And it is time for another music review that I never actually planned on writing! So VAV released a music video on Monday, as well as an EP of 5 songs that I felt deserved a review. The EP is called Spotlight, and I was pleasantly surprised by it, but VAV has always been one of those groups that have a habit of surprising me. I never know when they are releasing music, but when they do, and I hear it, they always seem to have a way of surprising me.
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What is E-Bates?
E-Bates is a cashback site that gives you money for purchases you may have already made. They even have an extension for multiple browsers so when you go to a website that uses Ebates, it will automatically pop up the cashback button to make sure you are saving money. I use this all the time, and I got over 80$ back from them for purchases I was going to make anyway. That’s about 3 more albums I can buy!
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VAV Spotlight, Track by Track:
- Spotlight: This song does have a standard chord progression that you will hear in many pop songs, but the singers play with harmonies throughout the song, and they have this great bass line that goes on throughout the song. The song mixing is good too, as it isn’t so heavy on the singing parts that the background music gets drowned out. I wish that they would have brought their harmonies forward just a little bit more though so that you can really hear the chords that they are building. Overall, this song is super catchy, and it made it into my playlist. I’m a fan.
- Gorgeous: Yet again with a great bass line. This song has more of a funk vibe to its instrumentation, and I really enjoy how they use the Electric bass through the whole song, and how it really pops through in the song mixing. They also bring in some horns toward the second verse that I really like. This song actually reminds me of something that Justin Timberlake would have put out like 4 years ago. Overall, I think this song can compete with the title track, Spotlight, in regards to sound, and I also think they could have used this song as the title track successfully. It’s in the playlist.
- Give It To Me: So this definitely not my favorite track on the album, and that is mainly because I don’t like the chorus, as it is the most repetitive chorus ever. I never knew that you could say “Girl Give it to Me” so many times. On top of that, the guitar line they have going repeats that the same tune as that part, so this song actually feels like the most repetitive song ever. I don’t even this song very catchy, I just find it annoying and irritating. If they had changed the guitar riff to not match the chorus, I would like it way more.
- She’s Mine: Okay, the second dude that sings in the first verse of the song, his voice sounds EXTREMELY similar to that of Chanyeol of EXO. I really like the low pitched humming that goes through the whole song. It really grounds it. I also think that VAV, in general, is pretty good at harmonizing, but I wish that they would push those harmonies through more in the track mixing, and I wish that they would add just a little bit more of it to their tracks because, as I said, they are really solid at building harmonies, where other artists are not. In regards to their rappers though, I’m not as much a fan of them as I am of other groups. Overall, I really like this song, and it did end up in my playlist.
- Winter Breeze: Just like a number of other artists, I really don’t think that VAV excels at ballads yet. They don’t play with dynamics very much, and I think that is what makes ballads great. They do play with harmonies though, which I approve of. Also, I like how they have a Titanic style flute playing through part of the song. It just makes me think of this. Honestly, this song is just lackluster. It really isn’t anything special.
K-Points: 152/5
I think VAV has a ton of potential to put out some really good music that isn’t just “filler” music, as they definitely have a bit of talent, but I don’t think they are there yet. They don’t have enough polish for me. I still like the harmonies, and I like what they are doing on some songs, but they need to strengthen their vocals, and they need a really killer track with some great mixing.
So, should you buy a physical copy of this album? I personally don’t think it is necessary, just pull down the three songs I mentioned above, and call it a day. I don’t think it is wow-worthy enough for me to want to have it in my actual collection. I still do definitely enjoy it though, but if my streaming service randomly dropped the songs off of this album so I couldn’t listen to them, I wouldn’t be heartbroken at all, as it isn’t a knockout album for me.
What are your knockout albums, K-Nuggets? Let me know in the comments below.
사랑합니다!
–Rachel
