On April 22, Kim Sunggyu made a comeback with his fourth mini-album SAVIOR. The tracklist features ballad-centric songs that highlight the singer’s honey-like vocals.

Title track “Savior” starts with a climax-building keyboard intro and sees the INFINITE member pouring his full emotions into the pop rock melody as the song progresses. The song bears resemblance to songs released by Korean bands, especially DAY6 (Even Of Day)’s soft progressive rock sound. 

In the music video, the sepia tone and fog create a magical and dreamy background that matches the song’s sentiments. The soloist was accompanied by a live band in the video, which also gave attention to the track’s tuneful instrumentals. The song is as catchy and refreshing as the spring season, despite the dark visuals expressed in the music video. Even after only several listens, one can’t help but hum the chorus—including the addictive, “Oh woah ah ah ah,” that fills the empty spaces between every line Sunggyu sings.

In the mini-album, “I Dare You” is a stand-out track for its darker melodic approach compared to breezy “Fog” or warm and tender “My Love Will Be Yours.” The lyrics for “I Dare You” were also fully written by the singer himself. Kim Sunggyu approached the song with a lower register, and the song is vaguely reminiscent of INFINITE's old releases such as “The Chaser” or “Be Mine.”

Overall, SAVIOR is a beautiful nod to spring and Kim Sunggyu impresses with his vocals that paint a pretty cherry blossom scenery in listeners’ minds. Check out the music video for title track “Savior” on YouTube and all six tracks of the fourth mini-album on Spotify.

Edited by Erin Rupprecht