A K-pop act’s title track isn’t always the best song on their album, even if it’s the one most people will hear. Sometimes, b-sides deserve recognition too. In the singles-oriented world of K-pop, I want to spotlight some of these buried treasures and give them the props they deserve.
TVXQ just released their best song since 2014, and I wasn’t expecting it at all. Their Japanese anniversary album was preceded by two tracks — neither of which did much for me. But when I ventured into the album I was immediately struck by the scope and power of opening track T.R.H.M. This is what I’ve been waiting for! Finally another song that sounds as massive as TVXQ’s talent.
I’m not sure how to aptly describe T.R.H.M except to say it’s everything I love about K-pop and J-pop. A true genre hybrid, the track melds an incredibly funky backbone to rock bombast and a sledgehammer dance beat. This provides a cinematic backdrop for TVXQ’s performance, and the guys rattle off a series of power notes that add fuel to an already blazing fire. When the arrangement does shift directions, it simply propels the song even higher. There’s a satisfying sense of intensity running through the whole thing.
Digging a little deeper into the credits, T.R.H.M was composed by Hi-yunk from popular J-rock band Back-On. That may be one of the reasons the track has so much more personality than many of the album’s other b-sides written by teams of outsourced talent. This is why I’ll always be a proponent of visionary composers unleashing their own musical perspectives. This is clearly a TVXQ song and not a Back-On song, but it has a singular vision and sense of purpose that’s incredibly refreshing.
| Hooks | 9 |
| Production | 10 |
| Longevity | 9 |
| Bias | 10 |
| RATING | 9.5 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
Ooh, I see this fit perfectly in a sci-fi movie or maybe a movie about racing (but set in a futuristic setting) 🤭
9.25 (9, 10, 9, 9) for me.
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The sung high harmonies are everything in this song. Also the octave bracketing = one voice up at B4 A4 G4, the other down B3 A3 G3.*
People, pay attention, what happens when a vocalist just goes for a proper harmony, sung to the rafters. None of the click the button melodyne fill in the blank chords in post-production here. Nope, Max Changmin just going for it at the top of his lungs. Old school TVXQ style Max high note piercing belt.
Yep, its a fantastic b-side. Showing the kids how retro is done for realz by quoting your own back catalog vocabulary.
*(This is a trick Forestella use all the time as well to fill sonic space effectively with just a couple vocalists – usually one of the down low low in the C3 D3 E3 area or such, one in the middle C4 D4 E4, one in falsetto C5 D5 E5, and the last somewhere in the middle hitting an actual harmony note.)
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Sung harmonies have become my favourite thing since learning how to distinguish them. It just //feels// better.
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Love the confidence spilling through in their voices, and how the entire song seems to be set up specifically for them to portray this confidence. I get they’re uber-veterans at this point but I’ll always prefer this actual swing for musical greatness and actually pulling it off than so much of the faux swagger and bravado found in a lot of k-pop songs today.
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I came into kpop too late to have any bias towards TVXQ. This goes hard! The energy, the vocal power, the funky…guitar..? driving the song forward. The breaking glass noises. I’m about ready to get on a flashy motorcycle and race down a dark highway. On the playlist it goes without delay.
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It’s a great song!
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So 00/10-ish and it does remind me back to their previous releases Catch Me. This is what I wanted my TVXQ used to be!
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Finally, a cousin to I Think U Know!!! It as banger. I have a slight bias for TVXQ but not nostalgia. I found their discography only a few years ago, and I’ve enjoyed what I’ve heard so far
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It gets better with every listen! Incredible
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What do you think about Party like Madonna ?
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ik its late but i’d also like to mention hi-yunk is also the producer of one love one heart’s glory dayz, aka the best song of 2022
just dropping that fact right there
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