Over the last 12 months, TWICE – already a force to be reckoned with – have shown they’re not done growing yet. This year, they leveled up to stadiums in the US, scored their first Number One on the Billboard 200 with ‘With You-th’ and collaborated with Megan Thee Stallion on a remix of her track, ‘Mamushi’. Now, they’re closing out 2024 on another high – their addictively bright new mini-album ‘Strategy’.
READ MORE: TWICE’s Tzuyu on cold feet before solo debut: “I wondered whether I could really pull this off”
The seven-track release operates in a world where flirtations and the potential of romance can solve any problem. “Just one touch is all it takes / Won’t you come and kiss my troubles away?” they suggest on the bouncy, synth-led ‘Kiss My Troubles Away’. Later, they find a lover with the power to blast away the ice on the quasi-Christmas song ‘Magical’, a musical mix of ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ and ‘Last Christmas’.
In this universe, everything is bubbly, and there’s no room for negativity. When TWICE aren’t looking to another to fix things for them, they’re in the driver’s seat and filled with unstoppable confidence. “Got you on my radar, soon you’re gonna be with me,” they promise on the title track. “My strategy, strategy / Will get ya, get ya, baby.” ‘Keeper’, a dreamier, skittering song with lyrics penned by Dahyun, marks out the members as women that you’ll want by your side forever: “I’m a keeper … Never leave me when you meet me.”
The sound of ‘Strategy’ is split – on one hand, breezy ’80s pop that feels like it’s been pulled from the soundtrack of a vintage teen movie. On the other, songs like ‘Like It Like It’ and ‘Sweetest Obsession’, where Y2K-indebted sonics reign supreme, move the group forward in time. It’s a contrast that plays out seamlessly; TWICE bat sounds back and forth with ease until the record reaches its end.
There were rumours ahead of ‘Strategy’’s release that it would see TWICE collaborating with Sabrina Carpenter, and the title track is ripe for a feature from the pop star. Instead, though, the JYP group extend an invitation to Megan Thee Stallion to team up with them again, and the rapper delivers a fierce, throaty verse that finds her voice morphing into something similar to Doja Cat’s raspiest bars.
It’s a neat gesture to cap off a year full of big achievements and a fun moment on the track, but as they show in a feature-less version at the mini-album’s end, the girl group are at the point where they don’t need A-list cameos to make an impression. As they enter their 10th year together, TWICE are still flying incredibly high all on their own.
Details
Release date: December 6, 2024
Record label: JYP Entertainment/Republic Records
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