This year, it feels like I’m writing about more bands than ever before. There’s been a deluge of new acts in this genre, with most offering youthful, OST-adjacent material. Catch The Young was somewhat ahead of the trend, debuting back in 2023. They first caught my eye due to their prominent use of 80s synth … Continue reading
Ahead of new title track Illusion (착각) today, Onew has been releasing digital tracks over the past few weeks. These have come in the form of duets with Yuju and Zico. Both songs did very little for me and without proper music videos to back them up I didn’t feel they warranted a full review. … Continue reading
WOODZ has been an interesting case study in an artist refusing to make concessions. K-pop is all about chasing the next trend, which often involves cycling back to whatever hit big recently. WOODZ’s big success happened to occur when he was out of the picture serving in the military. It would have been easy for … Continue reading
The guys from TVXQ grace us with their musical presence every now and then, releasing singles and albums tailored toward their comfortable place in K-pop legacy rather than attempting to break through with a new generation. This has resulted in a few great tracks, but more often than not this approach feels like it’s simply … Continue reading
It’s the year of Seventeen sub-units, as the group has been unable to make a full comeback while members serve their mandatory military enlistment. So far, we’ve had DxS (DK & Seungkwan) and V8 (Vernon & The8). Now, it’s time for Jeonghan and Joshua to make their sub-unit debut as JxJ. While the previous two … Continue reading
Around this time last year, NMIXX scored the biggest hit of their career. The mammoth Blue Valentine and its accompanying album seemed to point toward a period of chart dominance for the group. This spring’s Heavy Serenade has stuck around the charts as well, but never felt nearly as buzzy as its predecessor. Now, the … Continue reading
Though Hearts2Hearts have only released one mini album in Korea this year, they’ve been busy with one-off singles and other releases. We had Japanese track Iconic Heart and most recently the Kia tie-in Moonride. Now, it’s time for the group’s first English-language release, which also happens to be a tie-in. Next Chapter promotes mobile game … Continue reading
I continue to write about Yuju’s solo music out of respect and admiration for the great work she did with GFriend, but with each new release it becomes clearer that her former group’s high octane pop music isn’t something she’s interested in replicating. It seems that she’s much more comfortable in the corner of an … Continue reading
Lee Han Gyul has an impressively large record in the K-pop industry. Over the course of his career, he’s been part of X1, BAE173, IM, H&D and Polarix. That’s a ton of different groups and projects, most of which came and went pretty quickly. The guy is certainly tenacious, and has earned the right to … Continue reading
After finding success on Boys II Planet, Flare U debuted earlier this year with a song I found quite toothless. The rest of their mini album was stronger, and pointed toward a light pop sound that had potential. The guys maintain this easy appeal with their first comeback Bloom (너의 계절이 찾아와). Bloom is the … Continue reading
DAILY:DIRECTION are one of a few new boy groups this year that are attempting to paint themselves with a quirky brand in order to stand out among competing acts from bigger agencies. So far, this has resulted in a mixed bag of music, but their output has grown stronger with time. New single Which Way … Continue reading
My favorite K-pop group, Infinite, has had trouble picking great songs over the past few years. I’m not sure if it’s a lack-of-A&R situation or a lack-of-great-material-to-choose-from, but while the guys are mega talented with so much star power, I just don’t trust them when it comes to picking title tracks that best suit their … Continue reading
There’s no denying that K-pop has entered a techno trend. This isn’t the kind of techno music that swept the industry’s first generation, though you can still draw comparisons. There was a time around 1999 where it felt like every other new idol track came underpinned with a steady club beat. As a lover of … Continue reading
There’s been a lot of talk about K-pop’s second generation on this blog lately, but if you really want a taste for what was popular in Korea during the early half of this era you couldn’t ask for more representative artists than Epik High and Davichi. Both have lasted the long run, still releasing music … Continue reading
When I look at NCT Wish’s overall concept, they seem like a group who should be tailor-made for my musical taste. Yet, when I average together my reception of each of their singles, they fall in the lower half of my own “Ultimate Artist Ranking.” At times, their music has felt overly precious to me. … Continue reading
Ever since their debut, MEOVV have been a frustrating prospect. They have all the talent and charisma to be on top of the K-pop game, but are often sabotaged by so-so material. Come to think of it, this has been a pattern with every artist from The Black Label. Helmed by the sometimes-great Teddy Park, … Continue reading
Good ol’ N.Flying are still kicking around with their new single Still (잔불). It feels like we’ve watched this group grow into a completely different band over the years. Just remember — if you were around back then — the swaggering rap-rock of debut single Awesome and compare that to the much more refined (but … Continue reading
It’s been a long while since we heard from Hwang Minhyun — or any Nu’est member, really. I almost forgot that he was still part of Pledis Entertainment. Today, he’s back with new digital single Our. It’s a nice — if uneventful — return. This is the style of synth-kissed mid-tempo I’d expect from male … Continue reading
Young Posse have had a very mixed track record on this blog, and lately it’s trending for the worse. I enjoy what they do in theory — especially when they focus on the classic touchstones of the genres they reference. Too often, their music gets caught up in gimmicky catchphrases and “experimental” production that tends … Continue reading
There’s a certain kind of song I don’t write much about on this blog. These are usually ballads from established solo acts. Try as I might, I just can’t muster up much to say about most ballads. This isn’t to say someone like Yesung isn’t worthy of critique and praise, but with so many releases … Continue reading
