Following their pre-release Girlfriend earlier this month, (G)I-DLE is back with their first new title track after rebranding themselves as “i-dle.” This reinvention doesn’t seem to herald a shift in sound, though each comeback tends to shift things around since they’re known for experimenting with various genres. Teasers for Good Thing seemed to promise a nostalgic second-gen sound as filtered through i-dle’s colorful personality.
i-dle have always leaned strongly into concept. For me, this can often veer into cloying cleverness, as if the songs are designed to spawn memes, catchphrases and challenges above all else. The post-chorus of Good Thing fulfills this brief, including the requisite, performative self-censored cussing that features in so much of their more recent music. But surrounding this predictable hook is a track that paints a solid way forward for i-dle. And funny enough, they carve this route by digging around in Cube Entertainment’s past.
Much of Good Thing sounds like a 4minute title track circa 2011. Back in 2011 I’m not sure whether I’d consider this something to get excited about, but enough time has passed that this “recession pop” has come back into vogue. Good Thing‘s chintzy synths and novelty chorus feel right on trend and don’t even sound too strained when supported by such a throwback instrumental (complete with vocoder!). Better yet, the ferocious pre-chorus is genuinely great and showcases how Good Thing might sound if it moved just slightly away from its gimmicks.
Hooks
7
Production
9
Longevity
8
Bias
8
RATING
8