TOMORROW X TOGETHER is no stranger to leaning into the sounds many of their fans grew up on. Take, for example, the evergrowing angst and heartwrenching lovesickness in their song “0X1=LOVESONG (I Know I Love You)” would fit perfectly in any 2000s emo pop-punk Tumblr playlist. Since their debut, they’ve jumped through several genre changes with ease and dealt with their complicated feelings of love in a neverending maze of youth. Now, SOOBIN, YEONJUN, BEOMGYU, TAEHYUN, and HUENINGKAI—Gen Z’s IT Boys all mature and grown up— are finally settling down with how love feels like a positive everlasting burst of energy.
Related: TOMORROW X TOGETHER Are K-Pop’s ‘It Boys’—An Intro to All 5 of TXT’s Members & How They Were Discovered
It’s no doubt that R&B is a dominant influence on K-pop. Their 7th mini-album The Star Chapter: Sanctuary is sprinkled and infused with smooth and luscious beats and vocals that harken back to early 2000s boybands. There are still shimmers of the innocence of falling in love for the first time in the first track “Heaven” but a bulk of the tracklist carries the familiar feeling of when a guy is trying to woo the person they want to be with for the rest of eternity. Cohesively, The Star Chapter: Sanctuary is the perfect mini-album for a charming love-life transition. Below are the superlatives we put to accompany each track.
TXT: The Star Chapter: Sanctuary
A song to cruise down on a highway: “Heaven”
“Heaven” is an easygoing and poppy ballad that is reminiscent of the first couple of days of falling in love. It’s the honeymoon stage and TXT doesn’t want you to forget it. “Heaven, one to ten, you’re like an eleven / If it’s just you, that place is heaven,” SOOBIN and BEOMGYU sing in the chorus. The song feels like the sun shining down on a highway and having the car windows down knowing that life is good with the love of your life.
A song to hold on all your hopes to: “Over the Moon”
It’s the lead single from the mini-album and dubbed a “serenade to MOA” during the last show of their ‘WORLD TOUR <ACT : PROMISE> ENCORE IN SEOUL.’ The second song on the album sinks into the R&B influence and the slight delusions that everything will be all right when all the stars are aligned. It still has the cherished optimism of TXT, “I’m with you, you with me, only when we’re together / Will tomorrow become reality,” TAEHYUN sings.
A song to put in your thirst trap TikToks: “Danger”
Danger is a dangerously flirtatious track that’ll make you blush with their glossy vocals. “What you doin’ to me?” they teasingly repeat in the chorus. YEONJUN shows off his fluidly romantic rap in his verse, “You’re my ride or die, I don’t hesitate / My emotions overtake such thing as reason.” The word “Danger” seems to surround you at all angles, but you can’t help but feel safe around TXT’s sonic embrace.
A song that’ll pull all the nostalgic heartstrings: “Resist (Not Gonna Run Away)”
“Move Ya Body Girl” by Nina Sky is one of the most iconic dance songs of the early 2000s. Ask R&B royalty Kehlani who sampled it in her hit song “After Hours.” TXT’s sample is the same tribute to the banger that most of us on the radio grew up on. The track starts with TAEHYUN’s strong falsetto vocals singing “When I see you, I can resist, you’re my one and only / I can’t exist, without you” accompanied by fast-paced guitar strumming and grows into those familiar hollow drums. It might sound a little off at some places but when it’s all blended together, it’s a danceable bop that’ll get you grooving down on the dancefloor.
A song to wind down after a long day: “Forty One Winks”
The song title is a play on what happens after a “Forty Wink” nap, but this song will take it up one step with its upbeat but lethargic beats and bassline. Every K-pop fan knows if it’s produced by DemJointz, it’s a banger for the books—and this song is no exception. HUENINGKAI wittingly references the group’s love for Morse code in a romantic setting, “Send a signal, forty-one winks / It’s like Morse code.” It will absolutely make those devoted MOA swoon.
A song that’ll make you want to frolic in a meadow: “Higher than Heaven”
The last track of the mini-album drives back into the high-spirited mood of being so entrenched in love. The guitars are bouncy and each member is confident in their own love, singing that they’ll take you “Higher than heaven / beyond heaven / a higher place” It’s like a walk in the park, but also has a striking resemblance to The Name Chapter: Temptation’s “Farewell Neverland” in terms of the concept. In the former, the group is saying goodbye to their childhood while dipping into the Peter Pan motifs and free falling. While in “Higher Than Heaven,” they want to share those memories with their loved one forever while flying high.
