VIVIZ - "MANIAC" MV Review (+ a short Versus review)

Viviz is a girl group from the company BPM (Big Planet Made) Entertainment that debuted on February 9, 2022 and consists of 3 members: Eunha, SinB and Umji, who are former members of the girl group GFriend that was dissolved on May 21, 2021. 

"MANIAC" is the lead single of their 4th mini album Versus.

"MANIAC" Review

When I heard "MANIAC" for the first time I didn't think much of it (maybe that day I was in a bad mood or maybe Eunha's contact lenses scared me, sorry), but today, when I accidentally listened to it again, I ended up loving it, which is why I'm writing this 1 month late. 

The song has a great beat and the bass sounds fantastic. In fact, I feel really bad for not paying much attention to this song earlier. 

This song feels like a super distant cousin to IVE's "Love Dive" which I also really like and I'm not saying that these songs are similar at all, don't get me wrong, "Love Dive" just popped into my head after listening to it and I think "MANIAC" deserves to be as popular as "Love Dive" was when it came out. 

My favorite parts of the song are Umji's part at 1:16 (It's also my favorite part of the MV) and SinB's part at 2:04.

The MV is very beautiful. I really like the side shot of Umji walking at 0:29 and the parts with hitchhiking!Viviz. The shots of the car with the flowers remind me of this Miss Dior commercial and although they are nothing alike, the parts are really beautiful and aesthetic.

Style-wise the girls look great I really like Umij's cream colored dress and Rocker!SinB looks absolutely fantastic the look reminds me of Taylor Momsen of the Pretty Reckless (and Gossip Girl). I also really like Eunha's hairstyles especially the Rocker!Eunha one and the updo at the outside shots. The only thing I disliked was (as I said earlier) the shots of Eunha's contact lenses.

This song is really great, I really liked it and I'm sorry I made a lot of comparisons to other things I like. I guess I'm just feeling nostalgic -is it because the year is ending..?-

Rating

Song – 10/10

MV – 10/10

Choreography – 10/10

Style – 9/10

Overall Rating – 10/10

Song Credits

Release Date: November 2, 2023.

Length: 3 min 15 sec.

Lyrics by: Goo Yeo Reum.

Music by: Jack Brady, Jordan Roman, Chloe Copoloff, OSTON, and TMM.

Arrangement by: The Wavys.

MV Directed by: Kim Ja-Kyoung (FLEXIBLEPICTURES).

"Untie"

Length: 3:09.

Lyrics: Ellie Suh (153/Joombas).

Music: Ryan S. Jhun, Lenno, Elsa Curran, and Kella Armitage.

Arrangement: Ryan S. Jhun and Lenno.

"Untie" feels so chic; I can imagine it used on a perfume commercial (think Lady Million or similar). The beat of this song is just supreme.

Rating – 10/10

"Overflow"

Length: 3:09.

Lyrics: C'SA and BYMORE.

Music: C'SA, Xxio (AVEC), and BYMORE.

Arrangement: Xxio (AVEC) and BYMORE.

"Overflow" is a great R&B song, and its "jazzy" vibes are immaculate; the song feels smooth. I love the instrumental, especially the bass line and the pre-chorus ﹘ which sounds fantastic.

Rating – 10/10

"Day by Day"

Length: 3:19.

Lyrics: Jeong Ha-Ri (153/Joombas) and bay (153/Joombas).

Music: Andreas Öberg, Felix Back, Ashley Alisha, and Freek Mulder.

Arrangement: Felix Back and Freek Mulder.

Although "Day by Day" is a great song, I found it to be the "dullest" one on Versus. Still, the voices of the Viviz's members truly shine in this song; they sound fantastic.

Rating – 9/10

"Up 2 Me"

Length: 3:00.

Lyrics: danke (Lalala Studio).

Music: Amanda Thomsen, Andreas Ringblom, Dr. Ahn, and YOUNGWOO.

Arrangement: Dr. Ahn and YOUNGWOO.

I found "Up 2 Me" really cute; I enjoyed it a lot, but sadly, not as much as the previous songs. It's great, tho!

Rating – 9/10

Final Thoughts

Versus is a fantastic mini album; the first three songs are total bangers, and I even loved the songs I enjoyed the least.

As a slightly off-topic comment, although I'm sad about the end of GFriend and how it ended, I'm glad that Eunha, SinB, and Umji decided to continue their careers together ﹘ their voices really complement each other. I'm also glad that Umji is getting her moment to shine, because when she was in GFriend, she got so few lines (at least in the songs I heard) that I used to think that she was a bad singer, but thanks to Viviz, I have been demonstrated of the contrary. Sorry for yapping 😅

Overall Versus Rating – 9.5/10

Photo source: Big Planet Made Ent.

*The song credits are taken from Kpop Fandom Wiki*