I haven’t written about a solo track from Infinite’s Dongwoo since 2019, which might as well be a lifetime ago. Since then, the guys have regrouped under their own agency, toured extensively and released new music that (sadly) hasn’t done much for me. Now, it’s time for Dongwoo to showcase his own talents with a new mini album and title track Sway (Zzz).
I’m taking suggestions for a catchy name for one of this year’s biggest K-pop trends, which I’ve been calling “talking over a club beat.” That feels like a wordy way to express a songwriting approach, but boy has it been prolific over the past few months. To me, there’s a big distinction between talking and rapping, but Dongwoo has the benefit of being both a rapper and vocalist so even when he’s repeating the word “sway” over and over as this song’s chorus, he brings a natural swag to it. And pleasingly, this hook is surrounded by moments of dynamic melody that give the track a more diverse sound.
This is vital because the rapped portions of Sway follow a familiar, repetitive phrasing that holds the song back from reaching greater heights. Without the peaks of falsetto adding interest, Sway could easily suffer from predictability. As it stands, the track pulls out just enough tricks to work. I hope the official audio is more crisp, though, because the sound of the music video feels overly compressed.
Hooks
7
Production
8
Longevity
8
Bias
8
RATING
7.75