CURRENT #13: NCT DREAM- RIDIN

Released: April 29th, 2020

And so a full month of blog reviews has gone by! Minus the last 2 days where I didn't post at all (my apologies, I had to take care of some business at work), I have posted 27 different blog posts total for the month of April! I expect May to be an even busier month of comebacks now that much of the Covid crisis has receded in South Korea. But with that being said, let me wrap up the last few comebacks of April 2020!

Wrapping up the last few days of April is NCT Dream, one of the sub-units of the parent group NCT. Reviewing my very first song from NCT gave me a chance to learn more about their discography and their musical concepts. NCT dream happens to be youngest group out of all the subunits, with every single member born after 2000. Their concept describes the growth and struggles we go through from childhood to adolescence, and after hearing the song, I can definitely conclude that this comeback focuses on the upper end of that spectrum. One of the nostalgic features of Ridin is how it starts with the chorus, something not heard since the late 2000s/early 2010s, back when groups were battling each other to engrave the catchiest of choruses into your ears. The Ridin hook in the chorus is brief but immediately grows on you. It's not the catchiest of hooks, but it does its thing by juxtaposing between the low and the brief high notes, and keeping its energy thriving in the verse. The first verse composes of low-octave descending singing notes pinched with some harmonies and the Ridin hook, which are executed well and captures that rebellious, bad-boy image. Some placement siren sound effects are also a nice touch, and before you know it, we are treated with some momentous ascending harmonies that define the pre-chorus, pumping in sparks to bring in the chorus.

As expected, an extension of the chorus is added in the second one, with an extra "Keep Ridin" hook. I wasn't really a huge fan of that hook because of how "Keep Ridin" was sung in a descending manner, while the main vocals were ascending simultaneously. The contrast just didn't sound well together, and I would preferred some extra harmonies of woahs or something like that instead. The bridge calms things down with only a descending synth instrumental and NCT Dream's vocals in place, before some autotuned chants hype the song back up to the final chorus.

I would have loved to hear more variety in the chorus, as it can sound more monotonic over time. The "Ridin" hook, although effective, likely won't hold its grip on us forever. Other than that, I like the execution of the song structure, the transitions between sections, and the smooth verses that showcases NCT dream's coming of age. The song comes the closest to bringing back the nostalgia that made the music of 2nd generation inspirational to listen to, and a few modifications truly would have lifted Ridin out of this world.

RATING: 7.35/10