EPEX are ready to drop their third (!) full album next week, but before that they’ve returned with pre-release Picasso (피카소). EPEX aside, July has been a pretty strong month for K-pop so far. Sure, there haven’t been a ton of awesome 9+ rated tracks, but there haven’t been many outright clunkers either. I mention this because Picasso is, unfortunately, a 100% certified clunker in my eyes.
The problems start right away, as the track unveils a truly ugly synth riff. I don’t know what the obsession is with producers finding the most abrasive sounds to fashion a song around, but my thinking is: if you wouldn’t want to listen to a loop in isolation why the heck would you want to listen to it as the base of a full song? Unfortunately, Picasso only doubles down on these grating sounds. Not only do we have that abrasive synth boring into you skull at every turn, but the song itself is equally prickly.
In some ways, it’s refreshing to hear a song I actively hate. At least it elicits a strong reaction. But boy, I never want to hear this again and will definitely be skipping it when the album is released. Picasso is like the combination of a jackhammer, squeaky door and a bunch of drunk bros shouting at each other as trap beats skitter endlessly in the background. And then out of nowhere, there’s a surprisingly great bridge floating like an oasis at the center of the maelstrom.
| Hooks | 5 |
| Production | 3 |
| Longevity | 5 |
| Bias | 3 |
| RATING | 4 |
