The Dreaming (Monsta X album)

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The Dreaming
Digital cover
Studio album by
ReleasedDecember 10, 2021 (2021-12-10)
GenrePop
Length28:41
LanguageEnglish
LabelIntertwine
Monsta X chronology
No Limit
(2021)
The Dreaming
(2021)
Shape of Love
(2022)
Singles from The Dreaming
  1. "One Day"
    Released: September 10, 2021
  2. "You Problem"
    Released: December 10, 2021

The Dreaming is the ninth and the second English-language studio album by the South Korean boy group Monsta X. It was released and distributed by Intertwine on December 10, 2021.

Background[edit]

The album was announced on October 21, following the release of the single "One Day" on September 10. There are ten tracks on the album, including "One Day" and nine new English tracks.[1] Music video for the track "You Problem" was released alongside the album on December 10.[2]

In December, the group released Monsta X: The Dreaming, a documentary film and concert film that follows the process of creating the album and the performances of the songs used in the film, including the interviews with all the members and footages of their history.[3]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic71/100[4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
i[6]
IZM[7]
The Line of Best Fit[8]
musicOMH[9]
NME[10]
Rolling Stone[11]

The Dreaming was met with generally favorable reviews from its critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received a weighted average score of 71 based on 5 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[4]

Sophia Simon-Bashall, writing for The Line of Best Fit, said that the album was a combination of the signature sound of Monsta X's Korean releases with the group's first English-language album All About Luv, focusing on "bringing their energy and creativity to the songs, and showcasing the spectacular vocals they deserve to be known for". Overall, it was a diverse album that "showcases new sides of Monsta X whilst also meeting the ideas and feelings that fans look forward to".[8]

Ben Devlin of musicOMH said that the album presents "an imperial core of its own music in recontextualised form", while the group displays "versatility, emotion and style" on their second English-language album.[9]

While reviewing the album for NME, Ruby C wrote that the group shows different sides to themselves on their "stellar retro-themed sophomore English album", focusing on "disco and synth-pop", two genres that aren't typically associated with Monsta X, who are much better known for their "powerful, hard-hitting tunes", immersing themselves in "retro sounds and vibes". The "chameleon-like versatility" of the group is what showed in this album.[10]

Tim Chan described the album for Rolling Stone as "an homage to boy-band culture with Nineties-style harmonies, slick choruses, and head-bopping beats", that also "showcases the group's versatility, mixing synth beats and EDM with indie pop, rock, and even traces of New Jack Swing".[11]

Listicles[edit]

Name of critic or publication, name of listicle, name of work and rank
Critic/Publication List Work Rank Ref.
Song
Teen Vogue The 54 Best K-pop Songs of 2021 "One Day" Placed[a] [12]
"You Problem"

Commercial performance[edit]

The album debuted at number 21 on the US Billboard 200 with 31,400 album-equivalent units, including 29,500 pure album sales on its first week. It is Monsta X's second entry on the said chart.[13][14] It also succeeded in charting on the said chart for two weeks in a row.[15][16]

Track listing[edit]

The Dreaming track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."One Day"
  • Chelsea Lena
  • Jake Davis
  • Samuel Anthony Klempner
  • Jake Davis
  • Samuel Anthony Klempner
2:26
2."You Problem"
  • David Stewart
3:19
3."Tied to Your Body"
  • Afterhrs
  • John Ryan
  • Teddy Geiger
2:09
4."Whispers in the Dark"
KIN.3:40
5."Blame Me"
  • Jake Davis
  • Joe Kearns
  • Pablo Bowman
  • Tom Mann
  • Jake Davis
  • Taylor Wilzbach
3:08
6."Secrets"
Captain Cuts3:00
7."About Last Night"
  • Brian Lee
  • Peter Nappi
2:33
8."Better"
Keith Varon2:19
9."Blow Your Mind"
Kris Eriksson2:10
10."The Dreaming"
Ben West3:57
Total length:28:41

Charts[edit]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ All the albums and songs listed are either unranked or just alphabetically ranked.
  2. ^ "One Day" did not enter on the Digital Chart but appeared on the component Download Chart.[28]
  3. ^ "You Problem" did not enter on the Digital Chart but appeared on the component Download Chart.[30]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Legaspi, Althea (October 20, 2021). "Monsta X Detail New English-Language Album 'The Dreaming'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  2. ^ Chin, Carmen (December 10, 2021). "MONSTA X hit the disco in music video for 'You Problem'". NME. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  3. ^ Chan, Tim (October 28, 2021). "Exclusive: Monsta X Preps Release of New Concert Film, 'The Dreaming'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 29, 2021. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Monsta X – The Dreaming". Metacritic. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  5. ^ "The Dreaming – Monsta X". AllMusic. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  6. ^ Solomon, Kate (December 9, 2021). "Album reviews: Neil Young and Crazy Horse 'Barn', Alicia Keys 'Keys', Monsta X 'The Dreaming'". i. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  7. ^ Jeong, Da-yeol (January 20, 2022). 몬스타엑스(MONSTA X) 'The Dreaming' (2021). IZM (in Korean). Retrieved January 20, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Simon-Bashall, Sophia (December 10, 2021). "Monsta X continue to showcase new facets on The Dreaming". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  9. ^ a b Devlin, Ben (December 16, 2021). "MONSTA X – The Dreaming". musicOMH. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  10. ^ a b C, Ruby (December 15, 2021). "MONSTA X – 'The Dreaming' review: K-pop's chameleons reveal a new spectrum". NME. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  11. ^ a b Chan, Tim (December 10, 2021). "Monsta X Deliver Boy-Band Polish With Heart on 'The Dreaming'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  12. ^ Kim, Jae-ha; Muttoo, Ambika (December 17, 2021). "The 54 Best K-pop Songs of 2021". Teen Vogue. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  13. ^ Caulfield, Keith (December 20, 2021). "Adele's '30' Becomes 2021's Best-Selling Vinyl Album, Holds at No. 1 on Top Album Sales Chart". Billboard. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  14. ^ McIntyre, Hugh (December 21, 2021). "Monsta X Ties Blackpink, Seventeen, Enhypen And Twice With Their Latest Bestselling Album In America". Forbes. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  15. ^ Yoon, Sang-geun (December 30, 2021). 몬스타엑스 'The Dreaming' 빌보드 200 111위 2주 차트인[공식]. Star Money Today (in Korean). Retrieved December 30, 2021 – via Naver.
  16. ^ Shin, Min-hee (December 31, 2021). "Monsta X's second English full-length album stays on Billboard 200 chart". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved December 31, 2021 – via Naver.
  17. ^ "Ultratop.be – Monsta X – The Dreaming" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  18. ^ "Monsta X Chart History: Canadian Albums". Billboard. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  19. ^ "Lescharts.com – Monsta X – The Dreaming". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  20. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Monsta X – The Dreaming" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 2021-12-17.
  21. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  22. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Monsta X – The Dreaming". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2022-01-09.
  23. ^ "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  24. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  25. ^ "Monsta X Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  26. ^ "Monsta X Chart History: Independent Albums". Billboard. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  27. ^ "Monsta X Chart History: Mexico Ingles Airplay". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  28. ^ 2021년 37주차 Download Chart [Week 37 of 2021 Download Chart]. Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  29. ^ "Monsta X Chart History: Pop Airplay". Billboard. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  30. ^ 2021년 50주차 Download Chart [Week 50 of 2021 Download Chart]. Gaon Music Chart (in Korean). Retrieved December 16, 2021.