I can’t take it anymore.
How many of these songs are we going to get before groups finally branch off into more exciting and creative ventures that actually have a melody? Back in the day Japan used to be the outlet for creativity. A musical market for groups to experiment with their sound and try new things without reverting to the trends and sounds that dominated their homeland. However recently it seems as though Japan has just become a dumping ground for uninspired, mind numbing material that couldn’t make the cut for Korean promotions. First it was Golden Child’s noisy discography low, Rata-Tat-Tat and now it’s The Boyz’ fractured mess, She’s The Boss.
Up until recently, The Boyz were a rather consistent group, delivering a solid slate of releases that varied from good to outstanding. This continued into the early months of 2021 with the sleek Prism. A track that remains a high point in a discography that has since fallen off the rails. Maverick was a complete failure, hinging on a loud cringy chorus that lumbered forward in the most unsatisfying of ways. An unfortunate feature that’s been extended into the groups new Japanese single, She’s The Boss. The verses here are just atrocious, bolstered by an abrasive brass loop that grates in the worst ways possible. It’s a sound that was never welcome but at the same time has somehow managed to overstay its welcome in the current musical soundscape. It coupled with senseless shouting and mind numbing repetitions of various phrases culminate in a wholly unsatisfying listening experience that’s hard to fully swallow.
Flashes of potential do pop their heads out occasionally though. The first chorus is surprisingly robust, performed via a melodically satisfying airy vocal that matches the slinky electronic backing that She’s The Boss surprisingly transforms into for its hook. The production here harkens back to the kind of simplistic, melancholic edm sound of the late 00’s and early 10’s. It’s an odd but welcome shift in sound and works much much better than almost anything else that came before or comes after. This once again, results in a fractured listen. There’s clearly a decent track hidden somewhere in here but it’s surrounded by a cavalcade of throwaway hooks and an obnoxiously noisy soundscape that gives us what might just be the groups weakest effort yet.
Verses: 4
Chorus: 7
Production: 5
Performance: 6
Final Rating: 5.5 / 10
KBopped 