Take a look at H.O.T.'s plain album cover and you will probably turn away at first glance. However, touch the Braille alphabets on the cover and you may be pleasantly surprised. Korean pop group H.O.T. has stepped out with this album to steer away from the stereotype that it is merely a commercial group of pretty boys with limited talents. With title track “Outside Castle”, producer Moon Hee Jun aims to make a statement for the less fortunate citizens of society. “They are not different from us,” the pop group proclaims in the song. Indeed; the boys of yesteryear have become the spokespeople of a new generation.
Clearly, H.O.T. has bigger plans than to be restricted within the “pop idol” category. This new effort sees the diversification of each member's talents. H.O.T., whose members include Hee Jun, Tony An, Lee Jae Wan, Chang Woo Hyuk and Kang Ta An, has consistently proven that their potential lies beyond just singing and performing. The five have contributed to this album, not only their composing abilities but have also taken on the challenge of production and music arrangement. More importantly, their songs often reflect persisting social issues and thus earning much accolade for such consciouness as caring public figures.
“Outside Castle”'s basic style moves towards a trend of light-hearted, fast-beat love songs. Yet, with a touch of easy-listening rap in almost every song, this album certainly makes for good accompaniment whether you are in the office or resting at home. Especially soothing and heartwarming is “Wish of a Blue Bird”. In addition to H.O.T.'s mainstream approach, what is considered a consistent breakthrough is the fact that there is always a touch of music experimentation. If you are sharp enough, trails of derivative drum&bass, funk, trance and hip hop can be found. More prominently perhaps in “Natural Born Killer” which has a pleasing trancey feel in the beginning; but the killer is probably the huge chunk of rap inserted awkwardly halfway through the song.
This album is a special tie-in with popular Korean soap opera “An Undying Passion.” The beautiful tunes of H.O.T's “A Song For A Lady” grace the screens as the theme song of the series. It makes for sufficient reason for fans of the soap to get the album. Nonetheless, even if you are not a fan of the series, “Outside Castle” is still a worthwhile purchase because of a commendable cause.
