WOOAH Goes Punk Rock in UNFRAMED EP

WOOAH (formerly stylized as woo!ah!) switched from cute to punk in their latest title track “POM POM POM.” Their second EP UNFRAMED, which came out on June 17, came with more than one surprise. It includes B-sides “I’ll Tell You,” “POLAROID,” and “BLUSH,” but “Girls love boys” sticks out from the bunch. A remake of DXMON’s latest comeback, “Girls, love boys, love girls,” appears as track 5. UNFRAMED is WOOAH’s first EP since JOY in June 2022. 

Concept Change: From Bubbly Girls to Punky Girls

WOOAH’s shift to punk rock surprised me. I, and likely many others, associate the group’s musical identity with a cute concept. Songs like “Purple,” “Rollercoaster,” and “BLUSH” fall into that broad category. “BLUSH” just came out in April, which ended the group’s 16-month gap between comebacks. Interestingly, Ryan Jhun appears once again at the helm of a WOOAH composition. He joins Barry Cohen, Lenno Linjama, Gavin Jones, Justin Reinstein, and Anna Timgren for “POM POM POM.”  

In “POM POM POM,” WOOAH acts as their own cheerleaders but in an unexpected way. They hype themselves up as a headbanging-inducing guitar instrumental goes on. “Ain’t nobody else rooting for me, there’s at least one,” WOOAH chants in the chorus. They speak about how if no one else believes that they can reach their dreams, they can rely on themselves. UNFRAMED also includes an EDM version of “POM POM POM,” an arrangement by Ryan Jhun, Gingerbread, and Jara Narayan de Werd. 

DXMON Remake: It’s the Girls’ Turn

“Girls love boys,” might sound familiar to K-Pop listeners keeping up with newer groups. The rookie boy group DXMON, WOOAH’s labelmate, made their first comeback in May with the title track “Girls, love boys, love girls.” The track shares the same composers in Ryan Jhun, Ben Samama, and Oscar Bell, leaving its core composition intact. The addition of Samuel Ledet for the arrangement and the new lyricist team of Kaya and Choi Saeri differs from the original. 

“Girls, love boys, love girls” focuses on youthful romance, signaled by its schoolboy concept. While no music video exists for WOOAH’s take on the song, it gives off a similar vibe. The lyrics change, and this one adds a slight 8-bit flair. 

This situation seems unique because most remakes of songs within the same company happen when a junior group covers a senior group. Barely three months have passed since “Girls, loves boys, love girls,” and it already received an official cover from WOOAH. Check out the tracks below for a comparison.