Leessang Unplugged Review

Leessang made a quick comeback after releasing their seventh album less than a year before Unplugged. While Unplugged isn't as good as Asura Balbalta, it's still a very good album on its own merits.

 

너에게 배운다 (My Love): There's a piano intro as a separate track that lays the foundation of the song, giving off the mood that Leessang wanted the viewers to feel while listening to the song. When the real song starts, it gives off a mellow vibe on top of a soft beat while Gary raps. When it's Gil's turn to sing the verses, the song becomes more lively with some drums accompanying the piano. I didn't like the "My Love" parts. Those parts grated on my ears, but not enough to distract from the rest of the song. This song is a good way to start off the album because it sets the tone for the rest of the album. All of the songs are played with live instruments in Unplugged instead of going the electronic route so many hiphop artists are doing today.

Someday (피쳐링. 윤도현 Of YB): The song starts out with some guitar riffs and the transitions into a rock ballad. Featuring Yoon Do Hyun is always a good thing for Leessang, since I loved Run from their sixth album. This is one of those rare songs where Gary feels like he's just adding some rap verses instead of being the focus of the song. Gil and Yoon Do Hyun take center stage in this song, and Yoon Do Hyun's ad libs near the end are good.

겸손은 힘들어: This is a remake of a song, but I don't remember who sang the original song. For a title track, it's a break from the usual title song Leessang has had in the past few albums. It's a track that has a lot energy as opposed to track that focuses on the melody. Gary's second verse is the highlight of the song for me. I love the lyrics to the song. It's a boastful song, but they don't come off as assholes. Another great track.

HOLA (피쳐링. 정인): Another Leessang song featuring Jung In. She should just join Leessang seeing as she features on so many songs. This track has a jazzy beat that I like. Gil and Jung In mix their vocals well throughout the song, but what stands out is Gary deviating from his usual flow. It's a lot smoother, and it goes well with the beat the song has.

행복을 찾아서 (피쳐링. 조현아 Of 어반자카파): There's an intro for the song, but it's just an instrumental. A good song with a melancholy feeling and the lyrics match the melody. The song features Jo Hyunah for Urban Zakapa, but it feels like she's underused in the song.

사람들은 모두 변하나봐 (피쳐링. 정인, 쌈디 Of 슈프림팀, 바비킴 Of 부가킹즈): This song is basically a ballad consisting of Gil, Jung In, Bobby Kim from Buga Kingza, and Simon D but without all of the belting. The beat is mellow. It's a good song, and the rap verse from Gary adds some good variety to the song. It's nice hearing Simon D singing, but I prefer his rapping.

별을 따라… (목소리: 쥬비): Just an interlude featuring the voice of Juvie of Buga Kingz, leading up to the following track which features him.

Casanova (피쳐링. 쥬비 Of 부가킹즈): This is one of the songs Leessang really accomplishes out what they set to do with the album. I love the instrumental of this song. It reminds me of classic rock. Gary and Gil are good, but Juvie's verses are underwhelming.

개리와 기리… 세번째 이야기: Another solid track on the album. It's another mellow song. The highlight for me was the chorus. Gary's rapping was solid, but he did better in most of the other songs in the album.

울고 싶어라: This sounds similar to older Leessang songs. Like the past few songs, it's a slower song. The drums tend to drown out the other instruments in the song. Gil sings a lot more in this song, so for those of you who like Gil, this is a song for you.

Bururi (피쳐링. 정인): A great way to finish an album. The instrumental gives off more energy. Too many Korean albums end as if they're finishing a marathon limping by having several slow songs play to end an album, so it's a nice change of pace. Once again, Leessang features their unofficial third member Jung In. This song is just a great example of why Leessang and Jung In make a great combination.

When I first heard that Leessang was releasing a new album, I was excited, but also worried that they had rushed it. Reading that they had worked on this album for three years relieved my fears. In an era where most groups are increasingly going digital, Leessang basically gives a middle finger to music's current trend and has an album full of live instruments, showing us what real instruments can do but computers can't do. I still play this album quite a bit despite coming out months ago, so it is easy to listen to several times. While I didn't like it as much as Asura Balbalta, that's not saying Unplugged is a bad album. Unplugged showed us how live instruments trump computers, something that Asura Balbalta cannot do.