Regarding ＜合 (HOP)＞

Couple of things I want to mention.

So first off, before I forget, I think I worked out why they mention Harry Potter. Again, it could just be a coincidence, but if you look at the front cover of the album you’ll notice that the “O” in “HOP” is actually being used as the bottom half of the Korean word. That leaves two remaining letters, “HP”, “Harry Potter”. But they also use a lot of references to games in this album. At first I thought that this may be because of their recent work with gaming companies, but then it hit me; “HP”, “Hit Points”, or “Health Points”. They keep referencing it throughout the entire album…

Bounce Back Pre Chorus : “on the world map just playing around, hall, arena, dome, stadium”, “barely chapter two of our play” (genuinely sounds like they’re collaborating with Fortnite at this point), and “unlike your group, we’re immortal”, again this could be a reference to HP.

I don’t know, it could be nothing, but I listened again this morning on my way to work and I’ve spent all morning mapping a logical thread through the songs lol.

Secondly I just wanted to address the “hate” that this album has been getting. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t understand why it’s occurring, but I also think it’s entirely unjust to hate this album. Stray Kids are a collective, so most people became fans via their group efforts, not their solos. Some people are just here for the vocals, some just for the rap, others just for the dancing. Whilst I’ll agree that most are here for everything they do, you have to acknowledge that they’re alienating a set of their audience if they choose to go in only one direction. For example, as a rap fan, I can appreciate “Streetlights” by Binnie, but I have never listened to that song after the reaction. Because that’s not what I want to hear from Binnie personally. So if he brought out a ballad, he’d be alienating me and others like me, naturally. Likewise, by bringing out solo projects, they’re alienating the fans that want to see them as a group. Fair enough they gave us “WOW”, “Bounce Back” and “U”, but 3 songs is not the whole album… therefore the album itself may receive either backlash or just less plays than their other albums.

Stray Kids and JYP would’ve been very aware of this though and that’s why I don’t think a huge budget was put into the title tracks music video, when you compare it to S-Class or La La La. So I honestly don’t think it’s anything to be afraid of, it’s simply them branching out. To be honest anybody hating should count themselves lucky because they did this album as opposed to breaking up and going their separate ways, remembering that they’ve only just resigned with the company again! So I hope we get more, because I like when they experiment. Sometimes they hit and sometimes they miss, and that’s absolutely fine. Hyunjin’s “Love Untold” was my favourite solo from “REPLAY”, but “So Good” missed for me on this album personally, these things happen! The important thing is that they continue to evolve, which they clearly are doing! So let’s focus on the positives whilst understanding the negatives and we can help steer the ship in the right direction!

Also I just wanted to say thank you to everyone here on Patreon. Your insights are always amazing and you never judge each other or me when it comes to personal opinions. You’ve all helped create an incredible space here for literally all walks of life, and I often reflect on how amazing that is. Thank you. I finally have a few weeks off of work as of next Wednesday, so I cannot wait to do some full days of reviewing again because my brain has missed the long sessions so much! I have a lot of BTS stuff to do, I want to watch the Pink Floyd film and then do the accompanying album over the holidays too, I’ve got some live reactions coming up and also some random picks from old Patreon Polls - there’s so much! But I never see it as work, I love this shit so much it keeps my brain active and reminds me of doing crosswords and sudoku as a kid. Anyway I’m waffling now! If you’ve ever received a lengthy message from me you’ll know I have to type exactly what I’m thinking when I’m thinking it or I get stuck so, sorry about that! I don’t even know what this message is anymore, it started out as conspiracy theory and quickly devolved into a thank you note. But nonetheless, thank you 🩶