Monsta X 'Take 2. We Are Here' Review

Global K-POP group Monsta X had their first comeback of the year on February 18th, 2019. This comeback was heavily anticipated by fans because of rumors of the group working with Steve Aoki, and also wondering if No Reason, a song they performed at their last two Seoul tour dates last summer, was going to be on the album or not. Take 2. We Are Here has more of a party-vibe to it than their previous albums, with no real ballads making the tracklist.

Monsta X are a group that have been steadily growing for the last two years and I think this comeback in particular is going to be their big moment (or I hope it is at least). I'll get into more detail when I talk about their title song, but let's just say it's a combination of everything that Monsta X is, and some of their most popular releases to date. The album has only been out for three days, as of now, and I feel like I have a good feeling about how I feel towards all the songs. If you read my review from their last album you know that when I review songs I mostly go by how it makes me feel, as I don't really know technical stuff when it comes to music producing etc. But being a fan of music I think is all you really need to be able to share your thoughts with people! So, without any other delay let's get into the songs.

INTRO: WE ARE HERE: When you first listen to this track you may not consciously focus on the clock-ticking sound but I think it's a very nice touch and is so reminiscent of DRAMARAMA and adds to their whole time-travel concept. I.M's voice and narration on top of the heavy bass with Kihyun's muted 'yeah's in the background are a nice wrap of what the whole album has to offer. There's a lot of bass and electronic sounds that we can hear throughout the whole album. It's a great introductory song to the whole album.

Alligator:

I know it's very common for fans to say this when their favorite group has a comeback but I think this is one of their best title tracks. Next to DRAMARAMA, and Beautiful it's one of my favorites. The song and choreography I believe encompasses the great elements of their 2017 releases and combines them for an elegant but powerful and catchy song. Some of the highlights of this song are definitely Jooheon's "Hello, I'm an alli-alligator" rap along with his and I.M's rapping back and forth that come in later in the song. All in all I think this is one of their songs that really showcases all of their voices well, along with their ability to put on a very powerful and rememberable performance. (Watch them performing on their VLIVE Comeback show)

Ghost: This is one of the only songs on the album that is somewhat slowed down. It starts with what I can only describe as tinny water-droplet sounds and the members echoing the word 'ghost'; it reminds me a lot of The Nightmare Before Christmas, actually. To me, Minhyuk's voice really stands out in this song and fits it the best. I'm not sure how to explain why but I think his voice and the instrumental of the song compliment each other really well. Along with Minhyuk, Kihyun and Wonho doing the chorus together is just something that I've always loved, so I thought I would say that here as well.

Play It Cool (Steve Aoki):

Play it Cool, I think is one of the best songs on the album and it's also one of my favorite songs from the album. Steve Aoki is such a talented producer and I don't think he could've made a better song for Monsta X to perform. Jooheon starting the song singing was an amazing choice and his voice adds a very sexy-kind of warmth? The entire song definitely can make me see people going wild to it at a party, or club, just having so much fun and jumping up and down. It's one that I'm very excited to see in concert. Their performance, above, from MCountdown also shows the fun choreography to go along with this hyper song. I also want to add that Kihyun and Shownu sharing this chorus adds to that fun feel that the whole song gives off.

No Reason: During their last two Seoul tour dates when they performed this song everyone was going crazy over it. Originally it was just performed by Wonho, Kihyun, and Minhyuk as a partner to I Do Love U (널하다) and I'm actually not surprised that it made the album. Wonho's songs are always such fan favorites that it would almost be stupid not to include them on the albums or to not release them at all. There's something about this song and how it almost goes straight into a chorus that makes me feel like it's some sort of anthem or declaration of some sort. As with all of the unit songs that Wonho produces and then are converted into songs with all seven members, I really can't wait to see this song performed live. I will forever love every song that Wonho makes, especially if it's him, Kihyun, and Minhuyk performing it.

Give Me Dat: The heavy beats and sirens at the beginning of this song remind me so much of Trespass and No Exit. This song isn't as aggressive as their debuting tracks but I think it's reminiscent of that time. As a whole the part the stands out to me the most is Minhyuk saying, "we can let go now" will I.M and Jooheon are rapping. It fits perfectly against them rapping.

Turbulence: This whole album is filled with hyped up songs that just make you want to sing and dance and this song is no different. It's so fun and I absolutely love Kihyun's chorus part, Minhyuk's "taking me down" part and all the rapping. For my own personal tastes it surprised me a lot with how much I love it. It makes you feel like you're in a never ending party, and the breakdown towards the end with Wonho and Kihyun, just before Jooheon and I.M rap is my favorite part in the whole song. Like, I said earlier I love when Wonho and Kihyun sing together or one right after another.

Rodeo: I remember when I first woke up the morning that the album came out and went on Twitter this was the song that every single person was talking about. So I immediately didn't even go back to sleep even though I had two more hours before I had to get ready for work and started to listen through the album, and when I finally did get to this song I figured out why everyone loved it so much. Wonho starting it with the rap-singing style is amazing, I love it and it's so unexpected. This whole song is an actual party and Monsta X not being able to resist and get up and dance to it during their comeback VLIVE show is such a good representation of what this song is. It has such an amazing vibe and is one of the songs that I am the most excited to see live. I can already see everyone going wild and singing along loudly.

Along with Wonho's rap-singing, we also have Shownu doing the same thing later on in the song which is also, you guessed it, amazing. His voice fits the little repetition at the end so well. Jooheon's whisper rapping throughout the song also gives it that vibe of being somewhere too loud and you have no choice but to get close to talk to someone. I really do hope they perform this song before or after Fallin' during concerts like Minhyuk suggested, it would be the hypest concert I've ever been to.

Stealer: This is one of those songs similar to Give Me Dat, I don't have much to say about it because the whole thing is just so good. I totally understand how it could be a title track and am really interested to see the choreography that they talked about during their VLIVE. I will say though that I love Jooheon's and I.M's rap parts so much in this song.

Party Time: Here it is; my favorite song from the album. I'm not surprised because even after listening to the album teaser video I had a feeling it would be among my favorites, and then when I saw it was written by Brother Su it was a dead give away that I'd love it. This song gives me R&B vibes and just all around has such an amazing 'in your twenties want to live your life' feeling. This song has my favorite Kihyun chorus on the entire album. I have a feeling that if they perform this song live during concerts that the vibe is just going to be so good, I get weirdly emotional thinking about it, but I just love this song so much and think it'd be amazing during a concert.

Hopefully this year I'll write more album thought posts and not ones just on Monsta X albums. Everyone please love and support these 7 boys during this comeback and let me know what your favorite song (or songs) are from this album! Thanks for reading!