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.
The K-pop industry loves to harness global trends, but too often it takes those trends and drains most of the color from them. Such is the case with Afrobeats, whose rhythms have informed many recent tracks. In the vast majority of cases, K-pop utilizes the genre as more of an affectation than a centerpiece. However, Kai has framed the bulk of his new album around this sound, which allows him to explore more dynamic elements.
A pair of tracks mid-way through the album (Ridin‘ and Off And Away) showcase this untapped potential. The energy peaks and the percussion becomes more diverse. Of these two examples, Off And Away is my favorite. Sure, Kai’s basically just sing-talking through most of the song, which doesn’t appeal to a melody-lover like myself, but the production is immaculate. There’s such a rich blend of rhythmic elements at play, unveiling a full spectrum of tones and textures. I could listen to this instrumental all day on loop. It’s just that good. And even if I’d kill for melodic turns as exciting as this percussion, the song’s repeated “off and away!” hook works well as an escalating call to arms, becoming more insistent as the track bounds on. With all the pre-releases promoting this album, why couldn’t they release this as a single? The song is so good it’s even made me appreciate Adult Swim, which immediately follows it on the track list.
| Hooks | 7 |
| Production | 10 |
| Longevity | 9 |
| Bias | 9 |
| RATING | 8.75 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
by any chance have u ever listened to the album fountain baby by amaarae? the production reminded me a lot of it and im sure ud love it cuz theres SO much great afrobeat production on there (esp on angels in tibet and princess going digital)
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Man, what a captivating, compelling production. I could envision some beautiful falsettos alongside a more emotive (?) hook (think a blend of INI’s Hana and TWS’ Last Festival), sigh, that would have easily bumped it up to the 9s.
8.5 (7, 10, 8, 9) for me.
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a mini PSA: there’s this Youtube account that upload pseudo-official instrumentals of SM albums relatively early. They use those kit albums that connects to an app & turns off the vocals in the settings. Here’s the playlist for the Wait On Me mini album. Changed the game for me.
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The productions sounds to marvelously aquatic (?). It feels like I’m listening to ephemeral nature sounds
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It’s a vibe piece rather than a sit and listen piece, so it works in that regard. I think everyone can agree the production is fantastic, but I’m so sad for what could have been with more creative vocals. The hook “Off and Away” should have led to a melodic vocal centerpiece, but instead the same instrumental that is consistent for pretty much the whole song is highlighted, which was a let down, since the verses have new and interesting builds each time leading to the chorus.
All that said, I can appreciate it for the vibes. 6,10,9,8 = 8.25
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seeing such a low score (a 7) and such a high score (a 10) being in the same rating is so funny
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It’s actually … it’s actually a more complicated melodic line than it seems.
For example, listen to the section from about 1:44 – 1:57, how it gently descends. Kai is either being so deft at singing an interesting line like it is nothing at all, or isn’t doing enough to lean into how it is actually interesting. I wonder what someone like Onew would have done that line as it gracefully descends, how Onew might have accented the “off and away” with a touch more staccato leaning into the wisps of consonants and vowels in that short phrase to add that final little underline in the lyric.
Anyway, it’s Kai’s song, so thank you song pickers for picking out a good one for him. And good job Kai.
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omg not I feel less guilty now! I tend to imagine how Peaches would sound with Baekhyun’s or Chen’s voice
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This is sooo good! One of my top 3 K-pop releases this year so far, along with Jennie’s Ruby and NMIXX’s forward.
Since last year I’ve been exploring a lot of pop African music (I’m guessing most fall into Afrobeats and amapiano?) so this track comes at the right time. Like you say, it sounds super rich and listening with a good pair of headphones is an experience
a 10 out of 10 song
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The 7 for hooks and 10 for production is sending me.
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