From season five of K-Pop Star, Jung Jin Woo was the clear favorite from the moment he opened his mouth, so we were really eager for him to release something…anything…original.  It seems we got our wish.

Comprised of songs that were written by the singer himself, In My Room is an almost perfect appetizer for what (we hope) is a long career.  The singer manages to show of his pipes in a way that is grounded his preferred R&B style but shows that he may be able to deliver more if given the chance.  There are no bangers in this set, as he seems to be going for heartfelt and a little bit of a show-out, but every song is engaging nonetheless.

The vocals are the star of this show but, just like with ELO’s 8 Femmes, you will not be disappointed with the production choices.  There is a laidback groove element to this EP, which works for the start of the fall season, and Jung’s smooth tenor rides the line of have just enough bass to be sexy but not so much he sounds gruff or disinterested (a possibility with the way that he sings).  The production for most of the tracks rides along with the singer and allows him to really show what he has to offer.  A couple of the songs have a more generic feel thanks to the beatwork not really trying to be assertive in its own right, but it never descends into the arena of elevator music ignorable.  The lyrics are pretty well crafted, though, based on our limited understanding, they might be a little heavy on the platitudes.

Our favorite songs are 집에 있을게 and Leftover with B Side U coming in as an honorable mention.  The most skippable track is 광신도 because it lands with a bit of a thud amid the better produced and more vocally dynamic tracks.

We’ll update the player with a buy link when it becomes available.