Stray Kids Serves Up Delicious Tracks in Their First Full Album
After much anticipation, Stray Kids has finally released their first full length album GoLive (written as GO生)! This album features ten brand new tracks and four previously released ones all to STAY's delight. The theme of the album comes from their title track “God’s Menu.” As promised, Stray Kids really showed off what they “cooked up” in the JYP studios.
“Go Live” (GO生)
The album begins with this short intro track that is the album's name sake. It is super rap heavy and for only being a little over 90 seconds, it features every member of the song. You’ll get sucked in by Felix and I.N.’s smooth tones and stay to hear the rare treat of Bang Chan rapping. A cute easter egg in this track is the joke that is added so smoothly into the lyrics, the line, “I know, you know, we know, Lee Know,” references a joke from early Stray Kids days.
The Title Track: “God’s Menu” (神메뉴)
The teaser clips of the song really had current fans of Stray Kids very concerned and non fans curious at the type of song that could come out of the lyrics “This is our soup,” and “DU DU DU,” that were combined with a mix of confusing imagery in the clip. However, listening to the full song, fans found themselves wondering why we were questioning Stray Kids in the first place. It begins with a heavy bass that sounds like a warning alarm then flips to a brief clip of Changbin saying “네, 순님,” which JYP captioned as “Yes, Sir or Madam.” From this clip, he immediately welcomes us to the song with a heavily layered beat that changes up when Han begins his verse at a startlingly different pace than Changbin, however their two “flavors” mesh well. The song changes to more of a pop ballad than a heavy hitting rap song, losing all the beats that were in the previous verse. This piece of the song serves as the pre-chorus that leads to the drop. This little piece features a nice melody sung by Bang Chan, Seungmin, and I.N. However this is quickly interrupted with Hyunjin’s refrain that leads into the abrupt drop. The killing part of the song really does come from Felix in verse two with the line, “Cooking like a chef, I’m a five star Michelin,” with his deep rumbly voice. Over all this title track is 100% only something Stray Kids could pull off and they pulled it off well. The use of the food metaphor was a great way to make the point that they can meet anyone’s taste in a way that is unique to Stray Kids. Like Han mentions in his part of the first verse, Stray Kids will continue to “do research and cross boundaries” with “no limits.”
The Music Video
The music video is one of the best Stray Kids has shown since debut. At drop it had six different subtitle options, making it accessible for many different audiences. This is great as more and more K-Pop fans are finding Stray Kids’ music. The music video has three unique scenes, adding even further confusion to the Stray Kids universe, the race track, kitchen, and a construction site that doubles as a research facility. Each location references another part of the Stray Kids timeline while adding more to the plot. The race track references the “My Pace” era, the construction site doubling as a research facility reaches back all the way to “District 9,” and the kitchen serves as a metaphor for the JYP studios where all of the magic happens. The construction site could be a tongue in cheek reference to a common insult to some of their earlier releases calling it “noisy.” Besides the members of Stray Kids, fans are saying that the girls that appear as Stray Kids’ pit crew are actually participants of JYP’s Nizi Project. Another fan theory about the pit crew is that they are supposed to represent STAY who do their best to help Stray Kids succeed.
The styling for the members for this music video had everyone talking, each member really standing out and having a place to shine. Some shining moments are Hyunjin and his ponytail with wispy bangs, Lee Know’s orange hair, and Felix’s silver grey buzz cut that's accented with glitter.
While Stray Kids are known for their striking appearances in their music videos, the real star of the show is the music video director, Bang Jaeyop. He is new to the Stray Kids team and he is making a hell of an impression on fans. From the drool worthy transitions between scenes to the use of experimental shooting techniques, he really put his best foot forward by making the members shine even more than they already do. If “God’s Menu” is even a sliver of the man's directing talent, I am sure STAYS will be asking for him to stick around.
“Easy” and “Pacemaker”
“Easy” is the only song on GoLive not approved for broadcast on music shows in Korea due to the use of “rude or slang words and expressions.” “Easy” is also the song to listen to if you need a confidence boost. In “Easy,” Stray Kids points out how they “make it look easy” and even push the boundary even further saying, “Look at me now, I make you say wow,” showing off how confident they are in their own skills. With the members exuding this type of energy, it's hard not to feel confident in return. “Pacemaker” fits the classic sound we have come to expect out of Stray Kids. It has an addictive underlying beat that your body sways to without trying. The song is definitely more vocal-focused compared to earlier tracks on the album. A memorable part of “Pacemaker” is the use of a bubble pop sound that can be heard in the chorus and parts of the verses. Compared to the previous three songs, “Pacemaker” switches the “flavor” of the album from spicy and bold to playful and cheerful.
“Airplane (비행기)” and “Another Day” (일상)
“Airplane” is actually one of the tracks teased by Bang Chan during one of his V LIVEs. The little sound bite was definitely different than what fans were expecting. “Airplane” continues the playful and youthful sound. This track is more of a ballad, introducing piano and simple percussion elements like claps and snaps to add to the more mellow feel of this track. “Another Day” was penned by Han. For fans of “Sunshine” off the Levanter album, this song is in a very similar realm. It’s vocal heavy and very stripped back to just a guitar and voices. It gives the opportunity to hear the members sing without their unique vocal tones being overshadowed by other elements that would often be in Stray Kids’ tracks. Changbin gifts us with his vocals in this track which is something not really common. For fans of Felix, Changbin, and Hyunjin, the chorus of “Another Day” will make you feel some type of way as these members are almost whispering in your ear when listening with headphones. “Another Day” is not a track I was expecting either on the album as Stray Kids isn’t known for providing us with tracks so raw and stripped down. It’s a flavor that I can definitely get used to.
“Phobia” and “Blueprint (청사진)”
“Phobia” joins the ranks of Stray Kids’ EDM-inspired songs, but it has an old school R&B feel with how it is arranged. The build from the verse to chorus feels pulled straight from 2010’s Top 40 charts. “Phobia” is a song where the members get an opportunity to show off their vocal prowess. One that would trick listeners is that Felix actually has vocal lines in this song. Anyone familiar with Stray Kids knows that Felix’s singing voice versus his rapping voice are two very opposite ends of the spectrum, so when he does get vocal lines, it is a treat to be had. “Blueprint” is definitely one of the more experimental songs on the album. While the song is very playful, the way it is arranged is definitely different than one might expect. The overwhelming amount of percussion used in the song takes away from the members’ voices as well as drowns out cheerful guitar riffs that are barely heard. The way verses are structured in this song are a bit out of the ordinary but not in a bad way. It does take a bit to get used to, but after the first few listens, your ears will begin to love it.
“TA (타)” and “Haven”
“TA” makes you want to dance from the first few notes. Musically, it is very simple. Snapping and clapping percussion is accompanied by shakers and guitar beneath it all. However, it is hard to notice these details with the prolific amount of vocal ad libs. Bang Chan reprises his rapper role again in this track with a bouncy verse. The key thing to note about this song is its reliance on group chanting for a majority of it. When songs are formatted like this, it’s hard to get out of your head. If listening to the album straight through, you will already have TANG TANG TANG and DU DU DU stuck in your head from God’s Menu and TA wants to add TA TA and nananana to it. Good luck singing anything else for a while. “Haven” also sits within the “makes you want to dance” category. The very first line of the song starts with, “Do whatever you want,” which if that doesn't make you want to dance, I don’t know what will. It begins with an onslaught of electronic music before dropping out to favor a simple beat that sounds like a bass drum and clapping for the verses and in some cases dropping out completely before building back to the chorus. It is just a simple, fun song.
Tower of God OSTs “TOP” and “Slump”
“TOP” and “Slump” are tracks that were released back in May of this year. They are the opening and closing songs for the webtoon-turned-anime Tower of God. Both tracks were penned by the members of Stray Kids with three different versions in English, Korean, and Japanese. The tracks that are featured on the album are of course the Korean versions, however the meaning and power behind the songs stay in no matter what language. “TOP” is the opening song of “Tower of God. Musically, the song is very electronic sounding, adding more complex beats during the rappers’ verses which further pushes it into some of the classic anime theme song tropes. “TOP” talks about persevering; although the effort seems like a lot, the end goal is accomplished. They talk about continuing to “go up” and “reach the top.” These lines are in no doubt in reference to the anime itself. The ending theme “Slump” sounds a bit different. They have traded out the electronic sounds for guitars but keep the complex beat that's layered to complement the different rap verses heard. When “Slump” was originally released, the one thing everyone was talking about was the flawless falsetto that Lee Know delivers on this track. The theme of “Slump” is the polar opposite of what is shown in “TOP.” While the opening talks about perseverance and confidence to achieve the impossible, “Slump” talks about the insecurities and stumbling blocks that you encounter on your journey. A powerful line in “Slump” comes from Han - “I’ve been so insecure lately, cause I don’t know what they want from me” - creating the contrast of the sureness that he raps about in “TOP.” Stray Kids composing tracks for the anime in three languages is one of the things that brought them a lot more attention this year, so hopefully this isn’t the last OST they pen.
Mixtape: “Gone Days” and Mixtape: “On Track (바보라도 알아)”
“Gone Days” was released as a late Christmas present to STAYS. The song is described by Bang Chan as “cute and rebellious” and many would agree with this sentiment. The song’s title “Gone Days” is a play off the Korean slang word “꼰대” or “kkondae.” This word is usually used by young people to call out the older generation who are stuck in their ways and continue their refusal for change. The song and its music video stay true to the meaning of the word. The song was written by Bang Chan and produced with Trippy and Giriboy which explains the feel of the song. The groovy rhythm that is paired with a simple piano melody adds an interesting contrast to the rap heavy song. The lyrics of the song give a rather scathing critique of “kkondaes” in society. When watching the music video with English subtitles, the lyrics really do stand out against the playful setting scene in the video. The best line of the song is actually in English when Han sings the line, “This is the new generation, go away,” and everyone felt it. The music video itself shows the members goofing off in class and the “kkondae” they are criticizing is shown wearing a horse mask, filling in the role of their teacher. The music video cycles through scenes of the members pushing back at the nagging of the “kkondae”. The easiest way to explain “Gone Days” to someone is that they made a three minute song to say “Okay Boomer” that's fun to sing along to. The other mixtape track titled “On Track” was released on their second anniversary this year. Unlike “Gone Days,” “On Track” is more of a smooth and mellow song. The beat is simple with snapping and clapping sounds that are layered with electronic percussion sounds. However, the beat gets overshadowed by the piano focused melody and at some moments the members' vocals. The music video, subbed in multiple languages, shows Stray Kids directing their own short film, each member taking on different roles necessary in production of a final product. The actors Hyunjin and Lee Know are seen vying for a girl's attention. This music video is probably the closest thing Stray Kids has had to something even remotely relationship related. The overall tone of the music video is soothing and has its place on a rainy day playlist.
Final Thoughts
When Stray Kids released their tracklist for GoLive, they really were telling us to be prepared for a several course meal for our eardrums. Their first full length album is full of different sound profiles that it would be really hard to not find a song that fits your own personal taste. Ultimately, I think this makes a good play at being Stray Kids’ best release so far.