A Note From Anna <3

*taps mic* 

As the gif says, ladies and gentleman (and assorted forest sprites), I make my triumphant return! If you’re a longtime reader, thank you so much for sticking by me during my hiatus. If you’ve found Married To The Music in the time while I’ve been gone, welcome! I’ve been on a break for the last three months to focus on school, but it’s officially summer and I’m so SO excited to be back, and I’m very happy to have you. I don’t have an official schedule for the next few months yet—we’re going to play it by ear—but there’s a lot I’m looking forward to.

All my love, Anna <3

Alright, into the review!

Review Intro

Sorn—whose full name is Chonnasorn Sajakul—first came onto the k-pop scene in 2011 after winning the show K-pop Star Hunt. In 2015, she officially debuted as one of seven members of Cube Entertainment’s girl group CLC (alongside Yujin, Yeeun, Elkie, Eunbin, Seungyeon, and Seunghee, and though the group is now on indefinite hiatus, she still is. Though she’s originally from Thailand, she debuted as a soloist in 2021 with “Run” and has sung in English since.

Here are my credentials: So, I’ve actually been a fan of Sorn’s for a while, like I mentioned in my CLC review (read that here), but for the first couple years of her solo career, she didn’t release much music and I didn’t feel like I had enough content for this review. Fast-forward to this year, when I’m beginning to emerge from my finals coma, and in the middle I discover that she’s put out a whole album! So, it felt right to have this be my first piece back from Thailand. Let’s get into it.

Single #1: Run

Right from the start, Run establishes itself as very different from CLC, both in terms of sound (it’s neither the sugary-sweet pop of songs like Pepe or the harsher girl crush of songs like No) and in aesthetic. Filmed in Thailand, Sorn’s home, the music video mostly features her walking her walking on the beach, enjoying an aquarium, feeding a llama, and so on. It feels a lot like a high-quality home video, and I mean that as a compliment.

The song itself matches well; it’s down-to-earth (literally), with a whistling hook and a light backtrack. The lyrics themselves double down on this. “What’s here but a whole lot of nothing?” she asks. “So why don’t we run? Do what we wanted for once?” It’s fairly classic pop, sure, but it’s deeper than it first appears when you consider Sorn’s years as a kpop idol in a very strict landscape. I also really like the vocals; a song like Run really lets them shine in a way many of CLC’s songs don’t.

Single #2: Sharp Objects

If I had to name a favorite song of Sorn’s before this review, it’d probably be Sharp Objects. Beyond just the obvious—I’m a sucker for long blonde hair and a fur coat, what can I say—-this kind of crying-on-the-dancefloor-esque sound has always been a favorite of mine. There’s a lot of good wordplay in this song too, that’s simple but effective. “There ain’t any difference between loving and running with scissors,” Sorn says at one point with little more than a shrug. If I had to be critical I would probably say that there’s a couple points where the chorus gets a bit too close to “catchphrase” for me, but it’s a pretty small gripe. I just really like this song.

Single #3: Scorpio

It’s probably a side effect of listening to so much music for this blog, but even though I know I heard Scorpio when it first came out, and I know I liked it, I could not remember how it sounded for the life of me. It’s a perfectly good song, and not that different from Sharp Objects in its bones, but it just doesn’t hit me in the same way. Despite having a solid chorus, lyrics focused on self-confidence, and a pretty great build, especially in its later moments, I still felt like something was missing at the end, and I’m not sure why I feel that way.

Single #4: Save Me

Often in making the kind of light-touch pop music that Sorn does, vocals tend to get lost, but Save Me puts them front and center. Leaving the synth behind for a classic ballad sound, it’s honest and doesn’t hold back on the realities of being an idol. (“I put on a smile while I’m crying inside.” “I’m not invincible, I have a broken soul.” “Still we’re all just washed up, is this how we go down?”) It’s almost four minutes long, but never feels like it drags on; every second is needed to make its fantastic build feel earned, and the catharsis at its end is well-deserved.

Single #5: Nirvana Girl

While it’s technically about the same thing as Save Me and Run, Nirvana Girl takes a different approach. It’s colorful and bright, with tongue-in-cheek references to CLC’s work like Black Dress and No. The sass is off the charts too, (“Oh my God, can I be myself right now?”. “Now look at me, you know that a bitch glowed up.”) This song is a statement more than anything, and while there’s moments when it doesn’t quite stick the landing, but overall it feels like a matured, deeper version of Scorpio. I always find myself into it whenever I play it—I do the shoulder shaking sitting-down dance to it if you know what I mean. I also love that both Yeeun and Seungyeon, who are also members of CLC, are a part of this too; it makes the sense of joy feel earned.

Single #6: Not A Friend

So much music focuses on romantic breakups, when a friendship breakup—whether driven by betrayal or just growing apart—can be just as painful. Not A Friend takes this idea and runs with it, and once again, Sorn has some blistering lines. (“When is a friend not a friend? You ghost when I need you most, I’m ripping out a knife outta my back again.” “It’s not that deep, in that drama type of way, not like an Oscar, like a cabaret”). I love the acapella practice beginning. The chorus has this terrifying almost horror-movie nursery rhyme sound, and honestly, I think it works really well with the building sense of paranoia and realization. The fadeout at the end works well too.

EP #1: Heartstorm

I knew I was going to like Nobody right from the start. With a synth pop sound and a handclap-led beat, it skips along without a breath to spare. I loved the sense of sass in the chorus (“It’s clear you’re out here overcompensating.” “Out here with your gold watch but you still look like a fool”.), and the way the song blends a retro feel with a very 2025 pop sensibility. The official MV is a great complement, with a fluid choreography and a sense of fun in its own dedication to the dance floor sound. I think it’s one of my favorite singles so far.

Often, the first time I listen to an album or EP, I’m multitasking: going for a walk, painting my nails, doing dishes, etc, what an interesting life I lead—and I find a hidden gem when a song gets me to focus back on the music, instead of viewing it as background noise for a different activity.

In this case, I was fighting off lingering jet lag, and though I enjoyed both Cool Waters and BAD4US, right from “Hello baby with the baby blues,” I knew immediately that Heartstorm was going to be my favorite. As mentioned, there’s little I love more than a crying-on-the-dancefloor sound with a synthpop beat, a few delightfully cutting one-liners, and a devil-may-care attitude of knowing a relationship will end badly but being unable to get away. “There’s a storm in my heart coming for me…” Sorn says in the chorus, “and I know when it hits, it’ll hurt like a bitch.” And true that may be, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t a great song.

Single #7: Reservations

Reservations was the song that got Sorn back on my radar, since, if you’ve been reading the blog for a while, you’ll know I’m a big fan of the group I-dle, and their member Minnie is featured on this song! Reservations is still firmly in the pop genre, but less 80s synth inspired and more the kind of contemplative coffee shop that I’m usually a bit ambivalent about. I admit I grooved along (yes I said grooved. Yes I’m old), but I think that was more on the strength of Sorn and Minnie’s voices than the song itself. Once again, I enjoyed the final chorus most, and I credit the build up with getting this song stuck in my head. I usually end up listening to a single I’m reviewing about three times, but this one somehow ended up on repeat, and honestly I’m not mad about it. The more I listen, the more I like it.

Album #1: Letters Left Unread

Now, let it be said that I love a good “Fuck YOU and your MOMMA and your STUPID OLD PICKUP TRUCK—-” song, but there’s something about quiet, mature breakup songs that always hits me in my feels. Call It What You Want reminds me a lot of Olivia Rodrigo’s new album, in the way that it acknowledges different paths in life, acknowledges fault on both sides, and delves into the complicated feelings that arise has a special place in my heart. “Maybe in another life, we’ll have a little bit more time,” Sorn says. “Still listen to the songs you write, even though they’re no longer about you and I.”

(Also, important to note, unusually for a kpop idol, Sorn has been very open about the inspiration for her new album: a two year long complicated relationship with a man she hasn’t named (therefore, don’t dig) that left her heartbroken, and led her to seek closure on her own through music. She talks about it here, in this really lovely video on her channel. I won’t quote the whole thing, because you should watch for yourself, but I really liked where she said: “I still believe there’s someone out there for me. But until then, I’ve got my songs, I’ve got my heart, and I’ve got hope.”)

Letters Left Unsaid marks Sorn’s first full album, and although at 7 tracks, it’s a bit on the lighter side, I was still excited to take a look. I liked pretty much every song, though special shoutout to Good Luck!, which has both a synthy background and a delightful music video featuring Sorn and her friends vibing along to the song. My biggest gripe is that it’s so short—no song is longer than 2:58, and most are barely 2:30. I’m a big believer that songs should be as long as they need to be; sometimes a song is two and a half minutes and that’s the perfect length, and sometimes the same is true of a song that’s three times that. But in this case, there were several that just felt like they could’ve benefited from another minute to flesh out their ideas.

Verdict: TL;DR

I’m glad I did this! Sorn’s been on my list to cover for a while now, and like I said at the beginning, this seemed like a good time. I was already a fan of Sorn, but I really enjoyed getting to learn more about her through this, especially how involved she is in her music. I know I mentioned lyrics a lot more than usual, and that’s because I really want to spotlight how impressive it is that Sorn’s entire solo career is in her third language, and not only has she made songs that are catchy but ones that are emotionally affecting. During the editing of this article, I read this article where Sorn discusses her songwriting process, and watched some videos from her PRODUSORN YouTube channel, including this one of her, Yeeun, and Seungyeon having fun reflecting on CLC.

My Top 5 songs were Heartstorm, Sharp Objects, Good Luck!, Call It What You Want, and Nobody, with Reservations as an honorable mention. Sorn gets an 8.5 out of 10 from me, which is actually higher than I expected. Though my favorites ended up mostly being her synth pop output, I really enjoy the way she uses her voice, and explores different genres while still sticking with exploring the topics she started out with. Looking back over the last five years, it’s amazing to see how much she’s grown, both as a songwriter and a person, and I’m excited to see where she’ll go next.

Next time, we’re onto a girl group that I honestly can’t believe I haven’t covered yet. Tschüss, 안녕!, and Goodbye.