TripleS (also known as Social Sonyo Seoul) is a fairly new girl group formed by LOONA creator Jaden Jeong, with twenty-four members, probably the largest in k-pop history. Ready for these names? Alright. Deep breaths.

There’s Korean members Yooyeon, Nakyoung, Sohyun, Dahyun, Seoyeon, Jiyeon, Chaeyeon, Yubin, Jiwoo, Shion, Hyerin, Chaewon, Hayeon, Soomin, Yeonji, Joobin, and Seoah, Japanese members Mayu, Kaede, Lynn, and Kotone, Chinese member Xinyu, Thai member Sullin, and Taiwanese member Nien. (There is a decently high chance I’ve forgotten someone; if so, I’m very sorry about that).

Their rollout began similarly to LOONA, in many different subunits, but far more complicated, with a voting system, complicated photocards and “objekts”, and various other things, which I’m not going into.

Here are my credentials: So, I was a fan of LOONA before their disbandment, but I always thought that they didn’t quite live up to the cleverness of their concept. So, I’m interested (and a little concerned) by TripleS, and excited to see where this goes! Let’s get into it.

EP #1: Access (Acid Angel From Asia)

Generation is the one TripleS song I’ve seen before, by virtue of it going viral back in 2022. It’s easy to see why it struck a chord with so many people; it’s very New Jeans, easygoing and easy to listen to, and has a fun but totally doable dance. Not to mention the music video, which, with its quirky humor and sense of teenage joy, stand out from the k-pop landscape. It’s different from a usual New Jeans song, though; it manages to be light and airy while also having enough meat on its bones to get stuck in your head, which the “lalalala” post-chorus definitely did. It’s definitely easy listening music, but the mix of synths, brass and solid vocals saved it. Plus, the chorus has this anthemic quality to it, fitting for a song called Generation; it’s the kind of song that you dance to in your room, headphones on, in the opening scene of a Disney movie, in the best way.

From the EP, I enjoyed the insistent beat of Rolex, the springy synths of Charla, and the way the intro Access bled into Generation. Mostly, though, it didn’t strike me as much as the single did.

EP #2: Assemble23 (Group)

After a subunit release, Rising is TripleS’ first song with their entire group, which then was ten people. It’s not that different from Generation, but it has a choppier, sharper beat and more complicated, layered vocals, which is always nice to hear. It focuses on dancing too, but it’s more streamlined than it was in their debut. I have one main gripe, though: I don’t think the chorus flows in quite the right way. Both it and the verses are fine separately, but they give me a bit of whiplash when put together. Part of this is that the chorus is peppier than the rest of the song, which is much more relaxed, but another is that the instrumental does a complete switch up too, from an acoustic sound to a heavily electro one.

From the EP, I enjoyed the hazy sound of Beam and the confident, synthy New Look, but my hidden gem was Colorful, which spotlights so many of TripleS’ great voices while jumping into the dance floor sound full-throttle. It’s such a good song and I wish it had been the single instead of Rising.

EP #3: Aesthetic (Krystal Eyes)

While the other two songs have been what I’d describe as “easy listening”, Cherry Talk…isn’t. It has elements of it, sure, like its synthy chorus and bop-along verses, but something about it is just grating. A lot of that is because, for some reason, it decides to go for this harsh-on-the-ears “cherry cherry talk” hook that’s paired with this squeezy instrumental, and it’s just not a good fit. I do understand them wanting different groups to have different sounds, but if that was the intention here, it didn’t succeed. That’s not to say I didn’t like some parts, like the gentler bridge and final chorus where everything comes together, but overall I just don’t think it works.

From the EP, I enjoyed the hopeful Touch with its slight edge of rock and the soothing sound of Deja Vu.

EP #4: ↀ / Muhan (LoveLution)

Despite the…interesting name, Girls’ Capitalism is quite a good song. It’s similar to Generation, and is so far the only song to really capture the magic that their debut had. And I do mean magic, because besides the actual Wiccan inspiration, the music video is just really funny, and makes fun of people who are greedy, while still encouraging the audience to love themselves. While past singles have sounded smooth and unobtrusive to the point of boredom, Girls’ Capitalism is confident and a bit more unique without sacrificing TripleS’ core sound, adding an interesting instrumental and snappy percussion. The return of the lalalalalas is a nice touch too. I’m powerless to lalalalalas. The final high note and last chorus when the electric guitar kicks in is just great, by the way, and my one gripe is that I wish it could’ve been more present through the whole song.

From the EP, I enjoyed the elegant delivery of Complexity, but my hidden gem was easily Cry Baby, with its punchy, insistent beat and percussive guitar.

EP #5: ⟡ / Mujuk (EvoLution)

Invincible has more of an EDM / trap sound than past releases, and it’s a good compliment to the light synths that underpin the whole song. The music video, going along with this, is also darker than their last ones have been. It feels more unique than the majority of their work, but not as much as their best songs. I liked the final pre-chorus shift into the final chorus, but wished that they’d pushed the differences a little further to really make the last minute feel momentous. Basically, it’s squarely in the middle of their discography.

From the EP, I enjoyed the interesting instrumental of Rhodanthe (which reminded me of IZ*ONE’s Fiesta), and the clippy beat of Moto Princess. My hidden gem was Heavy Metal Wings, which is delightfully synthy, although I think the name is pretty misleading.

Single #1: Just Do It (NXT)

I’m sad that Just Do It was only a single, not part of an EP, and a two and a half minute one at that, because it’s honestly a pretty good song. It has this springy, synthy sound that’s a lot of fun to listen to, and glides along with a great sense of confidence and dance floor drive that sets it apart from most of TripleS’ songs. I’m also glad that its hook isn’t as threadbare as it initially seems. Instead, it expands on the “do it, do it, do it all” line that opens the song and pairs it with a pre-chorus and post-chorus. It’s not some kind of revelation, or anything, but I think it shows where TripleS could go with their work.

Single #2: Structure Of Sadness (Aria)

Fittingly for a group called Aria, the song Door is a fully fledged ballad, its music video complete with chirping birds, kdrama lighting, and drizzling rain, just in case you weren’t feeling sad enough. Led by a suitably melancholy piano, the girls’ voices are on full display, and they’re genuinely gorgeous. As the song slowly picks up speed, with an entire section of strings winding their way in and the vocals spinning together, it achieves this beautiful feeling of catharsis that’s worlds away from the relaxed sounds of Rising or Generation. It’s nothing like TripleS have done before, and though it’s a bit dramatic, it aces the brief.  Perhaps its singularity is what makes it so powerful.

Next time, we’re onto part 2. Tschüss!