SONG REVIEW: Answer – ATEEZ

Coming off the Heels of October’s sensational Wonderland and it’s accompanying album Treasure EP. Fin: All to Action, ATEEZ are back with the final instalment to their masterful Treasure series, in the form of Treasure Epilogue: Action to Answer. If ATEEZ wanted to end the series with a bang, then they definitely succeeded, as Answer might be their best title track yet.

Opening with San’s evocative vocals, which were first teased in the outro of their previous album the song pulls back into a restrained rap verse by rappers Mingi and Hongjoong. This provides the perfect build towards the tribal esque pre-chorus which, much like most of ATEEZ’s other pre-choruses is absolutely masterful in both production and execution. However, the real star of the show is Answer’s mammoth chorus that slams in with full force, with synths that recall everything great about Say My Name’s climax from the last year. I absolutely adore multiple part choruses and Answer is a song that absolutely revels in its multitude of hooks. Jongho’s resounding vocals are especially potent in these types of songs and are full display during this first chorus. The anthemic post-chorus hook is also an absolute treat, providing additional depth to an already fantastic centerpiece.

However, much like many other modern day k-pop songs, Answer then devolves into a halftime trap-breakdown. Normally, I would absolutely despise something like this interfering what is otherwise an absolute monster of a song, but in this case…… it sort of works? The skittering trap beat is supported with layers of background percussion that prevents the song from completely collapsing under it’s own weight. This along with some decent vocal melodies courtesy of members Yeosang and Hongjoong, help this otherwise lousy segment to be quite enjoyable. However, this is all just connecting tissue for that immense chorus to come slamming back, once again providing instant gratification.

An intense bridge see’s both main rappers fiercely trade lines as Jongho’s powerful vocals provide a riveting octave scaling build towards the final chorus. An additional melody line incredibly reminiscent of some of B1A4’s best work is introduced here, and provides the additional umph required to make Answer an absolute showstopping display of ATEEZ’s skills and an amazing start for K-pop in 2020.