As I mentioned during yesterday’s monthly K-pop round-up, the past two months haven’t been exactly thrilling when it comes to K-pop. So, I’ve taken the time to dive back into some old J-pop favorites and discover some artists I’d never listened to before. I tend to embark on these deep J-pop dives each winter as … 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 2023 Overall Thoughts For the second month in a row, I couldn’t really find any … Continue reading
One of my hopes for 2023 is a Korean comeback from TVXQ that honors the legacy of their best work. We’ll see if SM Entertainment has that in them, but until then we have a new Japanese single from the legendary duo. Parallel Parallel arrives five months after last year’s Utsuroi and ups the tempo … Continue reading
I’ve decided to kick off a new feature! In “Albums You Must Hear,” I plan to spotlight underrated albums that I think deserve a wider audience. I anticipate these will mostly be J-pop since almost all K-pop albums now enjoy a wide global reach. I’ll try to feature albums that are easily available on streaming … Continue reading
If I were to chart my listening habits over the past month or so, it would look something like: 80% J-pop, 10% Finnish pop (!), 5% American pop and 5% K-pop. Pretty strange for a K-pop blogger, right? That’s a testament to just how stalled the industry has become since November. It’s no surprise, then, … Continue reading
I woke up today resigned to the fact I’d be writing about yet another K-pop song from twelve years ago. It turns out, it’s quite challenging to run a K-pop review blog without new K-pop releases! But, Bias List favorites OnlyOneOf have swooped in to save the day, unveiling their new Japanese single Chrome Arts … Continue reading
The Bias List is a K-pop blog that also covers a fair amount of J-pop. But along with most music fans, I enjoy tracks from all around the world. So, I thought I’d start a monthly round-up of some of the non-K-pop songs that have caught my ear. No ratings — just highlights! After a … Continue reading
As the brightest and most pop-informed act in Exile Tribe, Fantastics were always going to appeal to me. But over the years, they’ve gone on to become one my favorite groups of any genre. Because of this, I want to take some time to run down my favorite singles from their career so far. If … Continue reading
After a very strong debut year, SixTONES’ musical direction has become quite hit or miss for me. I loved the big rock sound of tracks like New Era and ST and consider them the best overall template for the group’s sound. But, those songs seem to have been left in the past. Since then, I … 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 2022 Overall Thoughts December is historically a very slow month in K-pop, but every once … Continue reading
The dust has hardly settled on my “Top J-Pop songs of 2022” list and we’ve already got a contender for next year’s countdown! Violence arrives courtesy of rock group Queen Bee, who released their first work over a decade ago. I fully intend to explore their back catalog because – if it’s anything like this … Continue reading
Today is J-pop day on The Bias List and I’m counting down my eighty favorite songs of the year! Now that you’ve had a chance to check out songs 80 to 11, it’s time for the best of the best — my absolute favorite J-pop tracks of 2022. This year, it’s a great blend of … Continue reading
Today is J-pop day on The Bias List and I’m counting down my eighty favorite songs of the year! You’ll want to start with the honorable mentions, but this post will cover songs 30 to 11. HONORABLE MENTIONS SONGS 50-31 SONGS 30-11 SONGS 10-1 2022 YEAR-END MASTERPOST 30. Johnny’s West – Susumu Shikanee Johnny’s West … Continue reading
Today is J-pop day on The Bias List! I’m dropping eighty of my favorite songs from 2022 in one day. You may want to check out the honorable mentions first, but if you’re looking to dive into the proper countdown at once, you’ve found the right spot! Here are songs 50 to 31, presented with … Continue reading
Before I count down my top 50 J-pop songs of the year, I thought I’d blast you with a bunch of honorable mentions. J-pop can be notoriously difficult to find if you’re not already an active fan, and I figured readers who share my particular taste in music might appreciate having some extra recommendations. These … Continue reading
This post is your one-stop shop for all my end-of-year countdowns. It will be stickied to the top of the blog for the remainder of the year. Check back often for new links to new countdowns, and make sure you check out past years’ masterposts if you’re interested! Top 50 K-Pop Songs >> 50-41, 40-31, … Continue reading
8LOOM is a fictional idol group starring in TBS’s fall drama “Kimi no Hana ni Naru” (“I Will Be Your Bloom”). I recommend watching if you like cheesy teen dramas with an idol group at the center (spoiler alert: I do). Though 8LOOM is a temporary project to promote the drama, they’ve been releasing music … Continue reading
Longtime readers of The Bias List will know how stingy I am when it comes to rating songs nine and above. But, there’s plenty of music that qualifies. In fact, I’ve got a playlist of over 600 of them sitting in my iTunes. The vast majority of these are singles or title tracks, but there … Continue reading
HYBE’s first Japanese boy group releases their debut album this week. I wasn’t very impressed with &TEAM’s Under The Skin, though in hindsight I was probably a little hard on it. To me, the song felt too much like reheated leftovers from the agency’s other acts. But, the groovier teasers for Scent Of You seemed … Continue reading
I thought we might finally be getting somewhere with INI. Despite a clunky single, the b-sides to this summer’s Password showed a ton of potential. Then, the group teamed with rock band Wanimana for the excellent Hero. I have a huge soft spot for INI. They’re immensely talented. They work with talented producers. They’ve got … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 