Casual reviews of KPOP songs, music videos & dances
Author: kpopreviewed
Hi, my name is Tony and I am the man behind the site, kpopreviewed. Currently an university student who wants to introduce people to KPOP and if you are already into KPOP, different groups and bands.
Earlier this week, ONEUS also joined the growing list of May comebacks with their seventh mini-album, Trickster, and the title track Bring It On. This is the group’s first comeback since LUNA from November of last year. It also comes after the group embarked on their second U.S. tour, which occurred earlier this year.
Bring It On returns ONEUS to their more powerful and boisterous side that the group has previously done in past singles such as No Diggity and TO BE OR NOT TO BE. I quite like it that Bring It On hits hard in the second half of the choruses and doesn’t hold back. The first run of the second half of the choruses was made more satisfying following what I would describe as a fine first verse and first half of chorus. Leedo’s deep and aggressive rapping style is so fitting for their powerful sound and the vocals that followed were pretty solid. But the instrumental in the verses and first half of the chorus of Bring It On held itself back a bit too much for my liking and felt tamer than what it potentially could have been. I felt that it could have been a bit harder hitting, but still manage to deliver the same satisfying blastful effect once the second half of the chorus came around. Following the first chorus, I was a bit let down with Seoho’s autotuned rap lines. The autotune sequence weakened the structure of Bring It On and felt unnecessary in this already aggressive song. It should have skipped right into Ravn’s solo rap sequence instead, which picked the song back up for me. Bring It On then repeats the pre-chorus of solid vocals and the chorus as it was the first time around. As for the bridge of Bring It On, the producers opted for a touch of smoothness, before amping the song back up with some rock influences (loved it), and then redelivering the second half of the chorus as above twice in a row to close out Bring It On. I did wish Bring It On had some stronger hooks and the melodies were more memorable. But the booming second half of the chorus definitely helps make Bring It On memorable.
The music video did a great job of encapsulating that aggressive and powerful nature of the song, translating it into an edgy and somewhat dark concept. Plot-wise, I have no clue with what is going on, especially with all the games of choice. The trailers before this music video do feature them and appears more thriller-like, tense and suspenseful (highly recommend you watch them), which is totally my jam. I just cannot decipher the plot or the message behind the video. I am also unsure whether the actual music video continues the story or not. But still a cool standalone music video to watch.
The stronger moments within the choreography come naturally during the song’s most intense moments (i.e. the second half of the choruses, the rock sequences in the bridge and the final chorus sequence of Bring It On). The chemistry with the camera and the footwork stands out for me during these parts, and the helps makes the entire performance worthwhile to watch.
Song – 8.5/10 Music Video – 8/10 Performance – 9/10 Overall Rating – 8.5/10
ASTRO kick started the week yesterday with their third studio-length album, Drive to the Starry Road, which is lead by the single Candy Sugar Pop. This is ASTRO’s first comeback in nine months, following After Midnight and Switch On from last year. Since that last comeback, a lot has happened with the group including the solo debut of MJ (who also enlisted into the military at the start of the month and hence will not be part of promotions of this new release), the debut of the JinJin & Rocky subunit and the return of the Moonbin & Sanha subunit.
Candy Sugar Pop is an upbeat and energetic dance track that dips into pop through a mix of old school funk and disco influences. I like how the song maintains its energy throughout from start to end, never really slowing down. The mixture of synths were bright and surprisingly sweet sounding, which makes perfect sense, given that the song is titled titled Candy Sugar Pop. And this also makes Candy Sugar Pop extremely satisfying to listen to. I did think there was some room for improvement, in that Candy Sugar Pop could have been more dynamic with some extra oomph or bass to take it to the next level. However, that doesn’t mean this song was not dynamic. I felt that the dynamic nature of the song comes through via the rapping, particularly during the pre-choruses. I really like the alternating lines between Rocky and JinJin, just as it cuts the smoothness that the vocals brings to the song. It adds texture and I felt they added punches to the song that helped heightened it. As for the vocals, I really like how the vocalists sound, simply because they complement the song’s instrumentation and adds sweetness to Candy Sugar Pop. However, I do think the hooks and melodies in Candy Sugar Pop could have been more memorable, even though the Candy Sugar Pop repetition is slowly growing on me. The song’s best part comes at the end, where we get a mix of abrasive (but fun) retro synths and tidbits of rapping and vocals that we heard earlier in the song to end off Candy Sugar Pop. It felt just right and incorporated the best bits of the song, in my opinion. Overall, Candy Sugar Pop was fun and a great single to add to ASTRO’s portfolio.
Not exactly sure what the concept for this music video is. But I like the idea of the candy, sugar and pop taking the members to a whole new world that is more colourful, fun and probably also a bit crazy (based on the candy themed Rainbow Road scenes). It make sense, given that the members singing about that but likening the candy, sugar and pop to their lover. I did wish the dance sets were a bit more lively, just because they seemed dull and empty. I wish they had more of that colour, fun and craziness I just mentioned. The members themselves look great, with strong visuals from all members!
Rocky pulling those high notes was definitely impressive. The choreography was good and decent, and encompasses how I described the song (energetic and upbeat). But unfortunately, I didn’t see anything stand out.
Song – 8/10 Music Video – 8/10 Performance – 7.5/10 Overall Rating – 7.9/10
It is time we crown the next Queen of KPOP through the second season of Queendom. Following the success of Queendom Season 1 (which crowned Mamamoo as the winner), Road to Kingdom (which gave The Boyz a one way ticket to the next competition) and Kingdom: Legendary War (which crowned Stray Kids as the winner), Queendom is officially back with six new female participants. This season sees WJSN (Cosmic Girls), LOONA, Brave Girls, Kep1er, VVIZ and Hyolyn battle it out for the Queendom title, while Taeyeon (from SNSD) takes the helm as MC this time around.
As I have reviewed part of Queendom, all of Road To Kingdom and Kingdom: Legendary War, I will also be reviewing the stages of Queendom 2, recapping the high caliber performances from each round and also putting forward my thoughts on what the ranking should have been for that round.
Round 1 – Representative Song Battle
In this round, the groups are to perform a revamped version of one or two of their past hits. As part of these revamped versions of past hits, the groups also had the opportunity to bring them to life with never seen before stages.
In Queendom 2, the rankings were decided by three main criteria: audience votes, global fan votes and assessment from other Queendom 2 acts (i.e. their fellow competitors). These votes and assessments were tallied, and the act with the most points emerged as the winner of this round. The official results of that will be shown at the end of this post, along with my personal ranking from this round.
Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, LOONA was forced to rank sixth in this round as they could not perform with the other acts, and hence was not able to gain points from the audience or their fellow competitors. As a result, it was decided that the group would default to the last position for this round. However, as I am doing this review way after the airing date of this round, I will be including LOONA in my personal ranking for this round.
I will be reviewing the performances based on who went first, and will be looking at song arrangement, concept and choreography for this round.
Time For The Moon Night + Rough – GFriend
It is sad to just see only three members of VIVIZ perform Time of the Moon Night and Rough on stage. But at the same time, I am happy to see that the GFriend lives on. Especially when Rough came on, that was great nostalgia. I love the additional strings in both Time For the Moon Night and Rough, which helps transitions between the two songs, but also bring together the two halves of the performance. The intensity that came about from the mentioned transition was suspenseful and exciting. The electrical guitar in the bridge of the Rough section of the performance was just perfect, building off what was already present in the original song. Vocally, they didn’t stray from the original vocals. I did wish they did a bit more, just to give a fresh VIVIZ vibe to the performance. But instead, they rearrange who sang what since they are down three members. But nonetheless, VIVIZ did a good job with stable vocals. I also liked the slowed ending, dragging out the performance just for a little longer to make it a little more satisfying and to fit in with the concept of the stage.
For the stage concept, I liked how elegant and beautiful the trio looked on stage. They look like princesses on stage. Back when they debuted in 2015, they were schoolgirls. Then, they climbed to the top of the industry (i.e. the crown that Eunha dons), before that is thrown to the side and the group remerging as a new group (i.e. VIVIZ – no crown). Further evidence of them acknowledging their past is via the 09021601 we see at the end of the performance is a combination of their debut dates under GFriend and VIVIZ. A detailed analysis of their stage is in the comments section of the YouTube video, so give that a read. The actual choreography also adopted the beautiful and elegant nature I mentioned. They changed parts of the choreography to highlight this and freshen it up to make it their own, but also managed to maintain the same atmosphere as the original routines. I also enjoyed the electric guitar sequence in the choreography.
Touch My Body – Hyolyn
Hyolyn was the second act to perform in the round and I liked how she also went back in time to her Sistar’s day to pick one of group’s most successful tracks. But unlike VIVIZ’s performance, Hyolyn did change a lot of it. Her re-arrangement of Touch My Body is quite refreshing. She opens up the performance with waterfall and jungle sounds, before taking on a more tropical feel for the rest of the performance. Again, great nostalgia comes when Hyolyn begins sing Touch My Body, and I liked that she put her own twist on the lines and amps up at the end, showing her vocal prowess. I liked the dance break we got. The brass and the drum work fitted in with the vibrant colours that this version of Touch My Body was going for, and also helped build some momentum to the stage.
I like how she extends that jungle and tropical feel to the stage. From her green coloured outfit to the palm leaves held by the male dancers, the waterfall and tropical imagery on the screens, everything worked really well and cohesively with each other. My favourite bit of the stage has to be at the bridge of the song, where the flames come up, representing heat. In addition to the original Touch My Body routine, she definitely heated up the stage with the choreography for the dance break, which was energetic, sexy and extremely vibrant. I also have to commend Hyolyn on her charisma, which I think helped her stage dominate this round.
WA DA DA – Kep1er
Part of me wants to exclaim that this is how you do a remix. But when I think about the performance objectively, I feel like more could have been done to make this alternative version of WA DA DA more robust and dynamic. Let’s start off with the positives. Kep1er’s WA DA DA version on Queendom 2 had a much more powerful punch to it, which makes it so appealing. The dance break had a bombastic feel to it. I also liked how they transformed the chorus in something so much stronger. Sure, it still have that cutesy element as in the original that I still wish they get rid. But they did soften my dislike for that section with what they did on stage at this part (more on that later). Unfortunately, I feel like more could have been done with vocals and rapping. For this department, it felt too much like the original and I feel like this holds back this version of the stage. Just my opinion though.
I kind of like the race car concept they went with, though I do think the physical stage could have been a bit more engaging. It looked incredibly plain. I guess the other teams had more people or used more interesting backgrounds to ‘fill up the space’, whereas Kep1er’s stage felt empty and lackluster. The camera work was also a weak point. Some of it was awesome, but other parts looked a bit rubbish. The most positive aspect of the performance, however, was the choreography. I really like the first chorus, with the sharp side by side motions and circle motion they make with their arms (see video image below). The dance break was super intense and definitely showed a different side of Kep1er. Two things though – I wish there was a bit of refinement as it looked a bit messy (especially as the group get into their positions). And again, I wished the cutesy vibes were less prevalent to match the performance’s more powerful manner.
Chi Mat Ba Ram + Rollin’ – Brave Girls
Brave Girl’s stage started off powerful, going with a militaristic start. After all the members were introduced, they revamped Chi Mat Ba Ram with a sensual R&B vibe, before changing the chorus with a techno backing before back to the original version of Chi Mat Ba Ram. The militaristic start and then sensual R&B returns for the dance break, which I thought was dynamic and rather cool. And then the performance jumps into the tropical version of Rollin’. Personally, I wished they went with a different version of Rollin’, simply because this tropical version has been done so many times before. They should have delivered something a little more original during the Rollin’ part of this performance. Like Kep1er’s comment about vocals, I also wished the vocals were changed up a bit. This would have made the arrangement a little more robust and exciting.
As for the stage, I really liked the blue on black they had going on through their outfits and on the screens behind then. It looked stylish. When it came to Rollin’, the multicolour shards of light on the screen looked quite cool, as well. I do wish the props weren’t cheap looking (i.e. the pieces of fabric that transitioned the performance from Chi Mat Ba Ram to Rollin’, and those fluoro-rods.). It just cheapens the performance and doesn’t put them in a good light. The powdered drums were cool though. As for the choreography, I liked the mixture of new and old. There was a nice balance there. The dance break was my favourite part, though, especially when they kicked the male dancers to the side. The sensual parts were also really good to watch.
As You Wish – WJSN (Cosmic Girls)
Out of all the performances, I feel that WJSN’s was the most captivating to watch. And this is equally shared throughout the three departments – music, stage concept and choreography. The stage started off in a dramatic and intense fashion, which is very opposite to both the original and this version of As You Wish. Then, the members started their performance of As You Wish, which was both elegant and atmospheric. The ramp up to the chorus was really well done in the arrangement, and I liked how explosive the chorus was for this version of As You Wish. They replicated a similar set up for the second verse. The second chorus was substituted out for a very powerful instrumental break that enables the group to showcase a much more powerful side in their performance. We are then treated to a bridge, and the final chorus/outro, which started off slightly distorted. The vocals and rapping, while were similar to the original, gave off different appeals due to the different backings, and I thought this was amazingly fine.
I personally do not know what the concept specifically is. But I guess stopping time might be a possibility, given the recuring hour glasses that was emptied. However, I have no clue what the context is. I quite like the aesthetic that the dancers brought to the stage. The various formations we find them in looked very intriguing. I also like how they were used to occupy the stage, while WJSN moved upstairs. As for WJSN’s choreography, the verses looked graceful, while the choruses featured the original. The dance break we got at the instrumental break is exactly how I described it above – powerful. But also refined, which matches with their style.
PTT (Paint The Town) – LOONA
It was a pity that LOONA was not counted for this round. Though, I am glad that LOONA still ended up performing their PTT stage though. For the most part, the song remains the same as the original. What I did like was the introduction and addition of Korean folk vocals and instruments. They definitely worked well with the original instrumentation, but also introduce a slightly different dynamic to the original version of PTT. I did like the instrumental break we got in the performance (i.e the dance break). The combination between the folk and synths created a very cool atmosphere. Like WJSN’s performance, the vocals work was pretty standard and like the original. But I think the music did enough to make it a different performance.
LOONA performed this version of PTT a week after Round 1 wrapped up. That is why the stage for this performance is different to the other contenders. I did think they made good use of what they had, though I wished we got to see a version on the Round 1 stage. I really liked their outfits (so bold) and the Korean folk elements they brought to the stage via the screen and props. For me the most riveting part has to be Olivia Hye pulled out the hair sticks to allow her hair to fall down. That looked really cool, and left a super strong impression on me that was memorable. The camera transition between Yeojin and Yves was really cool. Again, the choreography was very like the original. And once again, Olivia Hye’s solo part in the dance break was the best part of the stage.
And This Round’s Winner Is…
One round in and I can’t want to see the rest of what these groups/acts have in store for us! Each act bought a lot to the stage and their own charm, and so it was difficult to choose a winning performance. This is going to be one tough competition.
As mentioned twice already, I will be including LOONA in my personal rankings, which will ultimately help decide my pick for the winner of Queendom 2. I have also compared my personal ranking to the official Queendom 2 ranking below.
Position
Official Queendom 2 Ranking
KPOPREVIEWED’s Personal Ranking
1
Hyolyn
WJSN
2
WJSN
Hyolyn
3
VIVIZ
LOONA
4
Kep1er
VIVIZ
5
Brave Girls
Brave Girls
6
LOONA
Kep1er
Up next: Queendom 2 – Round 2 – Cover Song Battle – Ep. 3 & 4
Another week, another Weekly KPOP Chart post for the past week. I am going to breeze past this introduction again this week, as I want to work on an album review and the next Queendom 2 post (finally). So without any further delays, here are the Weekly KPOP Charts for the 2nd Week of May 2022.
New releases of the Week
In addition to the reviews I wrote for TXT’s Good Boy Gone Bad and Jeong Sewoon’s Roller Coaster, here are the other new releases of the week:
RATA-TAT-TAT – Golden Child
Fame – Ciipher
Sanctuary – Song Heejin
Why – Hwang Chi Yeol
ACACIA – Yezi
And The End – Jung Seung Hwan
SHE’S THE BOSS – The Boyz
Phase Me – Woosung (The Rose)
DARARI (Remix) – TREASURE
Montage_ – ONEWE
BTBT – B.I ft. DeVita
Throwback Corner
So I went on a GOT7 binge this week in preparation for their long awaited comeback (super excited!!!). I had predicted that one of the full group song’s would feature in this corner, but it turns out I ended up vibing with Youngjae’s Vibin, and so it is my pick for Throwback Song this week.
Non-Korean Release of the Week
The highest ranking non-Korean song this week is Mark Tuan’s save me, which placed in the 26th position for this past week. I will be reviewing save me in a future International Song Review post (they will come!).
The Charts
Congratulations to LE SSERAFIM for topping the Weekly KPOP Chart for the 2nd Week of May 2022 with their debut single, FEARLESS. For more of the charts, keep on reading.
2nd Week of May 2022
8th May – 14th May 2022
Pos.
Song
Artist
Status
1
FEARLESS
LE SSERAFIM
(▲ 1)
2
BUT YOU
iKON
(▼ 1)
3
Drive
Miyeon ((G)I-DLE)
(▲ 17)
4
Good Boy Gone Bad
TXT
(NEW)
5
LOVE DIVE
IVE
(▲ 21)
6
That That
PSY ft. SUGA (BTS)
(▲ 19)
7
Roller Coaster
Jeong Sewoon
(NEW)
8
Grey Suit
SUHO (EXO)
(▲ 70)
9
C.I.T.T (Cheese In The Trap)
Moonbyul (MAMAMOO)
(▼ 4)
10
UNBELIVABLE
Woo Jin Young (D1CE)
(▲ 68)
11
Salute
MAJORS
(▲ 67)
12
J♡B = LOVE
W24
(▲ 62)
13
I HATE YOU
WOODZ
(▼ 10)
14
HANA
XIA
(▲ 64)
15
Adrenaline
CRAVITY
(▲ 63)
16
HONEY
Solar (MAMAMOO)
(▲ 62)
17
Real Love
Oh My Girl
(▼ 5)
18
LOVE
MONSTA X
(▼ 14)
19
Bloom
Yoon Ji Sung
(▲ 59)
20
Cupid
DKZ
(▼ 14)
21
ZOOM
Jessi
(▲ 8)
22
Still Life
BIGBANG
(▲ 8)
23
Feel My Rhythm
Red Velvet
(▲ 55)
24
Oh-Eh
DAYBREAK & LUCY
(▲ 8)
25
Love In Bloom
ILY:1
(▼ 2)
26
save me
Mark Tuan (GOT7)
(▲ 52)
27
Take You Down
Yugyeom (GOT7) ft. Coogie
(▼ 20)
28
EVERYBODY
YOUNITE ft. DJ Juice
(▼ 19)
29
Glitch Mode
NCT DREAM
(▼ 12)
30
1 of 9
YOUNITE
(▲ 48)
Songs leaving the charts
The following songs have wrapped up their nine week run in the charts system, and will no longer be on the charts starting next week:
It has been 10 years since PSY went viral with his infamous hit, Gangnam Style. Since then, he made a string of comebacks (Gentlemen and Daddy, amongst others) that were quite successful both domestically and internationally, though I would say that his popularity has soften over the last few years. Late last month, PSY made his grand return with That That, a single off his 9th studio album, PSY 9th, and a song that is both produced and features SUGA from BTS. In addition to that, SUGA continues PSY’s tradition of having a famous idol joining his comeback via the music video, joining the ranks of high profile artists such as HyunA, Gain from Brown Eyed Girls, CL and more recently Suzy (who features in the recently released Celeb music video – review for that coming soon).
No matter many times I have listened to That That since its release two weeks ago, it has yet to let up from its fun, playful, silly and childish roots. And I quite like that. Usually, I am not a big fan of silly or childish. But going into a PSY comeback, it is expected and I liked that he didn’t disappoint. Sure, That That is repetitive, and I am quite sure it would have done my head in if it were another song that only had the repetitiveness going for it. But with That That, there is a lot more to the song than repetitive hooks. I quite enjoyed the intensity that the song brings, particularly during the chorus. The pounding beats and the tooting brass in the instrumental made That That feel so lively and punchy. I liked how it doesn’t take a break and is quite relentless. The fun atmosphere that the song has is just infectious and addictive, and the hooks adds to that. PSY gave it his all and is pretty much on par with the instrumental throughout the That That. But the best moment of the song has to be attributed to SUGA, who did not disappoint. When the song was first announced, I wondered where the track would go with SUGA featuring, as it didn’t seem apparent to me how PSY and SUGA would work together. But in That That, SUGA matched PSY’s energy effortlessly and his rapping brought a very dynamic oomph to the song that just makes That That even more enjoyable. When I replay the song, I do it often to relisten to SUGA’s section. Though some of That That‘s hooks, particularly the ‘Do What You Wanna, Say What You Wanna‘ shouty hook do end up distracting me.
As mentioned before, SUGA also appears in the music video. And I am quite happy with this. It definitely made everything a lot more fun and interesting. I liked how SUGA even participated in the choreography and some of the acting scenes. My favourite bit has to be the scenes where PSY (in his Gangnam Style suit) is punching/slapping SUGA and vice versa. It was definitely a fun scene. Their chemistry was great, and I did not feel any sense of awkwardness. Aside from that, I see that PSY is up to his crazy antics throughout the video (loved how he entered the music video – reminds me of when work gives out free food and I enter the room ready to grab the food) and I quite enjoyed the wild western theme. That suspenseful moment when SUGA appears was pretty cool, as well.
The choreography is exactly how I described the song. Fun, playful, silly and intense. It definitely suits the portfolio of choreography from PSY’s past comebacks. I like how the routine encapsulates the energy from the song, and shows it off with flair. I also like how PSY doesn’t hold back on stage, which makes the stages even more fun to watch.
Song – 8.5/10 Music Video – 9/10 Performance – 8/10 Overall Rating – 8.6/10
It has been over a year since we have heard from Jeong Sewoon through the second half of his studio album 24 and the title track In The Dark. He has been fairly quiet over the last year, as fans awaited for a new release from the soloist. And as of yesterday, the wait is over, as Jeong Sewoon has returned with his fifth mini-album, Where Is My Garden!, which is lead by the title track Roller Coaster.
First impression of Roller Coaster is that it is an extremely pleasant song. I wish to clarify that ‘pleasant’ is used in a positive manner for this review, which I think is the case with all Jeong Sewoon songs for me. I quite enjoy his more upbeat tracks, which this one definitely is, making it fitting for the Summer season that Korea is fast approaching. However, a more accurate description is that Roller Coaster is breezy and light. Roller Coaster has a nice and enjoyable pop instrumental for the most part (and in some ways felt jazzy) and features some vibrant brass as a standout detail within the instrumental. Talking about the brass, when it comes up in the song, it makes me want to get up and have a bit of a boogie. Nothing too crazy, but it just has that energy and I reckon that is a good thing. I do think the instrumental elsewhere could have been a bit more dynamic, just to give Roller Coaster a bit more excitement, but it is fine as it is. Jeong Sewoon was quite consistently solid throughout the track and hearing his vocals in an upbeat setting brings up some good (and unrelated memories) for me. There were many parts within Roller Coaster that I thoroughly enjoyed when it came to the vocals. The falsetto direction that he goes for in the choruses, the amped up vocals in the second verse, and the pairing of his husky vocals and the backing vocals in the bridge. All of these were great displays of Jeong Sewoon’s skillset. The melodies and hooks were memorable enough, which definitely puts Roller Coaster in a good position.
The music video was a pretty cute one, which fits with Jeong Sewoon’s image. The colour palette is nice, reminding me of pastel colours that I would associate with sitcoms. The video is set in a garage, where Jeong Sewoon hangs out. While Jeong Sewoon is all smiles in this video, I do wish that the video featured a few extra people as background characters, just to give it a bit more substance and make it a little more dynamic. And he looks incredibly lonely. We do see multiple Jeong Sewoon’s playing instruments at one point, but I think that just reinforces my idea of having more people on the screen. Aside from that, I don’t think there is anything memorable about the video. But I think it is still a fair video that works decently with the song.
Again, cute vibes from the performance. But nothing overly cute, which I like. There isn’t anything fancy with the choreography, but it does give off a refreshing vibe and reiterates the idea that I want to have a bit of a boogie (which Jeong Sewoon does deliver). The rolling chair was also a nice touch to the choreography.
Song – 8/10 Music Video – 6.5/10 Performance – 8/10 Overall Rating – 7.6/10
Starting off the week is TX T who returns today with their latest single, Good Boy Gone Bad. The new single is featured on the group’s fifth mini-album, Minisode 2: Thursday’s Child, which also dropped today. Good Boy Gone Bad follows on from a very successful 2021 for TXT, where they released their second studio album, The Chaos Chapter: FREEZE, and its repackaged version (titled The Chaos Chapter: Fight or Escape), which featured the singles 0X1=LOVESONG (I Know I Love You) and LO$ER=LO♡ER respectively.
TXT amps up their rock influences from last year and adopts a much more aggressive and angsty demeanour with Good Boy Gone Bad. And I am all for it. The group sings about how they changed following a breakup, from being a good boy to now a bad boy. And they show that change through a very different take on the genre that propelled them further into the limelight last year. I liked (and also found it slightly funny) how the group reiterated the fact that they had change by constantly repeating the title of the song, just in case we didn’t get the message the first time around. I personally do not mind the repeated ‘Good Boy Gone Bad’, and I don’t mind them shouting that at me. But I would say that some people might find it a bit too repetitive and not like it as much. Anyhow, Good Boy Gone Bad starts off with a hip-hop approach to the verses, before kicking it up a notch with the rock influences for the choruses. To match the aggressive direction of Good Boy Gone Bad, the group approaches their parts with force, powerfully singing throughout and even shouting (as already mentioned) during certain parts of the song. I enjoyed the loud whispery lines that appear once in the chorus. It brought nice texture to the song, especially in an already abrasive environment. I also quite like the pre-choruses, as they have a ‘calm before the storm’ sort of setup, with both instrumental and vocals toning it down considerably. It allows the chorus to be more explosive as a result, which Good Boy Gone Bad undoubtedly benefits from. I am also glad to hear some rapping in this song. It was something I was looking for last year and I felt the intense rap sequence in the bridge of this song really hit the nail on the head. Overall, Good Boy Gone Bad further satisfies that rock extension that I was wanting from last year, through stronger and powerful execution.
The music video takes on a very dark and sinister look, which logically makes sense given the bad boy change that the group undergoes. I really like the sets and locations in this video, from the alleyway to the cemetery to the dance set with big eye in the background. Definitely hits the brief and looks super cool. I also like the camera shot from the hole in the ground in which the members stand around (see my featured image for this post). It was definitely a scene that left a strong impression me. That Yeonjun scene where he lies down after his motorcycle crash and rises back up (from the dead?) uttering the line ‘I like being bad‘ was also a memorable scene. It also helps that his visuals were on point in this video, as so was the rest of the members’. A strong music video, overall.
A few things to point out with the stage performance for this comeback. Firstly, I really liked the aggressive nature (particuarly the start) to the performance. It does fizzle out as it went on, and I attribute that to the copious amount of energy that the members put into the choreography, which would naturally tire them out. But they did a good job of embodying one of the most prominent vibes from the song. Secondly, their stage presence was amazing and really captivated me. And thirdly, their facial expressions, particularly Yeonjun’s, makes this performance worth watch. Overall, definitely another strong routine from the group!
Song – 9/10 Music Video – 9/10 Performance – 9/10 Overall Rating – 9/10
Miyeon, one of (G)I-DLE’s main vocalists, made her solo debut last week with the single, Drive, and the mini-album, MY. She is the third member of (G)I-DLE to release solo music, following fellow members Soyeon and Yuqi. Miyeon’s solo debut also comes after (G)I-DLE’s latest comeback, TOMBOY, which dropped in March of this year.
Drive is a breezy pop track that I have taken a liking towards after checking it out for the first time earlier this week. The pop instrumentation takes a relatively straightforward approach, never adopting anything that complicates the song or distracts from Drive‘s main focus (i.e. Miyeon’s vocals, which I will speak more about in a brief moment). And I appreciate that a lot. The song opens up with atmospheric synths and guitar work that brought a refreshing vibe to Drive. When we get to the chorus, there is a hefty beat that kicks Drive up a notch. Similarly, I enjoyed how the synths amped up in intensity and added a lot of colour to the single, particularly that squeaky synth. Now, onto Miyeon’s vocals, which I touched on before. Drive nails at showcasing Miyeon and pushing her into the spotlight. The song’s instrumental adds definition to her vocals, allowing it to become more prominent. But her vocals were best during the bridge, when we were able to hear more of her vocals without much backing to it. I was impressed and thought she sounded heavenly. In terms of memorability, the melodies and hooks were nicely light, though I wished they had more bite to it. Overall, I would say that Drive is a successful solo debut and I am excited to here more from Miyeon’s solo work in the future.
The music video for Drive is a very pretty one. It highlights Miyeon’s visuals extremely well and the outfits we find her in are simple yet stunning to look at. I also like the refreshing nature of the outdoor scenes, which add a great visual element to the video. Unfortunately, however, there isn’t much else in the video from what I can see.
Like the music video, the choreography was a pretty element in this comeback. However, I am on the fence to whether it was necessary. Part of me did feel the routine complimented the upbeat nature neatly. But part of me also feels like the routine didn’t add much value to the comeback as it feels quite standard. I guess the routine was on the standard side to allow Miyeon to perform live, which I do appreciated and enjoyed about the performance.
Song – 9/10 Music Video – 7/10 Performance – 6/10 Overall Rating – 7.8/10
Another week, another Weekly KPOP Chart post for the past week. I am going to breeze past this introduction this week, as I have some personal errands to run today, and I also want to knock out some song reviews later today. So without any further delays, here are the Weekly KPOP Charts for the 1st Week of May 2022.
New releases of the Week
In addition to the reviews I wrote for LE SSERAFIM’s FEARLESS, iKON’s BUT YOU and WOODZ’s I HATE YOU, here are the other new releases of the week:
Get Ya! – JUNNY ft. ph-1
Far Away – BOYHOOD (Nam Dohyun)
WEOL – from20
Invitation – MeloMoance
Hiding Words – Ryeowook (Super Junior)
POWER OF LOVE – ALICE
SHUT DOWN – CLASS:y
Celeb – Psy
Now – Psy ft. Hwasa (Mamamoo)
Throwback Corner
This week’s throwback song is WJSN’s As You Wish. It just popped up on my reccomendations and started off my WJSN binge earlier this week.
Non-Korean Release of the Week
The highest ranking non-Korean song this week is SEVENTEEN’s Darl+ing, which placed in the 13th position for this past week. Darl+ing is the group’s first official English single, and will be featured as part of the group’s upcoming fourth studio album, Face The Sun.
The Charts
Congratulations to iKON for topping the Weekly KPOP Chart for the 1st Week of May 2022 with their latest single, BUT YOU. For more of the charts, keep on reading.
