With the recent graduation of beloved Dream members Renjun, Haechan, Jaemin and Jeno, the fate of NCT Dream is up in the air… In this time of uncertainty, let's take a trip down memory lane and reminisce about the great music and memories that the dreamies have made together. What better way to do that then to dive into their glorious mini album We Young? Let's get into the review.
We Young is a melodious and cheerful track that is absolutely bursting with joy. The evocative lyrics, pleasing harmonies and unique instruments all help to paint a picture of a hot summer's day in a tropical rainforest. This song is just the right amount of sugary sweet, and the delightful voices of the main vocals Haechan and Renjun really add to the happy atmosphere. The energetic bursts of raps and the upbeat chorus make this song perfect to party along too. Also, seeing that it is NCT we are dealing with, the choreography is ridiculously hard, but in typical NCT style, the members pull it off perfectly.
The next song La La Love instantly creates a relaxing beachy atmosphere, thanks to the steel drums, guitar and marimba in the background. This sweet and vocal heavy track is definitely one for the summer playlist, you can almost feel the sand beneath your feet. One highlight of this song is definitely Mark's rap, which gives this song the trademark NCT feel.
Walk You Home is by far my favourite B side on this album. It is absolutely bursting with youthful innocence, portraying perfectly the excitement and awkwardness of first crushes. The lyrics, the theme and their honey sweet voices is enough to make your heart swell. By far the best part of the song is the bridge where Jeno, Jisung and Mark all rap and ad-lib over each other.
It would’ve been nice if your house
Was farther from the bus stop
My strides are getting smaller
Every time I see a bench
I want to sit down for a moment
There is a shift in atmosphere as we move on to the next song, My Page. It is quite an introspective song, and is rightfully a little bit more subdued than the rest of the album. This song is more EDM centred than Dream's usual discography, and reminds me of NCT 127's newer tracks. Renjun's vocals especially stand out - he hits the track's numerous high notes with ease. It feels like the album is drawing to a close with this track.
Finally we have Trigger the Fever, a special track which official anthem of the FIFA World Cup 2017. Fittingly, it is quite a majestic song, with stellar high notes and energetic bursts of rap. I feel that this song is actually very emotional and quite heavily drenched with pathos, which actually makes it a hard song to listen to unless you're in the right mood. Nevertheless it's a really amazing song. It could definitely be the theme song for an uplifting sports movie - you know, the song that plays as the main character scores the winning goal/point.
You've probably guessed by now that I absolutely loved this album. The only way it could have been improved is if it was longer and if it included Jaemin. Regardless, I still think it is still one of NCT's strongest mini albums overall. If the recent rumours are true, then the 7 original members may reunite this year in a new subunit. Fingers crossed!
Kpop Review Café's Overall Ranking: 6.5/10
Written by Jessica