‘I Got A Boy’ is Girls’ Generation’s highly anticipated comeback album. The girls spent 2012 releasing their second Japanese album, “Girls & Peace” as well as doing talk shows in the US.
Their new album was released worldwide on January 1 and was welcomed with a warm response from adoring global fans. Girls Generation’s new album had an article produced by an American magazine comparing the album style to that of Skrillex and Ellie Goulding. The magazine even referred to the title track a “beautiful mess”.
The unique style presented in their music video for ‘I Got A Boy’ caught the attention of MTV Style. The article finished off with “This video is a total TREASURE TROVE of outfit inspiration (not to mention, our future shopping lists).”
Here’s what our editors thought about the album.
[box_light]After having the album on repeat in my car for the past few days since it’s release, I can gladly say this, well done Girls Generation. They’ve once again proved that their the trendsetter for groups and rookies in the K-pop industry.
This album is a much polished album, and probably a step away from their Cutesy image, which was still present in their previous album The Boys. Gone are songs as such as Vitamin and Say Yes (which aren’t bad), in come songs such as Baby Maybe and Romantic St.
There’s still that signature Girls Generation feel to it, but it’s not so much cute anymore, more adorable? Growth is much needed for them to stay relevant in the highly competitive K-pop industry, and they’ve shown exactly that with this album, not too much that they’d alienate previous fans, but enough to draw in new fans and display maturity.
Granted the album isn’t perfect, but each song weaves together to form a fine thread, much like their Title track I Got a Boy, which set the tone for what the album is going to be like.
My only complaint would be that fans have waited for 15 months for a Korean Comeback, and the album seems a little short for the wait with only 10 tracks in it. Despite that, this album is a rare gem in K-pop now, too many groups have released sub-par music just to remain relevant and rake in a few easy dollars, but as expected from SM Entertainment and Girls Generation, they don’t disappoint you. At least not yet.
Editor: Yoon
[/box_light] [box_light]Dancing Queen quite literally makes us look back at Girls’ Generation in their days of Gee. There’s a few songs in the album which features the style that the members used right from their debut. Very melodic, sweet harmonies throughout, with parts that Taeyeon’s voice shines in.
The title song, I Got A Boy, has a fresh concept and it certainly is a good attempt at a new style. Although the chorus was catchy and I loved it, it took me a while to get a good sense of the song as a whole. It can sound like three different songs cut and edited. However, after listening to it a few times, I can now see how it all fits and understand the complex layers of the song.
The reaction from the Korean audience was mixed for I Got A Boy. Unlike the British and European audience, not many Koreans were used this kind of sound and this type of fashion. Not for Girls’ Generation anyway. A comeback in Korea after a year and two months, I would say it’s a success. They wanted to start something new and I think it was a great song to start off 2013.
Editor: Katy
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