And now, a duet we enjoy a bit better…
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[6.86]
Thomas Inskeep: Zico’s one of my favorite figures in K-pop and K-hip hop, a smart rapper who can also sing, as he proves on “SoulMate,” a lovely, retro-ish midtempo duet with IU. It’s based around some looped acoustic guitar but doesn’t sound remotely Mayer- or Mraz-esque; it spotlights a surprising muted trumpet, too. This verges on Norah Jones territory, or Norah Jones territory if she weren’t so somnambulant. There’s a spring in the step of “SoulMate,” and a real musical cleverness as well.
[8]
Alfred Soto: Muted trumpet solo? Bass run? Rap? Falsetto. They’ll do anything to keep each other excited. By anyone else “SoulMate” would sound frantic; in Zico x IU’s they’re testing their limits.
[7]
Pedro João Santos: Teasing guitar arpeggios, a decorative trumpet, sporadic piano and soft percussion make up this warm, jazz-lite R&B-pop record, which is at its most enveloping in the first minute, when all the elements are getting in formation. IU’s mellifluous voice bleeds perfectly into the scenery, but Zico’s flow might be an acquired taste I can’t quite claim, at least in its awkwardly frantic, Eminem-lite speed — I can’t fault him, though, for that delightful hook. Whereas the vocal dynamics of “SoulMate” are its strong suit, I find its compositional simplicity and cradling sounds more debatable, rendering it for me as adorable, but insubstantial. Still: take that, Justin Timberlake.
[6]
Iain Mew: The casual jam feeling they’re going for is a little forced with the extent of the background noises and everything — you can try to make it sound like the trumpeters just happened to be wandering past outside, but it’s not convincing. Partly that’s because when they’re in their stride, with Zico confidently switching up modes and IU hitting the usual sweet spot, they sound that bit too good to be so offhand.
[6]
Joshua Minsoo Kim: A lazy Sunday afternoon cuddle session, the kind where soaking in someone else’s presence and warmth accumulates into an unspoken appreciation for lasting unity. There’s a disconnect between Zico’s overworked rapping and the general coffeeshop atmosphere on display, but it points to how sustaining something so perceptibly cozy can only come after putting in the effort. At times, the instrumentation is too unnatural in its lackadaisical presentation, but it all subtly posits something that the lyrics can’t do on their own: love can make you feel so unfathomably content, but it’s the work you and your partner put into it that makes it feel so sweet.
[6]
Anna Suiter: IU might be more easily thought of as sweet, but Zico has proven to be more than capable of producing and performing sweeter songs too. This song wobbles a little bit on whether it’s sweet or not, since the presentation certainly makes it seem that way. The lyrics are a little stranger at points, though, if you choose to read into them too much. But even if you, the listener, can’t leave the environment this song creates, it doesn’t seem like that’s a bad thing.
[7]
Ryo Miyauchi: The soft coffee-shop jazz is the precise mid-point of both billed artists, and the duet itself delights with an adorable cheesiness expected from a pair of bright young lovers, fully absorbed into their own romance. Zico’s rap in particular stylizes the track with a sense cool without taking away from the fluff and sincerity: every other line is a dorky gesture, but he doesn’t care how foolish any of it sounds. It’s one blissfully sunny love song that’s blind to any potential pitfalls. With hope so bright from both parties, such a naive perspective is actually enviable.
[8]