Thursday 7 November 2013

Album Review: Miss A Delivers A Sensuous And Musically Diverse Album With 'Hush'

Miss A sets out to attract new audiences with <i>Hush</i>.

Miss A sets out to attract new audiences with Hush.

Miss A crosses over from the youth market with Hush, a thirteen track, full-length album whose songs illustrate the trials and tribulations of being a single woman. The initial marketing for Hush delivered the message that Miss A intended to project a more mature image which they successfully achieve. In addition to the title song, Come Tonight and Hide & Sick, serve as testimonies to the conflict many young women face after shedding the fierce independence of I Don't Need A Man. While the production of J.Y. Park is noticeably absent from the album, Hush maintains some of the signature JYP sound, while demonstrating the full potential of Miss A.

While there is a presence of electro pop and European house on the album, Hush is very much a pop album. Spotlight is a standout example of an uptempo K-Pop song that breaks up some of the album's dark tone. Hush swings the pendulum from the joy of a new found connection which may or not have been established in a club to the lows of breakup. Hide & Sick contrasts with Spotlight, both lyrically and with its dark synthpop track. The juxtaposition of these two songs sets the overall tone for Hush.

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The jazzy Mama (I'm Good) is one of the songs which sounds most like it belongs to a JYP artist. The sedated instrumentals help to establish a backdrop for Miss A's vocals, in a way which the more club friendly songs do not. It is often frustrating to hear strong vocalists on house or EDM songs, as the music can potentially overtake the song itself. In the case of Times Up, the house track has been subdued to allow for a very catchy dance anthem.

The similarly named Over U and Love is U exemplify bubblegum pop, although Love is U features an interesting hip-hop break. Although, the songs make sense in terms of the album, they sound slightly dated in comparison with the overall album. Over U resembles the musical structure of a mid-career Britney Spears single, which works against it. While I Don't Need A Man maintains some of those qualities, the song perfectly completes an album which opens with an invitation to stay the night and closes with the conclusion that men are unnecessary.

Miss A has demonstrated that the group has infinite potential with Hush. Their musical independence, in terms of production from J.Y. Park, works to their advantage by providing them with a diversity of sound which helps to transition them into maturity. With Hush, Miss A has provided a soundtrack that is perfect for a night at the club as well as evening at home. In its digital form, Hush is currently performing at number one on most of the real-time chart, beating out many of the recent comebacks. The physical album of Hush will be released on November 11th.

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