[Review] KARA - Pandora

Vocals: 9 / 10

Most people wouldn’t really think it, but KARA possesses one of the best vocal lineups. Seungyeon, Nicole, and Gyuri all do wonderful work while Hara and Jiyoung pull their weight via support roles. While Seungyeon has never quite impressed me in the past, her lines in this song are fantastic, and her bridge buildup / belts near the end of the song reminded me of Gayoon, which is good because she emphasizes a very distinct / unique sound. Hara’s support vocals have continued to improve and I was surprised at how well Jiyoung’s singing matched the song. The “mood” of some of the vocals is a little strange, though. The song / instrumental and music video are upbeat and powerful, and the chorus heavily reflects that. However, there are various lines which sound “cute”, most notably, “up and up ah ah~”. Considering that this song is upbeat and frantic, the cute sound seemed out of place. I feel that the cutesy vocals were more suited for a slower song like “Step”, and this song required more energetic vocals, similar to how “Lupin” was. Speaking of, considering how frequent “up and up ah ah~” was, the pronunciation could have been stronger. The first time I listened to the song I honestly thought the line was “Open it up ah~”, which would have been kinda relevant in terms of Pandora’s Box. In the end, it’s a solid performance which I cannot complain about.

Appearance: 10 / 10

Speaking of being at the top, KARA is one of the few groups who have consistently been super attractive all the time. Seriously, look at them! Hara, Nicole, Seungyeon, Jiyoung, and Gyuri are all stunning in this video and in general. KARA’s eyes have always been a trademark / highlight and this song is following suit. Jiyoung’s appearance continues to fool me into forgetting she is a 94’er, and Nicole is quite the bombshell in blonde (did you see the eye makeup during the middle portion of the video though? It looked pretty awful). Gyuri and Seungyeon are more or less the same, which is quite impressive to begin with. Hara wins the standout award with the new colour and messy bangs style. And here I was thinking Hara looked the best with long straight hair. While the sets between “Pandora” and “Step” are fairly similar, the colours for the former are darker and more serious, an appropriate touch in comparison to the brighter friendlier release. Oh, and have I mentioned how attractive KARA is?

Dance: 10 / 10

If you thought the “Halla halla halla” / “Lupin” choreography was sexy, the dance for this song ups a whole new level. All the swaying, fierce looks, etc. match perfectly (perfectly match?) with the lyrics and upbeat tempo of the song. Like with some other groups, I’d hope to see some dance breaks in the future, although one could argue Nicole’s rap segment is considered a dance break. Regardless, KARA has a group of solid dancers and while their choreography may not be the most intense or difficult, it certainly is flashy and they look amazing doing it.

Rap: 9 / 10

Somehow I feel that it has been ages since I’ve seen something even remotely rap-related from KARA, even though Nicole is already quite talented in spitting out lyrics, and Hara is also half decent, I definitely did not expect a returning collaboration of rap from Nicole, Hara, and Jiyoung! It’s very well done between the three of them, and it’s a perfect compliment to the rest of the song. Other groups should try using collaboration rap sequences, since KARA pulled this off with good success. Honestly, there really isn’t much else to say. Excellent rap and hope to see more of this in the future!

Music Video: 7 / 10

…well, it was good up until this point, haha. It’s a generic Korean pop music video, what else is there to say? The MV has all the basic components: flashy set designs, fashionable outfits, neat lighting effects, an expensive car, all sautéed to crispy state with some amazing vocals, choreography, and rap for additional taste and you have the traditional KPop video!

~

Overall: 90 / 100

Honestly, I was really into KARA back when in the days of “Mister” and “Lupin”, but since the Japanese promotions and “Step” came after I haven’t been paying attention to them that much - due to my policy of not really following Korean artists’ Japanese expansion save for a select few. However, KARA has once again rebounded into my heart with “Pandora” and it’s a extremely good listen and I can only wish they ride their continuing success for the future.