Year: 2018

[Review] Heroine – Sunmi

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Sunmi was chosen as the Best Female Soloist and my pick for Best Choreography. She also ranked 9th on the 2017 KPOPREIVEWED End of Year Charts. To find out who else won the individual categories, click here. And to find out how your favourite song ranked for 2017, click here. 

Sunmi is officially back with her latest single, Heroine. Her return to the industry last year with Gashina became a chart topper and her performance became a hot trend in Korea and beyond. While Sunmi just dropped Heroine, it is apparent that she is an expected rival on the charts to any group or artist in the coming weeks.

When I first heard Gashina, I wasn’t a definite fan of the song. But with numerous listens later, I was on board the Sunmi fan train. Heroine definitely starts off on a much better foot with its instrumental attracting my attention from the very first listen. I like how it starts off with just the piano and as the song progresses through each subsection of the verse, the song builds up in a way that feels expected but still leaves you stunned. Her vocals are extremely soft at the start and like the instrumentation, it builds up wonderful to the pre-chorus where she just lets go of that restriction and project her vocals. I love the post-chorus saxophone type sound which gave off a funky yet intriguing appeal to the song. I thought the entire track was quite catchy and I predict within a days time, it will be the one track that I want to keep listening to.

Given Gashina and Heroine, I conclude two things. Only Sunmi can pull off a not-so-normal-looking solo dance performance in an empty location (I love her solo work at 1:30 – 1:46) and she likes her milkshakes. Both elements featured in the videos but it seemed to look more naturally occurring in this video. I love it when she walks forward and suddenly the spotlight is on her with the yellow curtains closing behind her. The entire video has an epic feel and I think the only reason why I think that is regarding how each scene was connected to the next. It gives off the feeling that all the differences throughout the video are interconnected somehow and that makes it a stunning video to watch.

I love her performance, once again. She used a table in Gashina and her choice of prop for Heroine were chairs. But that is not the main point. I love her sexy side and her moves during the post-chorus dance break was extremely cool. The chorus and various other parts gave off an edgy vibe, allowing this performance to incorporate multiple different styles into one.

Song – 10/10
Music Video – 10/10
Performance – 10/10
Overall Rating – 10/10

[Review] Roller Coaster – Chungha

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Kim Chungha was voted as the best new solo artist of 2017. To find out who else won in the individual categories, click here. To find out which song has been awarded the 2017 Best Song award, click here!

The Best New Soloist of 2017, Kim Chungha, has finally made her first comeback with Roller Coaster and her second mini-album, Offset. Kim Chungha previously made her debut with Why Don’t You Know last year, which definitely got her name out there in the industry.

Given the title, you expect the song to have some sort of thrill to it. And Chungha manages to deliver it with an upbeat song. It is not exactly thrill-seeking music but it has some momentum to it which I think it quite nice. The buildup to the chorus was great but the drop into the chorus felt (once again) underwhelming. Her vocals work stand out throughout the song, which suited the song really nicely. I liked how she ended the lines during the chorus with the slight upward bend of each final word (1:09-1:12, for example). My most favourite part would have to be the ‘Look’ during the pause just before the final chorus. While the instrumentation was quite cool, it did feel a little plain. It needed that kick in terms of intensity, which could have been satisfied with a fitting rap sequence. An instrumental break that allows for a rocking dance break or just some bass during the chorus could have lifted the song to a whole new level. Overall, despite it needed something else, it is still a decent song to check out.

It has been a while since we have seen neon lights and colours in KPOP. There isn’t much to the video but it was still a nice video to watch. While I have expressed in the past that I am not a fan of the light images that are displayed on the wall (and the singer just standing in front of them), I thought they were a nice addition to the music video. Sure, they can be distracting at times but I felt they looked good this time around. The choreography shots also looked quite nice.

To me, there is a cute side to the choreography (i.e. the start of the chorus) but the performance mainly focuses on the sexy side of the spectrum (i.e. all other moves). I actually thought it was a really cool dance routine to watch and cannot wait for the live stages.

Song – 6.5/10
Music Video – 7/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 7.2/10

[Review] My Flower – JBJ

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The 2017 KPOPREVIEWED Awards have ended and the results are out. To find out who won in the individual categories, click here. To find out which song has been awarded the 2017 Best Song award, click here!

JBJ have made their return with My Flower. The project group made their debut last year with Fantasy and is due to disband later this year. However, there have been talks of JBJ extending their contracts, which is clearly a thing that fans want to hear about! This comeback comes in the form of their second mini-album, which is titled as True Colors.

To me, My Flower is very standard. It feels like a traditional pop song that doesn’t have much within itself to make it a memorable track, which is disappointing since Fantasy was a really good song. The song does have some colour or flare to it but I just don’t think it is enough to be another great track. I liked the falsettos during the chorus, which were somewhat catchy. I liked the instrumental during the post-chorus parts, giving off a faster tempo and more intensity than the other parts of the song. But that is all I can say. The first rapper wasn’t horrible but his parts felt unfitting for the song. The drop into the chorus felt underwhelming and the ending to the post-chorus instrumental break just seemed misplaced in the middle of the track (it felt more like something that should have been only at the end of the track). Overall, it was definitely a let-down in many ways but still listenable in others.

While I didn’t like the song as much as I hoped I would, the music video was a far more superior aspect of the comeback. The video reminded of the similar concept previously done by Oh My Girl. Just a lot more simplistic in terms of its presentation. And I liked it. The white background allowed the members to pop (with their coloured clothing) and the use of colours as the video progressed just made everything feel more bold and vibrant. The use of the coloured lights during the post-chorus definitely added to the moment.

There are two sections of the choreography which I liked. The first being the second half of the chorus (this could become viral) and the second part is the post-chorus instrumental break. Besides that, everything else was good but not as memorable.

Song – 5/10
Music Video – 7.5/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 6.4/10

[Review] Quit – Jang Wooyoung (2PM)

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The End of 2017 Charts have been released and if you haven’t yet to check which song was selected as the Best Song of 2017, click here to check it out!

Last week, Jang Wooyoung teased the start of his promotions for this latest mini-album, Bye, by releasing the pre-release track, Going Going. Now, with the actual min-album officially out yesterday, Wooyoung has powered ahead with his promotions, with the release of the music video for this title track, Quit. He also released a separate music video for Party Shots and a special video for Don’t Act.

Wooyoung takes an unexpected turn with his main title track. Something along the lines of Going Going or Party Shots would have been understandable, but Quit is just completely surprisingly for me. The song starts with an acoustic guitar, strumming out a pretty nice rhythmic piece. Throughout the entire song, the guitar remains as the centrepiece of the instrumental, which is definitely interesting. They did bring out some percussion but it was much more light compared to the instrumental. What the song does best is bring out Wooyoung’s vocals really well, which isn’t something that you get often. It doesn’t feel masked in any way and just makes the song feel raw and pure. Despite the chill vibes from the song, his vocals add the emotional touch to the song. Overall, while it definitely was not the route I expected Wooyoung to go, its unexpectedness just puts the song into a stronger spotlight, in my opinion.

The entire music video is set after a breakup and how it has an affect on a person’s life. It plays nicely with the song and is definitely a toned down concept that mirrors the toned down nature of the song. Despite that, however, the video was more on the boring side of the spectrum. There just wasn’t enough to make me feel that interested in the video.

I suspect this will have a performance to it but we won’t see one before Thursday (if I am not mistaken). I will update this review (and the Block B review) on Thursday or Friday this week.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 6/10
Overall Rating – 7.8/10

[Album Review] Top Seed (3rd Studio Album) – Infinite

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Another very long album review for you all. Infinite returned last week with their third album and I intended to publish this at the end of last week. A few things popped up which prevented me from doing so. Regardless, the review is completed and published for your viewing pleasure. I won’t write anymore due to the length of this review.

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Top Seed Album Cover

1..Begin (Intro Track) – Starting off the album is your Infinite styled mash-up between an orchestral piece and something similar to their title track. While I don’t tend to review the intro track to most albums, I have to say I really like the clashing cymbals in this one.

2. Tell Me (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review of Tell Me. (7.9/10)

3. Synchronise – I am on the fence in regards to this song. It seems like the instrumental (particularly during the chorus) drowned out the vocals and it also felt overwhelming, Despite that, the rolling drum beat was nice and the transition between verses to the chorus was pretty good. I like the extension of the instrumental at the end of the song. The only other thing I am disappointed in was the lack of a rap segment, which felt expected. (6/10)

4. No More – I felt that this song wasn’t that interesting. Despite that, it had some elements which made it a decent song. It features great harmonies from the members. In regards to the previous songs, it is definitely nice to hear a song that is tone down. The vocals were nice and so was the rap sequence. (5/10)

5. TGIF (Dongwoo Solo) – This is first of three solo songs that featured on the album. The song does a good job at presenting the vocal and rapping talents of Dongwoo. I thought the chorus was really well done. The buildup to the bridge was nice but the instrumental break was too awkwardly placed and broke the flow of the song. (8.5/10)

6. Pray (Maetal’s Sorrow) (기도 (메텔의 슬픔)) – Pray has a dramatic start to the song, which is something that drew me to it. The orchestral instrumental had an interesting tango twist to it. I really enjoyed the epic feel to it but I felt that the song could have used more powerhouse vocals to make it even better. (8/10)

7. Why Me (왜 날)– It is your typical ballad but I have to say that the vocals were on point throughout the song. In particular, Sunggyu stood out during his parts in the chorus. Once again, it is a great song to sway to, which makes it a good song in my book. (7/10)

8. Wind (분다) – Starting off the track are whistles along with some acoustic guitars, which draw your attention in. Once the upbeat chorus is unleashed, the acoustic guitar takes a turn and transition into electric guitars, which I thought was incredibly cool. The harmonies during the post-chorus were awesome. Sungjong shined the brightest, particularly in his part during the bridge. I particularly like this song a lot. (9/10)

9. I Hate – The rock-based song adds another genre to the album and they nailed it. And despite me liking the song, there isn’t much to comment on. The vocal work from each member is amazing here as well, but Dongwoo’s rough vocals fit the song so well. (9/10)

10. Reminisce (지난 날 ) (L Solo) – L has always had a great voice when I hear him in Infinite songs, so his solo work obviously put forwards his underrated vocals. And while it shows off his capable vocals, the song is rather plain for my taste. (6/10)

11. Love Song (고백) (Sungjong Solo) – Sungjong gets the honour of being the last member to have a solo song featured on the album. Love Song is like that Spring ballad that gets released each year. It has a very bright feel, accounted for by the instrumentals. And both vocals and instrumental complement each other really well. (6/10)

12. Begin Again – We began the album with Begin and now we must Begin (another chapter) Again. It is an upbeat song that has a really great chorus and the vocals (along with the harmonies during the chorus) just made so much better. (8/10)

Overall Album Rating – 7.5/10

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Top Seed Teaser Image

Top 50 KPOP Songs of 2017

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Welcome to the final post for the 2017 KPOPREVIEWED Awards. It is time to find out who took out the award for Best Song of The Year. If you have yet to find out who won the individual categories, make sure you click here first!!!

This year’s awards are structured differently. This year, the way the Best Song of 2017 was chosen is based on 50% fan votes (which was conducted over the voting period of December 2017) and the other 50% is based on the Weekly KPOP Charts that I publish every Sunday.

So without further ado, I present you the Best Song of 2017 along with the rankings that determined the Best Song. I have only published the Top 50 on this site, but if you want to see a full listing, scroll down to the end to find the link which will send you there.

Pos. Song Artist
1 Peek-A-Boo Red Velvet
2 Don’t Wanna Cry Seventeen
3 Red Flavour Red Velvet
4 Likey Twice
5 Beautiful Monsta X
6 Really Really Winner
7 Rollin’ Brave Girls
8 Clap Seventeen
9 Gashina Sunmi
10 As If It Is Your Last BLACKPINK
11 Yes I Am Mamamoo
12 Hands Up B.A.P
13 DNA BTS
14 Power EXO
15 Never Ever GOT7
16 Honeymoon B.A.P
17 Like This Pentagon
18 You In Me KARD
19 Remember Nine Muses
20 Crazy Sexy Cool ASTRO
21 Universe EXO
22 Spring Day BTS
23 DDD EXID
24 I (knew it) Sonamoo
25 I Like You DAY6
26 You Are GOT7
27 Wake Me Up B.A.P
28 Hwi Hwi Laboum
29 Beautiful Wanna One
30 Energetic Wanna One
31 Love Whisper GFriend
32 Black Suit Super Junior
33 I’ll Be Yours Girl’s Day
34 Baby ASTRO
35 Signal Twice
36 Twinkle Lovelyz
37 Dramarama Monsta X
38 Rumour K.A.R.D
39 Heart Shaker TWICE
40 Chase Me Dreamcatcher
41 Good Night Dream Catcher
42 Holiday SNSD
43 Happy Cosmic Girls
44 365 Fresh Triple H
45 Whisper VIXX LR (VIXX)
46 Fingertips Gfriend
47 Where You At NU’EST W
48 Just U Jung Sewoon
49 I Wish WJSN (Cosmic Girls)
50 I Smile DAY6

To see the full charts (Position 1 to 236), click on the link here to be transported to a Google Spreadsheet. Click on the tab at the bottom of the page that says ‘End of Year Charts’.

Congratulations to Red Velvet and their November release, Peek-A-Boo, who has ranked the top song of 2017 and hence, The Best Song of 2017.

[Weekly Chart] 2nd Week of January 2018

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Once again, I am late for this post. Aim for 3PM but posting way after that time, very typical of me. This is the charts for the second week of January 2018. Debuting on the charts this week is Infinite, Oh My Girl, Wooyung (2PM)’s pre-release, MXM and Block B.

Rising to the top is Momoland’s Boom Boom, which earned the group their very first win on MCountDown in the past week! Infinite debuts with Tell Me on the charts in the second position while Kriesha Chu rosed from the bottom of the charts to 3rd position. Last week’s number 1 song, Paint Me by Mamamoo, dropped slightly to 4th position, while Oh My Girl rounds out the top 5 with Secret Garden.

Before we get to the charts, I just want to quickly state that the 2017 KPOPREVIEWED Awards have been published and you can find out who won by clicking the link here! As for the Best Song of 2017, this (along with the end of year charts) will be revealed tomorrow at 12PM AEST.

But before we get there, here are the charts for the 2nd week of January.

7th Jan- 13th Jan 2018
Title Artist Status
1 Boom Boom Momoland (▲ 1)
2 Tell Me Infinite (new)
3 Like Paradise Kriesha Chu (▲ 33)
4 Paint Me Mamamoo (▼ 3)
5 Secret Garden Oh My Girl (new)
6 You In Me KARD (▼ 1)
7 Going Going Jang Wooyoung (2PM) (new)
8 Hands Up B.A.P (▲ 1)
9 Wolf Baby TRCNG (▲ 12)
10 Ending Credit Uhm Jung Hwa (▲ 21)
11 Hot Potato N.Flying (▼ 5)
12 Diamond Girl MXM (new)
13 Don’t Leave Block B (new)
14 Peek-A-Boo Red Velvet (▼ 3) (Final Week)
15 Beautiful Wanna One (▼ 3) (Final Week)
16 I Like You DAY6 (▼ 2)
17 Lip & Hip Hyuna (▼ 7)
18 The Night Soyou ft. Geeks (▲ 18)
19 Runaway Pentagon (▼ 1)
20 Boy The Boyz (▲ 5)
21 Where U At 1NB (▼ 4)
22 Twinkle Lovelyz (▼ 2) (Final Week)
23 Universe EXO (▼ 19)
24 Heart Shaker TWICE (▼ 8)
25 Joy NCT Dream (▲ 4)
26 Day & Night Taemin (SHINee) (▲ 9)
27 Lower Amber & Luna (F(x)) (▼ 1)
28 Walkie Talkie HINT (▼13)
29 Love Is Gone MAP6 (▼ 5)
30 Charm Of Life Heechul, Shindong, Eunhyuk (Super Junior) & Solar (Mamamoo) (▼ 11)

Songs no longer on the charts starting next week are:

  • Beautiful – Wanna One
  • Twinkle – Lovelyz
  • Candy – Samuel
  • Peek-A-Boo – Red Velvet

And that is all this week. Hope you all have a wonderful week and see you all again next week (though hopefully earlier).

[Review] Going Going – Jang Wooyoung (2PM)

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Jang Wooyoung will be back with a brand new solo mini-album in South Korea next week. Despite this, Wooyoung has dropped a pre-release titled as Going Going for the fans on Monday, which is why we are here today. Wooyoung has been active in South Korea for the past few years after 2PM went on a hiatus to allow the members to individually enlist in the military. I just haven’t got around to review any of his solo works since Sexy Lady in 2012.

Anyone called for a throwback to the 90s? Going Going is a track that is overloaded with all the same elements (e.g. disc scratching) and vibes as some of the popular music from the 90s. And in reference to my earlier review today, I still think this track could have been a great title track for the Summer months, due to its vibrant sound. But this is just a pre-release, so I guess we have to let that slide. The drums in this song is definitely a successful attempt at trying to get the song to stick in my mind. That bridge with the consecutive drums was definitely a highlight. His English lyrics did catch me off guard when I first listened to it, making me doing a double take back to check the lyrics to be sure I heard correctly. And while I did like the vibrancy of the music, I wasn’t sure about the chorus. It just felt a little plain, in comparison to some of the other parts of the song. I feel like the verses had a lot more colour when compared to the chorus. Great song, though.

Following that vibrancy, the video is clearly shot to make it fit that Summer season. I just don’t know why the video was hit with a dark or pale filter, which really felt unnecessary in my point of view. Some of the shots didn’t seem to have the filters, which was pleasing to watch. Besides that, I don’t think there was much else to the video to comment on.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 6/10
Overall Rating – 6.6/10

[Review] Like Paradise – Kriesha Chu

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The winners of the KPOPREVIEWED Awards 2017 have been announced! Check out who won by clicking here!

Time to review a brand new artist! Kriesha Chu is technically not a new artist, as she made her formal debut with Trouble last year in May. For those who are not familiar with Kriesha Chu, she came runner-up on KPOP Star 6, which aired in 2016 and 2017. Like Paradise is her first comeback and the title track off her first mini-album, Dream of Paradise.

Like Paradise is a decent song that introduces me to Kreisha Chu. The song does a feel a little bland, in my opinion. The song doesn’t really peak for me. Instead, it remains too consistent from start to end. That’s the biggest problem that I have with the track. The EDM chorus was very nice (particularly the launch into the chorus), with her vocals compliment the style. I just feel that this song would have done a lot better in the Summer months. The EDM and synths do give off a somewhat bright vibe. It isn’t like a particular sound can only exist in its stereotypical season but I personally do not think it works this time around. Her presence in the song did leave a strong impression on me and I am interested to see what else she has up her sleeves. Initially, it did take a few listens to get into (hence the delayed review). But now, I like it quite a bit and don’t mind it playing in the background if it appeared on my playlist.

Some of the shots looked quite nice in this video. I am always complimenting the drone shots when it comes to some of these videos that are set outside. The video also featured a little storyline. The two girls used to be best of friends. But after discovering they liked the same guy, their friendship turns sour despite their attempts to make it work. I feel like the part when they reunite seems a little unresolved. What happened to the dude? Did they both take a step back from him and this allowed them to be friends once again? Or did he step back because he was feeling troubled? The video doesn’t really say much in regards to this and I feel like it should have been addressed since that is a major part of the video. But overall, it was a nice video to watch.

The performance just lacks energy. I know she is trying her best to come to a compromise between singing live and take on the choreography. But I feel like the dance is weak, to begin with. I just don’t think the performance is interesting enough to watch.

Song – 6/10
Music Video – 7/10
Performance – 5/10
Overall Rating – 6/10

[Review] Grrr (Law of Total Madness) – Stray Kids

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Have you seen the winners of the 2017 KPOPREVIEWED Awards yet? If you haven’t, feel free to click here to be transferred to see who won!

Last year, as an introduction to a potential upcoming boy group by JYP Entertainment, Stray Kids unleashed Hellivator. The group then went on to compete to see who would be able to debut later this year, with all nine members confirmed to debut at the end of the show’s run. Now, they are back with a pre-debut mixtape (in the form of a mini-album) titled as Mixtape and features the main track, Grr (Law of Total Madness).

If we want to talk intensity, Stray Kids is probably the group to talk about. From the very start, there is no holding back. Instead, the group just launches right into there. The song seems to be a mixture of rock and EDM, with elements poking out at you during certain moments throughout the song. You could say that the combination turns it into a mess but given their past track, it is clear that it was intentional and definitely adds to their portfolio. It does lack something that could have made the track more catchy, in my point of view. Maybe a chorus because I felt this song’s chorus didn’t have much of a presence due to the song’s style and rap-dominance. But it is still decent to listen to. Once again, the vocals are overshadowed by the raps. So while this is just a pre-debut, I am hoping to hear a few tracks that highlight the vocal capabilities of the group in the future.

The music video is essentially the performance of this song, throwing in some closeup shots of the member. Everything felt fitting for this music video, from the shaky camera work to the industrial background. So there isn’t much else to talk about.

But the key part of the video is definitely the dance performance. That level of intensity that you could hear from the song is seen throughout the performance. In my previous review for the group, I commented on their potential and this performance just cements that. I like the ‘running towards the camera’ during the chorus and the second verse rap where some of the members are lying on the ground (at 1:30) is pretty unique.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 7/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 7.9/10

 

[Album Review] The Hottest: N.Flying (3rd Mini Album) – N.Flying

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This is my first N.Flying album review. When I first heard the highlight medley prior to the official release of the mini-album, I knew I had to sit down and review the album. This is their 3rd mini-album to date and titled as The Hottest: N.Flying.

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The Hottest: N.Flying Album Cover

1..And So, We (그러니까 우라) – Opening up the album is a track that felt so similar to an OST to a cheesy drama. The song overall, especially the chorus, felt very poppy. It was also quite bright and refreshing, similar to songs that you would get during the Summer season. It is a great song to nod along to, with great vocals and raps. For some reason, I really like how the song ended. It seems like your standard ending but I am somehow digging it. (8/10)

2. Hot Potato (뜨거운 감자) (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review for Hot Potato. (8.6/10)

3. In The Back Alley (골목길에서) – The song opens up with a very serious rap sequence which did a good job at gaining my attention. Compared to the previous two songs, the level of energy is toned down, which provides some relief, since it could have been overwhelming. I thought the raps and vocals were well balanced. Despite the presence of the thumping drum beats, the song is soothing to listen to. The best part of the song would have to be the bridge, which gave the song its needed peak. The only downside to the song is the abrupt ending. (8/10)

4. I Know U Know – There are many elements of this song which I liked. I liked the guitar in this song. But more than that, I loved the build-up for this song. At first, I thought it was just going to be a ballad but it ended up turning into a pop song. The unexpected turns the song take do give it an appealing touch. The hollow electronic drum beats during the chorus were really nice. I also liked the high note at the end. (9/10)

5. The Best (이보다 좋을까) – Unfortunately, The Best seemed to be my pick for the least interesting song on this album. It opens up as a jazzy number and quickly turns into a pop band track. I thought the vocals and raps were nice. The chorus had a sweet sounding melody. Besides that, I don’t have much else to say about the song. (6/10)

6. Just This One Day (딱 하루만) – I think the one thing we must comment on in this song is the chorus. It was that rock sound that seemed to be missing from this album. When I first heard it, I was digging the head banging vibes. I like the scratching record which you heard throughout the raps sequences. The way the ad-libs were layered at the end gave the song a more appealing manner. The vocals were a little plain during the verses, but they contrasted nicely with the chorus. The only thing I am not keen on is the rap-speak during the bridge. (8/10)

Overall Album Review – 8/10

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Hot Potato Music Video Screenshot

[Review] Diamond Girl – MXM

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Did your favourites win at this year’s KPOPREVIEWED Awards? If you haven’t checked out the winners yet, click on the link here to find out who ultimately won! 

MXM have made their return with Diamond Girl. This is their first comeback since their debut last year with I’m The One. For those who may have missed their debut, MXM is a duo consisting of Lim Young Min and Kim Dong Hyun.

Diamond Girl is an extremely funky track that gets you grooving along to it. It is super catchy, as you would expect with something so funky and retro. The instrumental consists of many components that give off that retro vibe, such as the high pitch synth (sounds like a traditional synthesizer sound) in the chorus (at 0:54), the many examples of brass and the good old cow bell. I also loved that coil sound at the end of the bridge. Not sure if you would say that is retro but it was definitely attention-grabbing for me. The repetition of the ‘Diamond Girl‘ feels so energetic. I thought the vocals were really nice. But once again, the raps stole the show for me. Particularly the raps that featured in the second verse. Overall, the song was really cool and definitely landing on my playlist.

For the music video, Diamond Girl seems to reference the pawnbroker whom in the main character that the MXM boys are trying to impress. She also gives out diamonds in exchange for their property. I guess they want to see her more so they gather everything they own to give to her. I also assume the video is set in space, giving they have flying cars and the freaking purple moon in the background at the end. The video was actually quite nice to watch and felt like it complemented the song. You could feel the chemistry they have together in this video, which makes it even better to watch.

I don’t have any specific comments regarding the performance of this comeback. I do like it a lot. It matches the energy from the song, which is a definite plus.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 8/10 
Performance – 7.5/10
Overall Rating – 8.4/10

[Review] Don’t Leave – Block B

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Zico from Block B was voted as the Best Rapper of 2017. To see who else was voted as the best for 2017, check out the results for the 2017 KPOPREVIEWED Awards by clicking here.

We last saw Block B with Shall We Dance and their mini-album, Montage, in November. At the end of 2017, it was announced that the group would return with a repackaged mini-album, titled as Re:Montage. The repackaged mini-album features 3 new songs, including Don’t Leave (the main title track), a solo song from Jaehyo and U-Kwon.

Don’t Leave is another ballad under Block B’s wing. And while it does sound quite rooted within its emotions, the song fails to capture my attention. It just doesn’t have anything that separates it from some of other songs that are currently being released. Shall We Dance grew on me with a few extra listens after writing the review for its uniqueness in terms of its sound, whereas Don’t Leave just feels very standard. That being said, there are elements of the song which I like. The instrumental starts off as piano-based but it progresses to have a band feel. It definitely has a grand feel to it.. Vocals are quite nice (harmonies were beautiful) but the best part has to be the raps. You can never go wrong in that department when it comes to Block B. The transition between Zico rapping and singing felt flawless and P.O’s segment at the end of the song was definitely the best part of the song.

The HD quality of this music video makes it feel so fresh and crisp. It draws me in when there isn’t much going on in the video. The post-apocalyptic feel that I got from the setting of the video reminds me of Love Song by Big Bang, especially Kyung’s walk along the beach. I do like the various camera angles that make the video feel artistic and aesthetic. The slowness of the imagery in the video does compliment the ballad and slower nature of the song.

[Updated] Despite it being a ballad, Block B manages to fit a choreography routine in. It didn’t feel necessary but nonetheless, it is actually very nice. I love the choreography during the post-chorus repetition moments of the song. Their hands flailing around doesn’t look in sync but it has a nice aesthetic, which is something I like.

Song – 6.5/10
Music Video – 7/10
Performance – 7/10 [Updated]
Overall Rating – 6.75/10 [Updated]

2017 KPOPREVIEWED Awards – Results

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**drum rolls please**

It is time to announce the winners of the 2017 KPOPREVIEWED Awards. This is the first year ever that you (the readers) got the opportunity to vote and pick out the winners of each category (excluding a few). Let me just start by saying thank you for all those who participated in the voting process, as you all made this possible.

This will be an EXTREMELY LONG post and it will be gif heavy so it may take a while to load up. If you have a slow internet connection (like me), you can still view the winners (along with the nominees if you missed the voting period/want a reminder) by clicking the link here.

The respective gifs for each category represent the winners which you voted for, while I have put down my pick for the category. I have opted to not do a commentary this year due to the already long length of this post.

BEST MALE GROUP DEBUT

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Wanna One

Author’s Choice – Wanna One

BEST FEMALE GROUP DEBUT

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Dream Catcher

Author’s Choice – Dream Catcher

BEST SOLOIST DEBUT

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Kim Chungha

Author’s Choice – Jung Sewoon

RISING STAR

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Monsta X

Author’s Choice – NU’EST W

BEST SUBUNIT

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SEVENTEEN Performance Unit

Author’s Choice – Gugudan 5959

BEST CO-ED GROUP

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KARD

Author’s Choice – KARD

BEST MALE SOLOIST

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G-Dragon (Big Bang)

Author’s Choice – Bobby (iKON)

BEST FEMALE SOLOIST

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IU
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Sunmi

Author’s Choice – Sunmi

BEST VOCALS

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BTOB

Author’s Choice – DAY6

BEST RAPPER

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Zico (Block B)

Author’s Choice – Bobby (iKON)

BEST JAPANESE SONG BY A KOREAN ARTIST

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One More Time – TWICE

Author’s Choice – One More Time (TWICE)

BEST COLLABORATION

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Honey Bee – Luna, Solar, Hani

Author’s Choice – Bye Babe (Chen & 10CM)

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY

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Don’t Wanna Cry – SEVENTEEN

Author’s Choice – Gashina (Sunmi)

BEST MUSIC VIDEO

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Peek-A-Boo – Red Velvet

Author’s Choice – You In Me (KARD)

BEST MALE GROUP

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B.A.P
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EXO

Author’s Choice – SEVENTEEN

BEST FEMALE GROUP

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Red Velvet

Author’s Choice – Red Velvet

BEST NON-TITLE TRACK SONG

Beautiful – Pentagon

BEST ALBUM

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Palette – IU (4th Studio Album)

And there you have it, the 2017 KPOPREVIEWED Award Winners. Congratulations to all! Hopefully, the artist’s that you picked came out on top and were victorious.

As for the BEST SONG OF THE YEAR award, it will be published in a separate post. For this year, the winning song will be the song that tops the End Of Year Charts (to be published on the 15th of January).
NOTE: YOUR VOTES MAKE UP 50% OF THE END OF YEAR CHARTS, WITH THE OTHER 50% CONTRIBUTED BY ME.

[Review] Secret Garden – Oh My Girl

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Oh My Girl have made their return to the stage with Secret Garden, which also shares the same name as their latest (and 5th) mini-album. This is Oh My Girl’s first comeback after the departure of JinE, who was still included in the lineup prior to this comeback despite not participating in the promotions.

Secret Garden is actually a pleasing song to listen to. With just a few listens already, the song has managed to grow on me quite a bit. When I first heard a snippet of the song, I was wondering what happened to the aesthetic or energy filled song that we are used to hearing from Oh My Girl. But I guess I was too quick to judge. Secret Garden is orchestral influenced with its dreamy instrumental. With Oh My Girl’s twist, they added a slight presence of a band to make it more upbeat, suitable to incorporate a dance into their stages. The use of electric guitar during their dance break is quite nice, giving the song some variety rather than just the classical instrumentation. The instrumental particularly evokes nostalgia within me, but I cannot pinpoint where this nostalgia is coming from. Their vocals were extremely clear with this song, which makes the song feel so crisp. I liked their chorus but felt like they could have added harmonies to give it a grander effect. Overall, Secret Garden definitely adds to the group’s portfolio as another standout track, in my point of view.

If it weren’t for a particular YouTube comment on the video, I would have completely missed a major detail regarding the music video. It seems like the music video for Secret Garden includes various details that link the past music videos by Oh My Girl to the present video, which ties in nicely with the lyrics of the song. Essentially, what the song is about is one’s ‘Secret Garden‘, which is a reference to one’s imagination. And the entire portfolio of Oh My Girl music videos have been based largely on imagination. Hence we can see different items shared between the videos. The presence of the deer is a reference to Closer and the clouds outside the window reference Coloring Book, to just name a few. If it is the true intention of the imagery, the videos are clearly thought out and interestingly intertwined. I like the video for that fact.

Fitting nicely with the song is the graceful nature of the choreography. I like how some of the moves are fast and sharp, while others were quite slow and fluid. The best part would have to be the dance break, which like the song, gives the choreography a nice kick.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 8.3/10

[Review] Tell Me – Infinite

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Infinite has made their first return since 2016 with their latest mini-album, Top Seed. This particular album along with the title track, Tell Me, is the first to not feature Hoya, who did not re-sign with Woolim Entertainment last year during the contract renewal. Hence this is the first comeback for Infinite as a six-member boy group.

With the departure of a member, I wondered how the 6-member Infinite will differ from the 7-member Infinite. And the direction that Tell Me went in seemed to depart from that traditional Infinite sound. The traditional Infinite sound is much more jam-packed and intense. Tell Me seems to be a little more spaced out and doesn’t feel as intense, hence why I say it doesn’t conform to the past. It has a more pop-centred sound, which actually sounds nice. The song is quite catchy with the “luv, luv, luv’ post-chorus segment. The fast repetition of the ‘naega, naega’ during the chorus just rolls so effortlessly in the song, it has become the main highlight. I liked the instrumental which definitely gives off a different side of the group. All the members sound nice but I feel like their vocals are as strong as before. It might be the song style but I feel like a tighter set of vocals could have brought more of that intensity and Infinite-esque sound to the song. A similar comment could have been made regarding the rap. But overall, I am really digging this track.

Call me crazy but I am dubbing this as the ‘Infinite’ concept as basically what happens in the video just continues on and never ends. I think the storyline of the video is being stuck in that memory of a chance at love and having to relive that until you finally reunite. The video came out to be aesthetic with the various ways they displayed the concept, such as the never-ending blue triangle corners and the various upward camera angles for the choreography. Overall, it is pretty interesting and definitely eye-catching (in my point of view).

Despite the more spaced out song and less intense nature, we can’t talk about Infinite and not acknowledge the synchronisation between the members. They brought such knife-like moves back to the table, which I think is amazing. Not as impressive, I must admit, but still quite captivating to watch. Woohyun’s solo body roll in this performance is on point (big Woohyun fan here)!!!

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 7.5/10
Overall Rating – 7.9/10