Hey, it’s been two years without a new Wonho single! He’s been serving his mandatory enlistment and now seems ready to start a new era. For awhile there, he was dropping banger after banger, but pop has moved into different territory since then. The English-language What Would You Do fits into the more downbeat, subdued … Continue reading
Rosé’s first full album is just around the corner, and it’s already buoyed by a global megahit in the form of APT. with Bruno Mars. That single’s addictive sound has proven to appeal to a vast array of tastes. You know a song has broken through with the general public when they start using it … Continue reading
Rather than release longer albums, Nowadays have blitzed their debut year with a steady stream of single tracks. This isn’t an awful approach if you keep the music coming and that music catches on with the public. Unfortunately, the group has found difficulty breaking through and competing with the year’s buzzier rookies. I haven’t yet … Continue reading
BADVILLAIN released several tracks immediately following their late-spring debut, quickly establishing themselves as a charismatic, hip-hop influenced group. None of their material has hit with me yet, but I remain open-minded toward where they may go in the future. Unfortunately, new single Zoom (숨) doubles down on many of the more generic elements of their … Continue reading
New JYP Entertainment boy group NEXZ have split their attention between Korea and Japan. Six out of seven members are Japanese, but they’ve been promoting actively in Korea with Korean-language music. New single Nallina certainly takes cues from the K-pop side of things, offering a dance-heavy showcase that skimps on the hooks and hinges on … Continue reading
Girl group MEOVV made their debut on Teddy’s The Black Label back in September with the disjointed Meow. That song seemed to come and go without much fanfare, but the girls have made a quick follow-up with new single Toxic. Co-written by YG Entertainment mainstays Teddy, Kush and 24, the song fits neatly within a … Continue reading
It’s been a good long while since CLASS:y last released music in Korea, and although they have a decent-sized singles run, I couldn’t tell you how a single song sounds off the top of my head. Such is the rapid pace and oversaturation of the K-pop market, I guess. New single Psycho & Beautiful sees … Continue reading
ATEEZ’s career has been divided neatly into series: Treasure, Fever, The World, and now Golden Hour. I’m sure hardcore fans will be able to identify sounds and storylines that make each series unique, but to the casual listener the group has retained many of its musical hallmarks across all these eras, favoring sonic bombast and … Continue reading
I had a dream last night that I went back to listen to ILLIT’s Cherish (My Love) and there was this whole new layer of production on its instrumental I’d never noticed before — including a prominent violin solo. During the dream, I wondered why I hadn’t loved the song on first listen. Upon waking … Continue reading
Stray Kids released two songs from their upcoming album last month, but neither of these was promoted with a music video. Title track Giant arrives as the album’s first big push right as the full project is unveiled. Fans of the group’s more disruptive side will find plenty to enjoy, as the song rumbles with … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! L.U.V. (from Time For Us – 2019) Whenever I see this track pop up I want to sing the classic Apink song of the same name. GFriend’s L.U.V. is quite different but includes the requisite spelling you tend to get with a … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! It’s You (from Time For Us – 2019) I find GFriend’s second album pretty hit-or-miss, and this unfortunately falls into the latter category. The song is just not that interesting, trudging along an uneventful mid-tempo groove that blends muted synths with trap … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! Hope (from Fever Season – 2019) The synth textures that open this track are very effective and the light new jack swing beat that follows makes me think we’re in for another early-career GFriend classic. Hope definitely nods in that direction, but … Continue reading
XG are back with their second mini album, building on the success of earlier 2024 singles Something Ain’t Right and IYKYK. Those two songs touched on the dancier side of their music, so it makes sense that Howling would move back into hip-hop. These seem to be XG’s two musical modes, with a healthy dose … Continue reading
IVE had a rough English-language debut earlier this year with an overly artificial cover of Icona Pop’s 2013 hit All Night. Mixing issues and heavy-handed vocals effects marred that effort, so it makes sense the group would team up with an established producer who could iron out some of those issues. They picked a good … Continue reading
I’ve been writing about a different GFriend song every day for the past few weeks (and will continue to do so until I’ve run through their whole discography), so it’s fun when my daily GFriend feature converges with a new single by the group’s spin-off act VIVIZ. Their title track Maniac from one year ago … Continue reading
NCT’s Doyoung debuted as a soloist earlier this year with a full album. Now, he’s capping off 2024 with the release of new digital single The Story (시리도록 눈부신). Rather than reinvent the wheel, the song sounds like an extension of his previous work, drawing upon his rich vocal for an uplifting ballad. The Story … Continue reading
As sure as the sun sets, we can count on J.Y. Park to return each year with a fun retro banger. It’s practically a national holiday at this point. He’s long since eschewed albums for digital singles and this approach gives him a chance to funnel all his energy into one great song at a … Continue reading
Earlier this year, TXT unveiled the angsty Deja Vu, capitalizing on the rock-infused sound that made their 2021 so exemplary. However, I felt that song’s production held it back from blooming into the highlight it should have been. Now, the guys have reverted to their second mode of pop song: upbeat, disco-kissed dance music. They’ve … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! From Me (from Labyrinth – 2020) We’ve had a lot of bangers this week, and now it’s time for something more gentle. From Me retains a classic GFriend tone, but tempers the theatrics. If other tracks sounded like a huge, bustling metropolis, … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 