JUNG KOOK - Golden

With BTS's activities put on hold until 2025 due to the mandatory military service none of the seven can escape, it was obvious that mother Big Hit wasn't going to sit back and watch, but would instead capitalize on the solo projects of the members not yet enlisted, so as to offer an illusion of continuity before the group's return. Hence the string of releases from J-Hope, RM, Suga, Jimin and V, each one drawing attention solely to themselves, something none of them could ever have done before now. But if there's one member who can play some serious cards as a solo artist, and push beyond what's been achieved as a group, it's certainly the maknae (the youngest) of the seven, the golden voice backed by one of the most fiercely devoted fanbases on the planet. Jeon Jung-Kook, known to everyone simply as Jung Kook, who joined the band as a kid and is now a star in every sense, approaches his debut album with all the confidence and enthusiasm he can muster, certain he's already delivered one of the biggest hits of summer 2023, but also aware that this is only the beginning. Given a path that has so far been golden, choosing a title like “Golden” is a logical consequence.

With its Daniel Bedingfield-style garage spirit and a tightly wound build, “Seven” has given Jung Kook (and fellow traveler Latto, who drops in for a brief rapped bridge) one of the most pervasive hits of the year, a worldwide triumph with just the right energy to avoid wearing thin after a couple of listens. Slightly more muted, though no less committed to its Y2K nods, second single “3D” pays tribute to early-career Justin Timberlake, threading in subtle new jack swing touches (Jack Harlow's contribution is decidedly dispensable here). The sheer difference between these two singles already lays bare Big Hit's attempt to offer a varied sampler in which the singer's voice can roam freely, able to tint whatever track it lands on with soulful shades. Rather than an enrichment, though, this ends up being a limitation, a barrier that depersonalizes Jung Kook's contributions, called upon to carry a playlist that is undoubtedly colorful, but also fairly generic in the range of choices it puts on display.

It's clear that the disco-cut of “Standing Next To You”, steered into an energetic city-pop sound in the style of Toshiki Kadomatsu, comes off very well, though getting that wrong would be quite a feat anyway. It is, however, an exception, in a tracklist that rests on top-shelf writers and producers but never finds the winning leap, the jump that would take the ideas to the next level. It does little good to bring in Ed Sheeran when “Yes Or No” amounts to a shameless cosplay of him, made worse by a melody that would already have felt overly familiar on “Multiply”. And while “Closer To You” leans on the production expertise of Major Lazer, the result heads down the road of a bland tropical-house number barely tinged with a light sensuality, too faint to leave a mark.

There's also, predictably, the tear-jerking ballad (the play on opposites of “Hate You”) and the acoustic moment meant to channel a busker's heart-on-sleeve soul (“Somebody”, also tremendously Sheeran-esque in its arrangement).

Everything conspires to make "Golden" the product designed to exalt the golden boy, and in its shameless intent the album will have no trouble winning over fans and more casual listeners alike. Yet the feeling is overwhelming that we're looking at the most titanic streamingcore operation of the year, one that does little to actually exploit the singer's potential. For someone who has shown he can navigate fluid jazz harmonies and nu-r&b effusions with ease, all the resources poured into this could have yielded so much more.

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10/11/2023