After a prolific string of releases through 2020 including mini-albums
Heng:garae
and
24H
, South Korean boy band
Seventeen
are set to continue their success with
Your Choice
, their eighth mini-album and first full-length release of 2021. Returning to the group's three "sub-units" structure for the first time since third album
An Ode
(2019),
continues to develop the group's wide array of genre explorations:
's hip-hop unit embraces glitchy, videogame-inspired trap for "GAM3 BO1," their vocal unit flex their singing capacities on the '90s-esque ballad "Same Dream, Same Mind, Same Night," and the dance-primed "Wave" proves a natural fit for the group's performance unit. While title track "Ready to Love" received a mixed reception on release, the album's B-sides offer a promising set of future fan favorites. "Wave" bursts into life with infectious basslines and shimmering backdrops, while the idyllic "Heaven's Cloud" proves one of the group's strongest openers to date. Forming the second part of the group's 2021 "Power of Love" phase, the mini-album is brought to fruition with romantic confessions and swoon-heavy refrains; "Heaven's Cloud" is a collage of glowing sunsets, soul-bound connections, and star-gazing summer nights. ~ David Crone