Crush

Album Review: Epik High – Sleepless in __________

Album/Single Review

This is less of a review and more of an opportunity for me to gush about how talented and amazing Epik High are. I’m in no way qualified to be a music critic, but I have lots of thoughts on their new album.

But first, a little introduction…

For those of you who don’t know, Epik High are a hip-hop trio composed of Tablo, Mithra Jin, and DJ Tukutz. Their sound is a bit different to what you may normally associate with the genre of hip-hop, but that’s what makes them stand out in my opinion. I’ve seen them being referred to as ‘Alternative Hip-Hop’ – whatever that means! They’ve been around since the early 2000s and, until recently, were a part of the well-known YG Entertainment label. I have to admit, I’m not as familiar with their earliest work, and actually fell in love with them when I came across the last two albums they released: ‘Shoebox’ and ‘We’ve Done Something Wonderful’.

‘Shoebox’ was a great introduction to their sound, and their song ‘Born Hater’ was probably the first time I came across their music, which made me want to know more about them. That song had so many great people feature on it, but that was just a taster for the rest of the album, which I listen to a lot even till this day.

‘We’ve Done Something Wonderful’ was THE album of collaborations for me. I still cannot get enough of ‘Home Is Far Away ft. Oh Hyuk’ and ‘Here Come The Regrets ft. Lee Hi’. I never get bored of any of the songs on it to be honest. It’s also the album I refer people to when I want to get across the point that Korean music is so diverse and more than just Kpop.

Track List

  • 01. Sleepless
  • 02. In Seoul (Feat. Sunwoo Jung-a)
  • 03. LOVEDRUNK (Feat. CRUSH)
  • 04. Eternal Sunshine
  • 05. No Different (Feat. Yuna)
  • 06. Rain Again Tomorrow
  • 07. Lullaby For A Cat

Here comes the review…

A sound that is timeless. As soon as I downloaded the album, I played it on loop for hours because I instantly fell in love with it. And the strange thing about it was that it felt like it had been in my collection for years (and not because I’d overplayed it). So quickly it became so familiar; I couldn’t imagine the time before I’d heard it. Is that a weird statement to make?

The first track, Sleepless, is an introduction to the mini album. I never know what to make of these intro tracks – regardless of the artist. But I suppose that’s just one of their ways of telling a story through music. Interestingly, I watched a video clip where they explained that the name of the album has 10 underscores after ‘Sleepless in’ so that you can fill it in with the name of the place you live. It’s an album for those who share a similar feeling.

As soon as you move onto track 2, In Seoul, that’s where the magic begins. It features singer Sunwoo Jung-a, who until recently, was unknown to me. I realised that I’d heard of everyone who had featured on their previous albums. But Sunwoo Jung-a’s voice was a beautiful addition to the song. The lyrics focus on the hustle and bustle of the city of Seoul. They talk about the expectations and inequality in society, and basically the daily struggles people feel in this city. Resulting in the inability to fall asleep; feeling miserable and lonely. Even though I don’t live in Seoul and don’t face the same expectations of the South Korean society, there are definitely some aspects I could relate to when it comes to living in a big city, like London.

What I also found interesting was that the last 50 seconds or so of the song was the continuation of just the music. I hadn’t even realised this until I was looking up the English translation of the lyrics on YouTube. It just goes to show how well produced the song is; it flows so well.

LOVEDRUNK featuring Crush, the title song of the album, is a gift that keeps on giving.
This song has so many layers – I don’t even know where to start! First of all, Crush is one of my ultimate favourite Korean musicians, who I was fortunate enough to see live in London earlier this year. His voice makes you melt like butter and his feature on this song is pure perfection.

The song portrays the emotion one feels when going through heartbreak and the dependence on alcohol to get through it, yet making it worse. Wanting to erase someone from your memory, but ending up losing yourself. Although I can’t relate to this scenario of heartbreak and alcohol, I can certainly understand the sentiment.

“Forgetting someone is the most difficult thing in the world.”

Tablo explains the story behind the song and the music video in a clip from the making of the MV. The video they’ve released is so powerful and the cinematography is breathtaking. It also helps that it stars a much loved figure, singer/actress, IU. It truly is a mini movie. When I was listening to my music on my commute into work and LOVEDRUNK suddenly came on, I instantly got all the feels. I forgot where I was and where I was going for a brief moment. You must watch the music video to this song, with the English subtitles on!

Eternal Sunshine is interestingly produced by SUGA of BTS. I heard about this even before listening to the song, so I didn’t know what expect, but I was pleasantly surprised. An upbeat, yet chilled vibe for a song that shook me. When I looked up the translation of the lyrics, I started tearing up. I didn’t realise it would strike a chord with me.

“Do you get lonely?
Sick with anxiety?
Can’t trust nobody?
Well, same here.”

I urge you to look up the lyrics to this song too. It’s so deep and relatable for so many reasons. I don’t know if it’s something that comes with age, but it’s not the first time I’ve heard talks of wanting to hide from the world, because the world outside is darker than under the blanket. This song is clearly about anxiety, and the ups and downs that come with it. When feeling so venerable, yet trying to persevere.

Mithra’s verse impressed me a lot on this track. I love rappers who can spit bars so clean and effortlessly. It also features a female singer on the track who I wasn’t able to identify, even though she sounded quite familiar. Her soothing voice added that chilled vibe that I mentioned earlier. I can see why the world can’t get enough of this unexpected collaboration between BTS member SUGA and Epik High.

No different is the only full track in the album that is all in English. It features Yuna, my favourite Malaysian singer who I’ve also had the pleasure of seeing live in London a few years ago. As soon as heard her voice, I fell in love with the song. She has a beautiful tone, whether she’s harmonising or singing. Once again, Epik High hits it out of the park when it comes to collaborations.

“I might not be the one, could you settle for half?”

The lyrics are so clever and well put together. The track was also jointly composed and arranged by CODE KUNST – a very talented and trendy music producer from the record label AOMG. It totally has a CODE KUNST feel to it, which I’d describe as a catchy slow jam, with impact.

I’m putting it out there, Rain Again Tomorrow has to be my favourite track on the album. I contemplated between this and LOVEDRUNK for ages, but as magical as LOVEDRUNK is, I always found myself looking forward to this song coming on further down the playlist. I just love the rhythm and beats on this track. I even taught myself the key part of the chorus (in Korean) so I could sing along to it (in my head, of course).

There are three parts in the lyrics that I really liked (from the translation, of course):

“The work I do, they give it a likeable name ‘creation’,
But I’m building and climbing over my own walls”

This is probably something a lot of people in the creative industry can relate to. Being a creator of any kind is not easy.

“They say tomorrow is another sunrise, those rainclouds tell me otherwise.”

I mean, if that’s not talking about life in the UK, I don’t know what is! Okay, so I know this most probably has another meaning, but I’m going for the literal one in this instance.

“I know it’s my fate to disappear after emptying myself to fill up others.”

Wow. Sometimes I feel this too.

I was fascinated how all of a sudden it switches to a slower pace near the end of the song and seamlessly switches to the final amusingly titled track, ‘Lullaby For A Cat’.

Lullaby For a Cat is like the outro of the album. I’m sure there’s a story behind the name, but the lyrics don’t exactly give you much of a hint. It also samples ‘In Seoul’, with a rather nice addition of a violin.

Overall…

What can I say? If you’ve made it this far into my review, well done and thank you. You may have already gathered how obsessed I am about this album. I can’t remember the last time I was this invested in an album to tell you the truth. I’ve looked up the English translations for all the songs. I’ve taught myself some of the chorus’ in Korean. I’ve also raved about the album to anyone who will listen to me!

It took me best part of a week to put this review together because I wanted to give it the full attention it deserves. I need more people to understand the importance of the messages they convey through the songs on this album. We’re all going through something, we’re not alone in this, but we will get through it with a little perseverance.

And the cherry on the cake is that I am going to see Epik High perform live in London! A dream come true.

Crush in London

Korean Live Music

Before you get ahead of yourself, I’m referring to the wonderful Korean musician, Crush. I was so overwhelmed with all sorts of emotions after leaving the Crush concert at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town, on a cold Sunday night in January.

I had been waiting for this day for so long, and it was everything I could’ve dreamt of. It was one of those concerts that you couldn’t help but enjoy, because Crush’s personality and passion was just infectious.

He had the whole stage to himself, with DJ support from friend and fellow Fanxy Child member, Milic. He sang the classics, as well as the newer hits, and kept us entertained and laughing throughout. The silly side of his personality, which everyone may not be aware of, was on point! It made me fall in love with him all over again.

The love for Crush in the room was no joke. People around me were jumping up and down like excitable little kids, screaming and shaking their hands in the air, like they just don’t care – and that was just on the balcony level. Imagine the state in the mosh pit below?

I soon realised that I didn’t mind which of his songs he sang because I truly loved them all. And I think all my fellow audience members would agree on this. It would’ve been challenging for him to sing all of his hits anyway, so whatever he was able to perform was pure gold.

He spoke about his love for London, and his fond memories of performing in this city 3 years ago, and how great it was to come back. The thing that touched my heart was how much he didn’t want the show to end himself, because he was loving the energy from the crowd. He mentioned how music transcends languages, and this concert was a testament to that. The audience was so diverse, many of whom probably don’t understand Korean, yet they all shared the same love for Crush as much as the next person.

Crush even gave us an unexpected treat by singing his first ever song written all in English, ‘Lay Your Head On Me’. It was magic. He didn’t think many people would know it as it was fairly new, but the whole crowd sang along with him and that took him by surprise.

I was transported to my happy place with that warm, fuzzy feeling (despite the freezing cold temperature outside). Crush actually apologised for the weather too and that resulted in the crowd erupting in laughter.

When he sang ‘Beautiful Life’, it gave me all the feels. And even with a few people being ‘extra’ and not savouring that precious moment, it still gave me the chills. It’s a song that really put Crush on the map for me and I’ll never forget it. I love how he joked and played along, and generally had a blast himself.

That’s how you put on a great show and entertain people for nearly 2 hours straight, and still leave them wanting more. Buying tickets to see Crush was one of the best decisions I made last year, so here’s to even more incredible experiences to come in 2019!