Taemin’s newest album, Eternal, has finally been released!
If you read our album announcement, you will know that Taemin has been extra busy in 2024. He signed with a new label, completed a fan meeting where he announced the release of an album and world tour, and now the album is out and the world tour will start soon.
Eternal is Taemin’s fifth EP and has seven songs total. According to the credits, he was involved in writing many of them, which is impressive. This EP marks his 10-year anniversary as a solo artist as well and is the first to be released by his new label, BPM Entertainment.
The album opens with “G.O.A.T.” A catchy hip-hop track that draws the listener in. Taemin talks about exploring what’s outside of the boundaries he’s always known. He exclaims, “can’t hide myself anymore” in the third verse of the song, making it known that he’s ready to show his real self and try something new.
“Sexy In The Air” is the lead single and gives off sultry vibes. He continues the storyline of pushing boundaries, but this song is really about finding out who the real Taemin is and what he wants to show the world. The beat switches up towards the end, and it adds to the creativity of the song and rest of the production on this album.
“Horizon” awakens the audience with a quick beat and an interesting mix of instruments. The lyrics serve as a turning point for the album. In “Horizon,” Taemin shares that going around in circles doing the same thing has led to exhaustion, and he wants to experience something new. By the end of the song, he describes a light coming from a horizon he didn’t want to cross. He is at a crossroads but finally comes to the realization that no matter how this story ends, he’s not afraid to try something new.
“The Unknown Sea” is the only ballad on the album. The storyline continues from “Horizon,” and now Taemin is telling us that he is ready to go out into the unknown. The prechorus summarizes the message of the entire song: “I was instantly drawn/To a world tinged with blue/Turning my back on everything familiar/Spreading my arms wide, I decided to throw myself into it.” He is leaving what he knows behind and is now open to the new experiences that will come from it, which is a relatable experience for many.
“Crush” sounds the most similar to what Taemin is known for as well as his music with SHINee. It has a fun, funky beat and gives listeners a bit of a break from the album concept. The production mirrors the charming lyrics. It’s nice to have a less serious song to break up the album and showcase a part of Taemin’s artistry that fans already love with a twist.
“Deja Vu” immediately became one of our favorite songs off the EP the first time we listened to it. The instrumentation is dramatic, which makes sense when you look at the lyrics – “A blissful sense of dissonance reaches out to me,” really stood out. He is content with starting over, but everything is imbalanced. He now needs to put everything back together in this new place and decide which parts of his old self he wants to merge with his new one.
“Say Less” is the final song on Eternal. It is the perfect ending to this EP, even though it’s the shortest song. We have experienced an entire journey with Taemin, and through this last song, we see him confident and ready to take on life as this new iteration of himself.
In an interview with NME, Taemin says, “When I was younger, I had just been sincerely working hard at everything, and if you could say I was a little confused about which path I wanted to pursue then, now I’m a lot more certain.” This transition is spoken about throughout Eternal. He also states, “[In my early solo releases], I don’t think I had been able to pursue happiness. Whereas now I think I’m definitely pursuing happiness.” The lyrics and overall energy of “Say Less” outline this quote. You can tell that his real-life experiences were put into this album and that he is happy to be able to relay them in a way that’s meaningful to him.
I always write down my thoughts during the first listen of an album, and I can truly say that listening to this one again and reading the lyrics for each song really changed my perspective.
Listening to Eternal as a concept album rather than a collection of seven songs makes a huge difference. Even though some of the songs may vary production and genre-wise, there is a story being told with each one.
We can’t wait to see how Taemin performs these songs on his upcoming world tour, “Ephemeral Gaze.”
