

Stay Together is filled with pain yet the sound implies something else. The tempo is faster than a regular ballad, yet the piano in the background tips us off that this is a sad song. What is good about this track is Park Bom's voice, her ad libs and the way she harmonizes with the others.

2NE1 had “soft” debuted by being featured in the the last track of this mini-albim, Lollipop, alongside Big Bang. Even though the song was just produced for a cellphone commercial, it became a huge hit over night. A very fun song, it's cute and perhaps a bit silly with a crazy sound.

This mini-album is very much mixed in terms of mood and lyrics. Aside from Fire and Lollipop, the album offers songs about heartbreak, which one might not expect from 2NE1 when seeing them. Presented as strong and fierce women, they may appear to be the players as opposed to the ones being played around with. Their sadder songs suggest a depth and range that makes them easy for listeners to identify with. In addition, the mix of sounds and tempos in this mini-album demonstrates how versatile the group can be. The set up of this mini-album is well-done, making the album easy to listen to it in one go, and the songs are easy to fall for.

2NE1 is one of he strongest debuts of this year, seeing as this mini-album has sold over 100,000 copies since its release on July 8th of this year. YG Entertainment have announced that a full album is to be released later in the fall, so we look forward to another release from this talented group.