So much of K-pop is about style, but some groups put extra effort into establishing their aesthetics and lore. This approach paid off for girl group LOONA, and now their creative director Jaden Jeong has set his sights on OnlyOneOf. I can’t say the group’s music has done much for me so far, but the … 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. October 2019 Overall Thoughts Well, friends, we have finally climbed out of the murk! October was … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with EXO’s A-Z reviews here! Love Me Right (from Love Me Right – 2015) Released at the height of EXO’s funk-pop era, Love Me Right is a dynamo of a comeback. Right from the start, the instrumental deposits us into the groove, like a warp portal to … Continue reading
Over the past few years, my connection to GFriend’s music has started to fracture. From 2015 to 2017, they released some of my absolute favorite K-pop songs in recent memory, culminating in the flawless trilogy of Rough, Navillera and Fingertip. Since then, the group has lost too much of the power from their “powerful innocence” … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with EXO’s A-Z reviews here! Lights Out (from Universe – 2017) Ending EXO’s 2017 winter album in theatrical fashion, Lights Out is as close to a torch song as the group has given us. Its impassioned melody rises and falls over a piano instrumental. Lights Out is … Continue reading
Like too many other groups this month, rookies We In The Zone are down a member for their first comeback. So, in a way Loveade represents a fresh start. The group received some fan love this May with their debut, but are definitely in need of a boost when it comes to attention from the … Continue reading
Last year, Yubin was at the forefront of K-pop’s city pop revival, releasing a pair of retro songs that found a small – but passionate – audience. Before the unveiling of new single Silent Movie (무성영화), she hinted that the song would take a more subdued approach. If you’re anything like me, “subdued” is not … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with EXO’s A-Z reviews here! Let Out The Beast (from XOXO / Growl – 2013) Let Out The Beast is the kind of track that screams “dance performance.” Built around a high-energy r&b beat with tense strings and insistent chirps of synth, Beast is as much a … Continue reading
Voting controversies or not, the Produce 101 juggernaut rolls on with the debut of yet another special rookie unit. BDC hail from Brand New Music, putting them in a bit of a predicament. The agency just debuted boy group AB6IX this year to great success. History dictates that it’ll be awhile before they’re ready to … Continue reading
More than any other year so far, 2019 has seen SM Entertainment’s NCT project expand its tentacles toward foreign markets. Chief among these initiatives is WayV, the Chinese branch of the NCT Universe. C-pop has its own musical preferences, but WayV’s discography has acted as a pretty seamless extension of SM’s Korean work. This proved … Continue reading
This May, A.C.E released one of 2019’s most thrilling title tracks: the rock-tinged, attitude-driven Under Cover. The guys seemed to have found their niche, taking the intensity of their debut-era material and fusing it to a complex, inventive instrumental. Their new release Savage (삐딱선) proves why I’m so adamant about idol groups finding the right … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with EXO’s A-Z reviews here! Lady Luck (from Exodus / Love Me Right – 2015) Opening with distorted vocals that sound like the pop song version of blowing a raspberry, Lady Luck retains this unconventional bass even as additional elements are added to the instrumental. Its production … Continue reading
Brown Eyed Girls’ covers album Re:Vive is largely a down-tempo affair, tackling many old Korean ballads and reinventing them with the girls’ unique performance style. This is an interesting approach, and one that is sure to polarize. Brown Eyed Girls are at their best when pushing boundaries, and nothing about their choice of covers seems … Continue reading
Most of the world’s music industries were built on song covers, launching artists with performances of what many would consider standards. Covers (and cover albums) have lost their popularity in the digital era, but Brown Eyed Girls have tackled this approach for their new release, Re:Vive. It’s been a long four years since the group’s … Continue reading
Never one to miss an opportunity, Monsta X have been releasing a non-stop stream of music over the past several years. Between Korea, Japan and America, they’ve got to be one of the most prolific artists of this generation. Though it’s been over eight months since their last Korean album, the wait hasn’t seemed nearly … Continue reading
It’s been over two years since Taeyeon’s last full-length album, and in that time her discography has grown in drips and drabs — a holiday album here, a Japanese mini album there. Judging from her concerts, she’s been sitting on a lot of her new material for awhile, making the release of Purpose highly anticipated. … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with EXO’s A-Z reviews here! Into My World (from Countdown – 2018) Taken from EXO’s excellent Japanese album, Into My World feels like the soundtrack to some neon-hued sci-fi epic. Its electronic backbone pulses loud and proud, giving the track an immense energy. The production even throws … Continue reading
Though TVXQ are one of my all-time favorite K-pop acts, most of their post-enlistment music hasn’t hit me in the same way as their classic material. However, new Japanese album XV is a strong collection of work, touching on many of the aspects that have made them such a musical force. The guys seem to … 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 wasn’t all that enamored with DAY6’s latest title track, but … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with EXO’s A-Z reviews here! Hurt (from Exodus / Love Me Right – 2015) Even when EXO tracks brood, they usually do so over an interesting hodgepodge of instrumental elements. Hurt perches itself atop an aggressive stomp and sweeping, distorted synth. It opens like a dark carnival … Continue reading
