The K-pop group The Boyz has come back with their eighth mini album titled “Be Awake”. While the group’s last mini album, “Be Aware”, had more of a bright, summery concept, this most recent album follows more of a dark, “forbidden love” concept. I’m usually a big fan of K-pop groups switching up their concepts and showing their versatility, but I don’t think it worked for The Boyz this time. The concept was not executed well and made for a very underwhelming album among their otherwise perfect discography.
The title track of the album is called “Roar”, and is the only song on the album with a music video. Usually, The Boyz’s music videos expand more on the concept and make the song more enjoyable, like with their previous title tracks “The Stealer” or “Whisper”. In the case of “Roar”, however, the music video detracts from the already underwhelming song. From my interpretation of the lyrics, “Roar” is about a kind of love that makes people crazy, almost animalistic in their desire. Yet, the music video doesn’t reflect this theme at all.
There are some scenes where the group is dancing in front of some clouds, which neither looks realistic nor fit with the song. The only other main sets in the music video are a dingy office building and an underground bunker, and none of them connect with each other or the concept. The song itself has cringeworthy lyrics that make it hard to take the song seriously, like “Fallen angel is my name, I turned my back on paradise”. The only member who had an enjoyable part in the song was Eric, who came back from hiatus with a very powerful, well-written rap.
While “Roar” is somewhat interesting because of the unique instrumental, the songs “Awake”, “Horizon”, and “Diamond Life” are very dull and forgettable. “Awake”, has a very slow start to the song with a similarly slow, pounding beat that doesn’t pick up its pace except for the two rap verses, leaving the rest of the song feeling tired. “Horizon” also suffers from an agonizingly slow beat, but mainly fails because of the poor line distribution, with three vocalists– Kevin, Jacob, and Hyunjae– dominating the song despite there being five other vocalists in the group.
The album reaches its conclusion with “Diamond Life”, which is neither the best song nor the worst, but is merely forgettable. The song overall has a slight futuristic vibe that could’ve been leaned into more to be more climactic and exciting, much like The Boyz’s “Chase” album, but it ended up falling flat and feeling like a generic pop song. One good thing about this song, however, is that both of the rappers finally have a verse that is well-written and matches the beat.
The two best songs on the album are “Blah Blah” and “Savior”, which have greatly contrasting concepts. “Blah Blah” has more of a cute, coffee shop vibe, with tender and sweet lyrics about wanting to be beside your significant other: “I want to hear your voice more; The song I want to cherish and listen to alone.” Since The Boyz has eleven members, it is often difficult for everyone to get equal line distribution, but I think all of the members have a chance to shine in this song. The dark, mysterious theme picked back up with the song “Savior”, which was surprisingly one of the best songs on the album, although it still had its flaws. The main vocalist, New, and the lead vocalist, Younghoon, performed amazingly in their own verses and the chorus. However, Sunwoo, who usually has the most ingenious lyrics and line delivery, has an odd tone in this song that doesn’t match the upbeat tempo change.
The Boyz’s eight mini album “Be Aware” is unfortunately one of their worst albums to date. The lyrics are comically bad more often than not, the concept is a failed attempt to be dark and sensual, the singular music video is incoherent and lacking substance, and the line distribution is often unequal and an inaccurate representation of the group’s members. Overall, this album is not one that I would recommend to new fans of The Boyz, but you’ll just have to listen and see for yourself.