Just like last year, my K-pop Christmas present is the kick-off to the year-end music festivals. First up is SBS’s Gayo Daejun, which is typically notable for its star-studded, primarily big-name line-up that includes artists from YG Entertainment. Coming in, I wasn’t all that excited about the year’s Gayo because most of my favorite songs … Continue reading
Each year, I try to delve deeper into the vast world of J-pop. 2018, in particular, rewarded that persistence. J-pop may be difficult to find for international listeners, but it provided a wonderful antidote to some of K-pop’s overused trends. This countdown is usually littered with Japanese title tracks by Korean groups, but this year … Continue reading
Seventeen’s special digital track Getting Closer (숨이 차) is a tricky one for me to review, because it’s not at all the musical direction I hope to see the guys take. Yet at the same time, I kind of dig the song itself. One of my biggest pet peeves with K-pop fandom is the constant … Continue reading
2018 was a fantastic year when it came to album tracks. In fact, many of them were stronger (and more interesting) than their title track counterparts. This makes for a very competitive top 40 list, as well as a host of honorable mentions. Honestly, I could’ve tripled the amount of honorable mentions and still had … Continue reading
The end of the year countdowns are finally here! As always, things kick off with the big one… The Bias List’s top 50 songs of the year! Each day this week, I’ll be counting down ten of the year’s best, until number one is revealed on Friday. To be eligible for this top 50 list, … Continue reading
The end of the year countdowns are finally here! As always, things kick off with the big one… The Bias List’s top 50 songs of the year! Each day this week, I’ll be counting down ten of the year’s best, until number one is revealed on Friday. To be eligible for this top 50 list, … Continue reading
The end of the year countdowns are finally here! As always, things kick off with the big one… The Bias List’s top 50 songs of the year! Each day this week, I’ll be counting down ten of the year’s best, until number one is revealed on Friday. To be eligible for this top 50 list, … Continue reading
The idea of music agency fandom might seem strange to Western audiences, as most notable labels around the world are vast corporations with rosters that share very little common. But of course, K-pop is different. Even as the industry has expanded, it has remained a relatively small microcosm of the global pop music landscape. When … Continue reading
Another year of KCON LA is behind us, and it was a fantastic experience. Instead of simply recapping the weekend, I thought I’d offer some sage advice from a veteran KCONer. This was my fourth year attending the event, and there’s a lot I’ve discovered since 2015. So strap yourselves in, because this is officially … Continue reading
Modern K-pop has always felt the need to position its male groups as edgy and badass, but the moodiness has seemed to kick into overdrive this year. Call it the BTS-effect, or the mirroring of current trends in Western pop, but for a lover of upbeat production and colorful melodies, this trend has resulted in … 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. July 2018 Overall Thoughts I’ve always seen the month of July as the pinnacle of each … Continue reading
Most of the time, a k-pop group’s title track is the best song on their album. But, sometimes b-sides deserve recognition too. In the singles-oriented world of k-pop, I wanted to spotlight some of these buried treasures and give them the props they deserve. Listening to Seventeen’s new album for the first time, I wondered … Continue reading
Since their debut in 2015, Seventeen has established themselves as an idol group that never disappoints. There’s a sense of comfort whenever they return because you know the song won’t fall below a certain level of quality. It helps that, along with in-house producer Bumzu, they compose their own material. But this consistency can also … Continue reading
As part of my 2018 mid-year retrospective, it’s time to look at those songs that either rose or fell as the months have passed. Some songs are slow-burners. Others impress in the moment but fizzle out quickly. And sometimes, a song surpasses expectations to become a cultural phenomenon. This year has actually seen more risers … 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. May 2018 Overall Thoughts All things considered, May was a pretty solid month. It definitely had … Continue reading
I don’t know what it is about this year, but so far most of my highest rated songs have been Japanese releases by Korean acts. The Hallyu Wave in Japan has well and truly reignited, and the prospect of so many original songs coming down the line is very exciting. With the rock-influenced Call Call … Continue reading
Watching (and obsessing over) Avengers: Infinity War last week has got me thinking. If I wielded the Infinity Gauntlet and had the power to shape the universe, how would I control K-Pop? Infinite comebacks every month! New Sweetune songs every week! Just kidding. I’m not going to be that biased. Instead, I thought it would … 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. March 2018 Overall Thoughts Well, March certainly didn’t pan out the way I had expected. If … Continue reading
Of all of the big-name k-pop groups currently working, Seventeen is especially ripe for successful sub-unit releases. And while they’ve already given us quite a few unit tracks as part of their albums, they’ve yet to establish a spin-off with its own album and full fledged promotions. Boo Seok Soon (or BSS) seems to be … 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. February 2018 Overall Thoughts When it comes to k-pop, I was dreading February. Between the Pyeongchang … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 