Release Date: April 3, 2024
Track Listing
- Midas Touch
- Nothing
Review
After the success of their two mini-albums (KISS OF LIFE and Born to be XX) in 2023, KISS OF LIFE is back with their first release of 2024, Midas Touch.
People of a particular vintage (meaning you older people that the youth on social media complain about seeing at K-pop events) may hear this song and wonder why it sounds so familiar. Well, a powerful influence from the 90s to early 2000s Western pop music is present here.
So, if you were a child or teenager in those years when all the pop tarts of any kind dominated the charts and airwaves, then Midas Touch will play off your nostalgia for the days gone by. If you did not yet exist when this music was cool the first time, the title track is the type of pop music your parents, aunties and uncles listened to when they were your age.
Throwback trip aside, the title track has a groove that allows members to add flavour to the song. So, while the instrumental has that retro thing going on, the members’ vocal performances add a modern flair.
One of the major complaints I have heard about Midas Touch is that it isn’t as hook-heavy as other modern K-pop songs. While it’s nice to have something to sing along to, this song style would not fit with having that kind of thing in the chorus in my opinion.
The b-side on Midas Touch is another retro-sounding track called Nothing. It leans more toward 2000s R&B, and if you like mid-tempo jams where the vocalists can chew up the track with endless runs, this song will be for you. I prefer this song over the title track, but I also have a strong bias toward R&B music, which sways my opinion drastically.
Overall, the material on Midas Touch seems closer to the type of music from KISS OF LIFE’s self-titled debut EP. If you preferred that album over their second EP, then what is on this single will be more to your liking.
