Parannoul - After the Magic Review

The anonymous South Korean shoegaze artist returns with his third studio album! Released 1/28/23, "After the Magic" quickly became a success around the world! Here are my thoughts on each song!

Polaris - The first song on the album is arguably the best! "Polaris" starts out relatively calm but quickly builds up into an explosive track that really gets your attention! Overall, this is a great song that shows you how talented Parannoul truly is!

Insomnia - Released as the first single for the album, "Insomnia" is another track that starts out calm but gradually builds up. Personally, I think this is another fantastic song. Because of how increasingly dramatic the song gets; it keeps you interested at all times!

Arrival - As the longest song on the album, "Arrival" is a fine example of what Parannoul can do almost entirely by himself. Aside from a few collaborations on the album, most of the tracks are performed by Parannoul and his multi-instrumentalist skills! Overall, this is yet another great song with proof of Parannoul's talent!

We Shine at Night - Released as the second and last single for the album, "We Shine at Night" is a perfect example of what shoegaze should sound like! "We Shine at Night" combines 90s rock with some more modern elements, and overall, I think it works great!

Parade - "Parade" is almost like a combination of Dave Matthews Band and Sigur Ros but sung in Korean. It has elements of post-rock in it while still being a shoegaze song! It's honestly a great track!

Sketchbook - "Sketchbook" is one of the more unique and modern songs on the album. It starts out with Parannoul using vocal effects than begins playing a sound that is almost modern pop! An increased number of keyboards and drum machines are used on this song, which adds to the uniqueness of the album!

Imagination - "Imagination" is another track with a sound similar to that of the 90s rock scene in America, but it almost has somewhat of a country sound at the beginning! Don't let that fool you though, it quickly returns to a modern shoegaze song!

Sound Inside Me, Waves Inside You - Just like "Polaris", this song starts out with a sort of acoustic sound, but "Sound Inside Me, Waves Inside You" seems to be slightly calmer than the first track. There are definitely still parts of this song that are loud, however.

Blossom - "Blossom" is a very similar song to "Sketchbook" when it comes to instruments used, and overall sounds. "Blossom" once again gives a certain amount of modern pop vibes.

After the Magic - The title track for Parannoul's third album is also the last song on it! "After the Magic" perfectly closes out the album with calming vocals and keyboards! I personally think it summarizes the sound of the entire album very well! Overall, this is just one of the 10 great tracks on this album!

Overall, this is a fantastic and very unique record that could be considered the best of January, or even the year! I give this album a rating of 4.3/5 stars! - Elliott Dudoit