[Review] Elevator – BAEKHYUN (EXO)

Monday was a big day of releases, with BAEKHYUN also returning to the music scene with his 5th mini-album, Essence of Reverie. The single Elevator is the mini-album’s title track, following the pre-release Chocolate released last week. His previous comeback was Pineapple Slice in September 2024, featuring on his fourth mini-album Hello, World, which I have yet to review (but can confirm it’s coming).

I can hear what people mean when they describe Elevator as another version of Candy (a single BAEKHYUN previously promoted in 2020). Like that song, BAEKHYUN leans into his genre of choice (R&B) and keeps it simple. Elevator features likeable grooviness and a decent pop beat that moves the song along. I did enjoy the subdued percussion and atmospheric touches of the instrumental. BAEKHYUN’s vocals are definitely Elevator‘s highlight. It was nice to hear his vocals again after so long, and the ad-libs at the end came off quite smoothly. But I wish the melodies were more riveting. There was some sleekness and vibrancy to Elevator‘s melodies, but I put this down to BAEKHYUN’s vocals and delivery. Instead, I got a standard and safe feeling that doesn’t scream excitement. Overall, I would describe Elevator as ‘simply pleasant’. As said previously on the blog, pleasantness can be a double-edged sword as it could be code for boring. And I felt like Elevator had fallen victim to just that on this occasion. Plus, knowing that the same artist pulled off a similar song in the past (i.e., Candy – as established at the start of this paragraph) doesn’t bode too well for the new song.

The lyrics liken the desire for someone to fall in love with you to an elevator going up, with the lover at the destination floor. The only problem is that you have no idea what that floor is, which forms the basis of the music video. In the video, BAEKHYUN notices a mysterious lady in the elevator. He doesn’t make a move, but is drawn to her. From then on, he has consistently been thinking of and looking for her. Eventually, he reaches her and successfully moves to be with her, as shown at the end of the video. I like how his shirt says ‘I DID WHAT LAST NIGHT?’, implying other things happened overnight. I liked the animation that is interwoven throughout the video, as well as how great BAEKHYUN continues to look in his 30s.

Like the song, the choreography fits in well with the music. Based on what I can see in the music video, the routine embraces the beat well and showcases BAEKHYUN’s charismatic energy, which he carries over from previous dance performances. While I am not sold on the song, I think I can be on the dance for this comeback.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.5/10