Song Review:: Doyoung (NCT): Soar- Memory

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  • Release date: 2025 June 9

  • Album tracklist: Wake From The Dark, Memory, Be My Light, First Step, Just Friends, Luminous, Still, Sonnet, Sand Box, Eternity

  • Album runtime: 37 minutes

 Doyoung! The last thing I reviewed with him was, I believe, a submission for Perfume, which was an absolute delight. I know none of us want to think about it, but he is going to have to enlist this year. The sooner they go, the sooner they come back. Although it's possible that both Doyoung and Jaehyun will be discharged before Jungwoo enlists, so I don't know if that's something to look forward to or not for the NCTzens, but it is a possibility. In other news, I'm in love with the album runtime. That's almost four minutes per song. You go, Doyoung. You go, dude.

Memory has a delightful ebb and flow to it with the energy levels alternating between the softer, almost ballad-y soothe and the more energetic rock bursts with the only sometimes gentle guitar tying the two parts together. But that blast at the end after all the build up is really quite glorious. he way the instrumental is crafted to maximize emotion, story, and depth does make me feel a lot better about everything else. Just the musical boost I was needing. Did he have a hand in this song? I don't know. I'll have to look that up in a bit, but what I can say is that I'm wholly impressed with the level of artistry I'm hearing from the instrumentals. It's really quite refreshing, and I know I really like rock anyway, but I'm not kidding about the fact that the instrumentals unfold like a movie. I'm hoping the rest of the albums have some other similar songs.

His voice. Oh it's so enjoyable. We've got excellent control over his dynamic levels, but the depth of his voice, from the relatively mild verses to the bold, almost-belts, is something I'm very pleased by. Dead chuffed, even. He doesn't just feel like someone who can sing well; he feels like an artist. Even though this paragraph is visibly short, especially when I really love voices like this, the song is giving us so much time with it. Doyoung, you rock. Pun not intended, but much welcomed.

And then we get a music video like this with such a strong storyline. I hate to give SM any kudos right now. But they did well with this music video. The storyline is like a combination of We Happy Few and 1984. But...happy. I am so here for this. Y'all. It deserves the win for the music video alone.



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