Enjoy Summer Bliss with Weeekly’s “LIGHTS ON”
After heading on a new road with “VROOM VROOM” in November, Weeekly’s latest title track “LIGHTS ON” takes them beachside. Released on July 9, their sixth EP Bliss contains five new tracks. They continue their evolving concept in an EP that contains a poppy summer title track and diverse B-sides.
Tracklist:
“Twenties”
“LIGHTS ON”
“Dance Dance Dance!”
“Classic”
“Page (A Story That Reached Me)”
It’s “LIGHTS ON” for Another Weeekly Summer
“LIGHTS ON” is Weeekly’s first summer release since 2021’s “Holiday Party.” ARTiffect Music producers Jake K, MCK, and Maria Marcus created another summer bop for Weeekly’s repertoire. With the gentle dance of the waves and the “glow of fireflies,” the lyrics craft an image of a summer beach party.*
“LIGHTS ON” delivers aspects of why I enjoy many of Weeekly’s releases: the uplifting energy, the pleasing combination of their vocals, and their cute choreography. I love the “Oh my” build ups to the chorus (heavenly!) and the dance move where the members snap a picture, much like “After School.” The only things stopping me from granting “LIGHTS ON” a 10/10 are the rap portions, which I feel don’t add much to the song.
Its music video definitely feels like summer. The members enjoy themselves on the beach, Jihan hits the water on a yacht, and they dance on a cruise ship-like set. However, the music video still shows elements of nonsensical K-Pop moments. Why is Jaehee using a toaster on the beach? No one knows, but it still creates a fun transition into the next scene.
The Mix of B-Sides
Though Weeekly advertised their single “Stranger” as a pre-release in January, it appears nowhere in the tracklist. Instead, Bliss contains four other B-sides: “Twenties,” “Dance Dance Dance!,” “Classic,” and “Page (A Story That Reached Me).” The first track, “Twenties,” sounds like something playing in the opening of a coming-of-age movie as the characters drive on the road. It comes courtesy of “VROOM VROOM” lyricist Baek Saeim (백새임), composer Stella Jones, with PAPERMAKER producers 82oom and Noah. With all Weeekly members in their twenties (according to Korean age) this year, “Twenties” feels like the end of the road from “VROOM VROOM” into this new EP.
Any track with “dance” in its name on a summer release normally sounds tropical and upbeat. The third track “Dance Dance Dance!” comes off less summery than expected. It takes part of its melody from Richard Wagner’s “Bridal Chorus.” English-speakers likely know this song as “Here Comes the Bride.” It’s an odd choice but I suppose weddings feature a lot of dancing.
The next track, “Classic,” also veers off conventions. Composers Ryan Jhun, Louise Udin, Chris Wahle, and Andrea Rocha sought out something more striking and powerful. In the chorus, Weeekly chant things like “I’m a classic” and “I run the show, you’ll lose control.” Bliss ends with “Page (A Story That Reached Me),” a ballad written by Weeekly member Soeun and 이승아. The tone difference from “Classic” to the sweet ballad might not work as a cohesive piece, but on “Page (A Story That Reached Me)” is a lovely listening experience on its own.
The Verdict: Interesting Pairing with ColoRise
I came out of listening to Bliss with a surprising conclusion. I felt like its title track was better than its predecessor “VROOM VROOM,” yet the ColoRise B-sides personally went better together than those of Bliss. Since I loved “LIGHTS ON,” it bumps up the overall album score but Bliss as a whole package goes everywhere. I prefer some connecting theme when it comes to releases, and I couldn’t tell where Bliss wanted to land. “LIGHTS ON” definitely was the highlight and a great choice for a summer title track.
*Note: Lyrics taken from English captions in the official music video.
“LIGHTS ON” TITLE TRACK SCORE: 9.5 / 10
“LIGHTS ON” MUSIC VIDEO SCORE: 8 / 10
BLISS ALBUM SCORE: 8 / 10
Overall Score: 8.5 / 10
Edited by Cara Musashi