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 2022 Overall Thoughts In a paradoxical trend, the average song rating on this blog has … Continue reading
You’d think having more and more idol groups join K-pop’s competitive landscape would result in a greater variety of sounds and perspectives. Strangely, the exact opposite has happened. Looking at the rookie debuts of the past few years, it’s becoming harder and harder to distinguish songs from one another. What makes a Just B different … Continue reading
This was a very uneventful year for K-pop rookies. There were no big agency debuts until Xdinary Heroes a few days ago, leaving 2021 to acts who were more under-the-radar. For me, none of these rookies were consistently excellent. Some released one or two knockout songs, only to follow-up with underwhelming returns. Others are too … 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
Despite not loving the teasers, Just B’s debut song ended up exceeding my expectations. They found a great collaborator in B.A.P’s Yongguk, and seemed to be heading toward a lasting partnership that could develop that all-important “signature sound.” For their first comeback, Yongguk is nowhere to be found, but the agency has enlisted another Bias … 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
A K-pop group’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. Just B’s Damage does a lot … 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. June 2021 Overall Thoughts So far, the rule of 2021 seems to be “expect the unexpected.” … Continue reading
Like many newly-debuted groups, Just B boasts a line-up of familiar faces. Its members have established some notoriety through variety programs I-LAND (Geonu, JM), Under 19 (Bain, DY) and The Fan (Lim Jimin). Given this built-in fan base, their debut arrives with heightened expectation. And with word that title track Damage would be co-produced by … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 