One of 2024’s biggest success stories was SM Entertainment’s reigning girl group aespa. Going into the year they were already very popular, but the trio of Supernova, Armageddon and Whiplash jolted them to a new level, becoming ubiquitous hits that still have a hold on the charts months later. Rather than return with a brand new album, aespa are slowly feeding fans with standalone single Dirty Work. But given the scope of its big budget video, this is no stopgap. SM are clearly throwing their weight behind the project.
My experience with aespa’s 2024 singles was more mixed than the general public’s. Supernova remains one of the year’s best songs, but Armageddon didn’t appeal to me and Whiplash quickly lost its luster thanks to a repetitive, spoken-word approach. Similar frustrations persist with Dirty Work. The visuals are incredible, the elastic bass has so much potential, but the actual song amounts to little more than charismatic talking. Sometimes I feel like I’m going crazy, but I desperately want to hear fully sung melodies over this type of soundscape. Like… just do something with the beat.
Dirty Work‘s oft-repeated refrain is admittedly catchy, but it operates in the same way Whiplash did: stylish and amusing the first few times but ultimately too monotone to go the long haul. aespa’s performance drips with charisma. That’s never a complaint I’d level at a song like this. They’re fierce, in command and all the other important buzzwords that cause online fans to publish over-the-top tweets about how much an artist ate/slayed/devoured/etc. The instrumental includes some interesting textures — especially during the chorus — and we get a peek at more dynamic structure during the bridge. But… and I can’t believe I’m going to say this in 2025… at three minutes the song is overlong. It exhausts its minimal ideas in about thirty seconds and needs more development to remain compelling. For all its bluster, it’s a bit of a bore.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 6 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7 |
