eeliyod isn’t an album you’d expect from South Korea right now. With the mainstream focus on mix-pop and R&B following some similar trends, Doyi Lee brings back familiar sounds with a unique polish and impresses a lot on this lengthy release.
Just listen to the opener, “WE OK.” It’s difficult not to be impressed. It has that sultry and warm vocal line throughout the entire song paired with a deep groove and attached instrumentation. As the start, it gets your attention. A good majority of eeliyod is in English, giving the album a step toward more widespread attention.
One small annoyance to me is how autotune is used. It’s less of an accent on some verses and becomes a distraction. Doyi also has collaborations with Miso. SAMUI. JINBO, TRADE L, and Choi Seong. These songs contain features that come across natural and don’t appear and disappear.
And while Doyi Lee’s foundation is in R&B and soul, she does venture outside. “go back” is a darker rock track with pop and ballad vocals. Most songs circle these genres. The one song that I can’t get into is “jobu.” It’s a hard turn towards rap. I can hear the hooks and appreciate the song’s construction but the song is irritating compared to the songs before it.
I don’t think Doyi Lee needs to stay within the R&B and soul genre, her vocals are versatile. But if this is her choice genre, I think she can expand outside of some of the standard conventions. “Someday” sounds like an off-the-shelf R&B pop song. It’s composed and arranged fine but it’s not a track you haven’t heard before.
Surprisingly I find the simpler tracks more interesting. “am i the only one” is more indie rock than R&B but there’s less strain in Doyi’s vocals and it rolls through each verse without much effort. It works as a single and also could be an interesting OST song.
eeliyod might be an album to showcase her versatility. Going from a 2020 single to a 2024 full length is great progress. But I think the decision to make is – is it safer to follow the standards or build a more distinct sound?
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Written by Chris P for Korean Indie.
