Throughout their career, The Boyz’ music has moved between bright, funky pop and darker material. It should surprise no reader of this site which sound I prefer. Like Seventeen, this group is at their best when they embrace big, shiny hooks and unflagging energy. But with international fame knocking on the door, the temptation to … Continue reading
If I have one complaint about Sunmi’s music, it’s that she doesn’t release enough of it. She delivered a grand total of two songs last year, despite previewing new material on her international tour. Hell, at this point BLACKPINK has released more music over the past few years, and that’s a very low bar to … Continue reading
Girl group BVNDIT spent their debut year releasing trendy music that didn’t reinvent the wheel. Though polished and well-performed, I felt like all of their singles suffered from the same generic template. They weren’t offering anything I couldn’t get elsewhere. Now, the girls are first up for their agency’s digital project New.wav, which aims to … Continue reading
Its not too often that an idol group loses their leader and their main songwriter in one fell swoop. But, this is the reality that iKON now faces after B.I departed the group last year. It’s hard to imagine what iKON would sound like without B.I’s influence, and we don’t have to just yet. Their … Continue reading
For as popular as LOONA have become internationally, their agency has had a difficult time capitalizing on the hype. Sure, the girls attended last year’s KCON LA, but they’ve gone almost a year without a proper comeback. And though the lore surrounding their concept has been detailed and consistent, their title tracks have varied wildly … Continue reading
Though there is a version of their name in Hangul, I feel sorry for any international fans trying to search up information about new girl group Episode. Typing “Episode K-pop” into any search engine is going to give you way more random information than you asked for. But listening to their single Open My Door … 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. Judging purely by Labyrinth, I’m ready to make the bold statement … Continue reading
Brave Sound’s new boy group has been teased for some time, but now DKB are officially upon us. Unlike last year, 2020 hasn’t seen all that many notable debuts so far. Brave Brothers’ cache isn’t what it once was, but he’s still a producer with name recognition who can churn out reliably solid hits. Debut … Continue reading
Last year, rookie group Good Day sat atop my list of new K-pop acts with the longest hiatuses, and their endless break turned out to be their death knell. But, like a phoenix from the ashes, the group has been reconfigured as Cignature, consisting of five of the former Good Day members plus two new … Continue reading
Everglow quickly emerged as one of last year’s most popular rookie groups, harnessing a BLACKPINK-like style that opts for edgy beat drops over chirpy aegyo. While I appreciate the concept, neither of their 2019 singles connected with me as strongly as I would’ve liked. Both felt more like catchphrases in search of a song than … Continue reading
In only a couple of years, GFriend went from being my favorite active girl group to a hit-or-miss prospect whose album tracks are often better than their singles. As usual, this shift came with a change in producers. The group abandoned their “powerful innocence” sound – courtesy of composers Seo Youngbae and Iggy – for … 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. Golden Child’s Re-boot was my favorite K-pop album of 2019, and … Continue reading
BTS often previews new albums with the release of intro or outro tracks. This current era kicked off last month with Suga’s Shadow, which felt too short to write a full review on. It painted a dark, angstier style that honestly gave me pause. I was a huge fan of the group’s 2019 Persona release, … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I look back at my three favorite title tracks by K-pop artists. I take my own ratings into account, but there’s a bit of wiggle room as certain songs tend to grow or fade. January 2020 Overall Thoughts What a K-pop wasteland this January was. The new decade kicked off … Continue reading
By all accounts, I should be obsessed with IZ by now. They’ve collaborated with producers Sweetune for their last three singles, and continue to do so with new release The Day. Yet, none of these songs have connected very strongly with me, and none sound much like what I’d expect from Sweetune. Maybe it’s the … Continue reading
When we last heard from Yezi, she was forging incantations into hip-hop magic with the addictive, experimental Anck Su Namun. It’s hard to believe that it’s already been two-and-a-half years since the release of that song. Entire idol group careers have blossomed and fizzled out in less time than this hiatus. Since 2017, Yezi’s been … Continue reading
Dreamcatcher are currently working on new material, and main vocalist Siyeon’s first solo release arrives as a nice treat to tide fans over. She gained attention last year through vocal competition series V-1, but if you have even the slightest familiarity with Dreamcatcher, you’re going to recognize her voice. Her powerful performance provides the backbone … Continue reading
Though blockbuster sales and world domination remained elusive, Golden Child’s Wannabe expanded the group’s international appeal and earned them their first music show win. For repackaged single Without You, they’ve once again paired with composer BLSSD — one half of Woollim Entertainment in-house production team Rphabet. In a bid to court fans of moody, BTS-style … Continue reading
Though far from their only hit, Sechs Kies’ 1998 single Couple has become their most enduring classic. It’s the kind of light, melodic boy band fare that would often be played on adult contemporary stations here in the States. These kind of songs tend to have lasting appeal because they aren’t edgy or divisive enough … Continue reading
Super Junior are at the stage of their career where they can get away with anything they want, musically. And in the case of repackaged single 2YA2YAO! (it’s a mildly amusing pun in Korean), that means teaming up with Block B’s Zico for an uncharacteristic hip-hop track. In a happy bit of happenstance, Zico himself … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 