Okay, that was a bit cheesy for an introduction, I'll admit. Let's just go straight to my review of Taeyeon's mini-album (dammit, SM, why not a full album?!), entitled "I", starting with the title track.
I
Taeyeon's title track has an interesting arrangement. Upon hearing Verbal Jint's rap right after the opening hook, I got worried that all the verses will be his, because that would mean hearing less of Taeyeon. Thankfully the featured artist accepted a more minor role and disappeared for rest of the song (except for a small backing vocals part in the second verse, which was pretty cool).
Instead of overwhelming the listener with powerful vocals from start to finish, as would be expected from other music "divas", Taeyeon wisely opted for a more soothing, at times almost playful tone, only bringing out the big guns near the end in one mind-blowing climax. Coupled with the breathtaking New Zealand scenery and Taeyeon's stunning visuals in the music video, "I" is a priceless gem that Taeyeon has so graciously offered to all her loving fans.
And for the record, Taeyeon can borrow my car any time.
U R
Despite the childish spelling, this song is actually the most traditional-sounding song in the EP. It could fit perfectly in a drama OST, which isn't shocking given that Taeyeon is a veteran in that industry. For this reason, "U R" is the least interesting song here in my view. Not that it's in any way a bad song; I can easily imagine it being sung in singing competitions. It's just that the rest of the mini-album has more of a personality, I think.
Given that "U R" proved to be the title track's main competition in the charts when "I" came out, it's apparent that traditional ballads are still immensely popular in Korea and that Taeyeon chose wisely to include this in the EP, so I really can't complain.
쌍둥이자리
Ever since learning that the sensual TTS song "Whisper" was Byuntaeyeon's favorite song in last year's "Holler" album, I've been looking forward to a similar solo song from her. "Gemini" isn't as sensual as Whisper (which still makes me think dirty thoughts to this day), but it comes close. The fact that I'm a Gemini helps fuel my fantasy of Taeyeon singing this to me, which is probably why this is one of my favorite songs in the EP.
Aside from Taeyeon's soulful and sensitive delivery, which is a given, the song also benefits from lyrics that make me want to be Baekhyun just so I could heed her call to "come to me, baby" (because the real Baek is too scared of his sasaeng fans to defend his supposed love).
Stress
First let me get this out of the way: I don't think Taeyeon is stupid enough to actually jeopardize her voice by smoking. Moving on, the upbeat tone and unconventional lyrics of Stress makes it an obvious favorite for a lot of people. I like it, even though the "blah blah blah" part was slightly jarring the first few times I listened to the song. The chorus delivery is phenomenal; I don't think anyone else in Girls' Generation could even begin to perform this song with a chorus that challenging (except perhaps Ms. Jessica "Stress" Jung, but that's by the by now).
I'd love to see other K-Pop artists attempt to cover Stress, just to see how many are truly at Taeyeon's level.
먼저 말해줘
Finally, we have "Farewell". A sad break-up song, this almost brought me to tears the same way "If" did many moons ago. I really love the chorus; it sounded so cool and heart-wrenching at the same time. And that last "Goodbye", ugh! If I heard this song a couple of years ago, I'd have probably bawled like a baby.
I (Instrumental)
Oh wait, there's more? Yeah, SM decided to include an instrumental version of the title track. People who enjoyed the extended instrumentals in the music video would love this. I bet it would serve as an awesome background music while driving, though I wish SM included the backing vocal track as well.
***
Conclusion: There's no denying I'm totally biased when it comes to Taeyeon. I just fucking love her, okay? Nonetheless, I daresay anyone who's into pop music at all would agree with me that Taeyeon's first mini-album is great. My only complaint is that it should have been a full album instead. I will be completely honest and say that U R nearly put me to sleep the first time I listened to it (or maybe that's because it was past midnight at the time), but there's no denying that all five songs in the mini-album were performed exceptionally well by the Kid Leader.
Rating: 9.5 Dukongs out of 10
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