Album Review: Naomi – “Soul Child”0
Posted by - In Music
So I’m finally getting around to doing this album review for Naomi’s Soul Child. I loved Naomi’s last album and I’m glad I finally got around to listening to this album. For those that don’t know of her yet, Naomi is sort of a new face in Korea as one of the strongest vocalists in the R&B genre. As a female ballad singer, however, her competition pool is a little small, which makes her stand out even more. Check out the posts I did on her here, and here [yeah I kinda really like her music]. Now, let’s get on with this album review:
1. Prologue Soul Child: Very soulful. Reminds me of late nineties early 2000s R&B. You know, kinda hip-hop, but not? Naomi’s spoken part is very sensual. For this album review, since my understanding of Korean isn’t fluent, I’ll just comment on how great she sounds. [*/5]
2. Calling: This funky reggae flavored track is my favorite. I feel like if they could go out of their way and get an actual Jamaican rapper on the track for a remix, that would be something epic. I’ve yet to hear of a {true} Reggae/R&B collab come out of Korea, but you know how that goes. At the very least maybe they should have on one of the few Reggae artists in Korea give it a go. Stony Skunk comes to mind along Windy City, and Soul Steady Rockers. Either of these artists could add a unique twist to the now predictable Kpop collaborations with hip hop. Anyways, Naomi does an awesome job with this song. I love love love her on mid-tempo tracks with some soul and funk so I don’t know how many times I’m going to say it, but she should definitely do more songs like this, and at least release this one as a single with a bangin PV to compliment. Oh how I would love to do wardrobe styling for that! Anyway, Yes, I love this song and based on this I can’t wait to hear what her second full album will sound like. Hopefully more uptempo tracks? [4.5/5]
3.사랑인데 (Love Is): This is the lead single from the mini album and I like it. Again, ballad…and while I get the point, they want her to be a ballad singer; I still think her talent lies in slightly faster songs. Luckily this one is real chill with a great drum line so you can nod your head also. It’s a beautiful song, and the PV is real pretty too. Or at least the male model/actor. Damn!….Ok, um where was I? Oh yeah, Naomi shows of her voice, but unlike 행복하니 (track 5), I felt like she reverted to her last album of let’s show off big notes rather than let’s show of vocal diversity. [3/5]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIO4bRfTO00]
4. 어둠속에서 (Darkness): Another ballad. I know that Korea is big on ballads and I’m glad that Naomi has found a new formula, because her voice works well with this style. Again, it’s not yawn inducing, and it brings to mind early 2000s r&b, but a little fresher.[2.5/5]
5. 행복하니 (Album ver.): As mentioned her voice has gotten so much warmer since her last album and in retrospect, I feel like now she’s living in the music as opposed to producing the sound her label wanted from her. “Are You Happy?” is a ballad, yet unlike her previous works, this ballad seems younger and less stale. I think one of the things that helped that is that there aren’t any old 90s ballad samples to drag her down. I’ve noticed that ballads aren’t that great when it comes to sampling unless you bring them uptempo, or just straight up cover it. Anywho, Naomi does another wonderful job with this track. [4/5]
6. I will Run To You: an R&B gospel song. Sung in English, Naomi does a beautiful job evoking emotion in a foreign language. Often it’s hard to do that due to contextual understanding, but Naomi sings near flawless English. Vocally, she’s grown from her last album specifically that her voice seems more full, especially when she hits the higher notes. I usually don’t gravitate towards gospel songs but I could see myself listening to this voluntarily.[4/5]
7. 사랑을 잃다 (To Lose Love) CLUB MIX: Ok, there’s not much to mention here just that like I said before, ballads are great when reworked to be uptempo. It’s the remix to the ballad from last album and it’s actually pretty danceable. I could actually see this being played on KTU. [2/5]
Naomi’s Official Cyworld and lable Climix
Naomi’s Mini album @ YesAsia [$9.99!]
