Album Review - TaeYang – Hot

TaeYang – Hot

01 HOT – Intro
02 Prayer (Feat. Teddy)
03 Look At Only Me
04 Criminal
05 Baby I’m Sorry
06 Make Love (feat. Kush)

Purchase This Album

Big Bang’s main vocalist, TaeYang, has finally released his solo mini album, which was one of the most anticipated albums of the year. In this album, there is a combination of R&B and hip-hop tracks, showcasing TaeYang’s vocal and rapping skills as a solo artiste. In addition, the six-track album is packed with YG artiste collaborations and compositions, making it enjoyable for a wider audience.

TaeYang has already made two music videos for this album: one for “Prayer” and the other for the title track, “Look At Only Me.” “Look at Only Me” is a medium-tempo R&B track which showcases TaeYang’s smooth vocals. The background instruments are very catchy and go well with TaeYang’s voice.

The album starts off with “HOT,” an intro, something very typical of YG artistes. Despite the fact that it is just an intro, many times I find myself listening to this song more than the others; it is very catchy from the start. TaeYang’s voice has been altered by the computer, but that just makes this upbeat track more appealing. This song was written by fellow Big Bang member G-Dragon. The next song is “Prayer”, which was co-produced by Teddy of 1TYM and KUSH of Stony Skunk. Teddy is also featured in the song as the rapper. Like the intro, this song likewise computerizes TaeYang’s voice in the bridge. It has a fast tempo and Teddy’s rap flows with the song well. Overall, the song is catchy but I felt that it was not anything too unique.

I also enjoyed “Baby I’m Sorry” and “Make Love.” Both songs are of the R&B genre and showcase TaeYang’s vocal skills. “Baby I’m Sorry” also gives TaeYang a chance to rap, showing fans a new side of him. The lyrics were written by G-Dragon. “Make Love”, on the other hand, is one of my favorite tracks of the album and Kush is featured as the rapper. This song is once again very smooth and easy to listen to; it ends TaeYang’s mini album well.

Overall, I felt that TaeYang was able to show fans a different side of him from Big Bang. He was able to prove his ability to not only sing, but rap and dance. This album confirms that TaeYang has the skills to go solo. I especially enjoyed the styles and sounds of the songs in this album. They were very T-Pain-like with the computer altered sounds and the beats of the songs were in general very catchy.

5/5

5/5 – Even if you’re not a fan of this artist/group this album is a must buy.
4/5 – If you’re a fan of this artist/group, you must buy this album.
3/5 – If you’re a fan of this artist/group, you might want to add this one to your collection.
2/5 – I don’t think a fan would even buy this.
1/5 – You might as well just flush your money down the toilet