KINOWHERE? Kino (is) now here to bring sexy back.
First off: I’m living for the footages of Kino and Nathan (frequent collaborator with Pentagon and WOODZ) working on songs together. We need more behind-the-scenes with composers! And secondly… August has started off really strong! And with many more acts later this month, I’m hoping to see that joy for music carry on!
Kino does “pose” as a great performer and composer who’s capable of tackling a range of moods and sounds (proof: Pentagon‘s discography). With songs like Spring Snow, Beautiful Goodbye, and Call My Name under his belt, it’s only about time that he becomes a proper soloist with a whole MV(!).
The past 2 years there’s been many waves of sensual groovy songs that makes any subsequent tracks of a similar genre much harder to differentiate. That prior musical knowledge unfortunately does undermine POSE, especially for the kind of groove that takes a step back from energy. But Pentagon fans will know that Kino’s approach to music has generally been great as he’s an artist who knows his priorities: melody.
POSE is more experimental in its execution that feels properly crafted than the group’s inoffensive groovy title track earlier this year. The structure is pretty straightforward, but hearing him swerve along with the instrumental sprinkled with varied layers of sounds is proof of his strength. Subsequent repetitions of the pre-chorus with Kino slightly altering his tone and emphasis on the vocoder is one example that makes the song still feel fresh. A slick track such as this does a good job in showcasing his velvety voice – an advantage of going solo.
The biggest stand-out moment would be the bridge. The feathery touches of piano to fill the hushed ambience before Kino’s voice brimming with confidence builds to the climax along with the pulsing drums and layers of adlibs.
I don’t know how much I will return to this song. But the execution of small yet fun layering scattered about in POSE (and bias for a group I dearly love) is probably what made me like this song a lot more than normal. Nonetheless, this song is a solid entry to Kino’s growing work as a composer.
Composed by: Kino, Nathan, yunji, Wooseok
Arranged by: Nathan, yunji
Header Image Source: Official Pentagon Twitter
Fool With Thoughts 
The song is not my thing (minus the real cool post-chorus), but I see potential in Kino as a late3rd/4th generation Taemin. I mean, this song is basically a discount Move!
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