Even if I haven’t loved every ALL(H)OURS single, I’ve appreciated the group’s energy and willingness to deliver cheesy, over-the-top hooks. Their songs often have a second-gen appeal wrapped up in modern aesthetics. It’s disappointing, then, that pre-release Hop sounds more like an ATEEZ reject.
With the repetitive, monotone Bad currently ruling the charts (for some reason), I’m not surprised to see a song like Hop following in its wake. ALL(H)OURS spend most of the song posing and posturing, rattling off silly catchphrases until we reach a dull anti-chorus. Apparently, triplet phrasing will never die in K-pop. It simply evolves into new, more annoying forms.
A hint of past ALL(H)OURS glories pops up at the tail end of Hop as distorted guitar comes in to give the song a good shake. This dynamic arrangement might have salvaged the track if it had been allowed to flourish from the very start, but the extent and majority of the songwriting here amounts to “Hop, hop, hop, hop, hop” with a few “Zing-zing, zigglings” thrown in for good measure. It’s difficult to salvage that.
Hooks
6
Production
8
Longevity
7
Bias
6
RATING
6.75