Stray Kids are giving Shia Labeouf a run for his money with their freshest title, DO IT. The promoted song of the same name is a simple little tune, less loud than Stray Kids’ previous ones, and naturally, possesses a repeated motivational mantra to ‘Just do it, do it, do it, do it.’ Its catchy bassline gets a fabulous amp-up with electronica in the post-choruses, hypnotising brains into keeping the song on repeat. The boys’ message is simple: ‘Just do whatever you wanna do / I guarantee that it’s the best for you.’ Rapper Felix also somehow makes a near-monotone verse on the track sound like a technical achievement. 

The song’s music video is a high-production display of choreography backed with white-clad faceless dancers and signature Stray Kids camerawork. HAN looks great in a cowboy hat, while the rest are switching up high-end couture every two seconds. 

“DIVINE” starts out unassuming sonically. The simple hip-hop formula gives the stage to Seungmin for his opening lines, sung no less wonderfully than we’re all used to Stray Kids’ best vocalist doing so: ‘Ascending, I take off, touch the sun / Cleansing the world, but I ain’t done / This is the way I have my fun.’ Felix and Changbin dive in with the juxtaposition: their well-sharpened, gritty tones sit on the track seamlessly. 

What sounds like a pitched-up taepyeongso (Korean folk trumpet) adds an interesting flavour to the chorus as they sing the onomatopoeic phrase ‘Deonggideok kungdeoreoreo’, which also comes from traditional Korean music. It meshes well with the obviously Western hip-hop elements: heights of cultural collaboration in music that only K-pop attempts so bravely. 

We can likely all resonate with the message of “Holiday”. All of the lyrics are respite-seeking pleas from busy life, and Lee Know’s bridge is one of many that could be uttered by all of us hard-workers: ‘When I’m gone, don’t even try to find me / Let me be, ’cause I’ve been at it for so long.’ The chimes that follow along with the singers’ melodies in the chorus, as well as the reverby marimba sound in the verses, give the uptempo song a childlike softness. It’s like a yearning to have that freedom of responsibility and innocence back, before any of us knew what tax returns were. 

“Photobook” is the sleepiest track on the record and has no flaws for what it is. It’s one of those K-pop songs that’s vague enough in its sentimental lyrics that fans can adopt it toward themselves as another fan-dedicated song. Make no mistake: that’s by design. Stray Kids have quite the library of misty-eyed tunes that are guaranteed to get the lightsticks swaying in concert.

Closing the EP is an unstrategically placed “Festival Version” of “Do It”: one that ramps up the tempo, the volume, and the chaos. It’s there in case you really, really needed the extra motivation. What’s that, you say? You want more chaos? More tempo? Blaring sirens? Stray Kids have got you. Just be cautious listening to those last 30 seconds if you have heart problems.

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Written by Maddie Armstrong

_{View of the Arts is an online publication dedicated to films, music, and the arts, with a strong focus on the Asian entertainment industry. With rich content already available to our readers, we aim to expand our reach and grow alongside our audience by delving deeper into emerging platforms such as K-pop and Asian music more broadly. At the same time, we remain committed to exploring the vibrant and ever-evolving global landscape of film, music, and the arts, celebrating the immense talent and creativity that define these industries worldwide.}