EXO-SC’s 2019 debut spurred plenty of ire from this site. To me, it represented SM Entertainment’s full embrace of mainstream hip-hop. The agency who reliably delivered summer classics like Red Flavor, View and Love Me Right would now equate the season with lethargic trap-rap. It remains to be seen if that prediction will completely bear … Continue reading
True to form, Stray Kids are promoting their first full album with a series of music videos. Last month’s Blueprint was a smart chose for summertime spotlight, though it doesn’t look like they’re actually going to perform it on music shows. Instead, that honor goes to Easy. Quite frankly, I’m not sure why. Personally, I … Continue reading
Though Chungha has yet to release her 2020 album, she’s delivered quite a few new tracks already. Not all of these have been equally successful, but I’ve generally been pleased with her more up-tempo offerings. New single Play follows suit, harnessing the well-worn power of tropical pop to craft a summer-ready anthem. It mostly works, … Continue reading
It’s been a long time coming, but SM Entertainment has finally given us a Red Velvet sub-unit. Apparently, we still have to wait a bit for the music video, as it has yet to be published at the time of writing this review. And if I’m being picky, I really wish the agency could have … Continue reading
SF9’s first full album was a big commercial success back in January, and many readers have recommended its b-sides to me. Rest assured, I listened to the album when it was released and enjoyed almost everything on it. However, no one song stood out as being particularly impactful, which actually describes my feelings around SF9 … Continue reading
Most of the time, a k-pop group’s title track is the best song on their album. But, 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. I had a heck of a time deciding which track on … Continue reading
Most of the time, a k-pop group’s title track is the best song on their album. But, 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. VERIVERY’s new mini album is an interesting study in contrast. You … Continue reading
Over the course of the past few months, Hey! Say! JUMP have become the most musically interesting Johnny’s group. Having been a fan for a while now, this a surprising – and gratifying – transformation. I mean, these are the guys who go around Japan in ridiculous white jumpsuits solving people’s problems. This is the … Continue reading
Just the other day, I was going through my old B1A4 albums and realizing just how much I miss their presence in K-pop. Nobody has taken up their bright, quirky mantle. To be fair, they’re difficult to replicate since so much of their material was self-produced, but when Jinyoung comes back from the military I … Continue reading
Though he was already popular, Zico has enjoyed even greater success this year thanks to his viral Any Song. Personally, I find the “TikTok challenge” nature of that track emblematic of everything wrong with pop music at the moment, but I’ll admit that it’s catchy (if annoying). In a somewhat similar situation, K-pop legend Rain … Continue reading
So… we all agree that VERIVERY should have just released Beautiful-x and called it a day, right? That song harnessed their signature funk appeal without feeling like a step back into more juvenile material. It stood out among all of the darker, more aggressive styles on Road to Kingdom, and felt perfectly suited to the … Continue reading
Is it wrong to want an UP10TION comeback? I understand that Jinhyuk and Wooseok gained popularity through Produce X 101, but I don’t buy either of them as a solo star. Plus, I feel bad for the rest of the group, having to watch as two members suddenly get more promotion than UP10TION has had … Continue reading
Pentagon have been teasing the music video release of their Road to Kingdom track Basquiat (바스키아) for a week now, and all the while I kept thinking ‘these visuals must be stunning because the song itself is kind of a non-starter.’ And yes, the performance video is suitably cinematic, adding image to angst in a … Continue reading
I’m currently watching Nizi Project at the delayed pace that JYP Entertainment is releasing official subtitles, so I’ve pretty much given up hope when it comes to avoiding spoilers. And with debuting group NiziU releasing their first music video today, whatever shred I may have been clinging onto has completely disintegrated. So, I have surrendered. … Continue reading
2020 has been flush with girl group debuts. The problem is, most of them have emerged from smaller companies and fallen under the radar. Weeekly’s debut has been anticipated for some time thanks to various members’ participation in 2018’s MIXNINE. Their song Tag Me (@Me) borrows from the impossibly peppy, upbeat girl group trends of … Continue reading
I wasn’t too enthralled with 3YE’s debut year sound, but February’s Queen hit me unexpectedly hard. I appreciated how it drew from older K-pop elements, largely foregoing trends. That song alone made me anticipate the group’s eventual comeback. For the first time, a 3YE track arrived with expectations. And judging from my initial shoulder shrug … Continue reading
I consider myself very well-versed with the current goings on of the K-pop industry, yet when I kept seeing this name WOODZ come up, I didn’t have a reference point. Then, when his album started selling at impressive numbers, I wondered what I was missing. A quick google search revealed that WOODZ is the current … Continue reading
Despite finding early success thanks to their Produce-fueled notoriety, AB6IX have had a rough go of it. They’ve rarely been able to promote as a full group, sidelined by injury and now scandal. The Answer (답을 줘) marks their first comeback after leader Youngmin permanently withdrew from the group following his DUI. It will take … Continue reading
The year of Mamamoo solos continues, with Hwasa making a long-awaited comeback. She’s a lightning rod of charisma, and sometimes I think her music relies too strongly on that. She can make anything sound cooler than it is, and if paired with the right song could certainly create something legendary. Last year’s Twit nearly got … Continue reading
Sunmi’s comebacks are frustratingly infrequent, and usually involve little more than a digital single. But when she really delivers, the months-long wait is worth it. Pporappippam (보라빛 밤) pairs her once again with producer FRANTS, who has co-composed most of her post-2018 material. The two are a match made in heaven, especially when they draw … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 