K-pop is littered with acts who – for one reason or another – didn’t get the full spotlight they deserved. I’ve spent plenty of time ranking and reviewed the industry’s biggest artists, but these underrated acts should never be forgotten. This feature will take a look at disbanded groups and rank/rate their entire singles run, … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! Water Flower (from LOL – 2016) Right from the start, Water Flower’s live band sound captures my attention. It’s not a production style GFriend used often, but it fits them like a glove and adds a ton of oomph to this song. … Continue reading
K-pop idols thrive on building a steady, dedicated fan base. This is most often accomplished by a constant stream of releases and deluge of content. But within the vast K-pop industry, there are more than a few “one hit wonders” – acts who release one single or album and are scarcely heard from again. It’s … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! Wanna Be (from What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim OST – 2018) I’m surprised that GFriend didn’t record more OST songs, especially early in their career. Their light, melodic sound matches dramas well – especially romantic comedies. Wanna Be is pretty effortless in … Continue reading
K-pop’s title tracks might gain most of listeners’ attention, but many album tracks are worth equal spotlight. I call these “buried treasures.” Beyond this, K-pop’s albums deliver thousands of additional tracks that settle for a more limited audience. It’s these songs that will become a part of my “battle of the b-sides” feature. In this … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! Vacation (from Sunny Summer – 2018) Songs with titles like “Vacation” tend to be fun since they’re seeking to replicate the joy and excitement of being away from home and normal responsibilities. This Vacation equates itself well, though it’s pretty much exactly … Continue reading
Happy 2025! As we transition to a new year, it’s Bias List tradition to unveil some wishes I have for K-pop going forward. There’s a fair amount of overlap between this year’s and last year’s resolutions, even though I write these before looking back at 2024’s post. Readers, make sure to chime in in the … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! Under The Sky (from Flower Bud – 2015) Under The Sky is a fantastic example of how charming GFriend’s early music could be. It’s delicate in sound but muscular in execution, tying symphonic elements to bounding percussion and electric guitar. It’s also … 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. December 2024 Overall Thoughts Oh gosh, what a month for South Korea. December started with martial … Continue reading
I’ll be making my 2025 K-pop resolutions tomorrow, but before I put that energy into the universe I’d like to rewind to last year’s wishes and see how 2024 did. Spoiler: 2024 did terribly. 1. Less Sing-Talk and More MELODY “Of all my resolutions, this is the biggest one. Can you tell by the fact … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! Trust (from Snowflake – 2016) Even GFriend’s strongest albums are not devoid of their sappy ballads. Sappy ballads are a tried and true formula in K-pop and the sentimental, nostalgic side of me doesn’t mind them at all – especially as album … Continue reading
Just like last year, I wanted to share my top twenty most-viewed posts for 2024. I find this list an interesting gauge of who is popular (at least among netizens who read reviews). The most obvious takeaway from this list is the utter dominance of girl groups. Seriously, there’s only one boy group in the … Continue reading
n.SSign’s Love Potion will most certainly be the final K-pop title track released in 2024, and given Korea’s current state of mourning I’m a bit surprised it was released at all. Earlier this year, n.SSign blitzed the market with several promoted tracks from their last album. And more recently, they busted out a killer cover … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! Truly Love (from Time For Us – 2019) There are a handful of GFriend tracks that completely passed me by. I mean, according to my iTunes stats I’ve listened to Truly Love a few times but if you were to present me … Continue reading
In connection with my desire to fully keep up with the J-pop industry, I’m planning to do a weekly round-up of any new releases that have caught my ear. Some of these may have been covered on the blog already, but my hope is that this will become a one-stop shop for anyone interested in … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! Time For The Moon Night (from Time For The Moon Night – 2018) Previous Thoughts: “The track pulls in those lush orchestral elements we’ve been missing since 2016’s superior Rough, drenching the instrumental in layers of strings. I just wish that much … Continue reading
This was an off year for dramas for me. I started so many yet finished so few. Still, there were a handful that I loved so I wanted to keep this countdown going even in a less bountiful year. Hopefully there will be more to look forward to in 2025! Rather than post my usual … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! Tik Tik (from Time For The Moon Night – 2018) This is just a bright, uncomplicated pop song that works extremely well. The chorus is the best part, capturing some of the propulsive energy that made GFriend’s debut era so rewarding. The … Continue reading
Though The Bias List is first and foremost a K-pop review blog, each month I spotlight a handful of “global pop” tracks that have taken hold of my playlist. To cap off the year, I’d like to count down my top tracks that weren’t part of the K-pop or J-pop markets. This was a weird … Continue reading
Though The Bias List is first and foremost a K-pop review blog, each month I spotlight a handful of “global pop” tracks that have taken hold of my playlist. To cap off the year, I’d like to count down my top tracks that weren’t part of the K-pop or J-pop markets. This was a weird … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 