With each new release, I’ve appreciated MEOVV’s music more and more. They’ve yet to deliver a song that’s completely captured me, but they have a sound that feels much needed in K-pop right now. Even with this goodwill, as soon as I spot a song title like “DDI RO RI” my mind goes to the worst sort of catch-phrasey sing-talk pop imaginable. I don’t require deep lyrics in my pop songs, but I’m pretty sick of the onomatopoeias.
Adding to the potential of bad gimmicks, DDI RO RI samples Bach’s Toccata and Fugue — often associated with Dracula. I love a good classical music nod in K-pop, but these samples have tended to frame lame attempts at hip-hop posturing lately. And as expected, that’s the case here. MEOVV are staking their claim as badasses… just like so many of their peers. And, they’ve done it in an incredibly predictable way, placed over an inert trap beat with barely-there melodies shaved of all their dynamics. The classical flourishes are cool, but used in a ham-fisted way that feels separate from the song rather than seamlessly driving it forward.
I wish more of DDI RO RI sounded like its propulsive pre-chorus. We get a taste of MEOVV’s strong vocals here and seem to be building toward a showstopping chorus. Instead, DDI RO RI plummets into a repetitive talky hook that elicits no sparks. I continue to marvel at just how difficult it seems for K-pop songwriters to craft an engaging chorus. It’s like they’re actively trying not to stretch a song in any one direction, happy to let it lay dead on the ground instead.
Hooks
6
Production
7
Longevity
7
Bias
7
RATING
6.75