Building on the confidence-driven ethos of 2023's
Kill My Doubt
,
ITZY
return in full force with 2024's bold and edgy
Born to Be
-- the group's second Korean-language studio album and third full-length overall. Conceptualized around the group adopting warrior-like personae, the ten-track set sees them rally on a core thread of resilience and limitlessness: the pre-release track ¿Born to Be¿ opens events with a fiery celebration of being young, wild, and free, which quickly doubles down using pounding EDM basses and a defiant chorus in the second track ¿Untouchable¿ (¿I'm untouchable, ¿¿¿ ¿¿ form¿). Capping off the project's opening run of pre-release tracks, ¿Mr. Vampire¿ proves the project's standout moment, a vampiric romance concept empowered by catchy,
Red Velvet
-esque sonics, breezy yet stunning vocals from
Chaeryeong
, and a rare, tender vocal performance from
Ryujin
.
and
play perfect foils to one another here; the smooth chorus sees the former coolly dismissing past lovers with a ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿,¿ while the latter's harmonies yearn for the bite of new romance.
For the first time in their career,
uses their B-sides to showcase solo tracks from each of their members.
Yeji
keep the album's concept going on the confident ¿Crown on My Head¿ and ¿Run Away,¿ both anchored to anthemic guitar lines and stabbing basses, and
Yuna
's ¿Yet, But¿ sees her reconfigure a more traditional bubblegum pop sound for an uplifting call to dazzle in the face of difficulty.
Lia
's solo works (¿Mine¿ and ¿Blossom¿) act as more of a counterbalance, leading into melodic R&B and pop-led directions -- the latter, recorded prior to
's hiatus from promotions, proves a beautiful, bittersweet reflection on the pressures of authenticity, and is a clear standout.
The project's remaining B-sides deftly shore up the album's core concept: ¿Dynamite¿ stands by its title, delivering an explosive call to the dancefloor while ¿Escalator¿ weaves headstrong trap verses together (capped off with brilliant ¿Byee!¿ ad libs) before crescendo'ing into a wonky, bass-laden breakdown. Despite dedicating over half of its runtime to solo work,
proves
's most cohesive work to date -- this is a steadfast, defiant set of anthems that continues to see the group thrive. ~ David Crone