Are you happy with NCT Dream's musical direction? (1 Viewer)

[the101]

I'm struggling a little bit with getting excited about the new album, so curious about your thoughts around NCT Dream's music right now.

A little context for me:
I've been an EXO fan for a long time and got into NCT in 2018. For years, I passed on NCT Dream's music because it just didn't appeal to me. Then I really liked a few tracks on Reload (notably 7 Days) and Deja Vu, the Dream song on Resonance, plus I was hanging out on a kpop forum with folks really excited for the first NCT Dream album and checked it out and loved it. From beginning to end, it felt like its own distinct sound from the other units but one that maximized their unique qualities, notably their higher, brighter voices and youthful enthusiasm. I really liked their specific r&b approach to songs like irreplaceable, which felt both fresh and retro. It felt like an evolution of their sound. But I did note some long-time Dreamzens weren't crazy about it.

During this time, I went back and explored their back catalog and while I found some gems (1,2,3) or a new appreciation for certain songs, overall, I thought "nope, still not for me." Glitch Mode was a mixed bag for me - there were some great songs (Arcade, Teddy Bear) and a lot of filler IMO. But uneven albums happen. Since then, most of the releases have felt very much like old Dream - I only liked one song off the Candy album (Tangerine Love is a gem) and no singles that have been released since then. It feels musically to me like they've gone back to their original sound, which doesn't interest me - don't get me wrong, I love a well-made pure pop song (where you at, Blue Hour?), but meh, there's just something not hitting there for me.

Judging by the excitement in the timeline tho, it feels like OG Dreamzens are happy with this directional shift?

Curious about the thoughts from other Czennies, esp. Dreamzens. Are you happy with the shift in sound? Does it make you more or less interested in Dream?

 

[athenaaa]

Their comebacks have always been a hit ir miss for me. So I would say I like but also dislike their musical direction

 

[owo]

i might just be rambling here but i actually love discussing this stuff x.

i havent been a long time dreamzen, but i have been a long time casual listener of dream (since debut). the final push for me was how enamored i was with hello future, to me that's perfect music. that being said, i really do love songs like hot sauce and glitch mode, they're fantastic too but i just lean more towards songs like hello future when it comes to favorites/vibes. and i think broken melodies is the perfect successor to that. IMO its really hard to beat the hotsauce/hello future album in general but that is literally a perfect album, thats why i personally feel like glitch mode/beatbox was ""weaker"", using that word loosely because i dont think its a particularly weak album tbf, but just not as cohesive and solid as hotsauce. but regardless, broken melodies is absolutely beautiful and i definitely vibe with it. anything that sounds like THAT, i am 100% seated for.

im super interested in the title track, ISTJ, because im curious on how they're gonna involve rock into the mix, which would be very different coming from them. so instead of thinking candy for music direction i think we can rely a lil more with the glitch mode remix from tds2 encores on maybe a better indicator what we can look forward to? maybe, like at least title track wise. can never be too sure with the bsides, but judging by their names they remind me of a mix of hotsauce/hello future & candy's song names. combine those two and they'd become so powerful

my top favorite dream songs are rainbow, hello future, dive into you, teddy bear, my page, and moon if thats any show that im really excited for this album and love the music coming from them lately