2020 has proven to be an eventful year so, without a doubt. But since we are at the halfway mark already, let’s have a little reflection post on the last 6 months. In no particular order, here are 10 of my personal favourite KPOP releases since the start of 2020. I have also added some of my favourite sidetracks that I have encountered so far in the year as part of my top 10. This is also irrespective of my reviews and Weekly KPOP charts posts.
Over the last few months, Chungha has been leaving breadcrumbs for her upcoming solo comeback which yet to be announced. The first breadcrumb was the release of the pre-release single, Stay Tonight (a track that I want to revisit when I revise my ratings for some songs in a new segment). The second breadcrumb is Play, which was released today and features Changmo. Since Stay Tonight, Chungha has also collaborated with the popular rapper pH-1 on the track My Friend, which I have yet to review. But we are here for thoughts on Play, so let’s get to that first.
By the time I had finished listening to Play for the first time, I knew that this was going to the be the 2020 Summer song to beat. The energy and atmosphere she creates for herself in this song is so epic and grand, it really helps to overlook the song’s flaw, the Latin pop genre. While that has been a typical sound throughout the Summer seasons over the last few years and Play itself incorporates with brass elements and synths that we have heard many many times before, Chungha manages to somehow reform it to make it come off refreshing and exciting in Play. That is already a strong cause for an applause. I really like her vocals in this song. The instrumental could have easily overwhelmed and masked all of Chungha’s vocals. But Chungha’s vocals soar high enough to be in the forefront of the song. And that is saying a lot, considering how blastful and bombast this instrumental got, especially as we approached the end. Also featuring on this song is Changmo, who’s rap sequence added a cool dynamic to the song. It somehow balances out the upbeat energy of the chorus and gives us some relief after the first chorus. Same thing can be said about the bridge, which slows the song down (but allows for the return in the final chorus to be super impactful). The melodies and hooks were catchy and may become super addictive if I give the song any more listens (which will happen!). Overall, I am in awe and loving Play.
Once again, the music video takes on that closeup and choreography approach, which I have (many times) stated was a bore. But the music video for Play is captivating enough to override that statement. There were some epic moments, aside from her beautiful visuals (which alone were enough to steal my attention away from the formula), that really wowed me. Chungha becoming a bullfighter with the red sports car was definitely one of those. Actually, any moment in that particular setting was amazing. I also really liked the birdcage choreography scenes, as that set looked really cool.
It is unknown whether Chungha would be promoting this time around. It soon became apparent that Stay Tonight would be extremely difficult to perform on stage due to various formations formed. But I don’t see any of that in this choreography, which may present hope that we will be seeing a stage performance of Play soon. I really like how the atmosphere from the song came through in the performance and how charismatic Chungha looked throughout the performance. I also liked the energy that came from the chorus routine alone, as that looked cool.
Song – 10/10 Music Video – 9/10 Performance – 9/10 Overall Rating – 9.5/10
Six months ago, SF9 kicked off 2020 with their Good Guy comeback. It proved to be SF9’s most popular and best-performing comeback ever, with the group earning their first-ever weekly show music win during the promotions of Good Guy. And exactly six months from that comeback, the group is back, now helping to kick off the second half of 2020 with SummerBreeze. Their new title track features on the group’s eighth mini-album, 9loryUS.
SF9 begins the song with an intriguing synth sequence that reminds one of those Western movie themes, before reverting to a foot tap worthy house beat for the verses. The pre-chorus creates suspense with a typical but workable buildup. The chorus combines that Western movie theme synth sequence with those house beats to create a really pleasant and enjoyable combination that takes the positives aspects of those two sounds to form a wholesome feel. The bridge brings forward refreshing acoustic guitars that stayed hidden between the Western theme synths and house beats during the chorus. Overall, it is safe to say that the Summer Breeze‘s instrumental earns a big tick from me. It is just so suitable yet so refined for Summer. And it is this refined sound that makes it suitable to be a follow up after Good Guy. Some of the other aspects of the song are good to great, but they just don’t feel as amazing as the instrumental. The vocal work and rapping were strong efforts. Zuho’s rap sequence just before the final chorus had a nice punch to it and was a highlight in my opinion. There are some good hooks in this song and the melody is pretty easy to follow. But each of these components (the vocal/rapping, hooks and melodies) have a hand in creating a generic atmosphere. I wanted something more exciting and addictive, which would easily help lifted this song to be one of their best. What we have is good and I feel like it will be enjoyable at the very least if the subsequent listens don’t help it grow on me. But per usual, I wanted more from the members in Summer Breeze.
It is a bit unclear what the concept of the music video really is. I thought they were part of different gangs with the mission to eliminate each other at first. Though, it doesn’t explain the part when one of the bullets broke the mirror to reveal the sunshine, which then caused the members to redirect their gunfire. One source says the music video was similar to a James Bond movie and that the members are playing a dangerous game. Though, that also doesn’t explain the sunshine scene. Apart from the confusing plot line, I liked how the music video set gave me the same feels as their Good Guy music video. I also liked how classy the video felt, especially in the hotel scenes where the gunfight occurs.
Best part the choreography is during the ‘Bang Bang Bang‘ parts. I also found Jaeyoon to be the most captivating member, with his body rolls during his solo parts. As for the rest of the performance, there isn’t much else to comment on. It may not have been captivating, but it felt refined and classy, which is definitely the direction that SF9 was aiming for with this comeback.
Song – 7.5/10 Music Video – 6.5/10 Performance – 7.5/10 Overall Rating – 7.2/10
Stray Kids made their comeback a few weeks back with their very first studio album, GO生 (or Go Live). The main title track was God’s Menu, which has proven to be a great song in my books. It has gone on to top the Weekly KPOP Charts thanks to its powerful energy, catchy hooks and dynamism. So it was natural for me to investigate the album which it is featured on. Alongside God’s Menu, you will find familiar tracks such as Top and Slump (which were both previously released Japanese tracks), along with Gone Days and On Track (which were earlier mixtape releases that were released after their Levanter promotions). Links to the reviews for these tracks, along with my thoughts on the other sidetracks can be found below.
Go Live Album Cover
1. Go Live (GO生) – Stray Kids is known for their powerful tracks, as their entire career so far has been predominately made up of powerful sounds. Go Live, as an introductory track, aligns the album with that association and really kicks off the album in a very suspenseful fashion. A lot of hip-hop influences in this short track. It kicks off with strong rapping from the rappers and the vocalists come in with their vocals autotuned to fit the atmosphere. I.N’s deep voice is probably the most shocking of all (did not know we had another Felix in the group) and Lee Know’s ‘I Know, You Know, We Know, Lee Know’ line has to be the most memorable of all. (7/10)
3. Easy – Easy, without doubt, continue the momentum that God’s Menu ends off with. The rapping in this song is also rapid and powerful. The vocals are autotuned. I am a little torn about this, as I am not a fan of overly autotuned vocals usually. However, as mentioned in the introductory track’s paragraph, this was the obvious direction for the vocals to fit the powerful and fast tempo nature of the song. Regarding the instrumental, it feels fairly plain in comparison to the title track, though I did like the start which added dramatic suspense to the song. I also enjoyed the dance break, which added some energy to the song. The one thing that weighs down the song is the lack of dynamic hooks, which is why I give it a slightly lower rating to their title track. (8/10)
4. Pacemaker – The fast pace instrumental of Pacemaker blasts you at the very start of the song before the members assault you (in a good sense) with their rapping and vocals. It might be overwhelming for some, but that is one of the aspects of the song that I thoroughly enjoyed. The instrumental itself takes a half step back for some of the verses, before returning to that blast of energy for the chorus. I liked how the lyrics liken their lover to a pacemaker by saying things like ‘your end is my end’. It is a captivating track full of energy and one that I recommend if you don’t mind the members and music coming at you. (9/10)
5. Airplane (비행기) – We take a step back from the intensity for something with a pop sound. There does seem to be some hip-hop influences mixed into the song, but I would categorize it more as a pop track by the song stops playing. Airplane is fun-sounding but it is nothing more than a pleasant track. There is an enjoyable level of brightness and energy in this song. And even though it may not conform to Stray Kid’s powerful sound, Airplane has a decent beat and the vocal melodies shine. I am kind of glad that the vocalists (namely Seungmin and I.N) get an opportunity to shine somewhere on this album. Their voices may have had to compete with instrumental, though they did well with what they had to work with. (8/10)
6. Another Day (일상) – Another Day is another chance for the Stray Kid’s vocalists to shine. Wait, let me backtrack that statement. All members actually shine throughout this song. Joining Seungmin and I.N as vocalists in this song is Lee Know, Bang Chan and Han. And if this song needs to prove anything, those members can definitely sing. Felix, Changbin and Hyunjin took on their usual roles as rappers. Even though their parts were very constricted, their deep and raspy rap-singing lines were very pleasant and extremely fitting alongside the vocals. This is all over an instrumental predominately consisting of a mellow sounding acoustic guitar. Fitting the atmosphere of the song are the members reflecting on ‘Another Day’ in the lyrics. (8/10)
7. Phobia– Overtaking the other songs that have been branded with a 9/10 rating, in terms of quality, is Phobia. I really like how this track sound. This is a synth pop-dance track. I really like soothing the energy is for this song. While it is upbeat (which might not be a term you would associate with ‘soothing’), I find the melodies and vocals to be glide effortlessly over the instrumental and everything just balances out nicely. Their vocals and rapping in this sound, alongside with the melodies are very dynamic and catchy, which are undoubtedly strong appealing points. The song’s hooks were quite addictive and I really liked how cool the English sound in this song. Jisung handling the high note was a pleasant surprise and another drawing point to the song. (10/10)
8. Blueprint (청사진) – Blueprint is the type of song that you want to have playing a theme song as you stroll down a busy suburban street on a sunny day and you interact with the other pedestrians in perfect looking montage. It is also fitting for the current Summery season. Great upbeat energy coming from this song. I like how the synth heavy the song is, but I also enjoy all the actual instrumentations poking through along the way. The members add a dynamic atmosphere to the song, which I find to be very appealing. The melody that their voices carry, especially when it came to the chorus was quite memorable. Seungmin is my pick for standout member in this song. I also like how all the members sing parts of each line at the end of the song, which adds a very happy and joyful tinge of colour to the song. I found it very hard to fault this song, hence a perfect rating. (10/10)
9. Ta (타) – Two 10/10 tracks in a row? Well, I might as well spoil it now and say that this is another 10/10 track. Ta is probably the most straightforward song on this album. The start of the song reminds me of how Miroh started with jungle sounds. But what sets Ta apart from their previous dynamic sounding title track is that it just continually builds on top of those jungle sounds, creating a party-like sound that I can’t stop gravitating to. I would gladly put this one at a party to just get it started. The melodies are addictive. Their voices are amazing. The hooks are catchy. And the atmosphere is exciting and fun. What more can you ask for? (10/10)
10. Haven – Like the previous song, Haven has this addictive and memorable party-like vibe that I am digging. It is great that the two tracks are paired next to one another, as I can play both songs without needing to skip anything in between. Haven has more of a club beat during its more upbeat moments, whilst having more of a pop sound when we are in the verses. The chorus also has this nostalgic sound it, reminding me of a few party-like sounds we have heard in KPOP. I have to admit that the rap/trap sequence in the second verse cut the flow is a slightly undesirable manner and hence I can’t give it that 10/10 rating. But everything else is worthy of a listen. (9/10)
12. Slump (Korean Version) – The Japanese version of Slump was also released alongside Top to be part of the official soundtrack of the anime, Tower of God. I really like the pop-rock path they took with this song, which is unique and different for Stray Kids. I don’t like how the vocals were autotuned during the chorus to match the autotune that the rappers had. I felt that was unnecessary and robbed the members of a chance to show off their vocals during a powerful chorus. But it is still a good song. (8/10)
While we were stuck in June for a small portion of the past week, officially we just wrapped up the first week of the second half of 2020. So, welcome all to the first Weekly KPOP Charts post for the second half of 2020. And it one damn busy week with loads of comebacks. I tried my best to cover the majority of them, but I do note that I haven’t covered all of them yet. I will begin reviewing those comebacks this week, as we don’t have much of an intense week this time around. But per usual, we must get through the Weekly Chart post first before we get to those.
Rising to the top of the charts this week is Seventeen’s latest comeback title track, Left & Right (which came in second place last week). Definitely a recommended song from the first half of 2020. Playing switch-a-roo with Left & Right is last week’s number one song, Stray Kid’s God’s Menu. The remaining three positions in the Top 5 this week are made of new songs we saw during this past week. In order, they include 3YE’s Yessir, WOODZ’s Love Me Harder and VERIVERY’s Thunder. For more of the charts, scroll down below.
28th Jun – 4th Jul 2020
Title
Artist
Status
1
Left & Right
Seventeen
(▲ 1)
2
God’s Menu
Stray Kids
(▼ 1)
3
Yessir
3YE
(new)
4
Love Me Harder
WOODZ
(new)
5
Thunder
VERIVERY
(new)
6
pporapippam
Sunmi
(new)
7
Tag Me
Weeekly
(new)
8
One (Lucid Dream)
Golden Child
(▼ 4)
9
Stand By You
A.C.E
(▲ 1)
10
Red Moon
Kim Woo Seok (UP10TION)
(▲ 20)
11
The Answer
AB6IX
(new)
12
Bedlam
Lee Jin Hyuk (UP10TION)
(new)
13
Happy
Taeyeon (SNSD)
(▲ 43)
14
Oh Really
N.Flying
(▲ 12)
15
Candy
Baekhyun (EXO)
(▲ 2)
16
Maria
Hwasa (Mamamoo)
(new)
17
Nineteen
NATTY
(▲ 36)
18
How You Like That
BLACKPINK
(▼ 6)
19
Fantasia
MONSTA X
(▼ 14)
20
Punch
NCT 127
(▼ 5)
21
My My
Seventeen
(▼ 14)
22
Secret Story of the Swan
IZ*ONE
(▼ 11)
23
Oppsy
Weki Meki
(▼ 17)
24
Knock
ASTRO
(▲ 3)
25
More & More
TWICE
(▼ 11)
26
Eight
IU ft. Suga (BTS)
(▼ 2)
27
Tiger Eye
Ryu Su Jeong (Lovelyz)
(▼ 4)
28
Puma
TXT
(▼ 19)
29
Absence
Moonbyul (Mamamoo)
(=)
30
Who Dis?
SECRET NUMBER
(▲ 9)
Songs leaving the charts this week are:
Knock – ASTRO
Happy – Taeyeon (SNSD)
V.A.V.I Girl – FANATICS
Eight – IU ft. Suga (BTS)
Leo – BOL4 ft. Baekhyun (EXO)
Nineteen – NATTY
Headache – Moon Jongup
Thank you once again and see you in the next review post!
It has been a while since I stuck my head into the world of Japanese releases made by Korean artists. So today, I will be reviewing Japanese releases from BTS, Stray Kids, TWICE, Dream Catcher and Lee Jun Young (from UKISS). Some of these are recent and some of these dates back to the start of the year. Early this year, I reverted to a bulk review post for International releases by Korean artists as they go global. If you would like to see the two bulk review posts that I have released so far, you can do so by clicking here and here. If you know of any other international releases (that have a music video), please comment them below so that I am aware of them!
Stay Gold – BTS
Out of all the releases on this list that I have chosen to review today, Stay Gold has to be the most generic. While the song does shine a golden light onto their vocals and rapping, the pop ballad just doesn’t have much to hold my attention. The lyrics of Stay Gold directs the song down the inspirational path, but the overall atmosphere of the pop ballad did not have that same feeling. And no amount of good vocals can compensate for that. The instrumental felt very mostly linear and the titular hook was just repeated too much throughout the chorus. Obviously, this is intentional to get the hook stuck in your mind. But by the time we get to the pre-chorus, it just feels too overdone and dried out. Lights (last year’s Japanese release) is quite similar in terms of its ballad direction, but there was a soothing feeling and attractive instrumental. The music video seems to show that no matter what dark place you in, there will always be light somewhere in it. At the end of the video when V touches the tree trunk, the golden lights that come from the tree and into the dark hallways may symbolises that is BTS is the guiding light for their fans (which I am sure is the truth for most fans). It was a nice video, with a good meaning. (7.2/10)
Top – Stray Kids
Top is Stray Kid’s first original Japanese single and since its release, we have seen a Korean and English version. It is also used as a theme song for the Japanese anime, Tower of God. When I listen to Top, I get this really cool epic vibe to the song which leaves a very strong impression on me. It starts off with some dramatic violins before adopting a rough and heavy synth base for the chorus. And it is this combination that really helps makes Top become one of their most powerful releases to date. The rappers benefit with this rough style of music, with both their rough textured delivery and angst shining throughout the song. The vocal moments were meh, in my opinion. But the slowdown we get to give way to the vocalists do help make the drop more epic. For the music video, I really like their spaceship premise. It is fitting with the epic vibes of the song. Standlone, it is still pretty cool setting. It is a song all about gettng to the top, no matter what. We see the members struggle as the road to get to the top becomes difficult, but they always perservere. I do wonder what Seungmin and I.N were meant to represent as they walk into the light. Are they the ones that gave up? Not too sure. As for the choreography, powerful and epic, just like the song. (9/10)
Fanfare – Twice
TWICE’s recent Japanese release is Fanfare. The song’s instrumental just keeps coming for you and it might be overwhelming for some. Even I had to debate whether I should say the instrumental assaulted us with its noise or was just very overpowering but bearable. For the time being, I am leaning towards the latter, as it doesn’t seem to much as everyone else is saying. But if you caught me on a bad day, I might be going with the first option as my description of Fanfare. I really like its energy and powerful upbeat nature, which is all highly suitable for the Summer season. The marching band adds a fun and robust feel to the song. It might be overpowering, but the members bring a bright tone to the song to help level it out. The song’s hooks were catchy and I would gladly add this to my playlist if I wanted to infuse some energy into my day. For the music video, it looks like a bunch of ill-fitting closeup shots and a stage-like set up for their choreography scenes, where the members are dressed in marching band gear. I assume those closeup shots are meant to give off a happy and joyful impression to match the lyrics of the song. Though, I do question Jihyo’s scene, which is a world full of laundry. No one ever enjoys laundry, it is such a chore. For the choreography, I thought it was pretty good. Not their most impressive routine, but still fun and bubbly. (7.4/10)
Endless Night – Dream Catcher
Endless Night is one of the older releases in this post, dating back to March of this year. While Dream Catcher has been long associated with bringing the J-POP rock sound to K-POP, Endless Night feels like it brings a Western rock influence to the Japanese industry, which was rather unexpected. It is also a lot moodier than any of their other title tracks. But while these are different directions, Dream Catcher makes it work. I do just wish their vocals and rapping had a little more oomph to them, which would help make the song more appealing. Aside from the chorus, everything else was rather forgettable and dry. For the music video, I really liked the use of colours. It just makes this otherwise boring music video pop, which definitely helps with the video’s appeal. Wait, but why do I find the video boring? Well, the video takes on that typical closeup and choreography formula that I have grown to dislike. I do admit the closeups seem to try to be aesthetic, but they don’t just hit the mark like other music videos. The choreography looks pretty good and works pretty well with the song. The chorus has to be the best part of the routine for me. (7.4/10)
Come Alive – Lee Jun Young (U-KISS)
Lee Jun Young is probably more known as an actor, rather than UKISS member. At the end of 2019, he reminded fans that he is a singer with the release of his first single album and Curious About U. Right after his domestic promotions, Lee Jun Young also released his first mini-album in Japan, featuring a number of solo singles from the second half of 2019. It also featured Come Alive, which was formally released at the start of 2020. It is a fun hip-hop dance track, that is both bass and brass-heavy. It is quite addictive that I am always nodding or tapping along to the beat when it appears on my playlist. The song is pretty dynamic when it comes to the verses. His rapping is quite captivating and alluring. I really like how the song punctuates some of the lines with the added emphasis of the ‘You‘ and ‘Do‘ (and associated Japanese words). His vocals are also quite good. There is a good beat to this section to help give it a club feel. At first, I didn’t like how dragged out the ‘Come Alive‘ felt. But after multiple listens, it has definitely grown on me significantly. The music video has this urban feel to it, which was nice. It just didn’t have anything more to it worth talking about, unfortunately. For the choreography, it fits in with the urban hip-hop feel that both the song and music video had. I do like how clean and smooth it felt during some parts of the choreography. Other than that, it is just another case of not his best, but still good. (7.5/10)
I am going to take a breather today after an intense week of comebacks and post just an album review today. The chosen album of the day is IZ*ONE’s Oneiric Diary, the group’s 3rd mini-album. The album itself features the title track, Secret Story of the Swan. Also featuring on it are the Japanese version of the title track and sidetrack Merry Go Round. This release occurs after the group returned after a rocky end of 2019 with Fiesta and BLOOM*IZ, their first studio album. Given their active return to the industry in 2020, we will definitely be seeing more releases from this popular female group. But until then, let’s have a close look at Oneiric Diary.
Oneiric Diary Album Cover
1. Welcome (Intro Track) – IZ*ONE kicks things with an introductory track. The best way I can describe the instrumental is that is similar to a music box. Just a lot slower and more boring than how I remember music boxes. The introductory track also contains vocals (hence why there is a review for it) and I am amazed that they are able to fit all 12 members into a minute and a half. The vocals give the introductory song a sweet and cutesy vibe, but it doesn’t really help make the introductory track any better than slow and boring. In the lyrics, they welcome us to the album and the IZ*Land. (6/10)
3. Pretty– Pretty is a fun pop tune, with an addictive melody that is well suited for the Summery season. While the instrumental is pretty standard pop, I really enjoyed the whistling sound in the background. It adds a touch of vibrancy to the already bright and upbeat sounding song. I also really enjoyed their vocals in this song. The song brought out their vocals in a strong manner. We aren’t talking powerhouse vocals, but rather a vocal style that feels perfect for IZ*ONE. I am completely fine with the rapping, though I wonder how the song would have turned out if they infused some edge into the song via the rap sequence. I think it would have been epic. But all together as it is, pretty is probably the one word I would use to describe the song in a nutshell. Overall, Pretty brings a smile to my face and I really enjoyed it. (10/10)
4. Merry Go Round (회전목마) – We go retro with Merry Go Round. I really like the funky disco-like instrumental that opens up the song. While the instrumental remains upbeat and fun-sounding, the funky and retro disco-like instrumentation just isn’t as prevalent anymore as the song progressed, which was mildly disappointing. Covering up this flaw are the vocals. They were very clear and crisp. I really enjoyed the melodies that bring out their voices in this song. The melodies were memorable and catchy. I would have liked a bit of rapping in this song. I felt like that element was really needed and I think a really cool funky sequence would have added more substance to this song. (8/10)
5. Rococo – The main issue that I have with Rocco is that the vocals felt like it was in the foreground of the song too much. It just didn’t feel like it was mixed well into the instrumental and they felt disconnected at times. Standalone, the two elements were okay. The instrumental is more of your typical pop sound from recent times. It just has no character. I also got the impression that it was rather empty and needed more to be filled up. The vocal work was also a little typical and they too felt like could have used some backing or definition to give it some oomph. They weren’t bad in any sense, just needed more. Maybe that is why they felt too disconnected. (6/10)
6. With*One – We end the album with the mandatory ballad. Unlike the preceding song, With*One felt a lot more cohesive and sounded quite nice. I couldn’t help but think some of their higher pitches were a tad too high for my liking and so some of the vocals came off a little screechy for my liking. Despite that, there were some good melodies, especially in the chorus. I like the pop feel of the instrumental, which prevented an eye roll once I had realized it was that mandatory ballad. I also like the way they ended the song, with all the members harmonizing. (8/10)
It is time for another Monday release review. Rather than a comeback, it is a debut. WEEEKLY’s debut, to be more specific. WEEEKLY is a female group, with an average age of 17 and comes from PlayM Entertainment, which is also the home-base of APINK and VICTON. There are seven members to this group and they are Soojin, Jiyoon, Monday, Soeun, Jaehee, Jihan, and Zoa. Their debut single is Tag Me or @Me and it features on their debut mini-album, We Are. (For this review, I will be using the plain English title).
Tag Me may not seem like your strong debut song at first. But it gets better and better with every listen! There are parts of the song that I still don’t enjoy. And frankly, I don’t see myself falling for those parts any time soon given how they are relative to the rest of the song. But there are sections and elements that I am really digging. And I will quickly run through those. The first section has to be the chanting starter/pre-chorus of the song. It starts the song off in a bold manner and the guitars that accompany this section (and features throughout the verse) adds a little cool flair to the song. The second section has to the chorus. The catchy melodies, the great vocals and the refreshing energy that comes the instrumental are all just so likeable. I will gladly put the song on replay just for the chorus alone. The third is the second half of the bridge, which is where the vocals come into play. The good thing is that the positive aspects outweigh the bad ones. It is mainly the trap sequence for the rap sequence that follows the first chorus. It just did not fit and felt very unnecessary. Likewise, the first half of the bridge with the instrumental break was not needed in this song. It just didn’t fit in with the bubbly sound that Tag Me presents us.
It is a cute music video, featuring the members as part-time school students and part-time social media addicts. The entire song’s lyrics are all about being individualistic and showing this to their crush on their timeline, which explains the social media references in the lyrics. Aside from the choreography and closeup formula, the music video also shoots a bit outside, which I like. It doesn’t feel like the members are cramped up on a boxed set.
While I thought they were just there for stylistic purposes, the group does perform on stage with the desks. This is pretty unique and suits the school concept. The way they move the desks about doesn’t distract you from the actual choreography. As much as I dislike the instrumental break in the first half of the bridge, the dance that accompanies was actually quite good.
Song – 8.5/10 Music Video – 7/10 Performance – 7.5/10 Overall Rating – 7.9/10
Crashing in as the first release of the second half of 2020 is VERIVERY’s Thunder. VERIVERY recently just participated in the Road To Kingdom competition and placed 5th overall. Whilst on the show, the group performed and covered Photo, Mansae, On and gogbebe. And as part of the finale episode, VERIVERY released Beautiful-X, which is featured as a sidetrack alongside Thunder, on their fourth mini-album. Prior to all of this, we last saw VERIVERY promote Lay Back at the start of the year. But that was pre-Road To Kingdom. Let’s see what VERIVERY has to offer us post-Road To Kingdom.
Thunder rivals Lay Back as the group’s edgiest and darkest comeback to date. What makes Thunder just a step more edgy and dark than their previous comeback are those eerie background sounds you can hear in the instrumental, along with the deep autotuned whispering at the start of the song (courtesy of Donghyun). The instrumental consist of a strong synth base and 808 bass. And all of this helps deliver a very captivating instrumental in my opinion, as there was a lot of textures to really dig into and enjoy. In addition to the instrumental, I find the vocal work to be quite powerful. This really helps make the song sound even more epic and fitting for the energy that the instrumental really aims for in the chorus. The rapping also adds a dynamic layer to the song and adds further intensity to the song that makes it sound even better. While a dark and edgy sound might not be the most original thing in the industry right now, what VERIVERY has managed to do with it is quite impressive and feels like they are evolving.
If you cast your mind back to their gogobebe stage of Road To Kingdom, VERIVERY had incorporated a missing poster for Kangmin, which is from this music video. And that poster is the basis of Thunder‘s music video. Kangmin is missing and the members go searching for him (Stranger Things vibes). They manage to track him down towards the end. But thunder starts striking Kangmin. And it starts coming out of him, as well. Determined to save their friend, the other members run up and grab him. Our screen goes black, and during the credits, we see all the members huddling in a group. But they aren’t celebrating the success of their mission. Instead, they are very still. I was lowkey expecting a jump scare or some sot of a post-credit scene for us to see what happened to the members. In addition to the ‘what happened to the members’ question, we need to ask whether Kangmin was possessed, as his facial expressions and body language hints towards that. However, it wouldn’t explain why he was running away from the members for most of the video (did he know he was possessed or dangerous?). I also wonder how (or if) this video relates to Lay Back, as they are part of a series. Many questions to be answered. But a really intriguing storyline and close up shots in this video.
What a performance. I really enjoyed how in sync they were with one another. It made the performance really powerful and worth watching. And I really liked how this powerful nature extended for the dance/instrumental break just before the final chorus. The ending of the performance was super eerie, carrying that feeling over from the music video. My favourite part of the performance, however, has to be that segment right after the first chorus where they are yelling ‘Keep Going On‘. Them yelling and dancing at the same time looked pretty cool and showcases a different level of edgy.
Song – 9/10 Music Video 9/10 Performance – 9/10 Overall Rating – 9/10
I now take a bit of a breather from the Monday releases to review 2 more recent comebacks. The first is the major comeback that Lee Jin Hyuk made yesterday with Bedlam. This is the UP10TION member’s first solo comeback after he made his solo debut earlier in the year with I Like That. Fellow member Kim Woo Seok who participated in Produce X 101 alongside with Lee Jin Hyuk also made his solo debut in May. Yet, we have not seen these two members return to their UP10TION lineup and capitalise on their newfound popularity. It is a bit of a mystery to why this has yet to occur. But we can only hope that a comeback will happen soon with all 10 members soon. In the meantime, here is Lee Jin Hyuk to hopefully appease those UP10TION cravings.
As boring as I felt I Like Thatwas, I can’t help but think it is a lot more refined than what we have here. Actually, no. The word to use instead of ‘refined’ in that initial statement is ‘better’. From what I could get, Bedlam has a really nice fun-sounding instrumental, suitable for the upbeat hip-hop style that Lee Jin Hyuk’s solo release was aiming for. And from what I can hear, it had a decent level of brightness to make it well suited for the Summer season. However, it is all masked with Lee Jin Hyuk’s vocals, which I did not think was fun or Summery. You might want to give a song a listen first before seeing how I judged his delivery, in case this song might be your style. The last thing I want to do is turn you away from a track that you would have enjoyed. For me personally, I felt Lee Jin Hyuk was shouting the entire time. It felt overwhelming and it felt too much, to the point where I fund it hard to register the instrumental. In his defense, the song matches the title, as Bedlam can be defined as a scene of uproar of confusion. Though this doesn’t explaing the overwhelming nature of his delivery. The only part of the song that I enjoyed (coincidentally, it does not have any of Lee Jin Hyuk’s shouting in it) was the dance instrumental sequence at the ending. I liked the premature ending to the song before it threw us into that intense sequence, as this made it more impactful. It felt fitting for what had preceded it, mainly because it was also just a bunch of noise. But it gave the song some edge and something more appealing than his vocals. I hate to be brutally honest, but I just couldn’t sugar coat things this time around.
If the music video was indicative of what Bedlam was meant to sound like, it was definitely meant to be upbeat, bright, hip-hop and fun-sounding. It is quite disappointing that the visuals had to tell you what type of song it was meant to be. But for the music video specifically, it wasn’t that bad. Lee Jin Hyuk starts off as an office worker, who seemed to have a really tough day. So once the day was literally over, he let loose in the office. He definitely makes a mess in the office and in life (based on the breaking news story segment). He also goes wild at a Chinese buffet restaurant and on the computer screen. But it nice to know that Lee Jin Hyuk knows when to tone it down once the day restarts, returning to a professional office manner (and a mask!). Apart from making a mess, I really enjoyed the different choreography shots, as they looked quite flashy thanks to the lighting and post-production.
The best part of the performance has to be the dance sequence at the end of the song. Not because it was my most favourite part of the song, but it showed off a really intense choreography that allowed Lee Jin Hyuk to flex some of his dancing skills. The rest of the performance was quite chaotic, even during the routine moments. And I must admit, they do fit in well with the song.
Song – 4/10 Music Video – 8/10 Performance – 8/10 Overall Rating – 6/10
The next Monday comeback that I want to review is 3YE’s YESSIR, the title track off their 1st mini-album, Triangle. For me, 3YE was basically a 2020 underrated discovery, with both their first (OOMM) and second comeback song (Queen) attracting a great deal of my attention. So when I heard they were making their comeback, I had to schedule the review to be much closer to their actual comeback date (or else this review would have been scheduled many weeks later, which wouldn’t be ideal). It is still a few days late, but it better than a month later! And before it turns into a month late review, let’s get into it.
Powerful would be the word that I would describe YESSIR. The music and aura that the trio of members gives off in this song are just so powerful, that I find it well-aligned with their previous releases that I have reviewed. The song’s instrumental consist of a marching band line and brass elements, which is a pretty solid base. I really like how the brass goes from a deep tone in the verses to more vibrant in the chorus. It keeps the song from becoming overloaded by playing with what is already there. The synths in this song go with an electro dance-pop sound and the melodies go into a strong hip-hop domain. It may sound quite messy and loaded, but that is actually how the YouTube description describes the song. And everything comes together quite well. I liked the way they came at you during the verses and that is thanks to their rapping and vocal work. The chorus was a bit of a miss for me. While I did like how the instrumental felt more defined and that it continued the momentum and energy that the members built up in the verses, it noticeably lacked a strong hook to help bring the song into the ‘memorable’ category. The melodies were fine, but they didn’t seem enough. The post-chorus instrumental (which also played at the start of the song, kicking the song off in a bold manner) was powerful, but I wanted more out the members than the shouty ‘Yessir‘ and ‘A-Ha‘ lines they keep throwing at us. But overall, it is still a powerful song that continually proves my point about their underrated status.
The song is about attracting attention once they had undergone a dramatic transformation. The lyrics question why people have become surprised at what they have become after the change and how those people feel now that they had underestimated the members. And to match that, we see guns being pointed at the members, masked people all turning their heads towards the members and the members just becoming intimidating in this music video. I liked the cinematography in this music video which really helps capture some epic and impactful moments. What also helped the epicness of the music video was the sheer amount of dancers they had in it. It felt like an army and it felt like the members had a following to intimidate us with.
Unfortunately, the stage doesn’t share that same epic feeling as the group has to downgrade to only a few dancers. But they don’t tone down their dance moves, keeping with that powerful concept that you could feel in the music and video. I also really liked their charisma in the performance, which helps to make the performance more powerful.
Song – 8/10 Music Video – 8.5/10 Performance – 8/10 Overall Rating – 8.2/10
The fourth release from Monday that I will be reviewing is Love Me Harder, which is the solo comeback by soloist WOODZ, who may be more familiar now as Cho Seung Youn. Fans started to know of Cho Seung Youn through his participation in Produce X 101, where he placed 5th and debuted as part of the now-defunct X1. But the solo artist has quite an extensive connection to the KPOP industry including being a former member of UNIQ (a South Korean and Chinese idol group), participated in Show Me The Money 5 and went on to debut as a solo artist under the name Luizy and WOODZ, with the latter being his currently used name in the industry at the moment. So with a history like that, it seems like WOODZ is an act to look out for. Let’s have a listen to his return to mainstream KPOP through his new single.
Kicking off Love Me Harder is this addictive whistling melody in the instrumental. It is short at first, but its repetition really drives it into your memory. It also adds a classy yet fun element to the song. The rest of the instrumental is made of a deep bass beat, which really drives the song along. When the two would merge together for the final chorus, you would have a very strong and exciting instrumental combination. And all these elements seem to quite trendy, which helps the song fit in neatly with the current era. WOODZ, for a sub-vocalist and main-rapper during his time in UNIQ, has a very strong and versatile set of vocals which he shows off really nicely in this song. There is a breathy nature to the vocals that adds colour to the song. I really liked the bridge of the song, where it sounds like he far away. Interesting texture there. He has a strong rap in the second verse and I would definitely like to hear more of it in the future. In addition to all of this, Love Me Harder has great rhythm, catchy hooks and appealing energy that will have me returning for many more listens. For someone who was practically unknown to me, WOODZ has proven to be worthy of my radar and I will definitely be checking in with his future releases. And you can attribute Love Me Harder to this.
We see two alter egos of WOODZ in the music video. Let’s say one of them is the Edgy one (i.e. leather jacket) and the other is the ‘Boy Next Door’ type of guy. The video starts off with WOODZ’s ‘Boy Next Door’ version getting into an argument with his girlfriend, who leaves him. Edgy WOODZ gets on top of the car that they were in and this forced ‘Boy next door’ WOODZ to get out and exit a crime scene (i.e. his car). We presume that the girlfriend is dead. Confused, ‘Boy Next Door’ WOODZ searches for Edgy WOODZ thinking that Edgy WOODZ had something to do with the crime. This leads ‘Boy Next Door’ WOODZ to a hideout full of illegitimate bills. Edgy WOODZ sends the ‘Boy Next Door’ WOODZ back to the car and we see the start play out all over again. ‘Boy Next Door’ WOODZ gets angry and has a go at Edgy WOODZ, but then it dawns on him. WOODZ’s girlfriend had shot him and stole the money that ‘Boy Next Door’ WOODZ had printed. The crime scene that he stepped out of was his own (which allowed him to leave the scene unnoticed, as he is dead) and Edgy WOODZ was basically taunting ‘Boy Next Door’ WOODZ the entire time for his naivety and stupidity. It is a bit confusing in words, but I thought this was a great music video with an awesome storyline.
Not only do the dancers help fill up the stage, but they also give WOODZ an opportunity to focus on the live element of the performance. During the verses, they do all of the choreography while WOODZ sings and rap. A prime example of this is the entire second verse when they form a circle on the floor around him. When WOODZ does participate in the choreography, those moves actually looked quite good. WOODZ puts a lot of effort in to make up for the lack of choreography on his part during the verse for those sections and I liked the hand gun action. I would like to see a version where he does more dancing, but overall a good stage.
Song – 9/10 Music Video – 10/10 Performance – 7.5/10 Overall Rating – 9/10
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