Seventeen Score Another Solid Comeback in "Going Seventeen"

Oh, Seventeen. They haven't been around along for long yet have managed to gather a large fanbase both in and outside of Korea as well as gaining public recognition and acclaim. Coming from a company that was on the way down the success of these 13 boys has been extremely important for Pledis and has sparked a rebirth of the company as they're now debuting a girl group in 2017. What Seventeen are mostly known for is their engagement in their material, from composing, rap-making and choreographing, and so far it has definitely worked out in their favor. After one of my personal favorite tracks of theirs "Very Nice" was released earlier this year they've now come back with another catchy tune, "Boom Boom".



With every new comeback from this group I feel like they're further establishing a certain sound that is only theirs, and I think that's a very positive evolution. However I have to admit that this musical direction will not be everyone's cup of tea, and I personally am quite neutral to it. "Boom Boom" is, like most of their previous comeback titles, a grower, and it took a few listens for me to get into the song. I still don't love it but I can appreciate it and jam along to it even though it's not my absolute favorite type of music. One thing that I do love is the way the rapping and singing flow together (and this goes for basically all of their stuff) and the way the group's personality and charms are incorporated into the track as it truly highlights all the members in different ways. China Line are, as usual, left out with only minimal lines which I think is unfair since both of them know Korean well enough to have more lines. Apart from that though I really like the distribution of the various parts.

The video, sadly, doesn't really do much to enhance the song's positive aspects. It's a decent video for sure but I'm not really following the plot and I also think the clothes are horrendous. I appreciate the way the jackets are incorporated into the choreography but they could've been a bit more classy, and also the fact that they're wearing sweatpants isn't making it much better. Although the members do their best to entertain with their fantastic stage presence and energy it's not as interesting as, for say, "Very Nice" or even "Mansae".

Of course all the boys look pretty and I actually kinda like Mingyu's bleach blonde hair but apart from the dancing the MV doesn't offer much substance. I'm sure a plot with a direction or conclusion of some sort could've been made up, but what this video gives only leaves me confused. Still, it's an above-average MV with pretty colors and pretty boys so I can't be too disappointed.


I am, however, slightly more impressed by Seventeen's newest mini-album "Going Seventeen", which isn't so mini at all with a whole 8 tracks. Like their first studio album this year it features songs by either the three main units of the group, mixed units or all of the members. I appreciate that they do divide the tracks because there are many members and everyone wouldn't get a chance to shine hadn't they done so. I definitely think more groups with large amount of members should take note. All of the tracks on the album sound very "Seventeen", meaning that you can hear their signature sound even though the songs all sound different from one another.

There are upbeat pop tracks like "Beautiful" and "Boom Boom", laid-back tunes like "Lean On Me" and "Fast Pace", slower songs such as "Smile Flower", "I Don't Know" and "Don't Listen In Secret" and even the high-energy dance track "Highlight". The album certainly offers something for everyone, me included, as I enjoy some of the songs whereas others don't appeal to me as much. The overall quality of the album is nice and I enjoyed listening to it, but it didn't really stand out to me as an album of growth of particular musical development. At this point it's more like they're solidifying their sound and although some risks are taken they're still playing it pretty safe. In the end it's a solid album and has been another successful comeback for them, but for their next one I would like to see them challenging themselves even further as I'm sure they would do splendidly.

MV: 3,2/5
Album: 3,8/5
Favorite Songs: "I Don't Know", "Highlight", "Don't Listen In Secret"