Sunny Hill pushes the limit with their new single "Pray"...

The members of Sunny Hill (L to R): Jang Hyun, Misung, Kota, Seung Ah, and Ju-B

I first got to know Sunny Hill when I listened to their immensely successful mini-album, "Midnight Circus" (if you haven't read my review for that album, click here). "Midnight Circus" was a departure from Sunny Hill's usual spanking clean and wholesome image. It was a risk that paid off with a multi-chart hit that's still making waves until now.

I was surprised to learn that they came up with a follow-up track to their last single release. Their follow-up track and MV, "Pray", truly pushes the envelope on artistic expression, and expands their repertoire of cutting edge hits.


"Pray" falls within the radar of my favorite type of music... latin-inspired acoustic pop. This time around, Sunny Hill churns out a melancholy ballad expressing the pain of lost love. The song is spiced with a good amount of the classic guitar work that I love. The underbelly of the song is filled with great piano instrumentation and a steady drum beat. Of course, the vocals were, as usual, amazing. The blending of the voices of Seung Ah, Kota, Ju-B and Misung. I'm a little disappointed not to hear Jang Hyun in this track too, just like in "Midnight Circus". I'm not really sure where his support comes in for this album, but I guess he's working behind the scenes to make sure the group comes up with gold.

What stirs and provokes my interest more in this effort is the MV. If there's anything that challenges us visually is the story portrayed in the video --- a lonely, disfigured man who is seduced by a woman so that experiments could be done on him. He patiently endures the pain for love, until he is driven to escape. Love makes him hesitate, and then he is captured once again. The painful analogy created by the story encapsulates beautifully the irony and madness of love.

"Pray" by Sunny Hill (MV with English Subtitles)

Sunny Hill once again tugs at our heartstrings and with our sensibilities with another risque and potentially controversial performance. I love how they take risks, and how these risks translate into musical success. Hopefully they do the same with this track, since it's a beautifully haunting song, and an even more interesting MV that has more depth and dimension that I've seen in any other MV for any Kpop group.