It’s been a while since we had a song from SM’s NCT Lab project. So far, this showcase has given us a Mark Lee solo and a dance unit. Now, it’s time to focus on the group’s vocalists. Rain Day brings together Taeil, Kun and Yangyang for a mid-tempo designed for laid-back summer days. NCT’s … Continue reading
The Bias List launched at the beginning of 2016, making that year’s song countdown the first I published in any meaningful way. I’ve since gone back to look at 2015, 2013 and 2012 (hmmm… I guess I need to fill the holes that are left…). Now that it’s been almost six years, I thought it … 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
Lately, I’ve been thinking about the first few years of NCT. How exciting they were! The project felt like an excuse for SM Entertainment to throw everything at the wall. They weren’t confined by genre, members or concepts. But somewhere along the line, the NCT brand became less about trying something new and more about … 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 2021 Overall Thoughts After spending the past few weeks counting down everything under the sun … Continue reading
With barely a moment to take a breath since their release as NCT 127, the NCT guys are back for their latest full-group project. NCT 2021 promises another round of mix-and-match sub-units, though the teasers so far suggest no real change in sound or style. Title track Universe (Let’s Play Ball) brings together Doyoung, Jungwoo, … 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 2021 Overall Thoughts When it comes to new music, I often mention the “expectations game.” … Continue reading
Though he may not receive the same level of attention as other production teams, Ryan Jhun has been a K-pop architect for over a decade now. His touch can be found in many modern classics (View, Love Me Right, Dumb Dumb, Lucifer, My First And Last, Baby Don’t Stop etc etc etc) and his name … Continue reading
I think it’s obvious that I love a good statistic. In addition to my core rating system, I’ve got my top three songs of each month, my yearly countdowns and more data breakdowns than anyone could ask for. None of these are perfect ways to categorize or quantify something as subjective as music, but they … Continue reading
Well… 2020 was certainly different, wasn’t it? It was a year where the industry couldn’t function as usual, but that didn’t stop K-pop from churning out more music than ever. It was a year of unprecedented international success and rising album sales — just as most other music markets struggled to move physical product. It … Continue reading
The theme of this year’s MAMA Awards was “New-topia,” which sounds a bit chilling in a weird way. But, things were definitely new here. This was unlike any MAMA yet, lacking a live audience. But even though everything was accomplished on soundstages, I think the producers did a great job making this still feel like … 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
NCT is absolutely stuffed with talent and personality. But, that only goes so far without strong songs to harness it. On the whole, both parts of the NCT Resonance album remind me of a b-side collection. They’re not so common anymore, but artists used to cobble together unreleased material and outtakes into a special album … Continue reading
The announcement of NCT’s 23-member Resonance project sparked a lot of excitement, and much of that stemmed from how awesome their 2018 Empathy album was. Songs like Baby Don’t Stop and Boss are still in heavy rotation, and have become pillars of NCT’s discography. In comparison, Resonance hasn’t brought the same level of focus or … 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. October 2020 Overall Thoughts After a fantastic September, October was another strong month. And, it was … Continue reading
To this day, my absolute favorite NCT track remains 2016’s Without You. That song spotlighted vocalists Doyoung, Taeil and Jaehyun without resorting to the kind of piano ballad usually reserved for vocal-driven tracks. In my mind, there are far more interesting ways to showcase your vocalists than a traditional ballad. Anthemic synth-rock is only one … Continue reading
Fans have barely had a chance to breathe between SM Entertainment’s SuperM album and this new, ambitious NCT project. Resonance brings together all twenty-one members, plus two new faces, for part one of a compilation album that mixes and matches the guys into various units. Resonance will be promoted by two title tracks, and the … Continue reading
Like they did back in the winter of 2018, NCT is making full use of their malleable roster for a new 2020 project. Unlike 2018, which saw multiple title tracks unveiled over the course of several weeks, this album’s promotion seems to be occurring in a tighter timeframe. But, NCT has exploded in popularity over … Continue reading
In celebration of The Bias List’s fifth year anniversary, I’ve embarked on my most ambitious project yet. After years of hemming and hawing, I’ve finally ranked what I consider to be the best 100 songs in K-pop. There will never be a definitive list of this nature, because it’s impossible to rank something that’s inherently … Continue reading
Over the years, I’ve been asked several times to create a post where I reveal my previously-reviewed songs that I would now bump up to a perfect, 10/10 rating, allowing them to officially join my Legendary Songs category. I guess it took a global pandemic for me to finally spend the time to compile this … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 