There are a number of acts who have debuted in the past few decades and have dozens of song ratings on this blog. I thought it would be fun to lay these ratings out in chronological order, line-graph style, and take a macro view of their careers so far. Then, similar to my “Underrated K-pop” … Continue reading
Rather than opt for one big comeback, HITGS have spent the year doling out digital singles every couple of months as part of their Things We Dream project. While blitzing the market like this can be a nice strategy, it’s difficult to gain traction this way unless you’re already an established name. New single BRB … Continue reading
Dragon Pony made a stellar debut back in 2024, right as the new wave of K-idol bands were beginning to roll out. Two years later, there’s a ton of competition in this space running the gamut of sounds and styles. For me, the two factors that have always helped Dragon Pony stand out are their … Continue reading
Heart Of Woman debuted with a refreshing take on the seemingly endless Y2K trend in K-pop, but their album was more of a mixed bag. This unpredictability continued with recent pre-release Melt, which hitched its wagon to another oft-(over)used K-pop trend: subdued “beige pop.” And if you thought the whiplash was over, be prepared to … Continue reading
Today marks the debut of a new group with a new acronym. So, of course I had to look up what “ADAP” stands for. I was hoping for something completely bonkers, but was instead met with the sweet and predictable “All Dreams Are Possible.” Sadly, all dreams are not possible in the cutthroat world of … Continue reading
After releasing one of the year’s most promising debuts, poor UNCHILD have been put through the ringer. Their first comeback TiNG TiNG was initially teased for early September, yet days before its release the project was indefinitely postponed. I’ve seen enough K-pop agencies and acts fold over the years to fear that we might never … Continue reading
There are a number of acts who have debuted in the past few decades and have dozens of song ratings on this blog. I thought it would be fun to lay these ratings out in chronological order, line-graph style, and take a macro view of their careers so far. Then, similar to my “Underrated K-pop” … Continue reading
1. We Up // 2. Call My Name // 3. Heavy HEAVY I’m not usually a fan of English lyrics in K-pop, but the right lyric, used sparingly, can be very effective. Heavy is probably the most direct manifestation of this single album’s healing concept and was completely misrepresented by the short clip we heard … Continue reading
When thinking about my “Career in Song Ratings” feature, BoA was the most intimidating artist to approach. She simply has a wealth of material stretching over twenty five years. Such a vast catalog guarantees a wide variety of quality and sounds, from ballads to thumping dance tracks. New Japanese single Hohaba (歩幅) fits within the … Continue reading
After their incredible mini album this spring, I’m a bit irked ZEROBASEONE haven’t made a group comeback since. However, the members have still been very active, with solo work from Sung Hanbin and Kim Jiwoong and the debut of hip-hop unit EMP, consisting of Seok Matthew and Park Gunwook. I didn’t write about their mixtape … Continue reading
Baby DONT Cry released a couple of solid singles early on in this year, but have been relatively silent throughout the summer and fall. Though they haven’t done much to craft a signature sound of their own, their music has been decent so far. Unfortunately, new single Replay hinges on too many of K-pop’s overused … Continue reading
There are vastly different expectations for promotion and release dates between Korea and Japan. While it’s expected that everything (song, mv, album) will drop at once for a Korean comeback, Japan tends to announce release dates very far in advance and dribble out pieces of the project over the space of weeks or even months. … Continue reading
There are a number of acts who have debuted in the past few decades and have dozens of song ratings on this blog. I thought it would be fun to lay these ratings out in chronological order, line-graph style, and take a macro view of their careers so far. Then, similar to my “Underrated K-pop” … Continue reading
1. We Up // 2. Call My Name // 3. Heavy WE UP Initially, I wasn’t too optimistic about the b-sides on TWS’s new single. For one, the highlight medley undersold the sound of the songs, choosing clips that weren’t all that representative. Then, the song descriptions themselves were a list of some of the … Continue reading
RESCENE have had one hell of a 2026. Their 2024 single Love Attack enjoyed an unexpected resurgence to the very top of the charts, which alone would have been a huge achievement. But even more impressively, this success doesn’t seem to be limited to one hit. The group’s entire discography has seen a similar resurgence, … Continue reading
There are a number of acts who have debuted in the past few decades and have dozens of song ratings on this blog. I thought it would be fun to lay these ratings out in chronological order, line-graph style, and take a macro view of their careers so far. Then, similar to my “Underrated K-pop” … Continue reading
Treasure haven’t released much new material this year, but 2026 marked a transition into a much tougher hip-hop sound. Despite June’s If I leaving me cold at first, the song eventually won me over with its off-kilter hooks. Judging from the previews of new single Shock, I was unsure if this track could do the … Continue reading
For the first time while listening to a xikers album highlight medley, I had the pleasant sensation of feeling like their agency chose the correct title track. For context, there’s usually at least one great track on every xikers album, yet it rarely gets chosen for promotion. DIENAMITE comes a little late in the season … Continue reading
TWS have spent the better part of the year touring and promoting in Japan, so although they’ve been consistently busy it feels like they’ve been away for longer than normal. But before we move into year-end comeback hiatuses, they’ve returned with a new single album and title track Call My Name (내 이름을 불러줘). This … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I compile my top three K-pop title tracks and list a ton of honorable mentions. But each Sunday, I’ll offer a compendium of the week’s new releases featured on the blog. And even more than that, I’ll attempt to rank them from my least-to-most-liked. I invite you to share … Continue reading
