Album Review: SISTAR's "Alone" EP

SISTAR's latest EP "Alone" continues on from the sleek and classy vibe of the title single, resulting in a consistent yet enjoyable album listen.

The EP opens with "Come Closer". This short intro is just a minute long, but sets the tone for the rest of the album very well. It does its job: it intrigues you and makes you want to hear more. A very stylish and slightly mysterious minute of musical glory.

Next comes title single "Alone", which you can read into detail about here. In brief, it is sleek, classy, and exhibits great musical production and distinction.

From there, the album continues a style similar and consistent from "Alone", but the girls feel more warm and friendly, as opposed to the sexy aloofness of the title track.

"No Mercy" is a catchy club track with great beats. It's not outstanding, but a lot of fun and makes you want to get up and dance. However, I'd say it's the least memorable song on the album.

After is "Lead Me", probably the sleekest and best produced song on the album. The sound is just so smooth and pleasant! The girls sound mature yet sweet and endearing. The raps are intertwined nicely into the song as opposed to sticking out. Definitely the shining star of the album.

"Girls on Top" isn't a fantastic track, but one I am particularly fond of. I simply love the empowering feel, especially during the chorus. It yells "Girl power!" without being too in your face. Instead, it's just a fun, upbeat, and slightly empowering song.

The already strong album closes with "I Choose to Love You", a solo song sung by the lovely lead singer Hyorin. The song is so sweet and pretty, and shows Hyorin vocals and charm. Her sweet vocals create a romantic feel for the song.

With this EP, SISTAR gives off the misconception they've been around longer than they've really been with their mature, sleek, yet fun sound. They prove they have what it takes to rise above the rest. Their style is familiar, yet creative and distinctive. The songs create great consistency, but are all still unique in their own way. There is no particular "bad" track of the album, and it all flows well from the intriguing intro to the closing track solo. SISTAR, well done, ladies!

Rating: 4 Stars

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Author's Note: This review comes late, I apologize (is this all Niki and I wrote in the author's note now?). One of my loyal readers and friends Krystal had recommended it to me shortly after it came out, and I didn't get to listen to it until a month later. Surely enough though, I loved this EP. Looks like I finally have another girl group besides Miss A that I like!

Staff Song Review: Sistar's "Alone"

    

K-Pop girl groups' images are usually categorized as girly like Girl's Generation, sexy like Brown Eyed Girls, or edgy and empowering like Miss A.  In Sistar's latest comeback, the talented girls don an image that is more rarely seen: Classy.

Iris: "Alone" has a very distinct and dream-like sound, making it probably the most unique single released by a girl group this year.  The production on it is extremely sleek, stylish, and quite sultry.  Despite being neither a fast song or a ballad, "Alone" manages to be a very intriguing song.  I didn't love the song at first, but it didn't take long for it to grow on me.  It embodies a lot of femininity and style.

As usual, the MV for the song is very easy on the eyes and a great visual.  The girls look gorgeous, as do the shots of Las Vegas.  Whoever decided to shoot the MV in Las Vegas, you were right on.  The city definitely fits the image "Alone" is going for.
Sistar shows in their latest comeback that they are far from being a bunch of rookies anymore.  They have their own unique style, and they own it.  "Alone" may take some time to grow on you, but one can not deny the fantastic musical production on it.



Niki: Sistar has really managed to impress me during their comeback this time. I was used to their upbeat pop sound but was pleasantly surprised when I first saw "Alone". At first, I wasn't too fond of the song, but after the second listen I found myself listening to it again and again.

While I loved the overall feel of the MV, but there was one thing that bugged me, the club scenes. I thought gave it the appropriate nostalgic feel with Sistar lounging alone in the club. However, it was rather unrealistic that they would have the club to themselves, especially if it was a club in L.A. But it is an MV so whether it's realistic or not isn't such an important factor, besides people know that you can't go to a club and lie on the dance floor (without getting trampled anyways) when you're heartbroken ;D.

The dance for the song was simple and fit very well with the image. It was different from Sistar's usual strong dances and flaunted Sisitar's soft feminine side without hiding their seductiveness. What I really loved was the girl's style and the color scheme. The use of blue and purple lighting gave the MV a sorrowful feeling while the red reflected Sistar's strong personalities. Sistar looked fantastic in the long sparkling dresses (which is another rare thing to see in K-pop), simple hairstyles, and bold makeup.

Overall, "Alone" is a well composed and produced song that matches well with Sisitar's strong vocals and style. The rarely seen sultry and classy image has been a refreshing change for Sistar; it really shows how much they have matured in their music.

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Author's Note (Iris): Sorry this song review didn't get posted until a month after the song's release!  Glad we managed to get it in before the goodbye stage though.  It's been sitting in our drafts since....since the song first released.  We've been a little busy here, and a bit lazy to get started on posts.

Author's note (Niki): Yea, sorry guys, I was supposed to start this post but kept delaying it.  I also feel really bad because I always disappear after a while. Hopefully during the summer I'll write more.