Effectively, it is a shock! I in some way missed the announcement about this track, so listening to a collaboration between two of Ok-pop’s most influential rappers comes as a nice little shock tonight. Cease The Rain pairs Epik Excessive’s Tablo with BTS’s RM, crafting a multi-generational shot of emotional catharsis.

I’m all the time hesitant to write down about songs like this as a result of I don’t really feel like they match nicely into my rankings system. I are likely to cowl music created for a large viewers and chart ubiquity. Some would possibly name it “manufactured,” however I’ve all the time hated the unfavorable connotation that phrase entails. Given its collaborating artists, Cease The Rain will all the time be a part of chart dialog, however above all else it feels just like the musical equal of a diary entry — a confessional airing out of interior ideas. As such, blathering on about its “hooks” feels a little bit foolish.

Sonically, the very first thing I discover about Cease The Rain is how nicely Tablo and RM’s voices match collectively. Every has the power to maneuver from ethereal melodicism to sharper textures. This observe falls a lot nearer to the “ethereal” aspect of this spectrum, although its extra confrontational verses distinction properly with the mushy refrain. Total, it’s fairly an exquisite piece. I don’t know the way a lot I’ll truly take heed to the track by itself, however I respect the way it makes a robust, resonant assertion. There’s a spot inside the wider Ok-pop trade for this model of challenge and it’s good to be reminded of that.

Grade: B-