In unprecedented fashion, Black Pink will be returning to the stage again, after already dropping double MVs with their debut. We're once again treated to two more new MVs, "Playing With Fire" and "Stay." I'll be taking a look at "Playing With Fire," not only because it's the more interesting piece, but because the whole 2NE1 narrative can be spun again - especially with "fire" in the title. "Whistle" and "Boombayah" were both pretty good songs dotted with poor moments (the chorus of "Whistle," the "oppa" and hollering in "Boombayah"). We'll see if they can right those wrongs for the quick comeback.
This is the most complete song of Black Pink's four releases. Everyone sounds really good. They have a stable quartet of voices, and they're all distinct enough to stand out. Jisoo has a lilt to her voice, making it naturally appealing. Rose is the most interesting singer of the group, her nasality and voice type are certainly reminiscent of Park Bom - hopefully that similarity doesn't include live performances. Lisa is stable
Jennie continues to make a compelling argument that she is one of the most exciting new members in Kpop, coupling her already prevalent rapping and dancing abilities with a solid vocal performance. She definitely is the new Minzy, as her lower register is lovely. I'm more comfortable than the average person constantly drawing parallels to 2NE1 so it doesn't faze me at all.
However, regardless of the vocal performance from the girls, one of the overlooked parts of this song is the instrumental. It's just got great feel about it, and is both intense and mellow where appropriate. "Playing With Fire" flames out rather strangely at the end. Even though the instrumental continues to do its thing, the fact that there's no singing and essentially a dance break feels weird. It's a rare occurrence to have a song end in a dance break and until we see more of those, this ending will take some getting used to. I was expecting some sort of singing even if it was just another repeat of the chorus. At least in 2NE1's "Missing You" you had Bom awkwardly bringing closure to the song.
With Lisa getting an individual rap section all to herself, I thought Jennie would receive one of her own in "Stay" but alas. Anyway, Lisa is still doing great work as part of this promising Black Pink rapping attack. She sounds good, has flow, and speaks clearly. She's only going to get better with age. With another pair of strong showings she makes a convincing argument for being one of the best non-Korean rappers. Then again, she doesn't have much competition (at least in terms of girl group rappers). The reference to G-Dragon's "Black" did not go unnoticed, which coincidentally featured Jennie back in her trainee days. I personally love references like these, especially when they fit / aren't just awkwardly thrown in because Big Bang is also under YG.
As usual, the caveat with releasing a review so early before lives is that there's very little to work on in terms of the choreography. However, with the MV being as simple as it is, we have plenty of windows into this dance. Many of the moves look erratic and spontaneous, which is a good touch given the emphasis on fire. The formation spread for the "on and on and on" part was also great in terms of aesthetics. Probably not as interesting as their choreographies for "Boombayah" or "Whistle," but since "Playing With Fire" is a more relaxed song, that makes sense. Like with most of my other reviews posted early, I'll reserve further judgment until after watching some live performances.
Of course the day that I nearly finish the review, the dance practice gets released. The general consensus seemed to be that they didn't find the dance great based on the MV, but turned their opinions around with the practice video. I actually found myself on the opposite of that perspective. I enjoyed the specific samples from the MV (so good on the director I suppose) but the complete product doesn't look at flashy. Part of it may just be because of the limb flailing. Compared to the more controlled style of the "Boombayah" dance, "Playing With Fire" is more loose, resulting in more awkward-looking moves. The formations are still good, and the transitions clean.
There is one thing this MV has going for it: it has fire. In a song about playing with fire, I'm glad they were sensible enough to include plenty of fire and fire-related imagery in the video. Outside of that though? Plenty of individual and group shots, not much else. So let's extend this section by talking about their visuals. I almost went into this section writing "they don't look like they've changed much since their debut" which would've been a real fail moment. Of course they haven't, it's been a whopping two months. Anyways, the Jisoo-Irene resemblance is striking, and I can't believe I'm saying this but I think Jisoo looks better overall. I guess that's just because I like the more mature look (I'm aware she's only four years younger than Irene) and Irene has been outfitted as more cute lately. Jennie is the most consistent: she looks amazing in every shot. Is it too early to call her one of the superstar visuals?
Even though "Playing With Fire" isn't that amazing in any aspect, I'm in love with the song. Backed by a good instrumental, each member of Black Pink shows off their individual charm, and Lisa's extended rap earns more high marks to her resume. This is just the type of vibe anyone can enjoy, and combined with "Stay," Black Pink shows that they can perform almost any type of song and perform it well. This is a valuable asset to have so early in their careers. Much like Red Velvet, they can have a variety of styles for future comebacks and they won't be a surprise. I can confidently say based on the opening two comebacks, Black Pink has gained the upper hand against the other next generation girl groups from the Big 3.
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