After almost 2 long years, Super Junior-M has come back with their new single and album, "Break Down". To be completely honest, after my disappointment with their previous album, "Perfection", I expected nothing great from SM this time. Not that the album was completely horrendous, it just wasn't my type of music. As a fan of Super Junior-M for over 3 years, I expected a lot more and I thought it would have been an album that would top their, "Super Girl" album.

And wow, SM really surprised me this time. "Break Down" is just the album I was looking for. It's fresh, new and it has completely surpassed my expectations. It's a great way for Super Junior-M to make their comeback into the music scene after their 2 long years of absence. Now, here is my review.

1. "Break Down"

Now, I'll have to admit that when I first watched the teaser for this single, I wasn't all that hooked to the song. I didn't really expect anything, even though prior to the release of this album, Zhou Mi, a member of Super Junior-M stated that the members have spent a lot of time on this album, and many different music styles would be shown. But boy was I wrong. Not only has this album shown a completely different style to Super Junior-M, I'm positive that this song can be enjoyed by all music lovers around the world.

Wow. That is the word to describe it. This song was not what I expected at all. It's new, modern, and just fantastic. It has actual hooks, just the right amount of auto tune, dub step, and it's just put together so amazingly. Just from the variety in the melody to how the song progresses while it builds up and gets more diverse after each line, I can already tell that it's complete - dare I say, perfection. Personally, I liked how there wasn't extreme auto tune overkill in this song, like in their previous single, "Perfection". (Thank goodness!) The dub step parts were put in the right place and are probably the best out of all dub step-inspired SM songs. Everything just flows. I also liked how in this song, Henry and Zhou Mi's voice were showcased a lot more and for once were not overpowered by the other members.

2. "Go"

This is a pop song that was written by Zhou Mi, and produced by the Noize Bank. (A production team featuring Henry and a few other people) It's pretty smooth, until it hits this random dub step part. But personally, I quite enjoyed this song. The beat is easy to follow, and I find myself bopping my head to it. It isn't too loud, or too heavily auto tuned which is another bonus. It's pretty catchy, and you'll never forget the title of the song since they say it at least 100 times in the song. Not that it's a bad thing though.

3. 完美的再見 (Good bye my love)"

After those two upbeat tracks, we have an average Super Junior-M ballad. Yes, it's the ballad you find on every Super Junior/Super Junior-M album. It's light and pleasant on the ears, and it's nice to hear everybody sing instead of Kyuhyun and Ryeowook overpowering everybody. (Not that it's a bad thing) It also isn't too dramatic, and as I stated before I think it really showcases each member's voices beautifully.

4. "A-Oh!"

Oh my gosh. Here it is! The average Super Junior/Super Junior M bubble gum pop song. Honestly, I don't really know how to describe this one. It's pretty up beat but it just doesn't really stick in my mind at all. It reminds me of like a teamwork song or something. Or like a song you would play when you try your best to do something. I don't know. And like the ending would be something you would play when you finally see a helicopter after being stranded on an island for 30 days. But in that case, like it would only play at that part where you're trying to get the helicopter's attention. Sorry, what were we talking about again? "A-Oh!" just isn't my type of song. I've seen other people actually appreciate it, so with due respect to them and the composer who wrote it who apparently is quite famous (heard of Sean Alexander anyone? He also wrote a few B-sides for other Kpop including one in Super Junior's Sorry Sorry album). But yes, coming from someone who writes mostly for mainstream US pop, I can see why this feels bubble-gum. SM meant this song to be the 'safe' song.

5. "It's You"

This song was another song written by Zhou Mi and the Noize Bank. I really like the clapping (I think) beat in the background and how they sing the "you" part in the chorus. It's like whistling or something. It's repetitive and I love it. It left a significantly larger imprint in my mind compared to the previous song. The only downside of this song for some people would be that it feels like something from the early 2000's. But I'm an open person, and I don't really mind it. Music is music. It can never be outdated or too updated. That is the beauty of music, it's timeless.

6. ""距離的擁抱 (Distant Embrace)"
Yes Zhou Mi. Yes. Every single person should try this song at least once. Please do it. This song showcases his voice and shows how talented this guy actually is. Although the song itself is okay, it's the voice that really makes this song his. It's got a slow tempo, but it's a ballad so what can you expect? On the side note, there isn't any auto tune here at all. Just pure Zhou Mi.

7. "Tunnel"

I love this song. I LOVE IT. It speaks to me. It's kind of got this sexy vibe to it. Maybe R&B? It's light, and smooth. It isn't as slow as a ballad, or as fast as a pop song. It's refreshing and it honestly makes me melt. Their voices in here are just extremely gentle and it literally makes me blush. I'm sure that I'll never get sick of this song.

8. "我挺爾 (Stand up)"

The intro is a bit too much for me. It's too magical. Aside from the intro, I liked the rest of it. It kind of reminds me of the track, "Over" from Super Junior's first album and it kind of sounds like something from a drama OST.

All in all, it was enjoyable to listen to but it wasn't that great either. Except for a few tracks on this album, I probably won't even be able to name most of them. (especially A-Oh!) What I can say is that it's definitely an improvement from their previous album and I'm sure their next album will be even better. There is definitely potential in Super Junior M's future, and I'm looking forward to see how they continue to grow through their music. Overall, I would give this album a rating of 3.7/5

Writer: Michelle W | TheSuperJunior Handbook