At the end of each month, I compile my top three K-pop title tracks and list a ton of honorable mentions. In 2025, I thought I’d try something new and add a weekly feature to supplement my monthly round-up. Each Sunday, I’ll offer a compendium of the week’s new releases featured on the blog. And … Continue reading
After a series of survival series, BAE173 are trying to make a comeback in the most classic sense, reestablishing the buzz they had upon debut with a new album and series of promotional tracks. Title track Turned Up has been available for a week now, along with (most of?) the album for some reason. I’m … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I compile my top three K-pop title tracks and list a ton of honorable mentions. In 2025, I thought I’d try something new and add a weekly feature to supplement my monthly round-up. Each Sunday, I’ll offer a compendium of the week’s new releases featured on the blog. And … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I compile my top three K-pop title tracks and list a ton of honorable mentions. In 2025, I thought I’d try something new and add a weekly feature to supplement my monthly round-up. Each Sunday, I’ll offer a compendium of the week’s new releases featured on the blog. And … Continue reading
Like so many other groups of their era, the members of BAE173 have tried to gain traction by participating on survival series. Most notably, that resulted in member Minwook re-debuting as the leader of Close Your Eyes, taking him away from the group. Now, the rest of BAE173 are back with a pre-release for their … Continue reading
With two members of BAE173 currently participating in other survival series spawned groups, the rest of the members have joined forces with Fantasy Boys (another survival series act) to form project group Double 0ne. In a perfect world, this would “maximize their joint slay,” but despite each group releasing a few tracks I really enjoy, … 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. March 2024 Overall Thoughts Okay, this year’s already a little weird. We kicked off with an … Continue reading
Rather than contain my “Risers and Fallers” feature to a single post in June, I’m going to share a bite-sized version at the end of each month. This will let me account for more songs and make a nice lead-in to the monthly round-up post. I anticipate most of these ratings adjustments will be negligible: … Continue reading
Since their late-2020 debut, BAE173 have cycled through various boy group tropes — some more successful than others. To me, they’re at their best when revisiting an overwrought, emotional second-gen sound. Tracks like Annoyed and Loved You give them their own niche in the current K-pop landscape, albeit one that’s borrowed from fifteen years ago. … Continue reading
I spend the whole year plucking “buried treasures” from K-pop’s vast slate of albums, and now it’s time for those b-sides to have their own countdown! As usual, some of 2022’s strongest music was never promoted with a glossy video or music show blitz. Over the next two days, I’ll be counting down my forty … Continue reading
A few days ago, BAE173’s debut single Crush On U came on random shuffle. I forgot what a jam that song is. But more than anything, it made me marvel at how much the group’s sound has changed since 2020. With member Nam Dohyun now in charge of production, the guys have moved sharply into … 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. File BAE173’s Annoyed (짜증나게) under: obvious … Continue reading
Despite their rookie status, BAE173 haven’t released much music. We last heard from them nearly a year ago, when they delivered the anthemic Loved You. That song wasn’t perfect, but it had a classic touch and melodic though-line that made it stand out. With new single Jaws, the group has switched gears dramatically, opting for … Continue reading
The end of the year countdowns are finally here! As always, we’ll kick off with the big one: The Bias List’s top 50 songs of the year! Each day this week, I’ll be counting down ten of the year’s best, until number one is revealed on Friday. To be eligible for this top 50 list, … Continue reading
A review is just a snapshot in time, and sometimes I end up regretting the way I rated a song. There are so many factors that influence the longevity of K-pop. Familiarity, album context, live performances and cultural saturation can all boost or sink a song’s fortune. I run this feature during the mid-point of … 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. April 2021 Overall Thoughts 2021 continues to be a strong year for K-pop. When it comes … Continue reading
BAE173 debuted late last year with the fun funk pop of Crush On U. Like almost every boy group in K-pop history, darker, edgier waters surely lie before them. You can already feel a bit of that “maturity” poking through on new single Loved You (사랑했다). But, if the guys are going to bring 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. November 2020 Overall Thoughts November was absolutely packed with releases, and though only one title track … Continue reading
BAE173 brings together X1/H&D’s Dohyun and Hangyul with seven other members for PocketDol Studio’s first boy group. It seems as if the agency has thrown a big budget and plenty of attention behind these guys, so it will be interesting to see how they fare within a stuffed K-pop market. At the very least, it’s … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 