Here are my credentials (again): This is a redo of my first WayV deep dive, written in 2024. I knew next to nothing about them then, but in the time since, I’ve become a casual fan. And, seeing as WayV are embarking on a tour soon, I thought that now would be a good time to go back through their discography. Let’s get into it!

(Part ONE here)

EP #4: Phantom

The first time I did this review, Phantom was by far my favorite WayV title track, and honestly, I stand by that. Not only does it show how much WayV’s voices have matured over the years and do an excellent job with giving each member a moment to shine, but its tension building is impeccable. You’re on edge the entire time, feeling like you’re one step away from falling off a cliff you had no idea was there. The percussive background mixing with the strings and a light backing choir keeps a strong throughline without overpowering the vocals. Where Phantom really excels is its atmosphere and delivery, and though that does leave it feeling somewhat more like a performance than a song, it’s a great performance.

While I’d consider this an album, at eight tracks (as does Apple Music), it’s actually classified an EP. Either way, it’s quite strong; I enjoyed the synthy chorus of Good Life, the build-up of Bounce Back and its confident, sunny pay-off, and the Dies Irae interpolation in Try My Luck. The whole thing feels like a night at the most dramatic opera.

Album #2: On My Youth

Last time I reviewed On My Youth I was honestly quite harsh—no idea who spit in my coffee that morning—but since then it’s become one of my favorite songs, not just of WayV but of K-pop in general. Its verses are downtempo and more gentle than they’ve been in past songs, allowing us a glimpse at vulnerability with lyrics focusing on lost childhood and how hard it is to get it back, something I’m sure every idol has experienced. The biggest issue I had was with its chorus, and more specifically the anti-drop. It drove me crazy the first times I heard it, but my opinion really has softened.

Sometimes, you have a very specific memory associated with a song, and for this one, I was on a late-night walk in the rain and this came on shuffle and I had a full-on main character moment.

It isn’t only my thoughts on the song that have improved, but the album too. There’s the insistent, EDM-driven Poppin’ Love, which has such a cathartic end, the gentle, acoustic No One But You. I’m partial to Invincible, which has great drive and an equally strong hook for its chorus, and to Moonlight, which is vocal-heavy and might even be better that NCT Dream’s track of the same name.

EP #5: Give Me That

I was surprised by Give Me That from the beginning, both by its brassy interludes and by the MV’s audition-based plotline. I’m not the biggest fan of the sing-talk heavy parts of the first and second verse, but I do really like the choruses, despite them not being my usual style. The “BABY IN 3 2 1 GIVE ME YOUR LOVE” hook has been stuck in my head since the song came out, honestly, and though I find the song a bit uneven, I enjoy the parts I like enough to paper over that and meet it where it’s at.

From the EP, Give Me That, I enjoyed the confident, almost noir feel of She’s A Wolf’s verses (though the choruses weren’t really my speed), the spaghetti western hook of Might As Well, and the laid back, acoustic guitar drivn Don’t Get Mad (my hidden gem).

EP #6: Frequency

Frequency, unlike its prerelease, lands squarely on the dark side of WayV’s discography from the first verse. I was cautiously optimistic from the beginning, actually, really liking how it blends sing-talk and a more melodic through line, but then of course, we have an anti-drop. Why am I ever surprised at this point? It’s sad, because I think that without it, this would be among WayV’s best tracks. The bridge (mainly courtesy of Ten and Kun) is smooth and lovely, and the final chorus, similarly to On My Youth’s, does a great job blending the harshness with a softer edge. But no. Come on guys! We were so close!

From the EP, I enjoyed the funky blend of classic hip hop and a delightfully brassy hook in High Five (the prerelease mentioned earlier, and my hidden gem), and the tropical-infused handclapping beat of Twist.

EP #7: Big Bands

With such a range in titles, I wasn’t sure what to expect with Big Bands. The first listen I wasn’t the biggest fan, but similar to Give Me That, it really started to grow on me. What saves it, I think, is that melodic through line in the chorus, but the sing also gets better as it goes along, and the final chorus especially is really good. By the end of the second listen I found myself tapping my feet to the beat. The MV is also a lot of fun, melding live-action and a cartoonish sensibility that works very well. I wish the brass was involved even more than it already is, and that the song was more consistent, but overall, I thought it was alright.

This EP wasn’t really my style, to be honest, but I did enjoy the gentle, melodic Your Song and the layered vocals of Sad Eyes.

Verdict: TL;DR

I’m glad I did this! I had such a good time going back through WayV’s discography and getting to know them beyond the bits and pieces I knew before. They’re very talented, clearly, but they’re also incredibly funny, and I may have spent the better part of an afternoon looking through their behind the scenes content. My favorites were probably the Behind The Scenes Of WayV’s Music on Kun’s YouTube channel, Ten’s appearance on Lee Mujin Service, and the whole group on the K-Star Next Door and the Buzzfeed Puppy Interview.

My Top 5 songs were Phantom, On My Youth, We Go Nanana, Moonwalk, and After Midnight, with Say It and Give Me That as honorable mentions. WayV gets an 8.5 out of 10 from me this time around, which is almost an entire point higher than I gave them originally. Though they do sometimes fall into the trap of anti-drops and empty swagger, they usually manage to save it last minute, or do something I don’t anticipate that keeps me coming back for more listens, so I have to give them their flowers for that. As I mentioned (ad nauseam, probably), their voices are great, especially together, and their stage presence and dancing abilities save some of their less excellent songs from feeling like a waste of time.

I suppose what I’m saying is that a score I give a group doesn’t always reflect how much I actually like them. And that if WayV comes to the US on their tour, I’ll definitely go to a show.

Next time, we’re onto a soloist! Tschüss!