“Time Lapse” by Taeyeon, Saturday, September 17, 2022 (Partial Repost)

Bright, happy music is what you could describe Taeyeon's 2015 debut EP, I. The label also fits for her debut studio album, 2017's My Voice. However, amid the happy, soaring melodies, there is a twinge of wistful nostalgia in the lyrics. Songs like the lead single "Fine" and the standout track "Time Lapse," give the Girls' Generation singer a mature sound. Taeyeon's solo career is more about ballads, but the occasional electro-pop song sounds more grown up than her bubblegum pop days in the once biggest K-pop girl group.

BIRTHDAYS HAVE PASSED SEVERAL TIMES. The title of Taeyeon's debut album, My Voice,  alludes to her relationship with her standout feature. In middle school, Taeyeon's principal encouraged the young singer to pursue her talents and convinced her parents to invest in their daughter's talents. This investment came to mean a Sunday drive from Jeonju to Seoul, a 2-and-a-half-hour drive each direction, for Taeyeon to study vocal lessons with famed vocal coach Jeong Soon-won, better known as The One from the late '90s boy band Space A. "Time Lapse" was composed by Nell's lead singer, Kim Jong-wan for the soprano singer, but "Time Lapse" wasn't the only collaboration between one of Korea's most famous pop stars and one of Korea's most famous pop rock groups. Taeyeon also released a cover of Nell's "Time Spent Walking Through Memories," one of the band's biggest hits, as a bonus track on the My Voice deluxe edition. The late-'90s pop-rock sound of "Time Lapse" is part of Nell's signature sound also present in Kim Sung-kyu's "Shine," which I talked about earlier this month.

TEARS WELL UP WHEN I CLOSE MY EYES. September has certainly been busy. It's back to school and starting up other projects. Coworkers have gotten sick with Covid, making us who are well pick up the slack. And I've been lazy; rather than coming home energetically ready to write my blog, I've thought about what's the easiest way I could maintain my goal of posting every day. So many of my posts this month have been reposts from last year. Last year when I was writing a new post every day, I had different goals. I get a little discouraged when I see so many reposts in my feed, but I tell myself that they have been edited, and most are not complete reposts. But there is something more to this reposting. Fall makes me nostalgic. There's something about the mostly cooler temperatures and the occasional last grasps of summer in September that make '90s-sounding songs like today's track feel right. So, I'm not going to apologize for the reposts, but shamelessly keep it up as long as it feels natural. I have plans to write new posts and even have a few drafts waiting to be published. September is a kind of mid-season break. The second half is coming soon. Until then, let's nostalgically enjoy the beginning of Fall!


 

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