MAXIDENT by Stray Kids

With each new release, the K-pop boy band Stray Kids seem to ask, “What next?” The octet’s latest mini album is worlds away from the early sounds of the JYP Entertainment group’s debut. Their hard-as-hell K-hip-hop has made way for a broader musical palette, boasting Southern California pop-punk *na-na-na*s atop distorted guitars (Seungmin and I.N’s “Can’t Stop”), hyperpop-trap (“3RACHA,” courtesy of Bang Chan, Changbin, and Han), and sultry, gothy R&B (“TASTE” by Lee Know, Hyunjin, and Felix). At the end of *MAXIDENT* is a familiar coda: a Korean version of their summer 2022 Japanese single “CIRCUS” and its springy production and descending vocal melody.

With each new release, the K-pop boy band Stray Kids seem to ask, “What next?” The octet’s latest mini album is worlds away from the early sounds of the JYP Entertainment group’s debut. Their hard-as-hell K-hip-hop has made way for a broader musical palette, boasting Southern California pop-punk na-na-nas atop distorted guitars (Seungmin and I.N’s “Can’t Stop”), hyperpop-trap (“3RACHA,” courtesy of Bang Chan, Changbin, and Han), and sultry, gothy R&B (“TASTE” by Lee Know, Hyunjin, and Felix). At the end of MAXIDENT is a familiar coda: a Korean version of their summer 2022 Japanese single “CIRCUS” and its springy production and descending vocal melody.

Stray Kids dive into love and show off their originality and growth once again on 'Maxident'. Read the album review

Just months after the release of their chart-topping hit Oddinary, K-pop group Stray Kids matched the chart-topping -- and top-selling -- feat with their seventh Korean-language EP Maxident.