You encapsulated what it is about this SNINee track that I have been trying to verbalize since I heard this..."Familiar sounds in an unfamiliar pattern". That is perfect!! Every beat is so familiar that the crazy switchbacks just works...my heart skipped a beat right at Taemin's part with his blue hands and the piano when it's 2 seconds of drop synth is it? and then his beautiful voice followed up by the powerhouse belt from Onew. Ahhh, SHINee still surprising after all these years! Love them 🫶🫶❤ Have you every heard of the lines from an old song..."anything you can do , we can do better?" LOL. They were getting some comments how the 2nd generation was irrelevant. And SHINee said...Oh yeah, just watch. Hahahaha 💎
I highly recommend a recent masterpiece of this group: Shinee -Juice (performance mv) and SHINee’s 15m - Roadtrip Comeback Show | 20230628 JTBC | 샤이니 컴백쇼 (LIVE)
Hey Higher Faulty, SHINee is one of my favorite K-pop artists! I enjoy hearing their voices all the time! I discovered them about a year ago and have loved them over the years! The power of the members dancing to this choreography is incredible! I love the sets and outfits they used! The chorus dance seems fast and challenging to learn, but I can't believe the boys can do it that well! The visuals of the members were insane!
I always thought it was weird how ageist the Kpop industry is, artists are considered "old" in their 30s. Like by western standards that's still really young and you'd still have a long career ahead of you. Hell, MJ was peak in his 30s. The song you were humming was Good Evening btw, good pick!
No company experiments more with their music and succeeds with it than SM. Probably my 2nd (or 3rd) favorite SM song this year (Ay-Yo still holding onto first place).
The whole reason why they chose "Hard" for their title track is because they wanted to show everyone that SHINee can do any genre, including hip-hop. Although, just to make sure you didn't forget that this was a SHINee song, they couldn't just do straight hip-hop. They had to create this hybride mashup of pop, rock and retro hip-hop, etc. to give this song that SHINee flavor. They killed this!! This will definitely be a contender for album of the year. You can't tell me that you're not singing "hard like a criminal, hard like the beat, hard like ma flow ..." over and over again in your head after hearing this song. LOL We can definitely add this to SHINee's earworm song list. And the rest of the songs on the album are just as catchy. This song was wrote by Kenzie, who, as you may know, is an SM songwriter and producer that has wrote a large majority of SM songs. She even has her own studio at SM, that's how much she is involved in SM's sound. However, the SHINee members are very much involved in all aspects of the songwriting and producing as well. That's why it has that signature SM design, and, yet, it's also very uniquely SHINee. As the SHINee members have said, in the beginning of their career they did whatever they were told to do, however, now that they've been in the industry for more than 15 years, they have learned how to be their own artists and it has afforded them the opportunity to now make their own decisions about their music and to participate in creating the songs and designing their albums, etc. They are now the ones in control. The fact that this song is nothing like anyone expects, and different than anything out there, is exactly what makes it a SHINee song. As I think you know, SHINee were designed to be SM Entertainment's experimental boy group, so everything they do is meant to be the first, and they are expected to create the trend. With every new song SHINee produces, it's supposed to be different than the last, so you will never hear the same style or sound from them. But it will somehow always have that SHINee feel. Notice how Key was singing through his clenched teeth in the last part of the song, when they were all dressed in black. And he still sounded perfect while giving off the "Hard" vibes that the song required. Just one of the many unique elements of this song that only SHINee can pull off. This is really just SHINee going back to their roots. As you may know, before debut, SHINee was actually training to be a hip-hop group. However, as Key tells it, they just didn't have the swag to pull off hip-hop full time, so last minute SM decided to change up their style to the contemporary R&B style of "Replay" that they have now become known for. "Hard" just proves that SM wasn't wrong, and SHINee has no problem in the world of hip-hop. But their destiny and calling was to be a group that never ties themselves down to just one style or genre. They were meant to show the world that they can be diverse and unique and never do the same thing twice. With every release that SHINee has, they are expected to flip the script and change things up in the Kpop industry. That's why when SHINee makes a comeback everyone pays attention because they are looking to SHINee to show them what the industry's next song style and dance trend will be. It is actually said that within 3 months of SHINee making a comeback that you will see that same sound and dance style being duplicated across the industry with every comeback to follow for both boy groups ad girl groups. When SHINee does something the industry takes note and follows suit. There's been a lot of debate whether "Hard" or, their now b-side promotional track, "Juice" should be the lead/title track on SHINee''s Hard album -- SM wanted "Juice," to be the lead track, but the SHINee members insisting on "Hard." At this point, I think we all just need to trust SHINee knows what they are doing. Over the years, we have seen them prove time and time again that they know how to be one step ahead of the trend. For example, Jonghyun wanted "Deja Boo" to be his solo debut song, but SM insisted on "Crazy (Guilty Pleasure)." And in the end, Jonghyun was right. "Deja Boo" became so popular as a b-side track that it had SM scrambling to find ways to showcase the song, proving Jonghyun knew what he was doing. And, "View" -- which is one of SHINee's most popular songs -- wasn't even a contender for SHINee's Odd album, until Jonghyun rewrote the lyrics and the members pushed SM to make it their lead track. In their recent reality show, Key, Minho and Taemin revealed that they all spent a lot of extra time making sure everything felt right with their Hard album. They wanted to release the album on May 25, the day of their 15th anniversary, but things needed work. For example, there was a section in "Hard" that needed some tweaking. So, instead of just rushing to get it done, they took the time to make it perfect. Key said that when they heard the final version of "Hard" -- which was sent to them while they were in Japan filming "The Feeling" MV -- his legs went numb and he knew "Hard" had to be their title track. LOL If you watch the full "SHINee's - 15m Roadtrip comeback show," you will get to see new performances of some of their classic hits, as well as a mini fan concert where they also perform their new songs, "Hard," "Juice" and "10X" live. And in between it all, you get to see Key, Minho and Taemin on a roadtrip camping excursion as they look back on their 15 year career. It was really fun. I encourage everyone to check it out. And to see them preparing for this comeback, watch Taemin and his manager Nam Eui Soo on The Manager TV show. You will get to see all 4 of the members in the dance studio practicing the choreography for "Hard." They showed a preview/short version of their dance practice video on the show. Have you see SHINee's pre-release track "The Feeling" MV? This was a special song and MV produced by the members as a gift to Shawols, for SHINee's 15th anniversary. The song has the perfect summer vibes and the lyrics and MV are very touching.
They have been in the industry for 15 years and they always deliver something different and I never question their choices, I just trust them. SHINee back
If you're interested, I think the storyline in SHINee's "Hard" MV can be interpreted in two ways. If you notice, the whole MV has a piano theme. For example, in the beginning when the scene becomes animated, it showed Taemin being pulled into the piano. And, if you look at the set with the brown walls, you will notice that it looks like the inside of a piano with the wooden hammers that create the sound when the keys are played on the walls behind them. And the lighted white screen is divided like the white keys of the piano with the people's silhouettes representing the black keys, etc. This could represent how music is what controls their lives and its what has trapped them in this world as artists. Which could be similar to the themes within Taemin's solo Never Gonna Dance Again album trilogy -- "2 Kids", "Criminal" and "Idea" -- and his epilogue "Advice." However, I'm also pretty sure that the whole "Hard" MV storyline is connected to SM's SM Culture Universe. The more I watch it, the more I see that seems to indicate that it's all connected. Just like all the groups under SM, the storylines are all part of the larger Kwangya concept, kind of like a giant graphic novel or action movie series with a twist. SHINee's story, so far, primarily connects to EXO's and SuperM's storylines. Each group has their own individual storyline and concept, but when you put them all together, there are threads of connections between the groups. You could sort of think of it like the Marvel franchise. Each of the Marvel characters has their own storyline, merchandise and fans, but the stories and concepts often overlap and connect. And, with each new character that is introduced, it expands on the whole Marvel universe. To understand how all of SM's groups are connected, keep in mind that it all began with EXO's origin story. As I think you know, EXO's concept is that they are aliens from Planet Exo who have been sent to Earth on a mission to find and protect the Tree of Life from the Red Force, while also trying to fix all the things that are going wrong in the world, which are believed to be caused by the Red Force. The Red Force is thought to be here on Earth inflicting their evil agenda -- corrupting humanity and causing all the bad things that are happening in the world, such as war, hate and destruction of the environment, etc. And because EXO is trying to undo and prevent the Red Force from accomplishing their goals, the Red Force is also trying to take down EXO by capturing them, corrupting them and standing in their way, etc. With SHINee's "Hard" MV, I think when we first see Taemin in the black sleeveless suit, he looks very similar to what he looked like in his SuperM debut teasers, which could mean that this could be connected to SuperM's storyline. SuperM is the Kpop industry's very first supergroup, which debuted in October 2019, and, as you also may know, their concept and storyline is centered around the fact that they are Avengers-like superheros, so SuperM is the group that pretty much connects all of SM's groups together. As part of EXO's story, Baekhyun and Kai have recruited members from SM's other male Kpop groups -- Taemin from SHINee, Taeyong and Mark from NCT, Ten from WayV and Lucas who is a former member of WayV -- and formed SuperM, to help them battle the Red Force. As "The Avengers," SuperM is taking members from each of SM's groups and joining forces to take down the Red Force. And, just like how the movies "Avengers Identity War" and "Avengers Endgame" eventually had each of the Marvel Avengers members recruiting their whole crew to help in the fight, I think SM is setting it up so that all of its groups' members will eventually be brought into the fight. I also think the story in "Hard" even could be connected to Taemin's "Advice" storyline. We see him with his hands painted blue in "Hard," similar to his black ink stained hands and body in "Advice," and in both scenes we see him standing in front of/playing a piano. (Technically, Pearl Aqua is SHINee's color. However, before LED lights were invented, creating a wider range of colors -- making way for SHINee's official Pearl Aqua color -- they used blue and green in things to do with SHINee. That's why we still see blue, green and aqua with most things SHINee related.) Some have pointed out that the scene with the silhouettes behind the screen reminds them of the scene in Taemin's "Criminal" MV, with the people behind a screen pushing their hands into it. However, in "Hard" Taemin is standing in front of the screen, rather than walking through the middle with the two sides reaching for him like in "Criminal". Although, I also think that scene could be connected to EXO's storyline, because we see in EXO's "Tempo" MV a scene where there are silhouettes behind a lighted white wall that looks very similar to this. In EXO's storyline, the people behind the wall are thought to be EXO's alter ego clones who were created by the Red Force or they could be the EXO members who are trapped behind the wall. We also see EXO fighting with their silhouette shadows in their live concert performance of their song "Wolf," which is also thought to be EXO battling X-EXO as they search for the Tree of Life. Ever since SHINee came out with their "Don't Call Me" MV, I think that storyline was supposed to be SM bringing SHINee into the SM Culture Universe. In "Don't Call Me," it looks as though the SHINee members go through some sort of wormhole as they are teleported somewhere and we see them all posing in their black outfits like they are getting ready for battle. This looks very similar to the scene in SuperM's debut "Jopping" MV when the SuperM members are coming together at the beginning of "Jopping." Therefore, because Taemin is a member of SuperM, I think SHINee is supposed to be getting ready to join SuperM in the fight against the Red Force. In "Hard" we also see Taemin standing on a grate as he crouches down and looks through it at the "people" in white trapped below, similar to his scene in SuperM's "Jopping" MV. The scene with Key standing with all the dancers in white sitting in a circle around him also seems to be an important part of the story, however I'm not sure what it all means yet. (I don't think they are mummies, I think they are supposed to represent the white keys of a piano.) We see Key remove the mask of one of the guys and we discover the guy has a glowing blue earpiece, which seems to be suggesting that they are being controlled by outside forces. However, because they are all just sitting there without moving, it seems to indicate that they are currently "shut-down". Either these people are androids or robots, like in EXO's "Lucky One" MV, or they are people who are under mind control. Although, I don't think they are being controlled by the Red Force necessarily because we don't see any trace of red anywhere in that scene. Instead, the color we see is blue, which usually within EXO's storyline means that it represents something to do with EXO, who are the good guys. Plus, as I said, blue with SHINee usually represents SHINee and their connection as a group. Minho standing on the edge of that rock formation looks similar to the scene with Girls' Generation's Taeyeon standing on the rock in the middle of the ocean in Key's solo "Hate That ..." MV, and it also looks a lot like the scene in SHINee's "Don't Call Me" MV, with Key standing on the submerged phone booth. It all has the same feeling. (Notice how they also are all wearing red in all of those scenes. Remember, red usually represents something to do with the Red Force.) In the next animated scene, we see what looks like Minho in the red jacket fighting with the same piano key ropes that pulled Taemin into the piano in the beginning. To me, it looks like its trying to keep him trapped within the piano and under the control of the music. However, in the next scene we see the giant piano has been destroyed behind them, which could represent how music no longer controls them, but they now control the music. In the last scene at the very end, it reminds me of the same menacing red atmosphere as Minho's rap section in their "Don't Call Me" MV, where we see him in an all red room with chairs hovering above him. Therefore, I think the gloved hand is Minho's hand because it looks like the same gloves that Minho is wearing in the scene right before that where they are dressed in black. Although I don't know what that means yet, I am sure it is something to connect the storyline to something within one of SM's MVs in the future or will make more sense when more of the story is revealed as SM releases the next chapter, etc. But you should also know, that no one really knows for sure what is happening in any of the story. There are well known theories and storylines that are accepted within the fandom, which we think might explain what is happening in each MV. And there are theories about how each MV is connected and where each falls within their larger storyline, but nothing is set in stone. Fan theories are constantly evolving and changing with every introduction of a new piece of the puzzle. New things are revealed with every MV release, concert, event, or appearance, etc., which could either add to or change the storyline.
Originally intended as a Hip-Hop group, SHINee debuted in 2008 as an experimental, contemporary group after SM realized they could sing just about anything SM threw at them. Therefore it's no surprise that 1) they can all rap; 2) some of their earliest songs were 90s Hip-Hop inspired: "Get Down" (2009); "Up & Down" (2010); "Alive" & "Trigger" (2015); and of course 2021's "Don't Call Me" which was the first Hip-Hop inspired title track for them. Rather than trying something new, it's more like they are going back to their roots and paying homage to their 1st gen predecessors. Another interesting facet of this song is that when SHINee first heard it, they HATED the melody. Therefore, they did what SHINee is famous for doing -- they dismantled the entire melody and rewrote it. Minho talked about this during their "15th Anniversary Roadtrip" show. This is why the release was delayed a month after their actual anniversary date due to the fact it took that long to rework the melody to all the brothers' satisfaction. As with much of their music, SHINee here is referencing their past MVs, individual solo work, as well as a smattering of SuperM -- because of 1) Taemin and 2) SM Universe (Kwangya) as indicated by the foreshadowing and funky tone at the end of the MV. However, I also think this MV represents a very bold statement from SHINee that is synonymous with Taemin's equally bold rhetoric from his 2021 song/MV, "Advice". Therefore, the most prominent symbolism I see in this MV is harkening back to "Advice" (the central figure being the Piano, Taemin's painted hands, and the generally aggressive rhetoric) but there are others as well: Again, with the piano, we see it is initially represented in a "Circle" (Onew's latest title track) which also symbolizes eternity. The blue water gushing from the piano and the waves crashing into Onew are reminiscent of "Atlantis". Taemin's 2020 "Criminal" with the figures in white pressing against a screen in the background of Taemin's rap and the reference to "criminal" in the chorus. The pristine black & white aesthetic of the beginning of the MV as it is in the middle of Taemin's "Criminal". The brothers being dragged down into the piano itself, as Taemin was in the "underground hellish pit of lava in "Criminal". Key's "Hate That" video is represented by Minho standing on the same rocky outcropping where Key and Taeyeon were perched in the same lighting and scenery. The animation is the same style as Onew's collab with Punch for their MV, "Way". Minho absorbing all the light and turning into a flame reflects his early SHINee nickname of "flaming charisma" due to his fiery passion and extreme competitiveness. We also have Key referencing an astra (star) in the lyrics. This could be a reference to Jonghyun, as he is also referred to as a "Diamond" in the sky, and the brothers will often point or look up toward their brother in the sky when singing, as was the case in their recent pre-release, "The Feeling". I think the overall message simplified is that SHINee is bigger than anyone's limited, individual imagination -- as Taemin represented clearly with his oversized body in a very small room within his head in "Advice". Don't try to box them into one genre, one sound, and one identity (ironically/coincidentally the title of a b-side song on this album and also the title of one of Taemin's solo songs). Don't try to confine their creativity to your own ideal/expectations. They don't and have never conformed to such ideas, as the company realized years ago beginning in 2015, as they began relinquishing some of their control over the creative process to SHINee. SHINee doesn't care whether their music is fitting into the industry trends or standards. They have always been the ones who set the trends and standards through their experimentation: singing live from the beginning during performances, upping the ante and complexity of choreographies while singing live, dance practice videos, fashion trends, inventing hybrid songs with "Sherlock", introducing new genres of music like Deep House and Dubstep to Kpop, instituting new fashion trends like skinny jeans and heavy eye make-up. And who could EVER forget "Internet War" and "Born to SHINe". These are just to name a few. SHINee transformed the Kpop landscape from the moment they first hit the stage in 2008. They have no fear. The music doesn't dictate to them; they can't be held captive by the restrictions of what's trendy at the time or appropriate -- they dictate the music. As I stated earlier, it's like going back to their roots to start their second act. All we have to do is sit back and enjoy the ride!
There is still something up with your audio (microphones). My speakers are normally set at 10. 15 is loud for me. But I pushed it up to 45 to hear what you're saying and had to drop it down to 32 for the music video.
That is 2nd gen for ya Lol but they debuted a year after I got officially into thru BigBang whove been ult group since 2007 but i knew of KPOP existence through RAIN (aka Jung Ji-Hoon), SE7EN (aka Choi Chang-wook), TVXQ, 100per, etc. long before getting into Kpop.
Blessings, I expected this comeback so much but I didn't know it would be so epic, I recommend it and I hope you listen to the whole album, it's the best. Greetings from Chile.
What was the live performance reaction they did at the beginning of this video??? I'm just curious because they mentioned that it was the best live performance they have ever seen. TYIA.
Good evening is the song you were singing.....welcome back and next just listen to the album...and do their solo work from 2022 and 2023. you wont be disappointed. They are that good collectively and individually.
Fun fact for you in shinee's rookie days when they were just starting when it came to the music show competitions shinee won every show imaginable which caused the shows to change the rules on how many awards one group could win. Their 15th anniversary has just passed and in this week alone they have won 3 awards. If they win anymore it will be again a grand slam like their rookie days. Which would make history and another record for them
Wait till you see the Juice performance video. Incredible.
Up
THIS!!!!!! ♥️
Uppppp❤
You were singing “Good Evening” ☺️
They also have a performance video for their other title track contender “Juice” produced by Dem Jointz
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Yes!! That's Good Evening sure. It slipped my mind, Thanks!!!
Also, "Good Evening" samples 112's Cupid, that's probably the other reason why it sounds familiar
-fuck SHINee killed me with this whole album. I can’t get enough of this album no skips for me at all. I hope you two do an album review.
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Juice Performance Video by Shinee!
Song by Dem Jointz!
You encapsulated what it is about this SNINee track that I have been trying to verbalize since I heard this..."Familiar sounds in an unfamiliar pattern". That is perfect!! Every beat is so familiar that the crazy switchbacks just works...my heart skipped a beat right at Taemin's part with his blue hands and the piano when it's 2 seconds of drop synth is it? and then his beautiful voice followed up by the powerhouse belt from Onew. Ahhh, SHINee still surprising after all these years! Love them 🫶🫶❤ Have you every heard of the lines from an old song..."anything you can do , we can do better?" LOL. They were getting some comments how the 2nd generation was irrelevant. And SHINee said...Oh yeah, just watch. Hahahaha 💎
I highly recommend a recent masterpiece of this group: Shinee -Juice (performance mv) and SHINee’s 15m - Roadtrip Comeback Show | 20230628 JTBC | 샤이니 컴백쇼 (LIVE)
Agree with u.. I recommend too
You missed Onew, Key, and Minho's solo releases in the last year
Are you going to do a "hard" album review ?
They should!!!!!
Hey Higher Faulty, SHINee is one of my favorite K-pop artists! I enjoy hearing their voices all the time! I discovered them about a year ago and have loved them over the years! The power of the members dancing to this choreography is incredible! I love the sets and outfits they used! The chorus dance seems fast and challenging to learn, but I can't believe the boys can do it that well! The visuals of the members were insane!
I always thought it was weird how ageist the Kpop industry is, artists are considered "old" in their 30s. Like by western standards that's still really young and you'd still have a long career ahead of you. Hell, MJ was peak in his 30s. The song you were humming was Good Evening btw, good pick!
No company experiments more with their music and succeeds with it than SM. Probably my 2nd (or 3rd) favorite SM song this year (Ay-Yo still holding onto first place).
The whole reason why they chose "Hard" for their title track is because they wanted to show everyone that SHINee can do any genre, including hip-hop. Although, just to make sure you didn't forget that this was a SHINee song, they couldn't just do straight hip-hop. They had to create this hybride mashup of pop, rock and retro hip-hop, etc. to give this song that SHINee flavor. They killed this!! This will definitely be a contender for album of the year.
You can't tell me that you're not singing "hard like a criminal, hard like the beat, hard like ma flow ..." over and over again in your head after hearing this song. LOL We can definitely add this to SHINee's earworm song list. And the rest of the songs on the album are just as catchy.
This song was wrote by Kenzie, who, as you may know, is an SM songwriter and producer that has wrote a large majority of SM songs. She even has her own studio at SM, that's how much she is involved in SM's sound. However, the SHINee members are very much involved in all aspects of the songwriting and producing as well. That's why it has that signature SM design, and, yet, it's also very uniquely SHINee. As the SHINee members have said, in the beginning of their career they did whatever they were told to do, however, now that they've been in the industry for more than 15 years, they have learned how to be their own artists and it has afforded them the opportunity to now make their own decisions about their music and to participate in creating the songs and designing their albums, etc. They are now the ones in control.
The fact that this song is nothing like anyone expects, and different than anything out there, is exactly what makes it a SHINee song. As I think you know, SHINee were designed to be SM Entertainment's experimental boy group, so everything they do is meant to be the first, and they are expected to create the trend. With every new song SHINee produces, it's supposed to be different than the last, so you will never hear the same style or sound from them. But it will somehow always have that SHINee feel.
Notice how Key was singing through his clenched teeth in the last part of the song, when they were all dressed in black. And he still sounded perfect while giving off the "Hard" vibes that the song required. Just one of the many unique elements of this song that only SHINee can pull off.
This is really just SHINee going back to their roots. As you may know, before debut, SHINee was actually training to be a hip-hop group. However, as Key tells it, they just didn't have the swag to pull off hip-hop full time, so last minute SM decided to change up their style to the contemporary R&B style of "Replay" that they have now become known for. "Hard" just proves that SM wasn't wrong, and SHINee has no problem in the world of hip-hop. But their destiny and calling was to be a group that never ties themselves down to just one style or genre. They were meant to show the world that they can be diverse and unique and never do the same thing twice.
With every release that SHINee has, they are expected to flip the script and change things up in the Kpop industry. That's why when SHINee makes a comeback everyone pays attention because they are looking to SHINee to show them what the industry's next song style and dance trend will be. It is actually said that within 3 months of SHINee making a comeback that you will see that same sound and dance style being duplicated across the industry with every comeback to follow for both boy groups ad girl groups. When SHINee does something the industry takes note and follows suit.
There's been a lot of debate whether "Hard" or, their now b-side promotional track, "Juice" should be the lead/title track on SHINee''s Hard album -- SM wanted "Juice," to be the lead track, but the SHINee members insisting on "Hard." At this point, I think we all just need to trust SHINee knows what they are doing. Over the years, we have seen them prove time and time again that they know how to be one step ahead of the trend. For example, Jonghyun wanted "Deja Boo" to be his solo debut song, but SM insisted on "Crazy (Guilty Pleasure)." And in the end, Jonghyun was right. "Deja Boo" became so popular as a b-side track that it had SM scrambling to find ways to showcase the song, proving Jonghyun knew what he was doing. And, "View" -- which is one of SHINee's most popular songs -- wasn't even a contender for SHINee's Odd album, until Jonghyun rewrote the lyrics and the members pushed SM to make it their lead track.
In their recent reality show, Key, Minho and Taemin revealed that they all spent a lot of extra time making sure everything felt right with their Hard album. They wanted to release the album on May 25, the day of their 15th anniversary, but things needed work. For example, there was a section in "Hard" that needed some tweaking. So, instead of just rushing to get it done, they took the time to make it perfect. Key said that when they heard the final version of "Hard" -- which was sent to them while they were in Japan filming "The Feeling" MV -- his legs went numb and he knew "Hard" had to be their title track. LOL
If you watch the full "SHINee's - 15m Roadtrip comeback show," you will get to see new performances of some of their classic hits, as well as a mini fan concert where they also perform their new songs, "Hard," "Juice" and "10X" live. And in between it all, you get to see Key, Minho and Taemin on a roadtrip camping excursion as they look back on their 15 year career. It was really fun. I encourage everyone to check it out.
And to see them preparing for this comeback, watch Taemin and his manager Nam Eui Soo on The Manager TV show. You will get to see all 4 of the members in the dance studio practicing the choreography for "Hard." They showed a preview/short version of their dance practice video on the show.
Have you see SHINee's pre-release track "The Feeling" MV? This was a special song and MV produced by the members as a gift to Shawols, for SHINee's 15th anniversary. The song has the perfect summer vibes and the lyrics and MV are very touching.
They have been in the industry for 15 years and they always deliver something different and I never question their choices, I just trust them.
SHINee back
If you're interested, I think the storyline in SHINee's "Hard" MV can be interpreted in two ways. If you notice, the whole MV has a piano theme. For example, in the beginning when the scene becomes animated, it showed Taemin being pulled into the piano. And, if you look at the set with the brown walls, you will notice that it looks like the inside of a piano with the wooden hammers that create the sound when the keys are played on the walls behind them. And the lighted white screen is divided like the white keys of the piano with the people's silhouettes representing the black keys, etc.
This could represent how music is what controls their lives and its what has trapped them in this world as artists. Which could be similar to the themes within Taemin's solo Never Gonna Dance Again album trilogy -- "2 Kids", "Criminal" and "Idea" -- and his epilogue "Advice."
However, I'm also pretty sure that the whole "Hard" MV storyline is connected to SM's SM Culture Universe. The more I watch it, the more I see that seems to indicate that it's all connected.
Just like all the groups under SM, the storylines are all part of the larger Kwangya concept, kind of like a giant graphic novel or action movie series with a twist. SHINee's story, so far, primarily connects to EXO's and SuperM's storylines. Each group has their own individual storyline and concept, but when you put them all together, there are threads of connections between the groups. You could sort of think of it like the Marvel franchise. Each of the Marvel characters has their own storyline, merchandise and fans, but the stories and concepts often overlap and connect. And, with each new character that is introduced, it expands on the whole Marvel universe.
To understand how all of SM's groups are connected, keep in mind that it all began with EXO's origin story. As I think you know, EXO's concept is that they are aliens from Planet Exo who have been sent to Earth on a mission to find and protect the Tree of Life from the Red Force, while also trying to fix all the things that are going wrong in the world, which are believed to be caused by the Red Force. The Red Force is thought to be here on Earth inflicting their evil agenda -- corrupting humanity and causing all the bad things that are happening in the world, such as war, hate and destruction of the environment, etc. And because EXO is trying to undo and prevent the Red Force from accomplishing their goals, the Red Force is also trying to take down EXO by capturing them, corrupting them and standing in their way, etc.
With SHINee's "Hard" MV, I think when we first see Taemin in the black sleeveless suit, he looks very similar to what he looked like in his SuperM debut teasers, which could mean that this could be connected to SuperM's storyline.
SuperM is the Kpop industry's very first supergroup, which debuted in October 2019, and, as you also may know, their concept and storyline is centered around the fact that they are Avengers-like superheros, so SuperM is the group that pretty much connects all of SM's groups together. As part of EXO's story, Baekhyun and Kai have recruited members from SM's other male Kpop groups -- Taemin from SHINee, Taeyong and Mark from NCT, Ten from WayV and Lucas who is a former member of WayV -- and formed SuperM, to help them battle the Red Force.
As "The Avengers," SuperM is taking members from each of SM's groups and joining forces to take down the Red Force. And, just like how the movies "Avengers Identity War" and "Avengers Endgame" eventually had each of the Marvel Avengers members recruiting their whole crew to help in the fight, I think SM is setting it up so that all of its groups' members will eventually be brought into the fight.
I also think the story in "Hard" even could be connected to Taemin's "Advice" storyline. We see him with his hands painted blue in "Hard," similar to his black ink stained hands and body in "Advice," and in both scenes we see him standing in front of/playing a piano. (Technically, Pearl Aqua is SHINee's color. However, before LED lights were invented, creating a wider range of colors -- making way for SHINee's official Pearl Aqua color -- they used blue and green in things to do with SHINee. That's why we still see blue, green and aqua with most things SHINee related.)
Some have pointed out that the scene with the silhouettes behind the screen reminds them of the scene in Taemin's "Criminal" MV, with the people behind a screen pushing their hands into it. However, in "Hard" Taemin is standing in front of the screen, rather than walking through the middle with the two sides reaching for him like in "Criminal". Although, I also think that scene could be connected to EXO's storyline, because we see in EXO's "Tempo" MV a scene where there are silhouettes behind a lighted white wall that looks very similar to this. In EXO's storyline, the people behind the wall are thought to be EXO's alter ego clones who were created by the Red Force or they could be the EXO members who are trapped behind the wall. We also see EXO fighting with their silhouette shadows in their live concert performance of their song "Wolf," which is also thought to be EXO battling X-EXO as they search for the Tree of Life.
Ever since SHINee came out with their "Don't Call Me" MV, I think that storyline was supposed to be SM bringing SHINee into the SM Culture Universe. In "Don't Call Me," it looks as though the SHINee members go through some sort of wormhole as they are teleported somewhere and we see them all posing in their black outfits like they are getting ready for battle. This looks very similar to the scene in SuperM's debut "Jopping" MV when the SuperM members are coming together at the beginning of "Jopping." Therefore, because Taemin is a member of SuperM, I think SHINee is supposed to be getting ready to join SuperM in the fight against the Red Force.
In "Hard" we also see Taemin standing on a grate as he crouches down and looks through it at the "people" in white trapped below, similar to his scene in SuperM's "Jopping" MV.
The scene with Key standing with all the dancers in white sitting in a circle around him also seems to be an important part of the story, however I'm not sure what it all means yet. (I don't think they are mummies, I think they are supposed to represent the white keys of a piano.) We see Key remove the mask of one of the guys and we discover the guy has a glowing blue earpiece, which seems to be suggesting that they are being controlled by outside forces. However, because they are all just sitting there without moving, it seems to indicate that they are currently "shut-down". Either these people are androids or robots, like in EXO's "Lucky One" MV, or they are people who are under mind control. Although, I don't think they are being controlled by the Red Force necessarily because we don't see any trace of red anywhere in that scene. Instead, the color we see is blue, which usually within EXO's storyline means that it represents something to do with EXO, who are the good guys. Plus, as I said, blue with SHINee usually represents SHINee and their connection as a group.
Minho standing on the edge of that rock formation looks similar to the scene with Girls' Generation's Taeyeon standing on the rock in the middle of the ocean in Key's solo "Hate That ..." MV, and it also looks a lot like the scene in SHINee's "Don't Call Me" MV, with Key standing on the submerged phone booth. It all has the same feeling. (Notice how they also are all wearing red in all of those scenes. Remember, red usually represents something to do with the Red Force.)
In the next animated scene, we see what looks like Minho in the red jacket fighting with the same piano key ropes that pulled Taemin into the piano in the beginning. To me, it looks like its trying to keep him trapped within the piano and under the control of the music. However, in the next scene we see the giant piano has been destroyed behind them, which could represent how music no longer controls them, but they now control the music.
In the last scene at the very end, it reminds me of the same menacing red atmosphere as Minho's rap section in their "Don't Call Me" MV, where we see him in an all red room with chairs hovering above him. Therefore, I think the gloved hand is Minho's hand because it looks like the same gloves that Minho is wearing in the scene right before that where they are dressed in black. Although I don't know what that means yet, I am sure it is something to connect the storyline to something within one of SM's MVs in the future or will make more sense when more of the story is revealed as SM releases the next chapter, etc.
But you should also know, that no one really knows for sure what is happening in any of the story. There are well known theories and storylines that are accepted within the fandom, which we think might explain what is happening in each MV. And there are theories about how each MV is connected and where each falls within their larger storyline, but nothing is set in stone. Fan theories are constantly evolving and changing with every introduction of a new piece of the puzzle. New things are revealed with every MV release, concert, event, or appearance, etc., which could either add to or change the storyline.
Originally intended as a Hip-Hop group, SHINee debuted in 2008 as an experimental, contemporary group after SM realized they could sing just about anything SM threw at them. Therefore it's no surprise that 1) they can all rap; 2) some of their earliest songs were 90s Hip-Hop inspired: "Get Down" (2009); "Up & Down" (2010); "Alive" & "Trigger" (2015); and of course 2021's "Don't Call Me" which was the first Hip-Hop inspired title track for them. Rather than trying something new, it's more like they are going back to their roots and paying homage to their 1st gen predecessors.
Another interesting facet of this song is that when SHINee first heard it, they HATED the melody. Therefore, they did what SHINee is famous for doing -- they dismantled the entire melody and rewrote it. Minho talked about this during their "15th Anniversary Roadtrip" show. This is why the release was delayed a month after their actual anniversary date due to the fact it took that long to rework the melody to all the brothers' satisfaction.
As with much of their music, SHINee here is referencing their past MVs, individual solo work, as well as a smattering of SuperM -- because of 1) Taemin and 2) SM Universe (Kwangya) as indicated by the foreshadowing and funky tone at the end of the MV. However, I also think this MV represents a very bold statement from SHINee that is synonymous with Taemin's equally bold rhetoric from his 2021 song/MV, "Advice". Therefore, the most prominent symbolism I see in this MV is harkening back to "Advice" (the central figure being the Piano, Taemin's painted hands, and the generally aggressive rhetoric) but there are others as well: Again, with the piano, we see it is initially represented in a "Circle" (Onew's latest title track) which also symbolizes eternity. The blue water gushing from the piano and the waves crashing into Onew are reminiscent of "Atlantis". Taemin's 2020 "Criminal" with the figures in white pressing against a screen in the background of Taemin's rap and the reference to "criminal" in the chorus. The pristine black & white aesthetic of the beginning of the MV as it is in the middle of Taemin's "Criminal". The brothers being dragged down into the piano itself, as Taemin was in the "underground hellish pit of lava in "Criminal". Key's "Hate That" video is represented by Minho standing on the same rocky outcropping where Key and Taeyeon were perched in the same lighting and scenery. The animation is the same style as Onew's collab with Punch for their MV, "Way". Minho absorbing all the light and turning into a flame reflects his early SHINee nickname of "flaming charisma" due to his fiery passion and extreme competitiveness. We also have Key referencing an astra (star) in the lyrics. This could be a reference to Jonghyun, as he is also referred to as a "Diamond" in the sky, and the brothers will often point or look up toward their brother in the sky when singing, as was the case in their recent pre-release, "The Feeling".
I think the overall message simplified is that SHINee is bigger than anyone's limited, individual imagination -- as Taemin represented clearly with his oversized body in a very small room within his head in "Advice". Don't try to box them into one genre, one sound, and one identity (ironically/coincidentally the title of a b-side song on this album and also the title of one of Taemin's solo songs). Don't try to confine their creativity to your own ideal/expectations. They don't and have never conformed to such ideas, as the company realized years ago beginning in 2015, as they began relinquishing some of their control over the creative process to SHINee. SHINee doesn't care whether their music is fitting into the industry trends or standards. They have always been the ones who set the trends and standards through their experimentation: singing live from the beginning during performances, upping the ante and complexity of choreographies while singing live, dance practice videos, fashion trends, inventing hybrid songs with "Sherlock", introducing new genres of music like Deep House and Dubstep to Kpop, instituting new fashion trends like skinny jeans and heavy eye make-up. And who could EVER forget "Internet War" and "Born to SHINe". These are just to name a few. SHINee transformed the Kpop landscape from the moment they first hit the stage in 2008. They have no fear. The music doesn't dictate to them; they can't be held captive by the restrictions of what's trendy at the time or appropriate -- they dictate the music. As I stated earlier, it's like going back to their roots to start their second act.
All we have to do is sit back and enjoy the ride!
thanks for the info! you just gave us the full run down lol love it
The song 🎶 you are asking about is “ Good-evening! “
"Familiar sounds, in an unfamiliar pattern" ima start using that when people want a better description for kpop, THATS A BAR lol
SHINee just own whatever sound and genre they decide to do…. And yes 15 years and theyre still going up… and that’s insane to me!
That Melody was " Good Evening " mv nd you guys should react to album as well ots no skip nd one of the best album
A Beyonce's dancer was one on the choreographer and someone else I don't know who.
Yep Kany and Kasper, who's done a ton of great Kpop choreo
Yes SHINee never dissapoints! Legend indeed.. done subscribing thanks for reacting SHINee❤
Next, shinee 'juice'.....
You were singing Good Evening - fun fact, that melody is from 112's Cupid so they're cited as songwriters on that one.
Juice performance mv 🎉
It’s a real MV quality I hear a lot of reactor asking if it’s a second MV for the album 😂
@@shanbeauty4193 It's so stunning! Taemin dancing his feet off!
YAAAAS I’ve been waiting for this reaction 🙌🏽
ALBUM LISTENING WHEN 🙏🏽
you need to listen to JUICE...the game escalated ..and the whole album is everything you said..this is kpop legend
Please review the whole song in this album... is's so good..
Juice performance video please!! 😍😍🤌
There is still something up with your audio (microphones). My speakers are normally set at 10. 15 is loud for me. But I pushed it up to 45 to hear what you're saying and had to drop it down to 32 for the music video.
Cant agree more. Shinee keep going up and up. That song you're asking, it's Good Evening.
La canción que te gusta es "Good evening"💎🫶
SHINee JUICE PERFORMANCE VIDEO
That is 2nd gen for ya Lol but they debuted a year after I got officially into thru BigBang whove been ult group since 2007 but i knew of KPOP existence through RAIN (aka Jung Ji-Hoon), SE7EN (aka Choi Chang-wook), TVXQ, 100per, etc. long before getting into Kpop.
Shinee will be legendary forever just like sm groups . La canción que te gusta es "Good evening".
That one is "Good Evening"
I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS
Blessings, I expected this comeback so much but I didn't know it would be so epic, I recommend it and I hope you listen to the whole album, it's the best. Greetings from Chile.
not the mystery slice 😭 love the reaction, good stuff hood stuff fr
Advice was a Taemin solo before he did military service. Since then Key, Onew, and Minho have had solo releases-all excellent.
juice MV'C very very craaaazy 🔥🔥🔥❤️
SHINee's baby turns thirty this month!
Thank you for your review these kids are the best old but still hot
Juice performance video please ❤❤❤
Also have to second for juice, i personally like that song a little more than this one and the performance is awesome.
When are you guys going to react to more BTS?
Juice is even more lit 🔥
What was the live performance reaction they did at the beginning of this video??? I'm just curious because they mentioned that it was the best live performance they have ever seen. TYIA.
Good evening is the song you were singing.....welcome back and next just listen to the album...and do their solo work from 2022 and 2023. you wont be disappointed. They are that good collectively and individually.
You here. Finalllyyyyyyyyyyyy 🫶
Forever kings 👑
Next: Juice performance please
Shinee will be legendary forever ❤😊 just like sm groups ❤😊
BIG FACTS
Fun fact for you in shinee's rookie days when they were just starting when it came to the music show competitions shinee won every show imaginable which caused the shows to change the rules on how many awards one group could win.
Their 15th anniversary has just passed and in this week alone they have won 3 awards. If they win anymore it will be again a grand slam like their rookie days. Which would make history and another record for them