Riize’s Get A Guitar has proven to be a huge sleeper hit for me, alongside their very solid pre-debut track Memories. This one-two punch shot anticipation sky high for their follow-up, so when I saw the silly punnery of “Talk Saxy” coupled with the tease of an irritating Jason Derulo style sax loop, I couldn’t … Continue reading
Early visual teasers of LE SSERAFIM’s special Overwatch 2 single Perfect Night had me excited. Their 80’s aesthetic seemed to portend a concept change — maybe a successor to fellow retro girl group tracks La Di Da or I Can’t Stop Me? I mean, isn’t it time the HYBE girls turned up the synths and … Continue reading
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. I’m about to contradict myself… In … Continue reading
It feels like ages since we last heard from GHOST9. After a very promising 2020 debut, the group has swerved from sound to sound — some more successful than others. But after an appearance on this spring’s Peak Time, the guys are back with a new album. Title track Ruckus is yet another transformation for … Continue reading
Jessi can always be counted on for a fun, colorful rap track — no matter the agency she’s signed with. Gum is her first work since leaving P Nation and signing with Jay Park’s More Vision, but you’d never know it from listening to the track. Gum is everything you’d expect from Jessi: energetic, a … Continue reading
The idea of a K-pop debut gets more muddled by the year, with pre-releases and pre-debut tracks quite common these days. G.O.A.T doesn’t even bill itself as a proper music video, though it’s the first full taste of upcoming group ONE PACT. These guys have a lot of goodwill behind them, with every member participating … Continue reading
Proving they can (barely) walk and chew gum at the same time, Woollim Entertainment has released a special digital single from Kwon Eunbi during the lead-up to Golden Child’s latest comeback. Longtime fans of the agency will know how rare this double whammy is for the agency! Kwon Eunbi is enjoying renewed attention this year, … Continue reading
Two years ago, Victon’s Do Hanse released an underrated highlight with his brash Take Over. I’ve been patiently waiting for him to make a solo return, and was excited to see him paired up with swaggering soloist BIGONE on a rock track. Be careful what you wish for I guess, because Gummy Bear is more … Continue reading
About a month after pre-release BYOB (Bring Your Own Best Friend), Billlie are back with title track DANG! (Hocus Pocus). That’s a lot of parenthesis! This one-two shot further establishes them as a quirky group who exist just outside the mainstream. DANG! enlists songwriters Daniel Caesar and Ludwig Lindell among its team of four, and … Continue reading
Seventeen have yet again broken pre-order records for their new album. It’s astonishing how much of a global juggernaut they’ve become, especially considering Pledis Entertainment’s dire straights when they first debuted. This success calls for a victory lap, and new single God Of Music (음악의 신) is happy to oblige. I love the ambition in … Continue reading
Whether with protégés Ryugujo or her own band Queen Bee, I’ve fallen in love with Avu-chan’s songwriting. It’s fierce and cathartic — the perfect vehicle for a vocal that’s often combative and raw. Queen Bee’s music runs the genre gamut, but straight-ahead rock is a particularly satisfying match for the band’s charm. The excellent Violence … Continue reading
Over the years, it’s become clear that the members of EXO have different musical taste than I do. For a group who has released so many K-pop classics, I haven’t connected to hardly any of their solo work. So often, the music takes a subdued, coffeehouse vibe — whether that be in the form of … Continue reading
I spend a lot of time (probably too much!) complaining about the things that annoy me when it comes to K-pop agencies, but in YG Entertainment’s case I’ve always loved how they’ll occasionally extend an album’s life cycle by promoting a song months after its release. B.O.M.B comes from Treasure’s summer project Reboot, appearing late … Continue reading
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. Last week, Just B quietly released … Continue reading
I know it’s a placeholder, but “NCT New Team” is still weirdly literal for a group name. These six members form the long-teased Japanese unit of NCT — apparently the project’s final fixed unit. They’re scheduled to debut next year, but Hands Up offers a pre-release tease of what to expect. Fans of the NCT … Continue reading
You may have noticed my hesitancy to feature virtual or animated acts on the blog. In my mind, a company’s focus on this technology only steers them further from putting effort into the songs themselves. Maybe I’m self-flagellating by continuing to approach K-pop for the music. After all, the industry has transformed into a true … Continue reading
I can’t even process Kingdom’s Coup D’Etat without remembering the classic G-Dragon album of the same name. I also get a little self conscious because I can never remember where to place the apostrophe in “D’Etat”. Yes, this is the level of stumbling block I push through to deliver song reviews on the daily. Poor … Continue reading
After pre-releasing the pleasant Underwater last week, Chuu has returned with her official solo debut. Howl leads her new album with a pulsing electro beat that compliments her clear, pleasant voice. I hadn’t been keeping up with song teasers, so its gradual transformation surprised me on first listen. What begins as a wistful ballad gains … Continue reading
Every once and awhile, we get a song so ridiculous and so misguided that I wonder if we’ve gone past ‘traditional K-pop release’ and moved right into parody. If you told me Macaroni Cheese was part of some SNL skit lampooning the K-pop industry, the track would make much more sense. But no, this is … Continue reading
YOUNITE have struggled to match the pure funk of their pre-debut single, pinballing between genres to no avail. They’ve settled on this light, airy pop sound that’s quite innocuous, and new track Love It (정했어) perfectly illustrates the limitations of this style. In short, writing about Love It is like reviewing air. Every time I … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 