Taemin: Press It Album and Music Video Review
Hello readers out in the vast internet,
(Picture was taken from www.soompi.com)
This is my first blog, so I thought I would start it out with one of my bias groups and who better than SHINee’s Taemin! He just came out with a new album called “Press It” with the lead song “Press Your Number”, which is an Urban Pop song that catches the dance vibes in people’s bodies. Bruno Mars and the Stereotypes helped write the song while Taemin contributed to the lyrics. As a side note, Taemin didn’t actually meet Bruno Mars, which is sad because it would have been awesome to see them collaborate together.
“Press Your Number” Music Video
The music video is really interesting because of the storyline that Taemin robs a liquor store and kidnaps a girl. Is it her being kidnapped, or Taemin? He revealed in the days before the release of the music video that the blue roses mean it is not a part of reality. Interesting. After watching the video, I think that it is about Taemin fantasying about robbing a liquor store, running from the police, kidnapping the girl in order to forget about the girl that broke up with him. In the end, I think what really happens is that he drives recklessly because of the breakup and crashes, becoming confused in hopes that he can forget the girl? Or crashing and then burning the car to forget the girl to cover up the robbery in which he might have done…? It’s hard to say but those are my thoughts on it.
I did notice one thing that reminded me of another video. The beginning of the video has the same color hues and the ringing of an old-fashion telephone reminds me of F(x)’s “Red Light” video. The problem is, I cannot find the directors of either video to compare them. So, I will say that this might be the director’s signature, and if not then I don’t know- it’s just a coincidence.
I also like the dancing scenes; they were very sharp and on point. It was nice seeing Taemin dancing with other backup dancers. It shows his adaptability. He is learning new styles of dance and choreography with other dancers.
His acting was very impressive since he typically does not act. He portrayed a bad boy with a cold personality. It was a side we don’t usually see, which was nice to see the diverse expressions and faces. I hope he does more acting in the future.
Another thing about the music video was that it was shot in Los Angeles. (Yay!!) It was cool to see Taemin go outside Korea, filming at a location that had the same urban feel as L.A. I also liked the denim outfits that he wore, not just for “Press Your Number” but also “Drip Drop”. It was refreshing to see Taemin in this style of clothing.
(Screen Shot from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsOGiTSZ_cg)
As a side note, there was one thing that I would like to add, not in a malicious way. After showing this video to my aunt who is familiar with Kpop but not a fan, she noticed the purple/ maroon-ish suit that Taemin wears during the video. She did not like it nor thought it would be appealing to Americans if he wanted to perform in America. She said that the suit reminded her of a Prince suit from “Purple Rain”. I agree that it was not my favorite outfit from the video, but it did fit nicely with the room and air of majesty.
(Screen Shot from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsOGiTSZ_cg)
Album Review
The album overall is amazing. It really shows Taemin as a growing singer and dancer. From the first song, with the funky quick beat of “Drip Drop” to the final soft piano song of “Hypnosis”, there was an emotional ride through every song within the various types of songs displayed in this album. I was most impressed with the song “Already”, which was a song written by SHINee’s Jonghyun. Taemin revealed that he wanted the song and pestered Jonghyun until Jonghyun finally gave it to him. I think “One By One” was written for the fans. This was also a good song because of the guitar, which made the song better and different from his other songs on the album. “Soldier” was another one of my favorites because of the emotion that Taemin poured into the lyrics that matched the accompanying powerful and then soft strikes of the piano keys. Not to mention, this was Taemin’s first song that he wrote. It not only demonstrates his composition skills and emotion but the vocal training that he has continued through the years since before his debut with SHINee.
As I pointed out, “Soldier” and “Already” are my favorites of the album, as well as the leading track “Press Your Number”. I am finding myself listening to these songs over and over again. As a concluding note, I think Taemin has shown a lot of growth between his first album and his first EP- “Ace” and leading track “Danger”.
Please, go and take a listen to this album and let me know what you think!
Taemin— Fighting!
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