2019 is still young, but it’s already given us an Eung Eung, a Ya and now an U Um U Um (으음으음). Is this the year of nonsense filler word titles? Probably not, but it’s an interesting pattern. Hyomin’s U Um U Um (that’s a lot of U’s!) follows last year’s Mango, which didn’t sit well with me at all. But even though the song follows a similarly repetitive structure, it’s more effective and much catchier.

We’re back to tropical territory here, which is kind of a surprise given that it’s the middle of January. U Um U Um has summer written all over it, wafting in on its breezy hook and chilled out beat. Honestly, there’s not much to the track besides that. It’s unambitious to a fault, and this hinders its overall effect. However, if Hyomin set out to craft a solid, inoffensive tropical dance track, she accomplished her goal.

Similar to Apink’s %%, U Um’s titular hook is given a heavy filter that makes it more of an instrumental feature than a vocal flourish. I actually don’t mind the sound, as it lends the track needed texture. I just wish U Um felt as if it was building towards something. It’s practically a flat line all the way through. We get a hint of guitar in the second verse, and it would have been awesome to hear this take a more prominent role in establishing some sort of climax for the song. As it stands, U Um provides an innocuous (even satisfying) three minutes, but is quickly forgotten thereafter.

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