In typical BTS fashion, the album starts and ends with an "Intro" and "Outro". The "Intro: Serendipity" is a solo by Jimin. Jimin's voice coupled with the sweet lust of the R&B bubbles popping against your eardrum. Jimin sings of wanting to be with that special person so they bloom like a flower until the sun goes down. It's a very sweet song that fills you with warmth. This one song may be the highlight of the album as it feels like BTS. This feels like a maturing BTS unlike the rest of the album.
"DNA" feels like a "Wings", but more importantly, a "Blood Sweat and Tears" reject. The song is very lackluster to anything BTS has ever dropped as it comes across as a BTS song that combines all of these elements, a mature BTS and a Creative BTS but neither really stick out. "Best of Me is nothing but a Chainsmokers song so you'll only get so much enjoyment out of it. Once again we are greeted with mediocre lyricism but also rapping and singing. "Dimple" comes in as it's a weaker BTS song, it's one of the best tracks on her. This, like Serendipity, feels like a progressive BTS song, a song everyone will love no matter the era they started listening to the band.
Jinbo has a producer and writer credit for "Pied Piper" which I think is beautifully produced but we could have gone without the rappers for this song. I feel as though this could have been a great Pop/R&B joint without the rappers. Not to say they had horrible lines, which they didn't, but the overall song could have been better with just singing. The beat for "Mic Drop" is amazing. Its menacing and damn scary but it can't be frightening because the singers are in the middle of the verses. If the rappers had this to themselves the song would be on par with their Cyphers. Good song regardless. Then we have "Go Go" which I think has a nice beat that's great to cruise to but the lyrics and some of the delivery from boys is very unflattering. I feel like this song was forced on the album to have a "turn up" aspect to it.
The album ends with the "Outro: Her". Rap Monster, Suga and J-Hope rap about their love experience over a jazzy beat that is reminiscent of the production from "Wings". I enjoy the song and it's a great way to end the album. Now "Love Yourself: Her" is a concept album which focuses on young adults in love but only about 2 or 3 songs actually live up to this. "Outro", "Serendipity", and "Dimple" actually live up to that concept. Everything else is either half produced or never touched the concept, and this is where I find my discontent with this album.
I think this is a good album but put the emphasis on "good". The album lacks direction but more importantly it lacks BTS. From cadence to delivery to lyrics, this album felt like an afterthought. This is something I would enjoy but not as much as their previous discography. There are glimpses of creativity and skill being pushed into a solid work but at other times it felt flat. I'll listen to the album but only because it's BTS is a thought that keeps reaching into my head. BTS's last 3 albums were near perfection and "Her" just feels like "here's some okay songs with our name on them". "Her" isn't bad, but it's not perfection or anything that will push the culture forward like "Wings", "HYYH 1 & 2". Still better than most albums that dropped this year.
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