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. February 2023 Overall Thoughts I hate to say it, but my interest in K-pop is kind … 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. Key improved an already-solid album with … Continue reading
It’s been a long ninety days since a K-pop song – title track or otherwise – scored a “9” or higher on this blog. That’s a new Bias List record, if you’re wondering! I’ve often joked that 2023 hasn’t actually started yet, but now we can put that critique to rest. Leave it to SHINee’s … 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
Compared to 2021, this year definitely felt weaker when it comes to albums. Mini albums faired better than full-lengths, but apart from a few mega-standouts, most K-pop releases took a piecemeal approach to their music — too often stuffing tracklists with a horde of different producers rather than settling on one unique vision. Like usual, … 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
The end of the year on The Bias List always feels like the K-pop Olympics. I spend 365 days writing about every major (and most minor) releases, and it all culminates in a weeks-long celebration of great music. Yes, there was great music in 2022. We also had to wade through a boatload of not-so-great … Continue reading
This feature has gradually shifted from a December to a November tradition, leaving more space for next month’s sprawling end-of-year countdowns. Over the next few weeks, I’ll be looking at many of K-pop’s biggest agencies and offering my thoughts about how their 2022 went. First up is SM Entertainment. As usual, the thoughts are my … 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
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. Key never delivers a bad album. … 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. August 2022 Overall Thoughts Too often this year, my monthly round-ups have been… kind of a … Continue reading
After nearly a year’s hiatus, Key has returned with a new album. He pre-released the fantastic Another Life next week, which harnessed the synth-powered style that made Bad Love such a triumph. Title track Gasoline opts for a different sound, raiding the SM vaults to craft the kind of maximalist stomper artists like TVXQ used … Continue reading
Key’s Another Life was first revealed almost a year ago during the live stream of his Groks in the Keyland concert. Now it’s finally found a home on his upcoming album, and although the video is taken straight from the concert interstitial, I’m going to call it a pre-release because I want to write about … Continue reading
I didn’t plan on making this post, but as I wrapped up the last of my K-pop specific countdowns for this year, I realized it would be fun to compile them together and see which overall comebacks came out on top. After all, a K-pop comeback is more than just the title song. So, I … Continue reading
You simply can’t have a great K-pop comeback without eye-catching choreography. With each passing year, it’s become more vital to the industry. Dance routines are excellent for a variety of reasons, ranging from intricate “how did they do that?!?” moments to simple point moves that become trendy touchstones. This list covers both of these extremes … Continue reading
While I don’t incorporate a song’s video into the reviews on this blog, I’m definitely not immune to a striking visual. Music videos are a vital part of the industry, and it’s time to celebrate my favorites of 2021. 2021 YEAR-END MASTERPOST Honorable Mentions: ONEWE – Rain To Be U-Know – Thank U Kingdom – … Continue reading
After the borefest that was KBS’s Song Festival, I wasn’t really in the mood to see what SBS had to offer. But, the cheesy-fun introductory stage, where all the artists joined together to sing Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas Is You, turned my frown upside down. We haven’t gotten many chances to see … Continue reading
Each year, it feels like my B-Sides and Album Tracks list grows stronger and stronger. Too often, K-pop agencies miss the boat on releasing these incredible songs as title tracks. 2021 was no different, revealing a host of gems that would have topped my Singles list had they been promoted. Instead, I’ve got two days … Continue reading
2021 offered quite a few strong albums, enough for both of my categories to include numerous honorable mentions. Full albums were especially great this year — a trend I hope to see continue in 2022. Like usual, my top ten list is cut in half, presenting the top five mini albums and the top five … 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
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 