ENHYPEN’s ‘THE SIN : VANISH’: Every Song Ranked

As a tightly staged concept album, THE SIN : VANISH turns ENHYPEN ‘s long-running vampire mythos into a serialized listening experience akin to a podcast or audiobook - the kind you can’t turn off. Officially described as a “mystery-show” style album, the boy band’s latest interweaves four narrated chapters (delivered in Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese via the EP’s four different language versions), a skit (also delivered in each version’s native tongue), and six fresh K-pop songs that all act as connective pieces to one larger, immersive narrative - a major break from the typical collection of potential hit singles released for most mini albums. The record is crafted to be consumed from start to finish, with the narrations advancing the plot and the songs bringing a range of emotional highs and lows. Still, for the purpose of this review, we’ll stick to reviewing each track from the English version of the album on its own individual merit. While ENHYPEN utilized albums to share their larger artistic universe since BORDER : DAY ONE in 2020, the experimental elements of this project expand their commitment to storytelling. ENHYPEN’s longtime main producer ARMADILLO has his hand in nearly every track and keeps the group’s core ethos intact, VANISH’s contributions from unexpected musical greats like Korean hip-hop legend GAEKO and indie-rock enchantress So!YoON! are welcome creative endeavours. Meanwhile, members like JAKE hit new artistic heights, earning producing credits on two tracks, with HEESEUNG co-writing on one of them. From new single “Knife” to tracks that dip into R&B, Latin, electronica, hip-hop, and beyond, check out Billboard ‘s examination of ENHYPEN’s THE SIN : VANISH experience with a tracks-ranked review below. “Witnesses” Produced By: CA$HCOW Written By: Kim Suji (lalala studio), HYBE The storytelling aspect is the central element of THE SIN : VANISH with several skits and interludes continuing the overarching vampire mythology that’s anchored the ENHYPEN universe since debut. “Witnesses” is the weakest of the bunch with an assortment of speakers furthering the vampire lore. A little musical production added behind the voices, as well as more gripping or visceral testimonies, all could have enhanced the section, but “Witnesses” ultimately feels awkwardly out of place (especially the English version) in such an immersive listening experience. “The Fugitives” Produced By: ARMADILLO, CA$HCOW Written By: ARMADILLO, CA$HCOW, RANGA, Kim Suji (lalalastudio), HYBE “The Fugitives” is another narration interlude, opening with 30 seconds of euphoric electro-pop-rock production that we’d love to hear as a song all its own one day. The narrator for the English version of the track seems to stumble over some words here, which is unfortunate when professional actors and singers were enlisted for the other language versions (actor Park Jeong-min narrates the album’s original Korean version, singer Lars Huang handles the Chinese version and actor Kenjiro Tsuda narrates the Japanese version) but the additional musical elements uplift it into something sonically special. “The Beginning” Produced By : ARMADILLO, JAKE (Additional Production by Rence, Lukas Costas) Written By: ARMADILLO, JAKE, Rence, Lukas...

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