For as many LOONA releases as we’ve already gotten, few could be considered stereotypical girl group fare. The project has dabbled in a number of genres already, making LOONA’s eventual sound a bit of a mystery. But with member Choerry’s introduction through Love Cherry Motion, we veer much closer to the light bubblegum that fuels so many girl groups.

This approach has its ups and downs. There’s no disputing the simplified catchiness of Love Cherry Motion‘s chorus, but it feels like the exact opposite of adventurous. Choerry gives a solid delivery, even if she lacks the immediate charm and uniqueness of some of the other LOONA girls. But when everything about a track is operating at a very generic level, there’s just not that much to sink your teeth into.

When Love Cherry Motion does attempt to add something new, it retreats to the kind of boisterous electronic breakdowns that have upended many a song before it. As part of a different track, these gritty diversions might feel more effective. But with Motion, the breakdown sections are so at odds with the frothy, cheerful tunefulness at the song’s core that they take on an overly intrusive character. I’m certainly not against songs experimenting with arrangement and variation, but Motion needs to commit more strongly either way. We get a little bit of “this” here and a little bit of “that” there, and it’s just not enough. Thankfully, that breezy, pop-infused chorus is always waiting just around the corner.