As a soloist, Key has always been synonymous with the kitschy, the sensual and the epic. The SHINee star’s 2020s EPs and albums – ‘Bad Love’, ‘Gasoline’, ‘Good & Great’ and ‘Pleasure Shop’ – laid the groundwork for one of K-pop’s most identifiable musical vernaculars, defined by retro-futurism and glitzy theatrics. His third full-length album ‘Hunter’ plays like the sum of his past work brought into clear view, culminating in 10 laser-focused tracks that explore all angles of the self.
On past projects, Key carved out a specialty in pop-leaning house and R&B steeped in nostalgia. Half of the tracks on ‘Hunter’ pushes that momentum into more experimental territory, and results in some of the album’s highlights: new jack swing groove ‘Infatuation’, featuring PLAVE’s Eunho, evokes the vibrancy of the ’90s, while ‘Picture Frame’ drifts into dreamy house synths to channel the boundary between nightmares and reality. Other tracks, such as ‘No Way!’, ‘Perfect Error’ featuring Red Velvet’s Seulgi and ‘Lavender Love’, are gorgeous expansions of Key’s signature dance sound.
But what makes ‘Hunter’ his most innovative album yet is the way it combines glossy production and offbeat electronic sound to expand his repertoire. Opener ‘Hunter’ epitomises this controlled chaos – a grandiose, beat-heavy romp that finds him facing his inner selves destined to “either hunt or be hunted”. ‘Trap’ sets the album’s macabre atmosphere with rough electronic edges, while his playfulness with abrasive textures and punchy instrumentation on ‘Glam’ embodies an androgynous dimension to Key’s kaleidoscopic self.
Key further expands his exploration of elastic production into ‘Want Another’, the most dynamic listening experience in his discography so far. Here, he tinkers with a combination of choppy vocals, metallic synths and off-kilter song structure, invoking the experimental synthesis of hyper-pop pioneer SOPHIE. ‘Strange’ pivots to grungy punk rock, where his familiar brand of noir camp meets the biting cynicism of the 2010s pop punk revival, à la Fall Out Boy.
The only gripe to be had with ‘Hunter’ is its brief runtime, with its longest song clocking in a little over the three-minute mark. But that speaks less to this particular album than it does to a broader industry trend that favours TikTok-friendly brevity. Instead, what stands out is an incredibly taut and cohesive artistic vision – both musically and visually – as one of the most exciting releases out of Korea this year. Key may have unparalleled experience as an idol, but on ‘Hunter’ he makes a strong argument for his case as the next pop disruptor.
