Planetarium Records is comprised of six solo artists: Jung Jinwoo, Villain, June, Gaho, Moti, and Kei.G. The members all write their own music and have an impressive CV thus far: Jinwoo Jung appeared on the third and fifth seasons of K-Pop Star, Kei.G composed and produced a song for Lim Kim, Gaho composed and produced SHINee's "I Say," and June was a BigHit trainee who helped write songs for BTS ("Not Today," "Lost," and "Awake") and Suran ("If I Get Drunk Today"). While the members have released music in the past — all but Kei.G are part of a crew called AlphaDict — the collaborative works they've released under PLT highlight their talents extremely well. There was consequently no other rookie group this year whose output could compare with PLT’s: PLT’s Planetarium Case#1 and Jung Jinwoo’s Color were among the very best K-pop full lengths of the year, and the individual singles and mini albums from individual members were consistently great. As such, it’s tempting to simply list off a dozen songs that prove their worth, but I settled with the three that made me fall in love with them: “Shine on You,” “The Way You Feel Inside,” and “Hocus Pocus.”

“Shine on You” is the opening track of PLT’s debut album and it’s a love song that greatly benefits from its simplicity. There’s a clarity to its message — one that unabashedly declares, “You’re the sunshine in my life” — that is felt in Gaho’s show-stopping vocal performance. It’s so directly transmitted that the strings don’t feel like they’re compensating for anything; they seem present because they’re the only appropriate accompaniment to such heartfelt vocalizing. Villain comes in to fill in details about the relationship, recounting specific memories in a manner that’s made more affectionate due to his soft vocal timbre and delivery. He’s perfectly complementary with Gaho, and the two elevate the song beyond the sum of its parts. “Shine on You” was by far the best ballad of the year.

“The Way You Feel Inside” finds June at a different point in a relationship. Throughout the song, he contemplates how his lover feels about him, thrown off by how things currently seem. While the song is just as lush in its balladry as “Shine on You,” its chorus goes in a completely different direction in order to reflect his feelings of uncertainty: huge post-Chainsmokers synth stabs and dubstep-like wobbles dominate as June sings the titular line with deep concern and desire. That these sounds don’t feel out of place with the rest of the song is a marvel, and a true testament to PLT’s songwriting and production ability.

After the one-two punch that was their two Planetarium Case releases, PLT released the digital single "Hocus Pocus" in April. On "Glue," in-house producer Ownr provided a reserved R&B beat to showcase the members' singing. On "Hocus Pocus," however, Ownr aims for something more slinky and grandiose so each member can present their stylistic differences. The song's structure capitalizes on the conceit, and it culminates in a showboat-y verse from Villain before the chorus comes crashing in one final time. Whether the members specialize in large-scale ballads or The Weeknd-esque R&B, their talents all consolidate here into a distinctly Korean take on pop rap where everyone gets a chance to shine. That sounds like magic to me.