S.E.S. – S.E.S. 3 – LOVE (a J!-ENT World Groove Classic Album Review)

December 7, 2008 by J!-ENT 

“Featuring the female trio that dominated Korea in the late 90′s, this classic S.E.S. album featured hits such as ‘LOVE’, ‘I’ve Been Waiting For You’, ‘Tell Me’ and ‘Twilight Zone’ but also a good number of short dialogue tracks.  Overall, ‘LOVE’ was a fun, upbeat pop album.”

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ARTIST: S.E.S.

ALBUM: S.E.S. 3 – LOVE

LABEL: SM Entertainment

DURATION: 1:17:58

RELEASE DATE: 1999

1. Opening (Talk)
2. Twilight Zone
3. 첫사랑 (Talk)
4. Love
5. 차라리 당신을 잊고자 할 때 (Talk)
6. I’ve Been Waiting For You
7. 얼 (Talk)
8. Blue Sky
9. 그는 없다 (Talk)
10. Tell Me
11. 스크램블 (Talk)
12. 바람둥이 기들이기
13. 웃음 1 (Talk)
14. 샤랄라
15. 아름다은 기억 (Talk)
16. Promise
17. 첫느 (Talk)
18. Sugar Baby
19. 웃음 2 (Talk)
20. Silver
21. 결혼식 (Talk)
22. Show Me Love
23. 또 다른 나 (Talk)
24. Wait
25. 그를 만났습니다 (Talk)
26. 사랑할때 너무나 사랑할 때 (Talk)
27. Ending (Talk)

The pop trio S.E.S. (which are the first initials of the three members Sea, Eugene and Shoo) is a group that helped introduce me to Korean pop music.  I was literally in love with this group and would visit Korean music shops for the latest releases and purchasing magazines that featured any photos of the three women.

I have to admit that the music video of “LOVE” was one of the primary reasons for me buying this album.  Loved the music video and loved the song and eventually it was a must-purchase.

The third album for S.E.S. is different compared to the previous two that it features a talking track before and after each song.  So, with 27 tracks on this album, there are 12 music tracks.

The talking tracks is quite calming as it features the women talking with piano piece with sound effects of birds chirping, giving a sense of an outdoor type of feel.  The talking tracks last anywhere between a minute to 3 minutes long.

Some of the talking tracks feature the trio talking with each other and sometimes it plays out like a narration from a drama series.  So, in a way, it was definitely a nice touch and addition to the overall album.

But of course it’s the music on this album that makes “S.E.S. 3 – LOVE” truly shine.  The first music track “Twilight Zone” is just an awesome dance track that experiments with a vocalizer on some of the vocals but the song features an awesome groove, S.E.S. pop vocals combined with rap and a performance by B. Rock.

The next track features “LOVE”.  What a wonderful track with a cool melody and overall cool arrangement by Yoo Young Jin who provides the synth and chorus as well as rap along with Mr. KAT.

The other track that caught my attention and definitely had many rotations on my CD player was “Tell Me” which is an elegant slow jam.  A beautiful track!

The other tracks on the album feature upbeat pop tracks and for those familiar with S.E.S. previous works will probably enjoy it.  The other songs are not as powerful and attractive as “Twilight Zone” and “Love” but they are fun, enjoyable pop tracks.

You get a good balance of upbeat tracks such as “Taming a Playboy” features the three rapping and songs like “Sugar Baby” and “Show Me Love” which are reminiscent to songs on their first two albums.  And then you find some surprises as the mellow but yet catchy track “Wait” and “샤랄라” which are cool tracks.  Overall, a good balance of upbeat tracks and a few mellow songs and an elegant ballad featured on “LOVE”.

The CD insert booklet features lyrics of the songs on the album and also pictures of Sea, Eugene and Shoo.

As an S.E.S. fan, with songs such as “Twilight Zone”, “Love”, “Tell Me”, this album was simply a must buy.   Although, I listened to mostly the songs they promoted on Korean music shows and had a promotional video for, the album’s addition of these talk tracks enhanced the album’s enjoyablity.  Especially knowing that SM Entertainment nearly filled up the whole CD’s capacity which was pretty cool.

Overall, this is a classic S.E.S. release featuring a good balance of Korean pop music and talk segments.  Unfortunately, S.E.S. is no more and the women moved on to their own personal careers, may it be in singing or acting.  But I hope that they reunite for another album someday.

Overall, “S.E.S. 3 – LOVE” is a fun album with tracks that I simply enjoyed.  Check it out!

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