[Review] LOONA - Butterfly

Life has taken some unpleasant turns for me, but that won't put me at a standstill. Red Velvet's concert post is incoming but I'm gonna let this take precedence because the new style of song reviews means more should be written. I know I've been giving all the girl groups love but I promise with the increase of reviews there will be boy group content too. Last year started to get more balanced and I'll look to bring that back for 2019. Anyways, what's been going on with Loona?

This is one hell of a track. For starters, the pitch of "Butterfly" is astoundingly high. Even for Loona's standards, some of those notes make you raise your eyebrows. A few of the "fly like a butterfly" lines get into unsettling territory with how high pitched they are. Like, it's obvious that this shit ain't natural, though it doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. That's because the vocals aren't the defining part of the track but we'll get to that later. While the chorus is painted with high pitched voices and focuses on the instrumental and dancing, the verses are sublime if but a touch too quiet. Still, the singing overall is desirable and one can respect that even when it's not the focal point of "Butterfly." Oh and the brief burst of rapping from a join effort was alright. If the vocals are less important to the song then the rap is even less so.

Where "Butterfly" shines is the perfect unison of choreography and cinematography. This dance is so fucking sharp, and their clean outfits help accentuate that. In this new age of girl groups and female dancers, there are many individuals that stand out but Loona looks very good as a complete unit. Considering their group size, that's no small feat. With the exception of one member (yeah I'd be lying to you if I said I could recognize everyone), their heights are all in the same ballpark too. The hair color unity is not achieved, but for this case I'm actually okay with it because of the music video. And what a video. Women of all nationalities and backgrounds are showcased from start to finish, dancing with Loona. There have been MVs where non-Koreans are used, but never to this magnitude. Major props to BBC. Also, Olivia Hye is the most attractive member of Loona. Fight me Yves stans.

If "Butterfly" ends up a top top song of the year, then that would be an unprecedented accomplishment. For a group that young to have a song that good would be something special. Perhaps this is way too early to be calling a shot but I'm doing it anyway. Tremendous choreography, gorgeous MV, and supplementary vocals and visuals make "Butterfly" an absolute treat. Maybe the trick is to avoid teasers like the plague after all. With Loona making a solid statement for both their careers and 2019, other girl groups better watch the fuck out.