ATEEZ Flaunts Their “미친 폼 Crazy Form” in THE WORLD EP.FIN: WILL
Anything ATEEZ touches turns to gold. The eight member group has continued to prove their mastery of the K-Pop genre with each release, and the latest one is no exception. Though it’s only been just under six months since their last release, the boys are back with their second full length album THE WORLD EP.FIN: WILL. We first got a glimpse of the performance of “미친 폼 Crazy Form” at this years’ 2023 MAMA Awards, and it spiked the excitement for the studio version of the new title track. Along with the lead single, the album features eleven tracks, including unit songs for the very first time. All of the members also have credits on this album, and backed by the producing prowess of EDEN and Maddox, even before diving into the album, you know it’s going to be good.
The Title: “미친 폼 Crazy Form”
In typical ATEEZ fashion, we heard this melody before. The hook of it could be heard at the end of the “BOUNCY (K-HOT CHILLI PEPPERS)” music video at the very end. Oftentimes, the groups’ title tracks tend to be high energy and loud (think “Wonderland” or the aforementioned “BOUNCY (K-HOT CHILLI PEPPERS”). The composition of “미친 폼 Crazy Form” is a bit different, as what is usually the first verse is instead the chorus, which we learn as the song plays. It opens up with a call to action to “get up” from Hongjoong before being followed by San and Yunho, who often take on the chorus through the rest of the song. We get a delicious high note from Jongho in the buildup to the anti-drop. I particularly love the Latin influences in this melody, it’s a sound they haven’t tackled previously, but they do an excellent job at it. I would say there is a bit more balance in the line distribution, at least in the case that Jongho isn’t frontloading most of the vocals. That doesn’t mean it’s perfect, but it is a noticeable difference. What stands out most to me about the song is how particularly subdued the melody is, especially since the song has a feeling of being a banger without the noise music aspect. It’s different, fresh, and they still absolutely slay while making it energetic and addictive.
I think what is most endearing about the music video is the youthful arrogance the boys show in the concept. Yes, arrogance has a negative connotation, but the way ATEEZ portrays it as rebel pirates is charming. This is most encapsulated by Hongjoong during his verse, where he’s seen running from authorities with his signature devil smile and taunting them while guns are pointed at him. It’s further evident in Wooyoung’s closeup twerk, or San and Seonghwa sticking their tongues out while taunting the camera and being carried off by authorities while smirking. It portrays a less mature image from the group while also showcasing their talents for different concepts. The choreography, as usual, is intricate and eye-catching and showcases their talents for performance. As the video wraps up we see the appearance of a holographic pirate ship, perhaps indicating a full return to the pirate lore moving forward?
The Album
THE WORLD EP.FIN: WILL is an exciting release since it’s the first album where we get unit (and solo) songs. Since this is the first time we get that, there’s bound to be some new and exciting things in this album just at first glance.
Kicking off the album with “WE KNOW,” a fast tempo hip-hop influenced track that brings the high energy ATEEZ is known for. This is the kind of track I would have expected as a title, with an addictive driving beat, outstanding vocals from Jongho and hard-hitting raps from Hongjoong and Mingi. An ATEEZ classic, for sure, so no complaints here. “Emergency” continues along this same vein, kicking off the album with plenty of hard-hitting energy. In my opinion, this song also has title track potential.
We get a bit of a switch up in sound after “미친 폼 Crazy Form” with “ARRIBA,” the first song I can recall off the top of my head that has a waltz composition (shoutout to that 6/8 time signature)! This track carries over the lighter Latin influences in the title track and runs with it full force, bringing a fresh sound to the overall album. I really love hearing an ATEEZ track in this time signature, so this track really resonates.
“Silver Light” once again shifts the feeling of the album by moving to an EDM influenced track that reminds me a bit of “THIS WORLD” from the previous album. The song brings an ‘80s pop melody, which is something we’ve seen them do a number of times in their B-Sides, and it’s always executed very well. There’s an eerie feeling to this track that fades in and out, which adds another layer of depth on top of the impressive vocals and raps. Another home run. I know this song, if performed at a show, is going to be incredible.
“Crescent Part 2” is an instrumental marking the midway point of the album and seems to split up the composition of the album. “Dreamy Day,” as the title would suggest, is a lighter, sweet pop track. It’s not my favorite compared to the previous songs, but that’s not to say it’s a bad song by any means. It brings a different sound, and for those that are a fan of softer songs, this one's for you.
The first unit track “MATZ” is from Hongjoong and Seonghwa, and this one absolutely threw me for a loop upon first listen. There’s nothing more amazing in this world than having Hongjoong go full guns blazing on his rap skills, and for those that only got a taste of rapper Seonghwa in the previous title release, we get an entire track of him here. This is your full hip-hop banger track, and I have to say it is impressive that Seonghwa manages to keep pace with Hongjoong in this track. I’m absolutely in love with it.
Next comes “It’s You” from Yeosang, San and Wooyoung. Going in I wasn’t sure what to expect, but this vocal track exceeds any expectations. The track is an R&B influenced melody with a sultry tone, and features some great harmonizations while giving both Yeosang and Wooyoung more time in the spotlight.
“Youth,” the Yunho and Mingi unit, was a wild card. Mingi tends to have very intense and tough raps highlighted in ATEEZ tracks, but this track is a softer, upbeat pop track. If there was a sunshine track on this album, “Youth” would take the crown, followed by “Dreamy Day.” It’s pretty obvious that Yunho has a beautiful voice, but it gets even more exposure in this song. In addition, Mingi has some vocal lines alongside him, so it’s a great track to really highlight both of their musical talents.
Then, for all our ballad lovers, we finally get a full blown classic ballad from the fourth generation vocal leader himself, Jongho, in his solo track “Everything.” If you watch ATEEZ content regularly, you’ll catch glimpses of Jongho singing ballads, but this is the first time we have an official track from him. I’d love to see him hit it big with a K-Drama OST along these lines. His vocal prowess has never been in question, but it’s nice to get a song vastly different from how we usually hear him. There’s no question the boys’ voice was made for ballads. And yes, it is as gorgeous as you would expect, if not more.
Finally the album wraps up with “FIN : WILL,” a whimsical outro not unfamiliar to ATINY, as they tend to include these on many of their albums. It has a pretty simple composition, and rounds out the album with an epic instrumental that feels particularly sentimental, especially after following Jongho’s emotional ballad. It places a nice period at the end of the album to finish it out.
ATEEZ are now five years into their career, and watching their meteoric rise in both popularity and musicality has been the most fun I’ve had since joining the K-Pop world in 2015. I wasn’t someone that followed ATEEZ pre-debut, but I knew as soon as I saw the music video for “Pirate King” that this team had something special. Perhaps it’s biased, but in my opinion they’re doing it better than anyone else on the scene now and have the most potential and talent to dominate not just K-Pop, but the global music scene. THE WORLD EP.FIN: WILL is an amazing release from top to bottom, and I’m confident for as long as their career spans, they’ll never let us down in terms of quality music and performance.