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
Tag Archives: cube
Song Review: LIGHTSUM – Alive
With (G)I-DLE riding high on the charts, Cube Entertainment has devoted much of their attention to them. But, the agency has another group waiting in the wings. LIGHTSUM debuted last year with the fun Vanilla before shifting toward slightly more generic sounds with follow-up Vivace last October. Since then, we haven’t heard much from the … Continue reading
Song Review: Miyeon ((G)I-DLE) – Drive
K-pop hasn’t always had precedent for girl group members going solo – especially while their group is still actively promoting. But, Cube Entertainment has done a nice job establishing the individual talents of (G)I-DLE. In fact, I prefer some of their solo efforts to their group work. Next on the docket is main vocal Miyeon, … Continue reading
Battle of the B-Sides: Girls’ Generation, Epik High, G.Soul, (G)I-DLE, DAY6
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
Song Review: (G)I-DLE – Tomboy
With K-pop’s “girl crush” sound and concept omnipresent over the past few years, it’s become abundantly clear which groups can pull it off and which feel less authentic. I wouldn’t call (G)I-DLE’s debut era “girl crush,” but their edgier energy certainly helped lay the groundwork. They’ve made their name on self-produced shots of calculated attitude. … Continue reading
Buried Treasure: BTOB – Higher
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. BTOB’s new album is strange in … Continue reading
Song Review: BTOB – The Song
With their new album Be Together, BTOB join the ranks of post-enlistment boy groups. Not every act makes it to this point, with all current members back together after years of service. The album also follows last year’s Kingdom competition, where members Eunkwang, Minhyuk, Changsub, and Peniel showcased the group’s range and versatility. With that … Continue reading
Battle of the B-Sides: Everglow, KARD, Han Seungwoo, SHINee, Pentagon
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
Battle of the B-Sides: SF9, BTOB, Yuri, Seventeen, TRCNG
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
Battle of the B-Sides: Pentagon, BoA, GOT7, Baekhyun, BTOB
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
Battle of the B-Sides: A.C.E, 4minute, DAY6, Click-B, LOONA Odd Eye Circle
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
Buried Treasure: Pentagon – Call My Name
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. Surprisingly, the bulk of Pentagon’s new … Continue reading
Song Review: Pentagon – Feelin’ Like
Global music trends are currently in my favor, as sounds shift in directions I tend to enjoy. As always, K-pop is catching up to deliver a wealth of rhythmic, retro-themed tracks. By any measure, I should be jumping up and down and proclaiming this a golden age for the industry. Yet when it comes to … Continue reading
The Top 50 K-Pop Songs of 2021 (Day Four: 20-11)
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
Grading the K-Pop Agencies 2021: Part One (Brand New, Cube, DSP, Fantagio, FNC, IST, Jellyfish)
Disclaimer: As with my write-ups on K-Pop’s biggest agencies, this is written from an outsider’s perspective. I’m not privy to any business-related financial information beyond what any other fan would know. The purpose of these articles is to examine how well these agencies are serving their artists and the general K-pop fan-base. If you’re curious … Continue reading
Battle of the B-Sides: SHINee, Miss A, Girls’ Generation, BTOB, SF9
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
Battle of the B-Sides: Turbo, Teen Top, Beast, AKMU, GFriend
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
The Top Three K-Pop Songs of October 2021
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 2021 Overall Thoughts When I averaged all my song ratings of October, I was surprised … Continue reading
Song Review: LIGHTSUM – Vivace
LIGHTSUM’s spring debut showed promise, but it’s hard to predict the future of a group based upon a single song. First comebacks are equally important for a rookies, and often give a clearer indication which direction their sound will take. If Vivace is any indication, LIGHTSUM are aiming for the vacancy left by IZ*ONE. When … Continue reading
Battle of the B-Sides: Boyfriend, JYP, Bobby, Block B, Beast
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