Amortage: a portmanteau of amor and montage. Snippets of a love story. And the wild, tremor-inducing tales that come along with it.
Truth be told? It was a cloudy enigma of its own. When Jisoo first dropped the title of her then-upcoming EP, Amortage, many wondered about the direction it might take. But the date was set. 14 February, better known as Valentine’s Day.
A love anthem then? Not quite, but it’s one we’ve certainly had the pleasure of figuring out. Amid this new solo era for the Blackpink member, Amortage is a refreshing reprise. Between the release of the zany zombie flick Newtopia and that star-studded film adaptation of Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint later this year, it’s accomplishment enough that she’s able to promote new music too, but we’re not complaining.
So we’re hitting the ground running. Or well, speeding right into her debut mini album. Coming two years after the viral, breathy flame that was ‘Flower’, the South Korean sweetheart is officially swerving into a different lane, exploring a different sound for herself and having some fun with it. The result is concisely summed in four tracks, all of which fall into some type of love song territory, be it the melodic, sincere track that is ‘Your Love’ or heartbreak anthem ‘Tears’. Yet the mini album is not all there is to enjoy this Valentine’s Day, as she takes us on a ride with her title track, ‘Earthquake’.
An exhilarating jolt of electricity all on its own, it notably comes riding in on the back of an equally swanky music video that’s been sweeping through all our social media feeds. Post-watch, here are all the thoughts I had whilst watching the ‘Earthquake’ MV.
- The metaphor is nothing new, but it’s visualised so well, it’s an absolute killer. Love consumes you. It’s passionate and it’s wild, but it’s the sort of feeling that you don’t want to let go of once you’re in the throes of it. I’m amused that Jisoo’s choosing to pull out this darker tune on 14 February, but we’ll take it.
- Some notes for the cinematics of it all; you know the tunnel vision one gets when you’re so enraptured in love that you can’t see anything else? Props to whoever (we’re looking at you, director Christian Breslauer) came up with the idea to have Jisoo zooming through a literal tunnel—in a Mercedes, no less—as she crashes through all the red, warning lights.
- Jisoo’s clearly leaning into her acting era. Beyond the office-lady-in-love plus a side of kidnapping plot, we love the fact that she knows the power of a good cameo. Even if it’s her short-lived kidnapper, played by veteran actor Cha Seung-won.
- One look and we knew it. Her interrogation outfit is an immediate cop—from that cropped tailored blazer to the Vivienne Westwood pearl necklace accenting her tie.
- Back to the actual plot: is Jisoo actually the one that’s doing all the enrapturing? First, there’s that mood switch when the interrogation officer asks her “What are your true feelings for him?”, but when coupled with that silver clock heart she’s stowed away as evidence? Something’s in the air, and it isn’t just love.
- Big superstar energy coming through, with the performances. Specifically the one on the mobile text pad, with the big moves and the big hair.
- Guess Jisoo’s doing this romance thing on hard mode. But whatever it is, she’s switching into the fast lane with a swerve into dance club beats—much unlike what we’d have expected the Blackpink vocalist to do. Refreshing, that’s for sure.
Listen to the full Amortage EP here.
