Song Review: BAE173 – Turned Up

After a series of survival series, BAE173 are trying to make a comeback in the most classic sense, reestablishing the buzz they had upon debut with a new album and series of promotional tracks. Title track Turned Up has been available for a week now, along with (most of?) the album for some reason. I’m not sure what this staggered release schedule was meant to accomplish, but today we finally have the song’s music video.

Turned Up feels ideally suited to spring or summer, bounding along a light funk beat with a “top down, sing-along” energy. It’s another roller rink ready K-pop offering, though I don’t know how many people still enjoy the roller rink these days. But just like previous single One Day, there’s something missing here. Turned Up is as amiable as you could imagine, slotting comfortably in a post-Dynamite world. Yet, you get the sense that any group could record this to the exact same effect. The music says nothing about who BAE173 are as a group and without that personal touch the song itself must be even stronger.

Instead, Turned Up is fine. It’s fine enough to land at an “8,” but “fine” is rarely remembered in a few month’s time. I’ll always be happy to add another jovial bundle of rhythm guitar and breezy melodies to my collection. When it comes to pop music, I’m easy that way. The group’s real challenge is to rekindle the spark needed to assemble a large, dedicated fanbase outside of us hardcore, listen-to-everything folks. Turned Up doesn’t make any notable progress toward that goal.

Grade: B-