Tempest have pinballed between sounds and concepts, often making hard swerves from light to dark and back again. Their best music succeeds on memorable melodies and unflagging energy. New single In The Dark jettisons the latter to place all its attention on the former.
Sometimes I want to be a fly on the wall in K-pop agency meetings to see what goes into the process of picking a title track. Judging from the album’s highlight medley, the group have a huge banger hit in the form of b-side Nocturnal, but they’ve opted for something far more subdued and sentimental. In The Dark doesn’t sound like anything else out at the moment, and that’s to its credit. However, its softness and unassuming nature may get lost in the shuffle.
There’s a pleasant grace to In The Dark‘s sound. It’s like watching a lyrical, modern dance routine when everyone around you is leaning hard into hip-hop. But for this to work, the song needs to be operating at 120%. I’m talking knock-your-socks-off melodic payoff and a performance that stops you in your tracks. In The Dark simply settles for “nice.” It shimmers and wafts and the guys perform it well enough, but by the time the song has finished there’s not much impact left in its wake. This is even true when taking into account its unique, cinematic music video that offers added lore and striking imagery.
| Hooks | 8 |
| Production | 7 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 8 |
| RATING | 7.75 |
