Ready-made fanbases are becoming more and more important to k-pop, but a truly blockbuster idol group has to reach past those who have been with them since their formation and embrace a wider audience. This may be tricky for fromis_9. First, there’s that what-were-they-thinking, borderline undecipherable group name to contend with. And then there’s Idol … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with Infinite’s A-Z reviews here! Tic Toc (from Over The Top / Paradise – 2011) Tackling a more experimental arrangement, Tic Toc’s staccato verses are underlined by a fitful skitter of a beat that feels as if it’s in constant flux. This sense of unrest continues into the … Continue reading
MAP6 are one of the few struggling groups who didn’t opt to appear on this year’s pair of “idol rebooting” shows, The Unit and MIXNINE. That’s a shame, because the guys could really use the exposure. With each passing release, it feels like their career has stalled more and more. Since debuting at the tail … Continue reading
Less than a week after their historic performance on the American Music Awards, BTS have returned with a remixed version of their album track MIC Drop, courtesy of U.S. DJ/producer Steve Aoki. For the past year or so, I feel like I’ve been in the minority when it comes to the group’s incredible worldwide success. … Continue reading
Pentagon are back with their second self-composed album after making a sonic shift with September’s Demo_01. Taking over the reigns of their music was a smart choice, especially when it resulted in a song as spectacular as Like This. Runaway successfully continues this sound, even if it never reaches the heights of its predecessor. Once … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with Infinite’s A-Z reviews here! Mother (from Destiny – 2013) Sometimes a song is more about sentiment than melody or production. It’s hard not to fall for an ode to moms, no matter how treacly it might come across. Even so, Mother is one of Infinite’s less … Continue reading
Though they’ve only been around for just over three months, Wanna One already feel like a vital part of the current k-pop landscape. Their big personalities have been especially welcome on variety shows, but their debut Energetic also enjoyed unexpected staying power, becoming one of this year’s most addictive dance tracks. With Beautiful, the group … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with Infinite’s A-Z reviews here! Light (Sungkyu solo) (from Season 2 / Be Back – 2014) A real breather moment on the Season 2/Be Back album, Light takes a soft approach that requires a few listens to fully ingratiate itself. Gone is the sense of unique quirkiness … Continue reading
Compared to other rookie boy groups, I’ve had a hard time getting into Victon’s music. It’s not that any of it has been markedly bad, but each title track has bopped along nicely without an element that pulls me in. Perhaps it has more to do with producers BEOMxNANG, whose work has rarely done much … Continue reading
Over the past several days, we’ve been treated to a pair of girl group releases that abandoned k-pop’s lighter tropes for something more edgy and fierce. As catchy as their material is, Gugudan has so far steered in the complete opposite direction, punctuating their sugar fluff pop with giddy exclamations and baby-like coos. It’s an … Continue reading
Block B has maintained a certain level of success (especially as soloists) over the past two years, but it feels like their group work has lost some of its momentum ever since their nearly two-year hiatus after 2014’s H.E.R. February’s boisterous Yesterday seemed to herald a return to form, and Shall We Dance‘s very title … Continue reading
Since SM Station’s inception, some of its biggest beneficiaries have been the guys of EXO. The project has often paired the members with unlikely collaborators or simply let them go solo, but many of the resulting tracks have ended up to be quite boring. I understand the desire to break EXO out of the glossy … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with Infinite’s A-Z reviews here! I’m Going Crazy (Infinite F) (from Season 2 / Be Back – 2014) Before they debuted as an official sub-unit, Infinite F released this quirky blend of icy synth and subdued hooks. Infinite’s music doesn’t often take a very experimental bent, but … Continue reading
Producer Ryan S. Jhun has had a dynamite year so far, composing song after song after song of consistently high quality. And in between his more hyped releases, he’s partnered with rookie group VAV. The guys’ past three singles have all been crafted by Jhun, and now they’ve collaborated again for She’s Mine. If I’m … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with Infinite’s A-Z reviews here! Footsteps (from Reality – 2015) Taken from one of the group’s strongest albums, Footsteps feels a bit meandering when stacked up with the material surrounding it. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but the track plays with structure by not providing the … Continue reading
Few rookie groups have suffered as long a hiatus as Playback. The girls debuted all the way back in June of 2015 and released two underrated singles that year. And now — twenty-five months since we last heard them — they’ve finally delivered a follow-up. Because of this, it’s almost more accurate to consider Want … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with Infinite’s A-Z reviews here! Fixed Star (from First Invasion – 2010) Fixed Star is Infinite’s first ballad, giving us a taste of just how well-matched the group’s vocals are for this style. Melodically, it’s typical of the genre, hearkening back to a boy band sound popularized in … Continue reading
One thing I’ve always appreciated about Epik High is that, even when they’re exploring trends, they have a style unique to them. This blend of alternative and old school hip hop gives their music a familiar base to work from and guarantees a certain amount of continuity between albums. The last time we heard from … Continue reading
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with Infinite’s A-Z reviews here! Crying (Infinite H & Babysoul) (from Over The Top / Paradise – 2011) Crying is hip-hop unit Infinite H’s first stab at a solo, and the first time listeners were exposed to Lovelyz’s Babysoul. Given these momentous descriptors, you might expect the … Continue reading
It’s been well over a year since BTOB came back with a ballad. After the success of 2015 single It’s Okay, it seemed as if they were going to become stuck in ballad-mode forever, having finally found their commercial sweet spot. But with the changing of the seasons, the time is right to remind the … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 