i feel like this one may not be my personal taste. it has interesting elements, and i enjoy that it has a cohesive soundscape, yet still has variation in its production elements. there are certain elements that don't work for me, but it's an overall pretty good project! i feel like these songs would feel better when performed than as standing on their own as songs. it comes with the artform.

fave tracks: water, dangerous.

i appreciate this album a lot. i like how the songs actually feel cohesive to one another, and i do like how some of the songs play around with certain elements. everyone sounds great all throughout, and there were lovely harmonies from the vocal unit. i also liked the rap unit song! some songs were just alright, but that's to be expected from a pop record. a very solid release, and my favourite nct release of the year.

highlights: poppin' love, no one but you

pretty inconsistent, in my opinion. there were no strong tracks, but i enjoyed some of them. there were ideas i enjoyed, like on growing pain and on skipping stones, but even then i am not drawn to them that much.

honestly, this project is pretty average. i generally enjoyed it, but there isn't really anything that pulls me to it. i did quite like the songs "Either Way", "Holy Moly", "OTT" and "Payback", which yes, is over half the tracklist, but even then, no standouts. they aren't tracks i feel like i'd go back to.

a pleasant project that i did quite enjoy. there's a consistency in the theme of the tracks, which makes it feel like a streamlined album. however it felt a little bit safe. solid project.

highlights: space, love is a beauty, misty.

ascended to thisss i think its conciseness is perfect for its themes. she's truly an artist. it's a simple and good, complete sounding project.

they always feel like a too consistent group to me, a lot of their stuff is just fine. they have their own sound and style, which is good, but it never really feels like they do anything with it so it just ends up being run of the mill again. i also felt this way with their last project.

i really liked smiley though, it's just a fun pop song.

i like this album. however, despite the album sounding very big in its presentation, it ultimately presents no stakes in result of it. it's pretty big, yet empty, with gaps in its fruition that could be filled with something more interesting. i do think this is an interesting project and i do like it quite a lot. however, from an overall music standpoint, it does not bring much to the table.

fav track: heaven's cloud

i remember not being excited when this was announced, but feeling blown away when the title was released. it has a pretty cohesive and solid sound throughout, with harmony between the three vocalists. it stands out in the sea of recent kpop releases, but ultimately it does feel like a debut project finding it footing in the right direction. excited to hear more from this unit.

a collection of fairly constructed songs, but no actual stand-outs apart from the really good title track.

it's too much with not much substance or heart. there were some parts in production of the instrumentals that were cool, like on the bat and on baggy jeans. but the execution fell flat, esp w the ridiculous verses and ad-libs. call d, that's not fair and alley oop were the worst offenders of songs feeling empty and soulless. overall, golden age did not feel like an encapsulation of the artistry nct once held.

fav tracks: interlude, pado.

solid project, but it definitely lacks personality nor anything interesting to make me want to come back to it as a whole. her delivery feels off at times, just singing for the sake of singing, but with nothing else to back it. i got it bad is good though.