Song Review: V (BTS) – Winter Ahead (with Park Hyo Shin)

Modern entries to the winter holiday canon can be tricky since this type of song thrives on built-up nostalgia. Most listeners have a handful of tracks they go back to each year until they become ritual. It’s less common for fans to go out of their way to discover new holiday classics, but when BTS’s V is involved you know many ears will be tuned to the project.

Winter Ahead pairs him with balladeer Park Hyo Shin, forging a duo that’s musical catnip to Korean charts this time of year. And given V’s past solo work, the song unfolds much as you’d expect. It’s jazzy and subdued, warm like a cup of cocoa and gentle to a fault. The guys have gone down an incredibly traditional route, giving the track a timeless feel. To make a too-obvious comparison, the moody instrumental would feel right at home alongside Vince Guaraldi’s work on A Charlie Brown Christmas. In holiday terms, that’s like kissing the holy grail.

Honestly, December is really the only space I have for this style of music. It’s not usually my thing, but I make a big exception for cold winter nights spent decorating for the holidays. There’s no chance Winter Ahead vaults over the many classics on my playlist, but it’s a smart use of V’s warm vocal tone and obvious love for this genre. He and Hyo Shin make for a dynamic pairing. If anything holds the song back, it’s the lack of an equally dynamic structure. The opening verse unfolds as a captivating duet, but as Winter Ahead moves forward it doesn’t unveil any new ideas. It’s simply pleasant and light throughout. A brass-kissed finale injects some drama, but I kept waiting for the melody to take an unexpected or ear-catching turn.

Grade: C+