Beat logo

NCT 127 - ‘We Are Superhuman’ EP Review

A Successful EP full of Personality, Colour, and Gripping Futuristic Sounds.

By Nathan SartainPublished 5 years ago 4 min read
Like

In case you’ve been living under a rock, NCT 127 are quietly taking over the world. Through futuristic soundscapes and a refreshing idiosyncrasy that is rare in today’s music, the ten member group—Taeil, Johnny, Taeyong, Yuta, Doyoung, Jaehyun, Winwin, Jungwoo, Mark, Haechan—are starting to break through into the mainstream of all corners of the world, with no signs to suggest any slowing down.

And now, after a successful Japanese full-length album, the group returns with WE ARE SUPERHUMAN, an EP that promises huge sounds, impressive experimentation, and a development on last year’s Regular-Irregular record. Currently without Winwin due to his promotional activity with WayV (another sub-unit of the wider NCT project group), the nine currently active members still managed to release an EP full of colour, vibrancy, and genius, all without compromising their usual stylings.

Opener “Highway to Heaven” is about as close to a faultless appetiser as possible, and serves as the perfect way to kickstart the release. Thanks to slick, refined vocals and atmospheric instrumentation, it builds itself as a pop track layered with emotion and accessibility. It still has all the usual elements of a 127 track; the smooth rap verses, euphoric chorus, and synergy that comes natural to the nine members, but the overall production gives this track a feeling of maturity, and highlights the development and comfortability that comes when you’re at this stage of your career. All in all, it’s an impressive curtain-raiser, and doesn’t depart too far into extreme sounds too soon.

Next track “Superhuman” is the truest triumph, though. The lead-single of the EP, it contains tangible energy and meshes boyband-like vocals with masterfully produced futuristic sounds. It’s tight structurally, but the memorability will easily come via the aforementioned invigorating futuristic instrumentation, and the raw talent on show from each member. Much like the track prior, the bridge helps add another layer to the song, and aids the effort in achieving balance between the flawless rapping and powerful clean vocals. A perfect effort to fly the flag for the project, it’s this sort of uncompromising experimentation that doesn’t just make NCT 127 exciting to listen to, but ensures they stand out from the crowd as a group that will never feel threatened into making a cookie-cutter pop song.

“FOOL” continues the release, and feels a lot more relaxed than the two prior efforts, with the harmonious chorus carrying the bulk of the quality, and the instrumentation remaining subtle but nonetheless impressive. It’s an enjoyable breather, and something that provides diversity on an EP that has already built itself up with various styles and colour.

“Jet Lag,” which surprisingly centres around a simple piano melody and finger-snaps for a lot of its opening, helps forefront each member’s excellent talents, and makes for quintessential listening. It may be very much stripped-back in its essence, but it still has gravitas thanks to the emotional delivery of each and every line. Already a fan-favourite, ”Jet Lag” is exciting proof that this NCT sub-group can tackle any style with confidence and class.

“Paper Plane” follows with more impressive sonic stylings, with an acoustic guitar riff helping to build the track into a fun, playful pop song. It may use some traditional instruments in its production, but the euphoric electronic-driven chorus provides welcome danceability, and allows for the overall song to feel more modern. It’s a smile raising effort, and one that provides a fun-filled segway into the outro.

In terms of the outro itself, that offers-up a climactic near-instrumental track to finish the EP with finesse. It may be less than two minutes long (cleverly timed at 1:27), but thanks to the almost-dubstep sound coupled with the captivating use of whispers and song-samples, it’s something that’s worth revisiting countless times. The intensity and energy exuded here is huge, and every second feels tailor-made for arenas. If this is any indicator on the soundscapes to come from the group, it’s clear that they will be major players going forward, with the occasionally haunting drum and bass sounds feeling like a tease of the potential these ten members could seamlessly tap into.

To conclude, this EP is full of personality; and whether it’s to be credited to the sonic explorations and successes, or the standout vocal performances, everything here seems to strike the right note, and achieve the perfect balance between accessible atmospheric pop and futuristic experimentation. It was a bold and daring move to tackle so many genres in a short, compact release, but it’s clear that if NCT 127 can build on what they’ve made here, anyone who isn’t aware of the group soon will be.

EP Rating - 9/10

album reviews
Like

About the Creator

Nathan Sartain

A lifelong music fan with diverse taste.

Email - [email protected]

Twitter - @nathan_sartain

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments

There are no comments for this story

Be the first to respond and start the conversation.

Sign in to comment

    Find us on social media

    Miscellaneous links

    • Explore
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Support

    © 2024 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.