Following a tradition first established in 2020, I’m celebrating the holidays today with the opening of gifts. These packages come in the form of seasonal K-pop tracks not yet reviewed on the blog. As much as possible, I’m only focusing on original songs. There are TONS of song covers and “Christmas versions” of existing tracks … Continue reading
Tag Archives: sweetune
THIS WEEK IN K-POP: Ranking the New Releases from July 27 – August 2
At the end of each month, I compile my top three K-pop title tracks and list a ton of honorable mentions. In 2025, I thought I’d try something new and add a weekly feature to supplement my monthly round-up. Each Sunday, I’ll offer a compendium of the week’s new releases featured on the blog. And … Continue reading
THIS WEEK IN K-POP: Ranking the New Releases from January 12-18
At the end of each month, I compile my top three K-pop title tracks and list a ton of honorable mentions. In 2025, I thought I’d try something new and add a weekly feature to supplement my monthly round-up. Each Sunday, I’ll offer a compendium of the week’s new releases featured on the blog. And … Continue reading
Song Review: BBGirls – Love 2
It’s been a long seventeen month wait for us Sweetune aficionados. The production duo helmed NINE.i’s excellent Turn It Off in August 2023 and swiftly disappeared, briefly reappearing for forgettable H1-Key and DKZ b-sides last year. Now, they’re back in title track territory with BBGirls’ new single (and first under their new agency) Love 2. … Continue reading
Songs that sound like SWEETUNE but aren’t actually produced by SWEETUNE
How’s that for a very Bias List specific title of a post? The thing is, after a very long drought, we’re on the verge of our first Sweetune-produced title track in many, many months with the release of BBGirls’ new single on the 15th!! Before that, I’ve got a bit of an unusual playlist for … Continue reading
BREAKING NEWS: I May Have Unearthed the Original Source of Sweetune’s Musical Power
Longtime readers know that I’m a Sweetune aficionado. I hardly shut up about these producers (even/especially when they’re not currently producing). They’ve given us a wealth of K-pop classics over the years, including many of my all-time favorite songs. But being a Sweetune fanboy has its frustrations. They have little-to-no online presence and often disappear … Continue reading
The Top 10 K-Pop Producers of 2023
Each year, this countdown becomes more difficult to compile. Increasingly, K-pop songwriting has become a team activity. This makes it hard to suss out who exactly is responsible for what, and it also tends to flatten musical perspective and quirk. Even so, I’ve combed through the credits of my favorite 2023 music to find ten … Continue reading
New & Noteworthy J-pop of the Week (October 15, 2023)
In connection with my desire to fully keep up with the J-pop industry, I’m planning to do a weekly round-up of any new releases that have caught my ear. Some of these may have been covered on the blog already, but my hope is that this will become a one-stop shop for anyone interested in … Continue reading
Song Review: NINE.i – Turn It Off
Let me paint a picture for you: In the unlikely event that producers Sweetune are announced as part of a modern-era idol comeback, my entire base of operations goes on red alert. Lights flash, alarms sound and any outside activity freezes as the fist-pumping grandeur of The Chaser pipes through the overhead speakers. Okay, I don’t … Continue reading
Looking Back: The Top Three K-Pop Songs of November-December 2008
November-December 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
Looking Back: The Top Three K-Pop Songs of July-August 2008
July-August 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
Battle of the B-Sides: SHINee, Spectrum, Kara, UP10TION, Beast
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
The Top 10 K-Pop Producers of 2022
I’m one of those K-pop fans who scours pre-release track lists for producer credits. I often become more excited by my favorite composer’s name on a track than the actual artist themselves. Because of this, my “top producers of the year” countdown has become a fun annual tradition. After all, these songs don’t materialize from … Continue reading
Battle of the B-Sides: Kara Edition
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
Battle of the B-Sides: 2PM, P1Harmony, Kara, Sistar, Mirae
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
Song Review: RoaD-B – Icarus
RoaD-B have had an outsize presence on The Bias List relative to their lack of recognition elsewhere. I’m pretty confident that 99.9% of K-pop fans who don’t read this blog have yet to even hear their name. After all, they’ve only had one televised performance. Still, their debut single Nonstop was a huge highlight of … Continue reading
Battle of the B-Sides: Winner, Changmin, AB6IX, ZE:A, Romeo
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
Buried Treasure: CSR – Euratcha!
A K-pop act’s title track isn’t always the best song on their album, even if it’s the one most people will hear. Sometimes, b-sides deserve recognition too. In the singles-oriented world of K-pop, I want to spotlight some of these buried treasures and give them the props they deserve. CSR have released one of the … Continue reading
The Top Three K-Pop Songs of April 2022
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. April 2022 Overall Thoughts In a paradoxical trend, the average song rating on this blog has … Continue reading
Song Review: RoaD-B – Nonstop
Sound the alarms! We have a K-pop emergency. Sweetune – yes, the Sweetune – have returned. They’re hunkered down in a bunker so nugu I didn’t even find them until the song was brought to my attention on twitter. But, they’re back nonetheless and RoaD-B’s Nonstop has raised my K-pop spirits just when they needed … Continue reading