★★★★☆
It seems as if Far East Movement have been around forever, but that is just because this group continues fun and exciting music. They have emerged as more than just another electro pop/rap group and their new album “Identity” shows off all of their talents yet again. The 11-track album starts with “Fighter” which features Yoonmirae and Autolaser. It’s a good uplifting song that almost feels like you can play it if you ever need some motivation. The vocals add a lot to this song and pairs perfectly with the upbeat sound. The next track picks up and shows more of the Far East Movement party sound. “Freal Luv” featuring Chanyeol and Tinashe is one of the best songs in terms of sounds and lyrics and is a perfect radio and club hit without a doubt. Far East Movement then moves into a couple of slower songs. “F-VR”, featuring Candice Pillar and No Riddin, is a calm and almost soothing beat but certainly still has that electro tone. “Church” is definitely my favorite out of the two because Elijah Blake, who features on it, is a tremendous addition and his vocals are amazing. Its then back to the party hits with “Don’t Speak”. It’s a harder bass that is for sure, but the transitions are perfectly timed and sounds great all together. “SXWME” has almost a Daft Punk sounds, but with a great combo of vocals thanks to Jay Park, it is yet another fun party song that can dominate the sound waves. One of my favorite songs is “Umbrella” which features Hyolyn and Gill Chang. It is a good mix of in speed and with great vocals to match it turns into one of the more entertaining songs of the album. The final four songs of the album hit a bit of a wall with me however. “Double Dip” features Soulja Boy and Loco and although it’s probably the biggest party or club song on the album, the vocals are weak and not very special. If anything I think they take away from the song. The next song is “FBG$” and it features Big K.R.I.T. and MIKNNA. It has the typical Far East Movement sound but I think it’s my least favorite due to the lyrics and just something about the rhythm and flow doesn’t sit well. Far East Movement goes back to the slow songs in “Forever Survivor” and “Fortress”, which feature Macy Gray and Urban Zakopa, respectively. They both have the sound that makes you want to groove to it, but overall the songs are pretty weak in comparison to the rest of the album. Overall “Identity” by Far East Movement is definitely worth a listen.