Asian Junkie Asian pop. Without discretion.
“BONVOYAGE” is an appropriate title track for the album that concludes the Apocalypse album trilogy, one that has seen Dreamcatcher achieve some of their greatest successes to date. Surprisingly, the release also breaks mostly new ground for the group by switching things up with a more progressive rock sound that’s different from what we’re used to hearing, and it ends up being appropriate for the concept.
Like a lot of the group’s best work, “BONVOYAGE” plays with tempo well and contrasts softer moments with surges of hard rock. It’s given a setup of an emotional ballad much like “Deja Vu”, though instead of being somber or foreboding, it’s more sentimental or pensive. That’s contrasted by the harder edge that’s given a foundation by the aggressive lead guitars, funky bass guitar, and an active drum kit that combines for the song’s explosive moments that have the exuberance of “Fly High“.
The pre-chorus incorporates acoustic guitars and delivers a pure and bright energy, which then segues smoothly into the chorus. Speaking of, it’s probably not the best idea for a pop group to eschew hook-y moments like “BONVOYAGE” does, as there’s not a refrain here that’s gonna work on TikTok or anything. Instead it operates as a fleshed-out whole, and relies on a couple “bon voyage” repetitions to leave an impression. So far I’ve found this comprehensive approach to pay off on repeat listens even if it doesn’t initially, much like that strategy has on their best choruses from the past, and especially so for the closing chorus because it really caps off the sense of build and momentum that was bubbling throughout that gets finally released in a wave of energy.
One can almost imagine the song set to an anime opening where the character portraits are contrasted with action sequences, but despite the cutting between the two modes, it blends together well instead of feeling completely disjointed. Helping that is one of Dreamcatcher’s more vocally involved efforts at both ends of the spectrum, and utilizing Dami with a quasi-rap meant she was incorporated as seamlessly as ever.
Combining with the “BONVOYAGE” song is one of their better music videos, which no longer has CGI that looks like some kind of college film project, so it all comes together nicely to end their latest trilogy on a high note. How high that ends up being in comparison with the rest of their discography is yet to be seen, but much like Dreamcatcher in “BONVOYAGE”, I’m feeling hopeful.
