Monsta X are celebrating their tenth anniversary — a huge milestone for any group. Album promotions kicked off with pre-release Do What I Want last month and now they’re back with their title track N The Front. It’s a Dem Jointz production, whose work I haven’t always gelled with. But if anyone’s going to carry a big hip-hop sound, it’s Monsta X.
Given the members’ penchant for song composition, I’m surprised they didn’t lead with a self-penned track. However, N The Front echoes many of their musical hallmarks so I understand why it was chosen. The song melds rollicking rock verses with a heavy hip-hop, chant-shouted chorus. The blend is cacophonous enough to work and it’s buoyed by the group’s boisterous performance, but no element of N The Front really grabs me. It almost feels like its duality should have been teased apart to create two different songs.
Despite Monsta X’s brash, often aggressive sound, their best music also found a way to dole out killer choruses. N The Front lacks this feature, though the layered “I wanna see you in the front!” exclamation is very satisfying. I wish this ushered in a stronger chorus, but instead N The Front devolves into a string of repetitive catchphrases. I have similar thoughts about the verses, which sabotage their adventurous energy with so-so melodies that don’t stick in memory. Each of these extremes is missing something important, and shoving them together with jarring tempo changes only exacerbates the problem.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 8 |
| Longevity | 8 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7.5 |
