Song Review:: Dragon Pony: Not Out- Not Out

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  • Release date: 2025 March 19
  • Album tracklist: Not Out, NEVER, Waste, To. Nosy Boy, On Air
  • Album runtime: 18 minutes

 This band debuted right around the time I started this, so getting to do their first comeback is kind of a special moment for me, especially with how much I liked their debut song. And I was thinking about them a little bit before I discovered that they'd released this, so I'm happier than you can believe for the moment. Just as a quick reminder, their name comes from the fact that one of them was born in 2000 and three of them were born in 2002, the year of the dragon and the year of the horse, respectively. Which, I think is cute. Look at that runtime. I feel so spoiled by them.

Starting off a cappella and then transitioning immediately into something much bigger is a statement. The song has a really good rhythm between loud wall of sound, and quieter, more introspective moments, punctuated by brief periods of silence. This was a good choice for a title track. Range is on display and it's multidimensional. It's almost coy in a loud, sentimental sort of way. And then of course the big aggressive guitar at about the two-thirds mark. 

But as much as I like the instrumentals, and I really, really do, do you hear his voice? An Taegyu, the man you are. The steadiness in the way he belts almost gives me Freddie Mercury vibes. It's absolutely incredible. And if he sounds this good with a recording, imagine what he sounds like live and in person. I'm also reminded of one of the members of DAY6. Not even kidding, y'all shouldn't sleep on this band. And the rest of the album shows off the sheer, brilliant range this man has to his voice. Look forward to the review of NEVER. His voice in the intro to it? Wow.

This music video is as minimalistic as it gets. The director got to play around with light and a tiny bit of color, but that's about it. They are in a liminal space, playing their hearts out.



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