Fresh off her win on American Song Competition (a phrase I never thought I’d write on this blog…), AleXa is back with the release of her first mini album. While she debuted with a cool sci-fi concept, her music has gradually explored new avenues. None of the songs have really clicked me, and her ASC entry Wonderland felt particularly generic. If nothing else, it brought familiar K-pop tropes to a Western audience.
Back In Vogue has a promising title, hinting at a grand return. Its mid-tempo dance beat recalls hits of the early 2000’s – a very trendy influence at the moment. Though they’re somewhat buried in the mix, the instrumental stabs have a whiff of Baby One More Time to them. I wish the song was as musically feisty as its inspirations. AleXa has always been a charismatic performer, but there’s only so much you can do with material like this.
Objectively, Back In Vogue is well-produced and competent. But, it’s definitely not for me. It sounds like something you might hear in a Disney Channel original movie musical, filled with broad exclamations of confidence that mostly fall flat. But if we assume the song was written with a younger audience in mind, it’s probably unfair to judge it through any other lens. I’m sure Back In Vogue will find its share of fans, but I wish the entire song harnessed the swaggering energy of its bridge. A track like this needs a killer beat. What we have here is incredibly sanitized.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 7 |
| Longevity | 7 |
| Bias | 7 |
| RATING | 7 |
Grade: C-
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
s’alright..
..that’s all I got..
😐
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Surprisingly good, almost an 8 if not for the talk-rapping.
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Yeah, I expected something more feisty from Alexa.
Its fine.
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I’m quite disappointed by this. It’s not awful but the title gave me a promise of something fiercer. I find your Disney channel movie comparison quite funny because it reminds me of the most recent monster high movie soundtrack from nickelodeon.
This song especially:
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haha TOTALLY! That video is sending me… especially with no context.
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Seeing that “back in vogue”‘s rating dropped, I wonder which song you would rather listen to?
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unrelated (and this is probably very very unrealistic) but have u ever considered making a tiktok acc w like. mini reviews of songs n stuff…….kinda like anthony fantanos tiktok
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A Kpopalypse fan did this not to long ago. That tiktok acc has a much wider reach than his blog ever did, and occasionally videos go semi-viral. It’s neat to see how the broader kpop audience reacts to his Aussie humor, but ultimately most of the comments have nothing productive or interesting to add. The tiktok account doesn’t add much beyond novelty.
More discussion is nice, but usually it’s a disaster whenever one of Nick’s reviews blow up. People coming in just to complain about a 6/10 score, attributing some sort of malice to this blog when it’s clearly a labor of love. The comments on Nick’s “Nxde” and “Permission to Dance” reviews are funny at first, but mostly they frustrate me. Genuine criticism is ignored and the comments never engage with the text in good faith.
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WHAT?!? Sore K-Pop fans? Here? NEVA!
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Then this would be Nick’s TikTok post after the 100th comment to his (G)I-DLE review:
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The thing is, there are people who are really good at doing TikTok. I’m not one of those people, unfortunately. I’m good at writing 250 words about songs I like or loathe, so I’m gonna stick to that for now 🙂
Interesting idea, though!
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I’ve thought for a while that it’s a shame AleXa didn’t debut in a group, because I think she’d be an amazing main dancer and face for a 4-5 person gg. I’m pleased as hell that she’s getting more attention but her music really hasn’t grabbed me for a while now.
Anyhow, I like the direction ggs have been taking for a while now and this is fine. Not great, but fine. I don’t hate it. Three stars.
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I think the chorus is catchy and the delivery is great, actually! Maybe I just really like swing rhythms. The star of this is AleXa herself, but it’s hard for it not to be when you look/emote like that. Her smile at 1:47?? Seriously.
I also like the range they have her singing in, and that the agency is trying different approaches after the cyberpunk theme didn’t fully take off (even if it lead to “on my burger and my fries always extra cheese”).
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