After a rough few months, Stray Kids released the last part of the Clé trilogy titled Clé: Levanter. The album is the first album release after a member departure. Clé Levanter was originally scheduled to be released at the end of November, but instead was pushed to the first week of December, much to the anticipation of STAYs. Levanter features six new tracks and two previously released tracks for a total of eight songs. 

“STOP”

STAYs asked for it and they got it. “STOP” is the full version of the song “Road Not Taken” that appeared on Clé 2: Yellow Wood. The song features a lot of heavy beats and the members voices serve as the main melody, until the end of the song where a piano is introduced into the chorus. The lyrics have a repeating line in english “I go wherever I want to go.” The song illustrates this point nicely as the different types of percussion used to create the beat heavy song really do go wherever they want to go. This is one track that is more for a dance party and less for casual everyday listening. If you need to get hyped this would be the first track to pull out. It’s hard to not feel excited after listening to it. 

“Double Knot”

“Double Knot” follows on the heels of “STOP.” Dripping with the fingerprints of the producer trio 3RACHA, this is one song that has been on heavy rotation since its original release back in October. Check out our closer look at Double Knot here. 

“바람 (Levanter)”

In a change of pace for Stray Kids, “바람 Levanter” is less of a dance and hip-hop track and more of a smoother ballad track; ballad tracks are usually regulated to B-sides. “바람 Levanter” is getting the full treatment as the title track. The melody of the song features guitar and piano elements. Digital percussion is also heard throughout most of the song. There are a few parts of the song that shouldn’t be missed-one is Lee Know’s soft falsetto that leads into the chorus. It’s got a light and fluttery tone that is pleasing to hear over and over again, as it isn’t everyday STAYs are able to hear Lee Know sing on a title track. Another is the epic instrumental break right after Felix says “It’s all good now.” Some describe the song as the baby of “Hellavator” and “Voices.” I would have to agree with this as the song elements lend themselves well. One thing to note about this track is the JYP himself also helped in the creation of this track, with JYP’s track record of several #1 hits, “바람 Levanter” was certainly in good hands. 

The Music Video

It’s not a Stray Kids music video if they aren’t wandering through some post-apocalyptic landscape. The music video shows several motifs seen throughout the I am and Clé series. The music video colors are more muted than usual, adding to the more serious feel of the song. There are several different scenes throughout the music video that allude to prior music videos. One scene that have caught the eyes of many is the burning of a ticket. STAY have taken this to be symbolic of losing a member along the journey—symbolic last goodbye to former member Woojin. The dance scenes take place in two locations, one being in the classic Stray Kids location-the middle of a street surrounded by destruction, the other being mirror like platform in a field of pink grass. The end of the music video we see a red moon and a white moon collide to create sun before the music video cuts to black and we see the phrase, “Step out of the Clé” leaving us asking “What’s Next?”

”Booster”

This track is classic Stray Kids. It starts out hot right from the start with a heavy EDM based song before the sound of a gunshot leads right into Hyunjin’s verse, a rare occurrence as Changbin or Han are often given the first rap lines. “Booster” is mostly percussion with a very simple melody that repeats throughout the whole song. A lot of the musical depth is brought from the different types of percussion and the members voices themselves. Towards the end of the song, around the 2:45 mark, Seungmin and Bang Chan slow it down for us, all but their voices and the simple melody creating a nice low point in the song before the chorus comes in for one last time. Something to note in this song is that Hyunjin takes more of a rapper role while Han is showing off his vocals. 

“Astronaut”

“Astronaut” has finally been added to streaming services. This light track came as a breath of fresh air last month after the intensity of the previous releases. For a more indepth look at “Astronaut” check out our review here. 

“Sunshine”

Like a breath of fresh air, “Sunshine” is Han’s gift for you to relax. The song begins with the sound of a busy street before the adding of a simple piano melody. Soon after that a simple beat is added over the melody making the listener want to bop their head along. “Sunshine” is definitely a groovy song. The pre-chorus features Lee Know before transitioning to the soothing tones brought by Seungmin and I.N. Bang Chan also lends his vocals to chorus in parts of the song as well. Han had mentioned this track took him only two hours to write. It’s definitely a track you would listen to while unwinding from a busy day. 

“You Can STAY”

Stray Kids and STAY continue their ongoing battle of who loves who more. You can “STAY” has a simple beat that sounds like it was created by finger snaps and claps, making it seem more endearing the more you listen to it. The melody is created by soft digitally created piano and the members voices. The chorus is simply the phrase “You can STAY” repeated over and over again. The vocals are soft and sweet, making it hard to not smile as you listen along. The song is Stray Kids reminder that Stray Kids and STAY are together for a long time-s if STAY needed a reminder. 

“Mixtape #5” (CD Only)

Like a previous albums, Clé Levanter has a 3RACHA track that is remastered for the entire group. This album has the fan favorite “Hoodie Season.” The new track still has familiar melody, but with the addition of new percussion sounds that almost bury the rest of the track. Lyrically, the entire song changed except for the chorus and Bang Chan’s verse. A few parts of the song are sure to make STAY’s heart race. Bang Chan kept his classic line “Baby I’ll make you my lover, ay,” while maknae I.N. sings the heart fluttering line “Baby, how do I look.” The most surprising part however is the new tones heard from Felix towards the end of the track. If this doesn’t make STAY want to buy the physical album I don’t know what will. 

Clé Levanter is step in a different direction the familiar sound many of us got to know Stray Kids for. As they grow and mature into young adults, so will their sound and STAYs are eagerly anticipating the next steps in the journey. Check out Levanter on all major streaming sites.