Song Review:: TIOT: Take It Slow

- November 13, 2024

Release date: 2024 November 11
Album tracklist: Take It Slow, Take It Slow - Radio Edit Version, Take It Slow (Inst.)
Album runtime: 12 minutes

I had to refresh myself on the group and the last single they did that I reviewed. I need to remember that they're the Boys Planet group, not the official one, but given how many of them were on Boys Planet, it's a fair description. And I also have another single of theirs sitting in my drafts that I apparently need to review. I guess I'll get to it eventually. But in the meantime, I should watch some of their content so I can actually attach a member's name to the group. That'll help.

I am happy as a clam over the runtime. Don't mind me, I'm just over here basking in a four minute song. The title is probably going to be appropriate for the style, and so I have some expectations on what I'm going to hear, but if I don't, that's fine too. Not going to lie, when I saw "radio edit version", I didn't think run time until I was typing the album information.

Oh, I needed this song right now for my poor sanity. Piano as the primary source of both melody and beat and gentle swells of orchestral instruments make up the majority of the instrumentals, though we do get moments of the respirator percussion. I could also swear that a tambourine of all things is present, which is both unusual and very welcome in the soundscape of K-Pop. I wouldn't call this a lazy song, but despite the four minute run time, it doesn't feel that long. The radio edit version shaves nearly a minute off the song's original length, which I honestly don't notice, because it feels like a shorter song. No frantic journey here. Let the weary and defeated come and rest here in this song.

I'm likely going to remember this group now because of this song. I don't know if it's representative of their normal discography or not. One of them has a rapper rasp, and his lower register comes at precisely the correct time in the song. The harmonies present at very strategic points, as well as allowing the vocalists time and space to do gorgeous runs, makes this a very interesting song, but the strength is in the softness. Just a beautiful voice (with some vibrato) and a piano asking the listener to take their time and slow down.

The music video is just some young men sharing their gorgeous voices and their good looks. Simple.