To say that WEi is composed of familiar faces would be an understatement. The six member group features familiar faces from the Produce 101 series and the project groups that resulted from those, such as X1’s Yohan and JBJ’s Donghan. The OUI Entertainment group has been teased for a number of months and was preceded by popular member Yohan’s solo debut. Though Yohan may have been the most well-known due to his No. 1 placement in Produce X 101, all members bring something to the table in the group’s debut.

The Title: “Twilight”

“Twilight” went in a bit of a different direction than the teaser images may have suggested, as the song is much lighter and playful. The upbeat melody has some subtle hip-hop influences accompanied by a whistle that drives the beat. There is a singular rap verse from the group’s only rapper Daehyun and it’s clear almost immediately that this is a vocal driven group through and through. There’s heavy focus on stronger vocals, with a number of high notes and adlibs throughout the song. It’s an interesting choice this day in age to go for a more subdued sound in debut, as groups tend to have harder concepts or heavily storyline influenced debuts. If you’re looking for a catchy track with no strings attached, this will be a favorite. 

The visuals of the music video contrast the song a bit, most notably in the outfits the members are wearing which are either black and white and feature heavy amounts of straps, which on the surface indicates a harder type of concept. The matching black pants and red suede jackets are the best outfit combo and showcase the choreography beautifully. Speaking of the choreography, it is definitely something more intense that seems a bit too hard for such a light song, but there’s no doubt that it’s captivating in its own right. It’s a bit hard to connect the audio and the visuals, but perhaps that is what adds charm to this debut track.

The Album

IDENTITY: First Sight features five tracks, kicking off the album with the title before moving onto “DOREMIFA.” “DOREMIFA” continues the musical feel of the title track, with a more upbeat pop influenced sound that has a softer air and elicits a more carefree feeling. “TIMELESS” comes next and also follows this formula, appearing to have the composition of a pure pop track meant to be as palatable to as many listeners as possible. The chorus has a bit more hints of EDM than the album’s predecessors, but other than that it sounds quite similar to the other songs before it. 

“Hug You” continues the mid-tempo parade with a sweetly sentimental air. It’s hard to say much about the musical composition when it feels almost identical to the other tracks. Perhaps the subtle difference is that the track has a simpler melody that remains fairly stagnant throughout. The final track is “Fuze,” produced by member Daehyun, and probably has the most independent identity compared to the rest of the songs. There’s a bit more hip-hop influence allowed and the chorus has a distinct synth melody. It’s a great treat to have some sort of musical differentiation, which is why “Fuze” definitely stands out on the album. 

Truthfully, IDENTITY: First Sight is rather underwhelming and I was expecting something more from a group that is composed of former idols that had already debuted. The lack of musical diversity made the album feel less genuine and more targeted toward mass market appeal, though I wouldn’t fault the idols themselves for that, as it’s more likely a decision made by the company. There was a major focus on Yohan due to his popularity, which made it feel like it was difficult to get familiar with the other members. There is definitely more potential in these boys than what has initially been showcased and hopefully in the future we will get to see more of what all of them have to offer.