Kangnam
“Chocolate”
CJ E&M

On the first two tracks of “Chocolate,” hip-hop vocal Kangnam of M.I.B. teams up well with heavyweight rappers Microdot (on “Tell Me What”) and San E (on lead track “Chocolate”). The lead track is lighthearted and flirty, with a piano theme and San E’s naughty lyrics putting a mischievous turn on Kangnam’s seemingly innocent song.

The album suddenly goes pop rock with “Stay,” where listeners can see what Kangnam is like as a standalone vocal, without his fellow M.I.B members. The song moves along conventional lines, but Kangnam’s voice has trouble keeping up with the high notes that would have made the song much better if executed well. He comes back into a comfortable range for the motivational rock track “What Is It You Really Want” and has fun with the jump-around-and-dance rock track “Punk” about living it up and enjoying youth.

The drums get pulled out and are replaced by strings for the last track, “What Do I Do,” a ballad longing for a past love. Here, he shows that he can be emotionally persuasive, as long as he is within his vocal range.

Kangnam has been in high demand on entertainment and variety programs of late, but the fact that he took time out to prepare this solo album shows that his heart’s in music -- and that he has cards other than hip-hop.

By Won Ho-jung (hjwon@heraldcorp.com)