The problem is, Palette never picks itself up again while acoustic ‘Through the Night’ is a gorgeous bittersweet piece, and ‘Love Alone’ is practically auditory gossamer, the modern energy of its first half feels decidedly absent, as though asphyxiated. Piano-led ‘Full Stop’ actually comes as a welcome change of pace, her jazzy lilt complementing its movie-credits juxtaposition of peace and grandeur particularly well. It should never have been the case, but its ballad-loaded rear means it really works better when listening on shuffle.
It’s unfortunate that Palette’s greatest weakness should be something as simple as its structure, especially considering the ‘offending tracks’ are all beautifully executed when individually assessed. ‘Jam Jam’ is subject to some irritating vocals, but its house-y synth section bounces along with such conviction that, ultimately, one still finds themselves dancing away by its conclusion. The cool downtempo of the title track is irresistibly catchy, while imbued with an urbaneness unthinkable from her earlier works downtempo is replaced for smoother jazz notes in ‘Can’t Love You Anymore’ (benefitting further from OHHYUK’s soulful contribution), yet its effect is largely the same. From here though, certainly until ‘Full Stop,’ IU embraces her new R&B focus wholeheartedly. Opener ‘dlwlrma’ suffices as a bridging point between Modern Times and Palette wonderfully, the former's swing influences proving to be the dominating characteristic.
Frustratingly, it doesn’t feel wholly natural yet. 2013’s Modern Times and now Palette are hardly departures from innocence in the same way as a certain Miss Cyrus (other tearaways are also available) still, they follow a trend towards maturity distanced from cutesy teeny pop, through Modern Times’ swing and bossa-nova to her newest, an exploration of contemporary R&B and delicate ballads.
Korean starlet IU has rapidly come a long way from being South Korea’s Little Sister (an informality bestowed upon those in the country that are well-known, and generally sweet and lovely). Review Summary: The auditory equivalent of dressing in your finest clothes, only to forget to iron and polish them.
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