[Review] Rocket Punch make their mark with a catchy, retro surprise in “Ring Ring”

It feels like I’ve been saying this about a lot of fourth generation groups recently, but Rocket Punch had yet to make themselves relevant to me with their musical efforts. Nothing terrible, just a lot of forgettable stuff that wasn’t all that notable.

Thus, there wasn’t much expectation heading into “Ring Ring“, but they ended up delivering a pleasant, retro surprise.

At its core “Ring Ring” reminded me a lot of Snuper‘s outstanding “Platonic Love“ mashed up with A Ha classic “Take On Me“, though it deviates from being just a retro effort in the attempts to modernize it by dropping the heavy bass synths and including a rap break. Usually that’s not a good thing as it’s what tends to make the song appealing and less like a generic release, but amazingly neither is a deal breaker for the appeal of “Ring Ring”.

While the inevitable rap breaks are awkward usually because they feel shoehorned in and muddy the flow of the song, they were actually pleasantly brisk in pace here, with some bounce to the delivery and things were kept moving along nicely through smooth transitions. The song also definitely trades a propulsive, nostalgic rush for something with more tension and build, but it’s justified with the explosion of the chorus that brings back the heavier synths and pairs it with a fleshed-out melody that has an effective hook in “ring ring the alarm“.

Honestly, “Ring Ring” sounds like a song that TWICE might’ve released following the transitioning of their concept and music, and thus this has similar long-lasting appeal. It’s a shame that Rocket Punch don’t have that same brand to get recognition for this musical effort, but it certainly deserves those kind of plaudits.