NCT Dream Spiced up the Entire K-Pop World With Their Seven Different Flavors
NCT Dream dropped their first full-length album on May 10 as a seven-member group, and what could show just how great fans’ anticipation was better than the fact that 맛 (Hot Sauce) almost became a double million seller even before its release? But can the album live up to the huge expectations? Short answer: Definitely. The long answer continues down below.
Tracklist:
맛 (Hot Sauce)*
Diggity*
고래 (Dive Into You)*
우리의 계절 (My Youth)*
Rocket*
Countdown (3, 2, 1)
ANL
주인공 (Irreplaceable)
지금처럼만 (Be There For You) by Renjun, Haechan, Chenle
Rainbow (책갈피)*
*Author’s Favorite Picks
The Album: 맛 (Hot Sauce)
One single album, four mini-albums, and almost five years after their debut, NCT Dream’s first full-length studio album is hitting a lot harder than imagined. 맛 (Hot Sauce) plays with several different genres and concepts, from hip-hop and R&B to ballads, and what unites it all is the storyline of their friendship.
Through the 10 brand new tracks of the album, we get to see the seven different individuals—or seven different flavors of hot sauce if you’d like—come together as one, uniting in NCT Dream’s very unique style. Following their 7llin' in the DREAM variety show, we now aren’t limited to seeing, but clearly get to hear how unified and close the members are with songs dedicated completely to their bond. This sounds (and actually is) deep, but Mark, Renjun, Jeno, Haechan, Jaemin, Chenle, and Jisung somehow manage to do it without getting way too sentimental.
We’ve seen the fun hoverboarding and dunking little boys turn into cool teenagers right in front of our eyes, and now they have certainly grown into some fine young men. 맛 (Hot Sauce) clearly shows a more matured NCT Dream, but without losing their playful charms. It reminds me of my kiddie years in the ‘90s and my teens in the 2000s while still feeling fresh and new at the same time—a contradiction that a group like NCT can somehow manage to make work.
Overall, the album feels like a warm hug from your best friends. You can feel that they want to have fun with this comeback, which makes 맛 (Hot Sauce) a very feel-good and happy album. They seem to be genuinely excited and enjoying themselves with this comeback—which, by the way, is already bringing never-before-seen success to their table. NCT Dream’s first full-length studio album exceeded over 1.7 million sales in pre-order, which is a 243% growth compared to their previous record holding album RELOAD, and it’s already taking over local and global music charts.
DREAM-VERSE Teasers
Chapter #1 The Love Triangle was a peek into “고래 (Dive Into You).” This is the beginning of the storyline where we see an interesting, yet a bit awkward, but still cute and lovely encounter between Jisung and Mark that continues through the rest of the teasers. Chapter #2 The Thing I Cherish was a more emotional peek into “Rainbow (책갈피),” the album’s closing track. Before continuing the story of the eldest and youngest member, in this teaser we see Renjun breaking a cup that somehow shatters into pieces of a plate, which is later revealed to be just Haechan’s weird dream—I’m still wondering what’s the meaning behind this. Seeing the theme of their album, maybe this is an analogy to their friendship feeling like a dream? I’m just guessing here.
Chapter #3 The Taste of Pain was a fun play around Mark, Renjun, Jeno, and Jaemin fanboying over their powerful track “Diggity.” Meanwhile Haechan, Chenle, and Jisung just casually dove into the scientific explanation behind our taste buds feeling spiciness (and pain, to continue the romantic storyline), which I really enjoyed because it seemed very natural. I can easily imagine that conversation actually happening between the members. This video showing some energetic dance moves and a lot of charisma straight up made me blush, and I already knew it was going to be a fan-favorite just after the teaser. By the way, NCT member Doyoung also mentioned this was one of his favorite tracks during the online press conference that he hosted for the album’s drop.
The storyline seems to have an open ending, leaving the rest to our imagination—unless everything just referred to how Jisung and Mark started out their friendship in the beginning, then it would all come full circle with the album. Since we are talking about these DREAM-VERSE chapter videos, SM Entertainment, if he is also open to it, please bring us back actor Jisung. He deserves a K-Drama lead role.
Title Track: “맛 (Hot Sauce)”
“맛 (Hot Sauce)” is a hip-hop song with afrobeat and catchy instrumentals, bringing us some strong guitar chords. It sounds new, fresh, and experimental, which already became a signature move of the neocultural boy group (including all NCT units).
“맛 (Hot Sauce)” has very high energy, shows confidence, and talks about the various charms of the members. The Korean title, “flavor,” stands for these seven individual flavors that unite in one strong and powerful hot sauce. The song is just as addicting as any hot sauce—you keep craving more for the energy and adrenaline that it gives you. It hypes you up and refreshes you, a great analogy for NCT’s freshest unit that stimulates the listener’s senses in the title track, just like hot sauce stimulates taste buds.
The track’s signature sound is also very captivating; there’s a little contrast in the song which makes the distinctive vocals and rap stand out even more. Haechan’s high note is definitely one of the highlights of the song, hitting right before the break where we get to appreciate the strong instrumentals. “맛 (Hot Sauce)” has so many killing parts, but I’m sure Jeno’s little ASMR “Pick ma dish” will keep coming back to me everytime I’m trying to figure out what to cook or order. There are a few seemingly sexual references in the lyrics now that the members are all grown-up, but let’s keep this review pure and pretend I don’t hear any. However, the lines could have been a bit differently distributed; this song definitely calls for a lot more Jaemin—but thankfully it evens out more throughout the album.
As expected, “맛 (Hot Sauce)” makes a very fun and vibrant live stage as we’ve seen during their online comeback show—where I was also obsessed with Chenle’s skirt he wore over his ripped jeans.
The Music Video: “맛 (Hot Sauce)”
Just like the track itself, the music video for “맛 (Hot Sauce)” is very bright, vibrant, and colorful. If you are looking for a deep plot, this might not be for you, but it makes a very trippy and fun dream that you might have during a food coma caused by a spicy meal. Hot sauces falling from the sky definitely makes for a great business idea, so the boys open up a restaurant which they then, of course, advertise and everything turns into a hot sauce commercial—which proves very effective because I already want to buy it, preferably in seven different flavors.
At some point we are literally jumping into the hot sauce bottle, and we see how the seven flavors, the 7DREAMs, are becoming the fiery ingredients. In this scene, the members are embracing the real hip-hop elements of the song, both with the retro fire graphics, their cool dance moves, and outfits that seem like a fresh—neocultural, if you like—take on ‘90s hip-hop trends.
The warm color scheme and the boys’ overall styling bring a little bohemian feel to the video as well. Effects like cool overlays, flames, and sparkles make everything intense and spicy. The simple editing, like zooming in and out or reversing scenes, made the music video fun and exciting, but with the smooth transitions they managed to keep it easy on the eyes.
Once again proving the high anticipation for this comeback, the music video for “맛 (Hot Sauce)” became SM Entertainment’s most viewed video within 24 hours with over 34.2 million views.
B-Sides
Following the title track, the album continues with the groovy beats of “Diggity.” As also heard in the DREAM-VERSE teaser, this song has a very powerful melody that is paired with a refreshing chorus and an overall lively feeling. It tells a cheerful story about going on a never ending adventure—the members’ friendship. “Diggity” also has a fun choreo and live stage, so I hope we get to see it more in the future.
The third song, “고래 (Dive Into You),” has more of a downtempo melody, already showing the diversity of 맛 (Hot Sauce). The track matches the relationship between people to the tie there is between a whale and the ocean. Diving into someone is very freeing, fulfilling, and refreshing, but can also be as scary as the unknown depth of the ocean. I’m in love with this comparison. The romantic lyrics and emotional melody make a perfect summer song, and I particularly like how the catchy chorus is hugged by the vocal line’s sweet backup vocals. “고래 (Dive Into You)” also comes with some fun and easy going wave-like dance moves that I’m sure all NCTzen are ready to learn for the next pool party.
This is followed by another pop track, “우리의 계절 (My Youth),” that shows pretty clear emotions. The Korean title “our season” refers to the changing season as an analogy for growth. This can be interpreted as even though they are all adults now, the members will always remain each other's youth. “우리의 계절 (My Youth)” is also an indication to remember all the memories spent together, be it crying or laughing. The bridge sung by the vocal line—Renjun, Haechan, and Chenle—is sweet, soft, and sincere, warming the listener’s heart.
The fifth song on the album starts out with Haechan’s perky voice, making “Rocket” sound upbeat from the beginning. It is a funky retro-pop track that talks about aspirations as high as space. As said in the lyrics “we go beyond the limits of gravity,” the boys are clearly ready to aim high and make the universe their stage.
“Countdown (3, 2, 1)” brings another genre to the listeners; it starts with an addictive trap sound, and the fast tempo makes the whole song feel like a very exciting wait. This playful track is like a countdown to NCT Dream’s explosion—an explosion that everyone picks their heads up for, just like how this album caught everyone’s attention.
During “ANL,” the harmony between the rap and vocals is very refreshing. It expresses how the members can’t do anything but think about their feelings All Night Long (see what they did there?), and once again we are treated to Haechan’s iconic high notes in this track.
The eighth song on the album casts the listener as the main character. “주인공 (Irreplaceable)” is a love song that showcases the group’s wide vocal range with a vintage sound and swingy rhythm. The Korean title means “protagonist,” who is clearly an irreplaceable character in the story, just like the members are to each other, or like NCT Dream and NCTzens are to each other as well. I believe these relationships are also somewhat like the lyrics describe—overwhelming but thrilling.
Right before we reach the conclusion of 맛 (Hot Sauce), we get an emotional ballad sung by Renjun, Haechan, and Chenle. “지금처럼만 (Be There For You)” talks about the love between the members and their desire to always be there for each other—“just like now” according to the Korean title—without the need of being perfect. It’s a heartwarming song with a sweet piano melody that complements the smooth voices of the vocal line.
The closing track is a sincere R&B pop song. Chenle’s opening vocals, full of emotion, followed by Haechan’s dreamy voice sound so reassuring that it just puts the listener in a calm mood straight away. Renjun’s unique vocals right before the drop of “Rainbow (책갈피)” were another highlight for me in this album. The song talks about “seven lights and seven colors of the seven members,” describing how they are ready to create more stories together. Mark, Jeno, Jaemin, and Jisung took part in writing the lyrics, like messages to each other. The Korean title is “bookmark,” referring to a moment that they bookmarked—the last time when the seven of them released something together and the same four members contributed to a song the same way, “We Go Up.” Even though this is the closing track of 맛 (Hot Sauce), instead of an ending, it feels more like reopening a book—continuing a story, feeling the same energy, but with a more mature point of view.
While I’m sure you already have the album on repeat, don’t forget to check out the music video too! Keep dipping, NCTzens, and bon appétit!