After a way-too-long hiatus of nearly two years, Girl’s Day is finally back with their latest mini-album Girl’s Day Everyday #5. With six new tracks featuring solos from Sojin and Minah, this release re-establish their place as one of the top girl groups of the industry!
The title track, “I’ll Be Yours”, is everything that I could have asked for in their title track: bold, jazzy, catchy with just the perfect amount of sass. Musically, the song falls firmly in the pop genre — with electronic synth undertones and pops of jazzy brass instrumentals to give it a more sultry vibe. Minah’s impressive high notes, particularly at the end of each chorus, add to the overall sassy vibe. The track’s tempo slows down (or, rather the time signature does) towards the end, perhaps to add some diversity to the song, but it sounded slightly disorganised, since it was only for a short period of time and it was way too late in the song to introduce such drastic changes. Another thing that was a little out of place was the repeated male voice saying “You better work!”. It was a little odd and didn’t fit in, both musically and and lyrics-wise. Speaking of lyrics, they are self-empowering and self-confident, which is quite refreshing:
You’ll be in awe
Cuz it’s the dazzling me
Like a popping champagne
Sometimes being chic is good
Softly, I’ll show you my charms
All in all, it’s a banger of a title track, and is perfect for the upcoming spring and summer seasons!
“Thirsty” is the second track of the album. Honestly, I was very excited for the track, given its interesting title, but it was underwhelming compared to “I’ll Be Yours”. With heavy electronic instrumentals, this is more of a laid-back and chilled track, with a hint of a melancholy (if you squint). Something to note is the soft, blended harmonies throughout the song’s verses, which showcase more the members’ balanced vocals. The lyrics touch on a breakup that leaves the girls feeling dry and thirsty — less in a sexual way, and more in a desire for love.
Touch me once more
I’m thirsty
Your sweet caress
My dried up heart, crumbled dreams are
Like a dry flower petal on the wall
“Love Again” continues the relaxed vibes, as it is more of a stripped down song solely focusing on the group’s vocals with the only accompaniment the electronic guitar. With minor harmony, the sadness of this track corresponds to the lyrics as the girl’s plead for to come back and to not say goodbye so easily. “Love Again” spans the upper range and is the perfect opportunity to enjoy the girls’ breathy vocals.
Sojin is up next with her solo “Kumbaya (Come Back Here)”. The ballad-style track gives off major melancholic vibes as she sings about missing her ex. Sojin’s vocals are extremely impressive here — it’s sometimes easy to forget about her as a vocalist since many of the members are overshadowed by Minah, but this track really puts the spotlight on our leader’s emotional voice.
Speaking of Minah, our vocalist’s solo is next in the lineup with “Truth”. Although it still borders on the style of a ballad like Sojin’s track, Minah’s is more dramatic with heavier electronic synth instrumentals. I especially appreciate the beginning of the song which offers Minah the chance to show off the rich lower range of her vocals. It’s a powerful song, that is once again a sad one on broken hearts.
The final track is “Don’t Be Shy”, a seductive dance track with a heavy rhythm. The opening begins with Yura’s speak-singing to create a darker, more mysterious mood. As with what seems to be the current trend, there is heavy editing of the rhythm and vocals, which can come off sometimes as tacky, but in this case, it’s done very subtly like in Hyeri’s parts and works with the overall mood of the song. This is definitely one of my favourites off the album!
You know it’s been long when you can’t even remember Girl’s Day’s last title track, and with the over saturation of groups —both girl and boy — in the K-pop industry, it can often be detrimental for a group to take such a long hiatus. Nevertheless, they have made their come back with a strong album that offers a diverse array of different tracks for everyone — from established fans to new ones — to enjoy!
Rating: 3.7/5.0
(Images via Dream T Entertainment, Lyrics via pop!gasa and Kpopviral)
