Beat Win came back last year with the underrated Stalker, but they’re the kind of group that never creates much buzz around their releases. Because of this, I came to their new single, Your Girl (니 여자친구), without expectations of any kind. This was probably a positive approach, as the song instantly resonated with me much more than I would have thought.

Without a lengthy preview to go on, I wasn’t even sure what sound the group would be attempting this time around. It turns out that Your Girl is a smooth, 80’s-tinged dance track with some gorgeous vocal arrangement. From the way the group’s voices are layered, I almost thought that this was a Sweetune production. In addition to the core melody, we’ve got a constant refrain of falsetto ad-libs, which eventually coalesce into the song’s central refrain. It’s a new sound for the group, and one that they pull off surprisingly well. The slinky siren of icy synths help immensely, providing an effective echo to the chorus. It feels mature but exciting — fresh but refined.

In a lot of ways, Your Girl also feels like the song that Teen Top thought they were releasing in January’s Warning Sign, as well as the track that last week’s VROMANCE should have debuted with. Instead, it went to Beat Win, and I hope it gives them some spotlight as a talented vocal group. Though it can get a bit repetitive by the end, Your Girl works much better for them than I ever would have thought. It’s taken these guys awhile to find their groove, but building on the sound of Your Girl would be highly recommended from this point on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOsKzu2dgTk