Since shifting on from Wanna One, the standard of Ha Sungwoon’s solo profession has been combined. For me, his music peaked in 2021 with the one-two punch of Sneakers and Strawberry Gum. New single Blessed takes him down a extra aggressive sonic route, however falls aside as soon as it reaches its refrain.

By now, anybody with a passing familiarity of this weblog is aware of how I usually really feel about choruses just like the one in Blessed. Chants and repetitive vocal loops can work if tethered to a killer instrumental, however most of the time they really feel like obnoxious placeholders ready for a satisfying hook. Blessed falls on this second class. The remainder of the music is tolerable (if devoid of latest concepts), however the stuttering “Blessed uh uh uh uh uh” centerpiece appears like a pesky mosquito circling your ear. Regardless of how laborious you swat, it all the time finds a manner again.

I’m extra inspired by Blessed‘s effusive pre-chorus, which sees Sungwoon belting out the melody with panache. The music wants extra of this heartiness to counter the non-starter at its core. Sadly, the refrain appears like not less than 70% of the monitor, even when it’s most likely much less if measured in a purely goal manner. This makes Blessed a simple skip.

Grade: D+