The known unknowable is a drug which inspires repeat offense. The child is flabbergasted by the return of a playmate’s palm-shrouded face; some years onward, the plunge of a roller coaster; and at the final frontier of many an unadventurer is the carousel of love. Nobody is a Sisyphus; none are harried by demons to pursue the cycle. But in any case each journey carries an irreplicable ecstasy. LOONA’s “Hi High” is a testament to the high-flying-high-falling affair of love.
Through their original 12-member lineup, LOONA was no stranger to cycles. The girl group’s original concept planned to debut a new member each month in reference to the orbit of the moon. Their company, Blockberry Creative, found itself entangled in a revolving door of debt between scrounging to fund their expensive music videos and pushing even more costly promotions to recoup their losses, until the end never quite gaining the trust of skeptical fans. Once their introductory cycle finished, the k-pop community abuzz with chatter, the group was set to premiere as a united front of 12. The first title track “Hi High” heralded their collective arrival.
The intro to “Hi High” hums with anticipation, the synths sparkle and bombinate with an impression of magic somewhere between the glint of night crickets and the whir of a childhood computer starting up. As the introduction fades, the first verse hits hard. The chirpy vocals, the booming bass and drums, the building synths create a glorious oxymoron, a burst of corybantic life channeled through the sonic aesthetics of modern electronica that further double down through an expectedly amazing chorus. Once the verse-prechorus-chorus stretch runs its course, the rhythm shifts to half-time with a more wistful emotive sense for the bridge, but the listener is not fooled by these pretenses. As the climactic high note sounds rings out, the instrumental explodes one last time, leaving the listener with the impression of having survived the detonation of a bomb; a curious bomb that created life.
As predictably disheartening as love and Illinois weather can be, LOONA’s “Hi High” speaks to the joys of life which filter between the falls. Even in the aftermath of a tumultuous breakup with Blockberry, many of LOONA’s former members continue to pursue musical aspirations. The question and potential answer pose itself: if they can, why can’t the listener continue to chase those highs, to conquer fears and wishes and love “more cruel than college entrance exams” (as the lyric goes)? I give it a 10/10.
