UP10TION’s Wooseok Invites Us To Watch The Dawn

UP10TION’s Wooseok returns with his fourth mini album Blank Page and title song Dawn.

I was so excited for this comeback not only because Wooseok’s songs have found their way into my heart even when I wasn’t sure on the first listen, but also because it seemed like he would go back to the Red Moon kind of sound and style and that still remains my favourite title of his. His last year’s Switch ended up being one my 2022 favourites and grew so much on me that it’s definitely my second favourite title of Wooseok’s. I was really looking forward to see what this new album would bring and what kind of concept would he lean more into – the seductive, alluring one or the sweet, candy-pop one? Seems like the former won this time around so let’s dive right in and review.

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First things first, the music video for Dawn is so beautiful. I love this golden light type of videos and this royal, mesmerizing style really suits Wooseok and his mysterious aura. Dawn definitely seems like a continuation of Red Moon‘s melodic direction and Wooseok knows just how to deliver this kind of sound well. I think it suits him well both musically and conceptually. The verses are rather laid-back but in that smooth r&b type of way which paves a nice way for the slightly melodically dramatic chorus to kick in. I think that Wooseok works best when he is presented with this kind of combination of r&b and pop because he knows how to deliver both the fun and the alluring parts of the song. While Dawn falls short in comparison to his Red Moon in terms of structure and melody, it still has that replay factor for me right now as the breaking dawn line is very catchy. Paired with the stunning visuals all around, Dawn is a very solid release by Wooseok.

The album offers some more r&b like tracks as well as some more emotional songs to be explored. Conceptually speaking, the b-side Slip fits the title track best and seems like a nice continuation of it. It’s also the b-side I enjoyed the most from the album as it has such a pleasant, rather catchy chorus that I definitely want to listen to again. Heaven, Are you there, despite it’s seemingly ballad-y title, is the most upbeat track on the album and an enjoyable one as well. From the more slower tracks I definitely like Love and Hate the most because he sounds really, really good in it and it has this wistful emotion I like.

All in all, a solid comeback by Wooseok and I’m sure that this one will also have a massive potential to grow on me even more, just like his previous ones. Now onto a very important question – does he have any acting plans this year? Because after watching Bulgasal I need him to act more as he’s very talented.

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