Category: JPOP

[Review] Electric Kiss – EXO

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EXO kicks 2018 off with their return to the Japanese market with Electric Kiss and their 1st full-length album, Countdown. The album contains all of EXO’s previous Japanese singles (Coming Over, Love Me Right ~romantic universe~, Drop That etc.) that they have unveiled during their concerts and other performances. Like their promotions in 2017, Lay did not participate in the comeback due to scheduling conflicts.

I love the instrumental to this track. It is the first thing that popped out at me when I first listened to the track, which had this heavy yet powerful feel to it. In a way, it is definitely really dramatic and it shapes the track into something spectacular. The instrumental asks for something rough and edgy, which is delivered through the vocals. I love the roughness of some of the member’s vocals, especially D.O’s, whom I think compliments the instrumental really well. Of course, the other members all sound often but I feel like D.O’s is a perfect example for this explanation. Per usual, Chanyeol’s and Sehun’s raps were on point in this song, catching me off guard with their raspy voices. Sure, there was definitely some editing to them but it is an electronic song, which makes senses. The chorus was definitely the main highlight of the song and I like how they approached it by inserting the ‘It’s going to be electric‘ line between each line of the chorus. And the bridge was also quite good. While this is just a Japanese release, if they were to come back with something like this in South Korea, I think they could even perform better than what they have already achieved.

I like the fast-paced nature and the flashy style they have gone for. It is really is fitting. I setting is also fitting, going well with the edginess that you can feel from the song. The video was quite good and had that cool factor to it, which went well with the song. I know this is rather short but that was the main comments which I wanted to make in regards to the video.

With the performance, I expected something with a whole heap of intensity. And while they did tick that box, I just don’t think the choreography as a whole was the best fit. I wanted something more to it which would have made me go wow. The formations and how they go into those formations were remarkable, especially during the chorus. Everything was quite sharp but it just didn’t seem enough to me.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 7/10
Overall Rating – 8.3/10

 

 

[Review] Spotlight – Monsta X

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With a number of Japanese releases unveiled in the last few weeks, I thought it would be nice to actually get some of these reviews out in weeks that follow the release, not months. One of these is Monsta X’s Spotlight, which happens to be their first original Japanese single since their debut in Japan last year.

As soon as we hear the first seconds of the song, it reminded me of their debut single, Trespass. It had a similar type of synth for the intro, which I thought was cool. The song is quite intense and you get that feeling from the very first second. But for a very intense feeling song, the chorus was rather weak, which is pretty ironic. The drop back into the chorus was underwhelming and it just didn’t have that element to make it memorable. If it had a more powerful drop and something that gave it a catchy touch to it, I would have been won over. All the other parts (verses and bridge) is what gave the song its definition and I pretty much liked that. I liked their contrasting sides within the verses, how they start off with the tough powerful raps and then allow the song to drop down to a slower yet smoother vocal sequence. It is a little different to what we are used to. The raps were amazing and the vocal work throughout the song was quite nice.

I like the simplistic route that they were going for when it came to the video. The most important equipment in the entire video was the spotlights, which I thought gave off a really cool effect in some sections of the video. It reminded me of BLANC7’s Yeah, which I already had liked. Clearly, this one had more money injected into the budget and this allowed it look more defined and flashy in a way to watch. This flashiness made the roughness of the song stand out.

Monsta X has been standing out recently for their performances and this just cements that idea. That intensity is definitely featured heavily throughout the song. While I did not enjoy the chorus of the song, the choreography stood out for me.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8.5/10

[Review] Candy Pop – TWICE

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TWICE’s One More Time was voted as the Best Japanese Song by a Korean Artist for 2017. You can see who else won in the 2017 KPOPREVIEWED Awards by clicking the link here. 

TWICE is back in Japan with a brand new single, Candy Pop. This is their second single to date in Japan, the previous being the catchy and addictive One More Time.

And while One More Time was catchy and addictive, Candy Pop doesn’t really give off the same flare. It just doesn’t replicate or exceed that nature of their previous single, which disappoints me. The sound does feel like their Korean releases but does sound a lot fluffier, which I think suits the Japanese market. There were few good moments that showcased their vocals and the raps were quite nice as well. The song just doesn’t feel like it buildups at all. Instead, it tends to feature a number of moments where they strip back the instrumental, which seems to feel like the slowing down the song. But that just cuts the flow of the song for me. Any attempt to showcase a buildup has been undermined. The chorus was okay but I felt the same copy-paste formula just doesn’t work as well, making the chorus feel repetitive, especially by the time we reached the third and final chorus. These are just some of my thoughts in regards to the song. For the most part, it was still okay to listen to but I wouldn’t go out of my way to find the song to listen to.

The music video was far more interesting compared to the video. The introduction of the video reminded me of GOT7’s Just Right but the video takes on a different storyline. Essentially, TWICE are anime characters of a TV show in which the girl watches. They notice the disappointment on the girl’s face and go on a mission to cheer her up. They get into some trouble but with some help from JYP (or Brock) himself, they get to the girl’s room by conveniently smashing down a wall with their purple bus. Their presence itself complete cheers up the girl and all is fine. It is a fun video. The ending was probably really boring and dry. But the rest of the video was nice to watch.

We don’t see much of the choreography in the video. It just seems like the article regarding how similar their dance moves for their South Korean comebacks is applicable here between both their Japanese songs. I am talking about the move around the 4:00 mark of the video. But from what I could see from the rest of the video, the dance looked cute.

Song – 6/10
Music Video – 7/10
Performance – 7/10 (I may return to redo the review for this part once I find an actual performance for this song)
Overall Rating – 6.5/10

[Review] Reboot – TVXQ

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This year’s KPOPREVIEWED Awards’ voting period will end in a day. This is your final chance to support your favourite artists and songs of 2017. To get voting, please click here.

This is the final review of the four that I wanted to do. Originally, I was going to review another track released a few months back but I have decided to go with a more recent comeback. TVXQ recently came back to the music industry with solo songs after their respective military enlistments. Reboot is their first comeback as a duo since 2015 in both Japan and Korea.

Right off the bat, Reboot will probably suit any Japanese anime as an opener or ending credits. The takes a turn when it approaches the chorus. It transforms into an upbeat musical sound, which works well with its preceding section. The second verse seems to slow down and lies somewhere between that anime associated first verse and just a standard pop track. The bridge of the song is a little off-putting in my opinion. It isn’t terrible but it is the only part that I feel doesn’t fit. It has the basic instrumental layer that runs through the entire song but the rapping just doesn’t connect well. For the rest of the song, the vocals were quite good and it has the potential to become quite catchy. Not fond of the ending, mainly because it seems to be an extension of the bridge. But overall, for a song about ‘Reboot‘, it definitely works.

The start of the music video is like a mini-movie, just there really is no storyline associated with it.  The only thing that I can gather is like it tries to make an epic story out of the return of TVXQ. It has the cool factor down but maybe not as attention-grabbing as you expected. I feel like that first portion could have been left out altogether and allow the video to get to the song, which I am sure everyone wanted to hear. But that might just be my preference. I like the various sets of the music video, giving off a futuristic but grand feeling to it.

The choreography is usually the other main aspect of the TVXQ music videos. Reboot has a pretty cool choreography but I don’t find it as amazing as some of their performances that have wowed us. I don’t have any specific comments to make with the performance besides that.

Song – 7.5/10
Music Video – 6/10 
Performance – 6/10
Overall Rating – 6.75/10

As the full music video isn’t officially out on YouTube, I have decided to link the Naver version of the music video, which I am hoping is the official music video. Click here for the video.

 

[Review] Fly – UKISS

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The 31st of December is fast approaching and that marks the end of the voting period for this year’s KPOPREVIEWED Awards. If you have yet to vote and support your favourites, do so quickly by clicking here! Your voting could be the decider!

UKISS has been relatively quiet in South Korea this year. They released an album (Solo & Unit) at the start of the year, which is also the final release by UKISS to feature Kevin, who departed the group at the start of March. UKISS reformed into a 5-member group and released Fly (the main focus of today’s review) in October. Not particularly sure what some of the members are doing but I am aware that Jun acted in Avengers Social Club (highly recommend this drama) and is participating in the rebooting program, The Unit.

Fly is the third Japanese song that I am reviewing and it is one that I am particularly excited to talk about. What makes this song sound so damn good is the chorus, which is quite unexpected. For my explanation to make some sense, you need to have listened to the song. It starts slow and almost acoustic in nature. The vocals were extremely soft. Once the raps kick in, providing some intensity, the song starts to build up. But the drop/chorus was not what I had expected and it felt much more epic and appealing. It felt aesthetic even though it seems grounded in the pop genre. Each member sounds extremely good, their voices contrasting well with the music. But the member that stood the most for me was Soohyun whose vocals were just right each time I heard him (especially when he does the pre-chorus). The ‘Let Me Fly‘ seems to be cliche lyrics in many songs but it still remains to be an addictive icing on this particular song. The electric guitar during the final chorus is so freaking good and fits in so perfectly. Overall, I really liked this song.

For this particular review, I will be combining the music video and choreography sections together. Why? Well, the music video contained mostly choreography and the music video didn’t have much to talk about. For the most part, the video featured ‘angry and heartbroken’ acting close up shots. I liked the night scenery that they used. The choreography was nice, pairing well with the song. Despite the song style, they went with moves that felt very graceful yet fitting for the electronic pop song. Most of the moves were ‘done before’ but it still felt fresh for this song.

Song – 10/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating –  8.5/10

 

[Review] Turn Up – GOT7

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GOT7 is nominated for Best Boy Group and My Swagger is nominated for Best Japanese Song by a Korean Artist fir this year’s KPOPREVIEWED Awards. If you haven’t supported them yet, do so by clicking here. Voting ends in 3 days, so get voting!

GOT7 recently made their return to Japan with Turn Up, which was released in November. This is GOT7’s first comeback in Japan since My Swagger  (released back in May). A month prior to the release of Turn Up, GOT7 made their Korean comeback with 7 for 7 and You Are.

In my perspective, GOT7’s Japanese releases tend to be more centred around hip-hop genre more than their Korean releases. While it doesn’t have feature dominantly the more powerful EDM synths that were present in My Swagger, Turn Up was firmly rooted in the hip-hop genre. It did have some of those EDM synths but there were more in the background, giving a smoother feel to the song.  The chorus was definitely the most memorable part, while the verses (including the rap sequences) were the most forgettable part of the song. The overall sound of the song does manage to hype you up or make you ‘Turn Up“, which I think is the point of the song.

To me, the music video attempts to be edgy and cool. And while they did manage to illustrate that, it looks somewhat unnatural. They did look like they were having fun but it just didn’t feel that convincing. Some of the flashy scenes were nice and there was really good editing between various scenes in the video. I actually managed to stumble across BTS footage of the music video shoot and the bottle flip scene was extremely painful to film (interesting fact) and nailing that is admittedly cool.

The choreography was nice, especially the moves during the chorus. I like the simplicity of the ‘Turn Up” part, which gave a more fun vibe to the dance. The ending also looked fun as well.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 7/10
Overall Rating – 6.7/10

 

 

[Review] One More Time – TWICE

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TWICE is nominated for Best Female Group and Best Japanese Song by a Korean Artist. Have you supported them in this year’s KPOPREVIEWED Awards? If you haven’t, click here for the poll!

This is the start of four reviews for some JPOP songs released by Korean artists. I am going to aim to do them closer to their release date starting next year, so I don’t get around to doing them months later (like these 4 reviews). Today’s focus will be TWICE first original Japanese song. Just prior to their Korean Likey comeback, TWICE released One More Time. This is their first comeback in Japan, after their debut with Signal and TT in Japan.

One More Time ended up being really addictive and catchy in nature, which is something I like, particularly the repetition of ‘One More Time’ throughout the chorus and post-chorus. The song also seems to show off a cute sound but the instrumental keeps the song from going overboard. Out of all the members, I feel like Dahyun and Chaeyoung were the best in the song. Their raps were so fitting for the deep rough electronic synth that featured in the song. The vocals are nice but they weren’t as outstanding as the raps. The autotune at the end didn’t seem it was necessary but it felt fine. But overall, this is definitely a song that has been played multiple times since release.

The music video had this cute feeling to it but overall, it felt rather generic. The video is sports centred with two main matches. Dahyun and Chaeyoung fit it out in a boxing match, while Jihyo and Nayeon get on the court for a tennis match. The other members featured in the background and some other sports. I did like the colour of the sets and some of the camera work. But there isn’t much else to say about it.

Not sure if it is the editing of the music video, but I really liked the scene at 2:13 where Nayeon moves along the line of TWICE members while dancing. It honestly looked quite cool. I also liked the choreography for the post-chorus (at 0:53).

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 8/10

[Review] My Swagger – GOT7

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While I did promise to do a set of reviews for JPOP releases by girl groups, I am having a hard time finding songs to fill that set. But yet, there is an abundance of boy groups releasing JPOP songs. So, for today, I have picked one song by one of my favourite groups, GOT7. My Swagger, released in May, ended up topping charts in Japan, showing the group’s popularity.

Right off the bat, just by listening to the first few seconds of their song, you could tell it was going to be a messy song. They do not mess around with their intense and more hardcore EDM sound. I tend to get worried when it comes to such songs because some aspects are hidden under the midst of all those loud sounds, such as the vocals. But I would gladly headbang to this. I know.  The song itself was quite catchy and left a positive impression (i.e. no headaches) on me when I first listened to it. Those vocals weren’t hidden at all and not once did the song feel repetitive. I think the vocal work contributed to that. As for the raps though, I don’t think it is their personal best. It felt dragged out and their tone didn’t feel as hard-hitting as in their Korean releases. The build-up was quite good, hyping the song up until the beat is dropped for the chorus. Not exactly fond of the ending, though. Overall, not a total fan of the song style, but they make it sound pretty good.

I thought the use of the pictures was interesting. They didn’t amount to much but it made the video look appealing. One thing I did notice was that the video started off much more focused on the tough sound and seriousness. But that was kind of dissolved into nothing as we proceeded with the video and the guys started to interact with the camera and each other. I know it is an odd observation that probably would be more disapproved (such as the guys were always like that from the very start). While it fit the music video, in the end, I thought it was rather odd. Poor Youngjae (at the end) and the moment he realised something was up. Overall, the video wasn’t too bad.

The dance was pretty good. Given the song style and their capabilities as dancers, they did pretty much was expected. Though I think we saw more of the choreography during the chorus, rather than the verses (so I am essentially going from that).

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 7/10
Performance – 7/10
Overall Rating – 7.5/10

[Review] ID – UP10TION

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This is the fourth and final Japanese song review for this week. As mentioned previously, I will find time to do another four reviews for girl group releases in Japan. But in the meantime, this is my review for UP10TION’s official Japanese debut. The boy group made their official debut with the single ID on 8th of March this year. Their most recent Korean promotions were late last year for White Night.

Out of all the four songs that I had chosen to review, this one didn’t reel me into the song, like how the others did. That being said, the song was still quite good and was incredibly strong in its instrumental and the group’s delivery. ID is an extremely synth-heavy, with its roots in electronic and EDM. Some parts did catch me off guard at first, but overall, the instrumental sounded pretty good. The vocals were mostly covered with autotune, which felt okay. It wasn’t misused or overused in any way, like in other songs. The raps could have been a little better. The reason why goes back to why I felt the song didn’t reel me in. The song felt extremely slow. The song’s tempo felt like it was in slow-motion the entire time, which did take the energy out of the synths. Going back to the raps, the raps were done so to match the tempo of the song. To me, the slowness sucked the energy out of that as well. Another thing is that the song didn’t have many hooks. There just wasn’t anything catchy about or anything that makes me want to go back, beside the powerfulness of the song. I would like to know what the meaning for “Dirty Little Freaks” in the song is (as it was mentioned during the heavily autotuned parts and throughout the chorus). Anyone willing to share?

The music video follows the same formula of choreography shots and closeups. The edgy vibes and toughness were portrayed through the industrial and urban sets. Overall, the sets were quite minimalistic, with the main focus on the group and their choreography. Hence, I have decided to join the performance section of the review with the music video. Honestly, their choreography for ID was quite amazing. The moves weren’t that special, but together, the dance that accompanied the song was great! The group is definitely emerging a group to look out for when it comes to choreographies.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7/10

[Review] Ka-Ching – EXO-CBX

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EXO-CBX will be making their official debut on the 24th of May, with the drop of their first min-album, Girls. While that date is two weeks away, they have already released the short version of the music video and gave a full performance for their debut track.  The EXO subunit previously made their Korean debut with Hey Mama last year. This is the third JPOP review of the four I promised, with the last one being released later today.

I was genuinely curious what style the subunit would go for. Hey Mama was so good and was a song that was more up my alley. Given that this release is more for the audience in Japan, it would be interesting to see what style the song delves into. And I am glad that I clicked on this song. Ka-Ching really catchy to listen to. Even after the song ends, I want more of it. The instrumental sounds like a soundtrack for the playboy who just arrived at a Las Vegas casino and has a bit fun in the casino. Which is obviously appropriate for a song that revolves around money. I love the vocal work in the song, especially the buildup during the pre-chorus. The “Ka-Ching” that is engraved into our minds by the end of the song sounds alluring and does a good job of keeping that catchiness of the song. Trust me, but “Ka-Ching” is probably the one thing you will remember for a while after listening to the song. The one thing that doesn’t sit well with me is the rapping in the song. It was pretty bad, to the point where I has to be one of the worst rap sequences I have heard in a long time. The song needed a rap sequence, just not that one. But overall, the song was pretty good.

I am honestly not too sure about the music video. A part of me likes it. Another part of me wants to ask what was going on during the circus scenes. Not exactly sure about those backup dancers and their creepy makeup. Sure, they added a little colour to the video to give it a more vibrant feel, but it looked really scary. The green screen for the circus background has a lot going on, so it felt overwhelming and complicated. The casino scenes looked a lot simpler and felt more open but those backup dancers were still there. I like the speech bubbles and the comic themed writing that appeared. Just not the word art for the line “We’re on a payroll”.

Getting on the trend of body rolls, Ka-Ching makes use of the body rolls during the chorus. It actually looks quite cool. My favourite part of the dance is the end, which isn’t shown in the music video linked below but rather the live performance that you can search up on YouTube, where Baekhyun starts off, then Chen and Xiumin, then the backup dancers.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 10/10
Overall Rating – 8/10

 

[Review] How To Cry – 100%

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Following the review posted earlier today for BTOB’s L.U.V, the second JPOP release will be 100%’s debut single, How To Cry. At the start of the year, 100% made their official debut in Japan with How To Cry. They later returned a month later with their Korean comeback, Sketch U.

100%’s Japanese debut single takes every fan and listener back to their dance based songs. It wasn’t until recently that the group turned to more vocal centred tracks. And it is a return that I wouldn’t mind listening to over and over again. While their earlier tracks were of the same genre, I wasn’t into them like I am with this track. This one had great synths that caught my attention straight away. I thought the synths and instrumental would have been overpowering, but rather the vocals managed to shine through. I guess this is more proof that the group has vastly improved. The track is extremely powerful. This strength can be heard through the vocals, raps and the instrumental. The bass in this song is what I wish for in some songs. It sounds heavy, suiting the synths and dubstep-based sounds. It is also quite catchy, especially the chorus and the “How To Cry” line that is repeated over and over again. Part of me does feel like it is a generic dance song but the song mashes past 100% and present-day 100%, which could become a very interesting combination.

While I did sense the genericness in the song, the genericness in the video could be felt more strongly. Yeah, the video consists of the following, which is the formula that most music video nowadays: closeups, choreography and a few inserted scenes to give the video some meaning. They don’t have much appeal to them standalone and together they end up being even less appealing to watch. The darker vibes gave an edgier and tougher look to the group. But their acting and ’emotional reflection’ scenes don’t really go well with that. I honestly don’t know why I felt this mismatch strongly in the video because it is the same thing that I watch every single day when I watch multiple KPOP music videos.

Like I said above, the return to the stronger sound meant the return to even more powerful choreography. And that is what we got here. It’s tough, sharp and amazing. The “Tell Me How To Cry” dance move looked quite cool. The choreography during the chorus was definitely the highlight and fitted in well with the dramatic side of the song.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 5/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.5/10

[Review] L.U.V – BTOB

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Due to this week’s lack of releases, I have decided to take some time and focus on the Japanese releases by KPOP groups. For the next two days, I will be releasing reviews for Japanese songs released by Korean boy groups. I will find some time (most likely after my exams) to do some reviews for JPOP songs released by Korean girl groups. Today’s focus is BTOB’s L.U.V, which was released in June last year. This is BTOB’s first single to top the album charts in Japan.

Out of all the song that I have chosen to review, BTOB’s L.U.V is the only one from last year. That is becaucse in the four songs, L.U.V has been my favourite and left the biggest impression. This song alone cements their vocal capabilities and continues on from their ballad trilogy (It’s Okay, Way Back Home and Remember That). The raps in the song are equally as great. But I think the vocals still steal the show. The ad-libs, which are commonly found at the end of the song, feature after the first chorus, which makes it different. Out of all of the BTOB ballads that I have heard, I think this one showcases the most emotions in both vocals and raps. I love the layering towards the end of the song. The ballad has the traditional ballad instrumental, which isn’t anything fancy, but it accompanies the vocals and raps gave a really dramatic theme to the song. Overall, I pretty much enjoyed the song, from when it was released to even today!

Matching the emotions felt in the song, the video showcases the same emotions into a story format. The main story featured was with Hyunsik and his partner. She had already passed away and Hyunsik cannot stand being without her. So he jumps off the top of a building to his death. At the end you see him running to his girlfriend in the afterlife, which I supposed shocked her. The other members are also featured in the music video and are there for more symbolic reasons, such as Changsub with the ballons, which represents the loss of one, then two lives. The use (or lack of colour) in the video was amazing as well, showing both sides of life in a very intresting way. The member’s acting is quite superb. Overall, it is a well thought out video that accompanies the song perfectly.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 10/10
Overall Rating – 9.5/10

[Review] Get The Treasure – SHINee

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Source: http://www.allkpop.com/upload/2017/01/af_org/SHINee_1485622735_af_org.jpg

I want to delve back into JPOP releases and hopefully extend my review base to artists who are not KPOP originated groups. It’s a promise that I have been making each year. While I don’t really see myself keeping that promise due to my commitments, I do want to keep doing a few JPOP reviews each year. And since SHINee just made their Japan comeback two weeks ago, why not? This is their 5th full album, titled as 5. SHINee has also released songs in 2016 that form part of the album.

Get The Treasure is something you expected from SHINee. Their Korean tracks have been more experimental in the last few years and the few Japanese tracks I have heard seemed to more consistent, with Get The Treasure fitting SHINee’s portfolio quite nicely. The song starts off abruptly. Not a big fan of that. It just felt too sudden and odd, compared to the rest of the song. Another part that I am shaking my head to (as in saying ‘no’) is the rapping sequence for the bridge. It felt disconnected and doesn’t flow well with the rest of the song. But everything else is pretty good. I love the grand and classy feel that the song has going on. It suits the casino concept that the video featured. The instrumental was spectacular. When they launch you into the chorus, they do not hold back with anything. Horns blaring and their vocals, being the forefront, was particularly strong and powerful. The instrumental here gave it a really nice funky and almost jazz-like flare. The verses did feel a little underwhelming, but it didn’t affect the overall listening experience. The chorus was the main show and they did manage to wow me during the main show.

One thing did jump out at me when watching the video. Their lip-syncing sucks. Not exactly sure if it is the language, but some of them barely moved their lips. But besides that standout issue, everything else in the video was really cool. First of all, the guys look really cool in their suits and black outfits. The mannequin challenge or the ‘pausing of everyone else’ while SHINee roamed around looked amazing. The editing done here has to be one of the most complicated processes ever. And also one of the best. I really enjoyed the choreography scenes. The chandelier dropping and then pausing midway just so the guys could dance with the glass pieces flying about really looked cool. Obviously, they did hold back in the video making process as well. Not even shooting guns could stop these guys!

The dance looked cool and fitting for the song. But it wasn’t as memorable as any of their past dances.

Song – 7.5/10
Music Video – 9/10 
Performance – 6/10
Overall Rating – 7.5/10

Kissing To Feel – UKISS

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No, UKISS has not returned to the stage (yet) but the band did release a song back in February. This is a Japanese release that was not publicised in anyway. Someone contacted me on Twitter asking me to review this and I apologise that it only took me 5 years to actually review the song. Honestly if they haven’t contact me then I would not have known. I don’t actually do requests since the amount of releases is so large, it is hard to keep up with the industry. I try my best to review new bands and old bands, debuts and comebacks from smaller artists, but it is already hard just trying to listen to the latest songs… Let’s move onto the review though, before this review becomes too long.

It is a good song but it just doesn’t captivate me. For a quite upbeat song, the song started off slow, compared to the rest of the song. It wasn’t until the chorus that I felt like it was more of a UKISS style song. The start (in reality) isn’t that slow, it just felt slow. But once the song gets to that peak, wow. Their vocals are not hindered one bit in the song and sounds very powerful, strong and extremely clear. The rapping (per usual) is pretty good. I can see a lot of improvement (and parts) given to Jun.  I always wonder why they don’t do these songs in South Korea. I know South Korea isn’t that big in these EDM dance tracks, but UKISS received a lot of attention from the public when they released songs like this in the past. Okay, finishing praising the song. The song itself really doesn’t draw my attention (as I mentioned above). I feel like an extra element could have been added to the song to give it more depth or dimension (does that make sense?). But overall, I think the song is good. (I need a better way to write these reviews… I started and finished off with the same sentence).

Not exactly fond of the video. If you are a fan of sweaty Eli, then I guess check it out. But honestly, it was rather dark than it should have been. The lighting wasn’t that great in this video. There are two version: one was the normal landscape version, while the other is the portrait version. I have not seen the landscape version on YouTube yet, but I have see the portrait version and damn am I disappointed. It just feels really confined. There are benefits for the portrait version, but I am not seeing them in this video. The set is okay. The question is: when isn’t UKISS in an abandoned room or house.? Like seriously, most of their video consist of something abandoned. Yeah, I am running out of things to say about the video. I just think the video could have included a plot and made some sense over these scenes. There is already a plot here but it just doesn’t seem to be evident. Maybe more scenes of the girl leaving the guys or something would have made the video more interesting.

The dance focus on the sexy side of the band (and I think I actually do prefer this side of the boys). A lot of crotch grabbing and body waves. I really like the slow part of the chorus. And you probably have no idea what I am talking about…. Watch the dance version here? I think the dance is great, matches the tempo of the song and also shows the knife sharp movements of the guys. Once again they did a good job with their dance.

Overall, it was okay. I think that sums it up for me. 6.5/10

One Shot One Kill – UKISS

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It has been a while since we heard from UKISS. But we did hear some shocking news from the band when Eli announced suddenly that he was married AND expecting a child on the way. Not saying that the news was bad in anyway, it just caught everyone off guard. UKISS has also been busy in Japan and it has been over a year since their last domestic (Korean) promotions. This is not their Korean comeback however, but just another Japanese comeback.

I am genuinely confused about this song. When I first heard the title of the song, I thought they went for an electronic or EDM based song. It also sounds like something masculine and dangerous. I honestly had James Bond channelling through my mind. However instead we got… a love song? Rather disappointing. The song does not sound as great. It just sounds like a complete mismatch waiting to happen. The vocals in my opinion do not suit the song. It seems to be more drawn out than anything. However the rapping is really good and with the combination of the instrumental had an “Uptown Funk” kind of feel to it (actually applies to the whole video). Talking about the instrumental, it gave the song a really nice retro sound. Even the dance break was just those retro sound, not a single electronic sound in the dance break (there might have been a little bit, but it was after the dance break) and I am going to give them props for that, since I think the instrumental was really good as well. Vocals and the mismatched initial thoughts just didn’t lineup.

The retro video fitted really well with the song. But like the song, I thought of a 007 theme video or spy themed. Anyway, with what we were delivered, the retro themed went throughout the video. From the sets, to their attire to the walking canes. Actually, walking canes aren’t retro, but they fit really well with this video. And that is all I have to say about the video….

Dance wise, thought the use of the canes were cool but a bit messy. Thought the dance break was cool. While we didn’t really see much of the dance in the video, I did manage to fine snippets of a live performance at one of their fanmeets in Japan, and I can say, I think it is amazing dance.

What we got was not what I expected and that is quite disappointing. But they managed to pull it off (with the odd complaint) and it sounded/looked good. 6.5/10

Kingdom – B.A.P

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Yep, B.A.P are back. Just not in Korea, but Japan. This is their first original release and their first comeback in Japan since 2014. The song is a part of an album titled as Best. Absolute. Perfect, and is their first official full length album in Japan to date.

The song is honestly pretty good. The song is exactly what I think the band should actually come back with. The same concept and just a little more power. B.A.P is known for their dark, powerful and strong concepts and songs. This just plays homage to some of those song. The violins in the song and the orchestral feel really sound cool and nice in the song. Plays very well with their vocals as well. The rapping is good. But as I mentioned, the song needed a little more power. I am not 100% sure about how Japan likes their songs, but this does have that dead feeling attached to it. And I mean, the song just doesn’t hit you across the face or have an impact upon you. It can be described as “tame”. Another thing that is starting to bug me. Unfortuately, when I am listening to B.A.P songs, a lot of the time I am trying to figure out the portion of the song that Daehyun sings. I know. I love his voice, but I feel like Youngjae can take over some of his lines. Jongup is improving a lot as well, so he should get a few more lines. As I said, I love Daehyun’s vocals, but sometimes (and this goes for many bands/groups, not just B.A.P), the line arrangement should not be biased towards one member, but a more even spread. There are bands where one member is given only one line and the excuse is “because they don’t sing well”. I find it usually these members that have the most unique voices and fits songs that the main vocalist can barely sound great in. Anyway, before the rant gets way too long. Song is pretty good.

As for the music video, boy, does that dead feeling come back strong. Lack of colour really fitted in with the rest of the video, gives it that more urban feel to the video. As for the plot… we really need to talk to these writers…. The boys of B.A.P seemed to hatch this plan that involves this car. Great. Probably stealing it or something. But the idea is to skip the plan and have the guys confront this big boss. Okay… They plug in some lights, have the big bosses henchmen conveniently bend backwards due too the bright light and the band casually make their way to the throne. Okay… And then proceed to wave a white flag and then they all celebrate. Ummm.. I am sorry. Did I miss out on a large portion of the video or something. What in the world did I just watch? Make utter no sense? I am going back and there isn’t anything to do with the plan, why they are going to take over the big bosses throne. And big boss, you ran because your henchmen are pathetic. This video reminds me of the cringe worthy dramas that I see consistently in Korean entertainment. I literally cannot speak right now, just by retelling you what I saw. Now, there maybe another video out there (like the fuller version), but I don’t know if it exists of not, because the video I am watching (linked below) is marketed as a the music video. A very big whup whup for the video.

Dancing was okay. Not as expected. Too boring to watch. Nothing cool. But hey, they do add that more masculine vibe to the video and song.

Song was the best part of the whole comeback. Dance is okay. Music video was a downright disappointment. I cannot put it any other way. 4/10