GFriend – ‘Snowflake’ Album Review  

A year after their debut and winning eighth place on the Gaon Chart, Gfriend makes a timely return with their third mini-album Snowflake to kick off the new year. Snowflake continues their ever-popular school girl concept with pure vocals and clean image. Gfriend is back stronger than ever to dazzle us with more of their signature music style — “power-innocence” and cheerful sweetness. Except this time, Snowflake exudes an aura of fantasy, as if leading us into a world of fairytales.

Track 1 – Intro (Snowflake)

Snowflake starts off with a curious intro combining ticking sound of a clock, dramatic violin and guitar sounds, and a hint of synth in the background. As the violin intensifies, in comes the bouncy beat of GFriend’s title track Rough. The intro sounds so mysterious that I feel like I’m being lured into an imaginary world.

Track 2 – 시간을 달려서 (Rough)

Rough is the title track of the album with an energizing and catchy melody, climactic violin and guitar instrumentals, finger snaps to set the beat, and light jingle synth sounds to top it off. I think Rough intentionally used very similar composition elements as Me Gustas Tu in the beginning of the song to give it a sense of continuity — as if inviting us to the next chapter of a slightly more mature version of GFriend’s story.

Track 3 – 내 이름을 불러줘 (Say My Name)

A pop song with understated drum beats and rhythmic synths to complement the soft vocals of GFriend, Say My Name has a 90’s hip hop vibe to it. In contrast to GFriend’s usual vocal style, there’s a notable difference to the pitch and tone of their voices — a bit more mature and a bit more sass. While I think the vocal change is good, the song itself didn’t really stay on my mind too much.

Track 4 – 사랑별 (Luv Star)

Luv Star is another pop song in Snowflake with a bouncy beat, jumpy piano chords, and peppy melody that sounds as if it came out of a fairytale showing a group of friends having fun. It’s supposed to be a feel-good song for anyone who’s feeling down, yet I wasn’t able to feel much from it as I’ve heard many such types of song before.

Track 5 – 그런 날엔 (Someday)

Fantastical piano, uptempo rhythm, and funky guitar instrumentals make up Someday. The composition of the chorus is particularly cheerful and catchy, topped off with GFriend’s steady vocals to make one strong impression. I really enjoyed listening to Someday because it imparted me with a sense of positivity and optimism.

Track 6 – Trust

With dreamy violin and piano riffs, plus the girls’ wistful voices, Trust is a perfect ballad track for a cold snowy day. GFriend’s voices are like a lullaby to my ears, smooth and calming. I like that this song is different from the previous tracks on the album that are more upbeat. After waking me up with the energetic Rough and everything that comes after it, Trust is the ideal album closer that slowly lures me into a sweet dream.

Track 7 – 시간을 달려서 (Inst.)

Not Reviewed.

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