Snow Man’s Dangerholic acts as the ending theme to member Meguro Ren’s newest drama Trillion Game. The series’ fast, freewheeling energy requires an equally splashy, confident song. Dangerholic delivers this energy, stuffed with brass and guitar and big, singalong hooks. The guys have performed shortened versions of this song for weeks now, so I’m not … Continue reading
Prior to listening to this song for the first time, I played the highlight medley for Treasure’s new album and thought: “This sounds great! Except for… Bona Bona.” After last year’s fun Hello and sub-unit T5’s excellent Move, YG Entertainment are up to their old tricks for this jarring, formulaic title track. I should have … Continue reading
Apologies for the click-bait title. I don’t often use them, but I really wanted to share this track and I wasn’t sure how to do it. I don’t write “Buried Treasures” for J-pop, nor do I feature a countdown dedicated to Japanese b-sides. So, I thought I’d attempt to catch everyone’s interest before writing about … Continue reading
Much of Xikers’ debut mini album felt like underwhelming ATEEZ cosplay, but follow-up single Rockstar stood out as an undeniable high point. Fresh and colorful teasers for their upcoming album have me cautiously optimistic, even if pre-release Koong is probably the worst K-pop song I’ve heard all year. Honestly, this borders on unlistenable for me. … Continue reading
There can often be a long lag between a J-pop song and its accompanying music video. I first wrote about Fantastics’ Tell Me when it came out in early June, but now that we have a video I can give it the full review it deserves. And I have to say, the wait was worth … Continue reading
The Wind’s debut album has been one of my K-pop highlights this year. They’re one of the few new-gen boy groups fully embracing melody and opting for an earnest, hummable sound that sets them apart. The group is set for their first comeback next week, but before that they’ve pre-released the buoyant Summer Vacation (여름방학). … Continue reading
In a summer characterized by second-gen comebacks, K-pop’s girl groups have kind of been left out. Aloha aims to fix that. It’s not the full Sistar return we’re all begging for, but it’s probably as close as we’re going to get. The song reunites Soyou and Bora with producers Duble Sidekick, the team responsible for … Continue reading
Fulfilling their promise to film a music video for every track on the new album, NewJeans are back with visuals for ASAP. When listening to the album, my highlights are definitely ETA and Super Shy. Those feel the most fully fleshed out of the tracks, while moments like ASAP are move vibey and interlude-esque. I … Continue reading
It’s been almost three years since I wrote about Saturday, which is practically a lifetime in K-pop. The group is down to four members and has substantially changed their sound for new single Stay (있을게). Along with ILY:1, they’re the second act to mine old Gfriend sounds today. As far as I’m concerned, this is … Continue reading
When we last saw ILY:1, they were mining Oh My Girl’s old production team for a glistening facsimile that became an early 2023 highlight. With the changing of the seasons, the group has also changed its influence. This time, My Color targets an early-GFriend sound — a style I happen to be an enormous fan … Continue reading
Eight years after debut, Monsta X has unveiled its first official sub-unit. Rather than give the unit some catchy, clever name, they’ve opted for the simple and forthright “Shownu x Hyungwon.” For those not familiar with the group, these two are Monsta X’s main and lead dancers. Love Me A Little was co-written and co-produced … Continue reading
HORI7ON were brought together through MLD Entertainment’s Dream Maker series, and have already revealed a couple of songs (to various degrees of success). They’ve just released a mammoth, twenty (!) track debut album, though a number of those tracks are only available on the physical CDs. SIX7EEN is their newest single, and sees them approaching … Continue reading
I’m a sucker for a great summer K-pop track, and we haven’t had many of those this year. Enter: Oh My Girl — with a track that’s literally called “Summer Comes.” It’s been a long time since we’ve heard from the group, and they have a bulletproof back catalog to build upon. Their take on … Continue reading
In a funny bit of global pop synergy, we’ve got will.i.am and Britney’s Mind Your Business followed days later by ITZY’s None Of My Business. These songs have nothing in common, but I like to imagine them in conversation with each other. ITZY’s new album isn’t out until next week, making None Of My Business … Continue reading
They may not be on everyone’s radar, but from20 and Hello Gloom from The Faker Club are two of 2023’s most consistently solid artists. Their creative partnership is firing on all cylinders, resulting in music and videos that often eclipse the material coming from K-pop’s biggest agencies. Not bad for an indie label founded by … Continue reading
I went to watch the video for ETA on YouTube and it was immediately preceded by an iPhone advertisement backed by the song’s hook. Make no mistake what HYBE is doing here. This NewJeans EP is branding at its most integrated. In fact, imagining these brief, jingle-like songs as stylish commercials may offer a more … Continue reading
More than anything, NewJeans’ music has become an interesting excuse to analyze pop music expectations and preferences. It’s increasingly clear that their songs are designed to be streamed over and over again in a loop. They don’t exhaust listeners with big, glitzy pop peaks. Their melodies are simple and sleek, often delivered in an aloof … Continue reading
Dear K-pop gods, I beseech you. Please, please rekindle your ability to craft an upbeat summer track that isn’t 85% exuberant chanting and melodies in nursery rhyme style. These elements can be fun in moderation, but too much of this fizzy sugar rush results in fatigue and stomach pain. I dig Kick-Start‘s punky guitars, and … Continue reading
I’ll be forever side-eying DSP Media for abandoning Mirae’s promising futuristic concept to turn them into just-another-boy-group. Since then, their music then has seen highs and lows but lacks continuity and vision. Jump is another sonic swerve, borrowing elements from early-90’s hip hop and fusing them to a rather pedestrian song. I like this group … Continue reading
Though Hui didn’t score enough votes to join project group ZEROBASEONE, he’s able to leverage his stint on Boys Planet for increased attention on his group and solo work. This is the guy who co-wrote the mighty Energetic, so I have faith he’s still got incredible things up his sleeve. Whale is not one of those … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 