K-pop trio Stray Kids kick off their new mini album with a declaration of intent on “RUN IT,” a brass-driven anthem that chronicles their journey from practice room to globe stages.
This one is written by 3RACHA with Marcus “MarcLo” Lomax and Versachoi, and the scope is instantly obvious. Pre-release single for their own global tour of the same name, RUN IT starts THIS & THAT as the album’s biggest moment. Eight years after debut, Stray Kids chart genuine evolution here, from a small room where sound escaped thru phones to erecting a palace heard across the world.
Production goes all out for ceremony, based around powerful brass and marching-drum rhythms mixed with worldbeat texture. Nothing here seems little. The arrangement is nevertheless cinematic throughout, giving the tune that anthemic, procession-like weight from the very first note.
The group runs thru a lifetime of fighting thru any and every test, refusing to look back or fall apart under strain. Their delivery is still urgent and cohesive, using prior suffering as fuel, rather than something to dwell on. From Seoul to the world, the lyrics constantly coming back to one notion, mobility doesn’t stop simply because success has already come.
RUN IT works because it takes eight years of grind and makes it sound hungry yet.
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