Go to any live show of SEVENTEEN’s, and you’ll immediately see why they’ve managed to solidify themselves as one of the top-selling K-pop acts of all time. With 13 multi-hyphenate members and prismatic sound, every one of their concerts is its own mini-festival. Channelling those celebratory moments on stage, their ecstatic 11th mini-album ‘Seventeeth Heaven’ scales up their sound to match their latest run of stadium tours (and Coachella hopes) across its short stretch.
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SEVENTEEN kept this project close to their chest, with writer-producer Woozi, collaborator Bumzu and a few other members featuring most prominently in the credits, yet one exception comes early: rock-adjacent opener ‘SOS’ enlists Marshmello for a cavernous, trippy bass production that propels vocalist DK’s capable lower range into the stratosphere. That its clunky lyrics are all in English works to its detriment, but ‘SOS’ chugs along with such gusto it’s hard to care.
To show how far they’ve come, the band also revisit their indelible classic ‘Shining Diamond’ on ‘Diamond Days’, a rave-ready, EDM redux of its precursor, wherein they boasted of the raw talent that would deliver them from humble means. That’s why, as pompous as the title of ‘God of Music’ may sound, the actual single – riding high on euphoric brass and funk – is anything but. “If there is a God of Music / I want to give you a hug of gratitude,” croons Joshua at the outset. They’re just thrilled to be here, doing what they love most.
The festival vibes keep rolling with the crisp and snappy electropop synths of the performance unit’s ‘Back 2 Back’. There’s a definite hard edge to the verses, for better or worse, with shouted deliveries and busied-up industrial zaps. Stitched into its rough seams, though, are lines of sophisticated songwriting like “I’m the one who ran to you / If I’m breathless / It means my heart is full” and “In twilight, the sun and moon meet back to back”.
Every setlist has its energetic lows, and in gorgeous piano ballad ‘Yawn’, contemplations of fleeting relationships are etched with grief. Comfort is the resident vocalists’ M.O., but here musings take on a somber mien. “You must have been suffering alone,” sings Seungkwan, who said he cried listening to the demo while recuperating earlier this year. Sole lyricist Woozi picks it up from there: “There’s no way I wouldn’t know / Because you are my breath.” The bridge is a slow exhale, all leisurely sighs and instrumental swells that tug the heartstrings.
Meanwhile, the snickering, nocturnal prowl of trap-laden ‘Monster’ – an obvious Vernon co-creation – pulls up and screeches off in under three minutes, like a game of ding dong ditch in the dead of night. A haunted house of shrieks and wolf whistles, it swerves between brag rap and gimmick: “Stadium door to stadium door / Hit the jackpot, this a trick or treat tour.” But even as they namecheck Dracula and Frankenstein, the rappers’ hotshot bravado and its sneering chorus make for an absolutely head-bopping listen.
SEVENTEEN. Credit: PLEDIS Entertainment
Rounding things off is ‘Headliner’, which leaves us with the crackling anticipation of standing on music festival green when the sun begins to set. Complete with anthemic chants and rumbling drums, its stadium rock nostalgia sets up a charming, albeit cheesy, role reversal. Here, the band swaps shoes with their steadfast fans: “Even if another rainy day comes / I’ll be first in line for you”. It’s the type of song tailor-made for an encore’s cathartic cry: a memento you can tuck away in your pocket and hold close forever.
On the surface, ‘Seventeenth Heaven’ has all the making of yet another SEVENTEEN work of art – and some songs do reach that level of greatness the boyband have set for themselves. But on closer listen, the heavy dose vocal processing here often flattens their unique and recognisable voices into an indistinguishable mix, save for powerhouses such as DK or Seungkwan. It’s unfortunate for this team of adept vocalists, and sets a firm ceiling for the mini-album’s greatness.
‘Seventeenth Heaven’ admittedly may not sit at the very top of the band’s own pantheon. Nor does it reach the same Icarian heights of 2022’s ‘Face the Sun’, in which SEVENTEEN took a sure-footed step into an adult chapter, without deserting their endearing earnestness and grit. Even though this release doesn’t entirely play to the boyband’s strengths, it continues to flex their consistency and creativity as a collective – and if there is indeed a god of music, may they grace the group with a swift and rounded return to form.
Details
Release date: October 23, 2023
Record label: Pledis Entertainment
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