K-pop teasers can be deceptive if you’re not paying close attention. Take a look at the visual teasers for Yesung’s new comeback and you might expect a gritty punk rock track. I’d love to hear him tackle something like this – a song that gives his strong vocals more bite. But beyond the visuals, it … Continue reading
K-pop’s title tracks might gain most of listeners’ attention, but many album tracks are worth equal spotlight. I call these “buried treasures.” Beyond this, K-pop’s albums deliver thousands of additional tracks that settle for a more limited audience. It’s these songs that will become a part of my “battle of the b-sides” feature. In this … Continue reading
May-June 2008 Overall Thoughts In addition to my monthly K-pop round-up, I’ve taken a look at my favorite three singles from each month since 2009 and factored them into my ultimate Bias List scorecard, which can be found here. The problem is, prior to 2009 it becomes harder to find reliable sources for K-pop release … Continue reading
SM Entertainment’s all-star GOT The Beat unit was one of 2022’s most baffling projects. The agency assembled many of its strongest female performers only to debut a single track at the beginning of the year with limited promotions and no real follow-through. Clearly, this unit was never intended to carry SuperM-esque ambitions. I assumed the … Continue reading
March-April 2008 Overall Thoughts In addition to my monthly K-pop round-up, I’ve taken a look at my favorite three singles from each month since 2009 and factored them into my ultimate Bias List scorecard, which can be found here. The problem is, prior to 2009 it becomes harder to find reliable sources for K-pop release … Continue reading
K-pop’s title tracks might gain most of listeners’ attention, but many album tracks are worth equal spotlight. I call these “buried treasures.” Beyond this, K-pop’s albums deliver thousands of additional tracks that settle for a more limited audience. It’s these songs that will become a part of my “battle of the b-sides” feature. In this … Continue reading
January-February 2008 Overall Thoughts I’ve decided to revive a popular weekly feature, but with a twist! In addition to my monthly K-pop round-up, I’ve taken a look at my favorite three singles from each month since 2009 and factored them into my ultimate Bias List scorecard, which can be found here. The problem is, prior … Continue reading
K-pop’s title tracks might gain most of listeners’ attention, but many album tracks are worth equal spotlight. I call these “buried treasures.” Beyond this, K-pop’s albums deliver thousands of additional tracks that settle for a more limited audience. It’s these songs that will become a part of my “battle of the b-sides” feature. In this … 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. December 2022 Overall Thoughts December is historically a very slow month in K-pop, but every once … Continue reading
There are still two more countdowns to come (Top 40 pop songs and Top Dramas), but now that the K-pop-specific lists are complete it’s time to add up the categories and find out which comebacks ranked strongest overall. From a pure numbers standpoint, I guess this is the most important list I’ll publish! Just like … Continue reading
Okay, I tried something new this time. Rather than watch the entire hours-long festival in one go, I just skipped to the performances on YouTube (which is probably what most sane people do!). This improved the overall experience by removing some of the bloat these year-end shows are well-known for. I’ve always appreciated the bigger … Continue reading
While I don’t incorporate a song’s video into the reviews on this blog, I’m definitely not immune to a striking visual. Music videos are a vital part of the industry, and it’s time to celebrate my favorites of 2022. 2022 YEAR-END MASTERPOST Honorable Mentions: ENHYPEN – Blessed-Cursed Onew – Dice IVE – After Like PSY … Continue reading
I spend the whole year plucking “buried treasures” from K-pop’s vast slate of albums, and now it’s time for those b-sides to have their own countdown! As usual, some of 2022’s strongest music was never promoted with a glossy video or music show blitz. Over the next two days, I’ll be counting down my forty … Continue reading
I spend the whole year plucking “buried treasures” from K-pop’s vast slate of albums, and now it’s time for those b-sides to have their own countdown! As usual, some of 2022’s strongest music was never promoted with a glossy video or music show blitz. Over the next two days, I’ll be counting down my forty … Continue reading
Compared to 2021, this year definitely felt weaker when it comes to albums. Mini albums faired better than full-lengths, but apart from a few mega-standouts, most K-pop releases took a piecemeal approach to their music — too often stuffing tracklists with a horde of different producers rather than settling on one unique vision. Like usual, … Continue reading
To be honest, you may or may not see recaps for future end-of-year festivals this December. I’d like to write about all three big nights if possible, but over the past few years these events have become so boring and predictable. Basically, acts emerge with some dramatic intro (swords, pyrotechnics, flags, etc) before performing a … Continue reading
This year, I’m going to flip things around and honor my top ten K-pop artists before turning to the rookies tomorrow. While 2022 offered many strong debuts, I just wasn’t as thrilled by many of the industry’s established artists. That makes today’s countdown a bit easier to compile. As usual, the criteria is built around … Continue reading
The end of the year countdowns are finally here! As always, we’ll 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
So much about the holidays is rooted in nostalgia. These are ritualistic celebrations, and the most popular holiday songs are usually ones that have accumulated memories over the years. H.O.T’s Candy is not a holiday song, but it makes a weird sort of sense in this context. It’s an oft-covered classic with a ton of … Continue reading
The end of the year countdowns are finally here! As always, we’ll 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 Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 