Having used 2023 to transform
NewJeans
into a flagship entity in the modern K-pop ecosystem,
Hybe
was undoubtedly keen to springboard another girl group in their wake: hotly anticipated newcomers
ILLIT
blend seamlessly into the wave with their debut mini-album, 2024's
Super Real Me
. Their debut single, "Magnetic" lands about as perfectly as a debut can -- its intoxicatingly light electro-pop follows gently from recent GGs like
Odd Eye Circle
and, of course,
, doused in video game-led sonics and led by a surprisingly weighty bassline. But what really drives "Magnetic" is its absolute earworm of a hook -- at once dainty, wry, and addicting -- and its play on the "U" shape of the magnet is a subtly brilliant touch. Of the B-sides, "Midnight Fiction" is the immediate winner, keeping the featherweight sonics and bassline grooves flowing, but equally offering the girls' voices the chance to weave and layer amid nostalgia-inducing melodies. The bubbling funk of "My World" makes for an equally fun opener (though its sub-two-minute track length feels like somewhat of a missed opportunity), while the TikTok trend-titled "Lucky Girl Syndrome," a little more derivative in its synth choices, brings an uplifting and succinct end to the project. The mini-album's only real downside comes with its length; at an absurdly short nine minutes, there's very little time here for the group to build an initial identity, let alone deliver substantial individual performances. It'll be intriguing to see how far
deviate from this light-touch approach in future releases, but for now,
proves a cohesive, succinct, and addictive debut. ~ David Crone