At what point does a “joke” song become a “real” song? The last time comedy duo UV hit it big with a high profile collaboration was in 2011 with Itaewan Freedom featuring Park Jinyoung. That song is obviously intended as a parody of sorts, but it’s a dynamite pop track in its own right and … Continue reading
If there’s anything I’ve learned from covering pop music for over a decade, it’s that songwriters and collaborators are just as important as the artists themselves. Though they often work behind the scenes, this feature is a chance to shine the light on some of k-pop’s most innovative and accomplished producers and composers. MONOTREE Years … Continue reading
With Kyuhyun soon to fulfill his mandatory military conscription, there’s a hole for another solo Super Junior balladeer to fill. Yesung seems to be up to the task, releasing the very OST-sounding Paper Umbrella (봄날의 소나기). This follows his spring-like Here I Am from last April, which I was not a fan of. When it … Continue reading
If there’s anything I’ve learned from covering pop music for over a decade, it’s that songwriters and collaborators are just as important as the artists themselves. Though they often work behind the scenes, this feature is a chance to shine the light on some of k-pop’s most innovative and accomplished producers and composers. THE STEREOTYPES … Continue reading
If there’s anything I’ve learned from covering pop music for over a decade, it’s that songwriters and collaborators are just as important as the artists themselves. Though they often work behind the scenes, this feature is a chance to shine the light on some of k-pop’s most innovative and accomplished producers and composers. E-TRIBE Years … Continue reading
If there’s anything I’ve learned from covering pop music for over a decade, it’s that songwriters and collaborators are just as important as the artists themselves. Though they often work behind the scenes, this feature is a chance to shine the light on some of k-pop’s most innovative and accomplished producers and composers. KENZIE Years … Continue reading
For the past several years, Super Junior’s Kyuhyun has been a reliable deliverer of autumn ballads. Now that he’s set to transition into his military enlistment soon, he’s overcompensated for his upcoming absence with a full album of them. For me, a Kyuhyun ballad is a Kyuhyun ballad — really just the same thing repeated … Continue reading
October is officially here, which means the countdown to Halloween has started. Whether you’re cobbling together a mix for a Halloween party or carnival, or just looking for some seasonal selections to soundtrack your pumpkin carving, K-Pop has a lot to offer. Here are some of the best tracks. If your favorite Halloween K-Pop song … Continue reading
If there’s anything I’ve learned from covering pop music for over a decade, it’s that songwriters and collaborators are just as important as the artists themselves. Though they often work behind the scenes, this feature is a chance to shine the light on some of k-pop’s most innovative and accomplished producers and composers. HITCHHIKER Years … Continue reading
For SM Entertainment’s latest Station release, the agency give us a duet between artists from two of their most successful groups. First, we have Bada, who was part of their mega-successful, late 90’s girl group S.E.S. Joining her is Super Junior’s Ryeowook, who had a strong solo earlier in the year and is a self-professed S.E.S. … Continue reading
If there’s anything I’ve learned from covering pop music for over a decade, it’s that songwriters and collaborators are just as important as the artists themselves. Though they often work behind the scenes, this feature is a chance to shine the light on some of k-pop’s most innovative and accomplished producers and composers. THOMAS TROELSEN … Continue reading
If there’s anything I’ve learned from covering pop music for over a decade, it’s that songwriters and collaborators are just as important as the artists themselves. Though they often work behind the scenes, this feature is a chance to shine the light on some of k-pop’s most innovative and accomplished producers and composers. YOO YOUNG-JIN … Continue reading
Last week, Zhoumi pre-released the Chinese version of his stately ballad, Empty Room. With What’s Your Number, he flips that sound completely, opting for a synth-drenched dance track. It’s a break from the ultra-trendy EDM SM has been giving its solo artists of late, hearkening back instead to the carefree pop fellow SJ-M member Henry … Continue reading
Poor Zhoumi. Always getting the short end of the stick. His comebacks arrive with little fanfare or explanation, and they’re gone before you know it. This is despite him being a part of Chinese sub-group Super Junior M, which used to be SM Entertainment’s core Chinese group. Empty Room arrives as (presumably) a pre-release before … Continue reading
Together, Super Junior’s Kim Heechul and Trax’s Kim Jungmo form duo M&D, known for their unique brand of trot and anime influenced rock. It certainly won’t be to everyone’s taste, but I found their debut mini album to be one of last year’s most pleasant surprises. The new release is more diverse in scope, but … Continue reading
I want to preface this review by noting that I named Super Junior’s Devil as my top kpop song of 2015. I mention this because I know how fan loyalty and bias can color the work of groups and individuals, especially those from acts as big as SJ. I’m sure I’ll be just as biased with … Continue reading
Heechul and Jungmo’s M&D project was one of 2015’s best surprises — a j-rock inspired passion project filled with gorgeous melodies and theatrical delivery. For this week’s Station release, the two revisit that sound, with the added bonus of Mamamoo’s Whee In as a duet vocalist. Sadly, I’m not sure that it works as well this … Continue reading
(**Outdated list — check out the 2021 update here!) Super Junior are one of the biggest groups in all of Korea, and have developed into legends in the world of kpop. So how do you rate a legend? With Super Junior, it was a little easier than I anticipated. Though they’ve been around for over … Continue reading
After the massive solo success Super Junior’s Kyuhyun has received, it only made sense that another of the group’s vocal line should release a solo. As a vocalist, Ryeowook has a completely different style than Kyuhyun, which heightened interest in how The Little Prince would sound. Fortunately, the song gives Ryeowook’s light tenor plenty of … Continue reading
Okay, okay. When I say kpop, I mean mostly kpop, because there’s going to be some jpop and cpop in this list as well (some of it in very prominent positions), but “Top 50 K-Pop & J-Pop & C-Pop Songs of 2015” just doesn’t have the same ring to it! The only other criteria for … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 