Category: KPOP

[Review] Romanticism – Leo (VIXX)

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Second up on the reviewing spotlight is Leo, the main vocalist of VIXX. He has returned with his solo comeback mini-album, Muse, which features the title track Romanticism. This is his first comeback since the release of Touch & Sketch in 2017. I was prepared to write and publish this review alongside with SF9’s review yesterday but had to delay it due to the late release of the music video (I did watch the original but it disappeared before I got to review it).

The song starts off well. I liked the slow pace of the instrumental, which really drives that mature and sensual sound. The R&B instrumentation definitely set the mood. It was rather interesting how he delivered his lines. It felt like his lines didn’t fit in with the slowness of the track. But this isn’t a terrible thing as I thought of it as a nice effect. I think the chorus was classy and gave the song momentum. But from the bridge onwards, the song lost its flow and anything that managed to be showcased at the start disappeared. The final chorus, even though it recontinued the momentum, didn’t feel as impactful because of the derailment caused by the bridge. Leo did show good vocal work throughout the song but I felt the song could have used something more, like a rap sequence (I am not sure, but I continually heard Ravi’s voice in the background and low key expected some surprise featuring). So overall, I thought it was an okay track. Good at the start but a letdown at the end.

The music video was okay, as well. I did think it was bland and didn’t have anything captivating going on to be worth discussing. I did like the colour contrast between the warmer and colder colours in the choreography set. And I think the camera work in this video worked well with the instrumental. But other than that, I don’t much else to say about the music video.

I think the most likeable element of the comeback is the performance. The chemistry between him and the backup dancers made this performance stand out, sensual and more suspenseful, especially at the start. I liked that sudden burst of energy in the performance when it came to the chorus and I am sure fans enjoyed that pelvic roll.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 6.9/10

[Review] RPM – SF9

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We begin the week off with two sexy comebacks for all the fans out there. First up on the reviewing spotlight is SF9. They return today with their latest title track, RPM, which is featured on the group’s seventh mini-album (which shares the same title). We previously saw SF9 earlier this year through their Enough promotions. Once again, Now or Never will be my standard and Enough fell slightly short of the standard. So let’s see how RPM places.

RPM starts off with a heavy tone and beat, which is a very different opener to what I am used to with other KPOP tracks. I have to admit that this, while is different, didn’t feel ideal at first. But a few listens in later, the heaviness does foreshadowing the dynamic and loaded tone they opted for this comeback. The rapping and vocals complimented this heavier style, which I quite liked. I didn’t know how they were going to pull it off. But after the energy rush we got from the chorus, it felt like a lock and key situation. I also like the suspenseful buildup to the first chorus, which kept me on the edge of my seat. I would have liked a strong vocal hook. It felt like they placed too much emphasis on the ‘RPM’ repetition, which only half satisfied me (The deep ‘Boom Boom Boom‘ that followed the RPM repetition was on point, however!). I would have also liked to see the rapping hasten as we got more of it. I think that could have added another dimension to the song. While there were some weak moments, RPM proved to be a strong contender. But once again, it didn’t match the standard that they previously set.

There seemed to be a plotline in the video. Based on what is seen, I assume it is set in a video game context with a futuristic heist being the main target. It seemed like some members made it through successfully by completing their mission, while others were lost (i..e Chani who took off his controller, which Zuho later picked up). However, based on what I saw, only one member successfully got the end (whoever stopped the sliding briefcase). Based on the lyrics, it seems like they were all racing to love. So maybe whoever stopped the briefcase at the end was the one who made to ‘love’ successfully. Awesome video with really cool effects and visuals.

The choreography for this comeback looks very intense and I am captivated by what I saw in the music video. To me, the standout member for this comeback is Chani, who I think was in the centre position for both the first and final chorus. I couldn’t take my eyes off him as his moves (along with the rest of the group) was powerful and definitely impactful.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 10/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8.8/10

[Album Review] WE (3rd Mini Album) – WINNER

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For today’s album review, we will be having a look at WINNER’s latest mini-album, WE. This was released back mid-May with their title track, Ah Yeah. If you have been a reader of the site for a while, you may have noticed that I have never reviewed a WINNER album before. The main reason for this was because I didn’t think the albums had much to talk about. But WE seem to be changer that may get their albums on my radar. On top of Ah Yeah, the song features 3 new tracks and remixed versions of Everyday and the unreleased track of First Love (which are not included in the album review, per usual).

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WE Album Cover

1..Ah Yeah (아예) (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review for Ah Yeah. (7/10)

2. Zoo (동물의왕국) – To me, Zoo has this laid-back vibe to it which makes it very pleasant to listen to. I find the song to be less proactive than Ah Yeah was (and this is isn’t a terrible thing). Instead, it is a light song that feels suitable following Ah Yeah. The instrumental is interesting as it relies on a mixture of tropical-like sounds and effects. In reality, the instrumental was made up of brass and flutes. There is some energy that you get via the blast at the end, which was nice. I did think the vocals and raps did not stand out as much. I think it is because I didn’t really identify a strong hook that made the song memorable overall. (7/10)

3. Mola (몰라도너무몰라) – Mola starts off with a punch. It is striking and kicks the song on a positive note. The chorus is the second positive part of the track. I find the light yet dramatic nature of the instrumental to be equally as striking as the line that started of the song. Talking about the pop-based instrumental, I found that it does get very repetitive, especially after many listens. However, that can easily be overlooked as I found the energy that comes off it is very strong and impressive in many ways. The vocals and rapping were quite good in this song. Even though the instrumental required to be loud to be this impressive, I thought all the members stood out with their vocal and rapping abilities. (8/10)

4. Boom – I have an affinity for songs that give you an explosive surprise. And with the title ‘Boom’, you expect this. But the song starts off in a slow yet paced manner that makes you recheck if you are listening to the right song. And the verses of this track continue the pattern, which I think was interesting. It is the chorus, however, that is most explosive and rediverts the song to be true to its title. The alternating between soft and explosive to be a very understandable but dynamic effect, giving the song character. The ‘Boom Powwowow’ was very catchy and I honestly could not forget this song after listening to it. (9/10)

Overall Album Rating – 7.8/10

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[Album Review] B Complete (1st Mini Album) – AB6IX

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Following the pre-release of Hollywood back in April, expectations were definitely high for the debut of AB6IX. A few weeks ago, the group made their debut with Breathe. And to continue the weekend of album reviews, today we will be having a closer look at AB6IX’s debut mini-album, B Complete. If I was, to sum up their mini-album in a short description, I think ‘this is one group not to mess around with’ would be the most efficient summary for my thoughts. Let’s see why that is the case!

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B Complete Mini Album

1..Absolute (完全體) – Kicking off the group’s debut mini-album is probably everything I had expected with the Breathe (refer to my comments in the Breathe review). Absolute is loaded with intensity through its very robust and powerful instrumental. I personally think for a track like this, both the vocals and rapping managed to shined brightly, which is very rare. Though, I would have to admit that this track would probably be hard to pull off every day for a period of 4 or so weeks (the usual promotional period). It does bring it in line with the release of popular boy groups nowadays such as GOT7 and Monsta X, but still, manage to show off some personality and unique flair. (9/10)

2. Shining Stars (별자리) – Probably to offset the intense nature of the preceding track and to bring upon a lighter nature for their title track, Shining Star does a good job of being the middle man. While it does have a light tone, the track still manages to showcase dance elements in their instrumental, which I think works well with the group. Personally, I like it because it shows us that the group has capabilities of being versatile. Usually, we would have waited for the second or third album release from the group to get that feeling. But by switching it up slightly, the new group have indicated that they know what they are doing in this competitive industry. (9/10)

3. Breathe (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review for Breathe. (8/10)

4. Friend Zone – Friend Zone is light-hearted and definitely more carefree from the rest of their tracks. I like the rapping in this track, which gives the song some attitude. Not too much attitude, but more like the ‘perfect amount’. While the song does feature prominent dance elements in their instrumentation (like their previous tracks), the song does have a tone that feels like a confession song. Saying that does sound like I have been listening too much of the genre. Though, it seems like AB6IX have different ideas regarding the term Friend Zone, as they refer to the Friend Zone as a step getting closer to their crush and not really the Friend Zone that all people dread. (8/10)

5. Light Me Up – Light Me Up, to me, is a very stylish upbeat dance track that I find very addictive. There is a sense of elegance that I felt from the track, which I attribute the instrumental for. The pop-based instrumental (which had some trap influences) is very bright yet powerful, which is expected from AB6IX given their album thus far. I find the track to be quite addictive, as well. I think the song is their best, vocally. The rapping also earns a big tick from me. While the track is very enjoyable, I think the best of the best comes towards the end. I am talking about that short trap-like ending we got. I thought it was a nice touch to the end of the track and it made sense when you think of the track as a whole. (9/10)

6. Dance for Two (둘만의 춤) – Taking a complete 180° change is Dance for Two, which strips always any electronic based instrumentation and opts for acoustics and more traditional instrumentation. While AB6IX has stood out for their dance tracks thus far on the album, I guess they too are not immune from the clichés of album releases in the KPOP industry. The song seems to present their vocals and raps in a more delicate state, which was quite a nice change. I must admit that coming from multiple dance tracks, the song does relieve some of the intensity and energy, But the track feels a little too mainstream and (as I said) cliché for my liking. (7.5/10)

7. Hollywood (Pre-Release Track) – Click here to read the full review for Hollywood. (10/10)

Overall Album Rating – 8.6/10

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B Complete Teaser Image

[Album Review] We Are Superhuman (4th Mini Album) – NCT 127

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It is time to restart the album review bandwagon for this site. Apologies for completely ditching this segment for the past few weeks. I really missed this segment but it just ate up so much of time, preparing and writing it up. But now with endless time on my hands, let’s get right back into it. One of the albums released at the end of May that I didn’t get around to reviewing is NCT 127’s We Are Superhuman. The album features the group’s latest comeback single, Superhuman, along with 4 other tracks.

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We Are Superhuman Album Cover

1..Highway To Heaven – To me, opening up with a song such as Highway To Heaven, makes me turn my head towards the screen or speakers. It isn’t necessarily a punchy track with extremely addictive hooks in my opinion, which might be expected of NCT and KPOP traditionally. Instead, it relies on the loudness of the chorus, simple synth-pop instrumentation and the fact that it brings all the members together for the chorus. And I think these are all effective tools if used smartly, which is the case here. While many groups have used these techniques before, NCT 127 doesn’t mess around by leaving things to the end or take too long to integrate these said techniques, making it a very prominent and memorable track on the album. (10/10)

2. Superhuman (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review for Superhuman. (9/10)

3. Fool (아 깜짝이야) – Taking a massive turn from Superhuman is the more light-hearted tone in Fool. And personally, this is somewhat different from the NCT 127 that I usually know of. But I am not hating, because it gives us an opportunity to recover from the intensity of Superhuman. I like the direction of the track. The vocals and rapping were quite nice. Harmonies are something to really keep your ears open for. However, there is one thing that sticks out at me that I don’t really enjoy. The verses had only a layer of instrumentation, but the chorus felt like it had too many layers within the instrumentation. Including the vocals and backing, I feel like it was overloaded. (8/10)

4. Jet Lag (시차) – Jet Lag is the ‘ballad’ on the album. There is a rather slow start to the track but it slowly does build up the tempo through the use of percussion. And I think the vocals were very beautiful, especially demonstrated by the smoothness of the vocals during the chorus. I just felt like the rappers did not really have much of an opportunity to feature in the track. While the producers did try to incorporate the rappers in the song by giving them a hip-hop-like and ‘fast’ section, I felt it was a mismatch considering the rest of the song. And I think this inclusion made the song a little confusing. Is it a ballad or not? (6/10)

5. Paper Plane (종이비행기) – Paper Plane seems to be the most ideal track on the album for the Summer season. It is vibrant and colourful, which are terms that I have used to describe most of the Summertime songs thus far this year. The pop tune in the instrumental is addictive and fun sounding, as well. It is also an uplifting track, which makes it even more enjoyable to listen to. I really like the chorus of the track, which is a straight instrumental piece. The build-up to it was also quite nice. Vocally, I could tell all the members apart and I liked that aspect of being able to differentiate each member, which can sometimes be difficult. (9/10)

6. We Are 127 (Outro Track) – An outro like this makes me excited for what’s to come. There is a mixture of genres going on, all something that I expect from NCT 127. Apart from the ‘We Are 127’ repetition, there isn’t much else besides robustness and mysterious vibes in the outro. Hence, I have decided to leave it off the calculation for the album rating but wanted to mention my initial comments anyway.

Overall Album Rating – 8.4/10

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We Are Superhuman Teaser Image

[Review] Birthday – Jeon Somi

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Interestingly, a major similarity of the post I.O.I and Wanna One activities are that both the 1st place winners of their respective seasons of Produce 101 have yet to embark on a solo career. Also, both Kang Daniel and Jeon Somi have experienced management changes since leaving their respective groups. We all know of Kang Daniel’s lawsuit with his former company, while Jeon Somi switched labels between JYP Entertainment and The Black Label (citing ‘different directions when it came to music’). However that all changes today, with Jeon Somi making her solo debut with Birthday.

Debuting under The Black Label (a subsidy under YG Entertainment), you can expect the song to go down a certain direction (mainly due to the YG part of that track). And well, as we expected, the song had some hip-hop influence, particularly around the chorus’ drop. While it does mismatch with the rest of the song, which came out to be more of a pop genre track, I think it was very dynamic and different. But it seems like a cliche thing to do, given other KPOP tracks from the larger company, and I am not sure if the song reflects upon Somi’s true identity. But that is a topic of discussion for another day.  The pop genre verses reminded me of a Taylor Swift style track. And I find a lot of songs by Swift nowadays to have some attitude, which I think Jeon Somi channels exceptionally well through the post-chorus (‘You’re Not Invited‘) sequence. It is definitely a catchy track and it successfully reels me in, so I guess a few more repeats of the song is going to follow this review.

So when you think of a Birthday, you think of balloons, cake, presents and some fun times. Well, the music video for Birthday definitely delivers all of those components. A very large cake, might I add to that mix. So, I think the video ties in nicely with the song’s lyrics. The extravagantness of the music video is quite likeable, especially with the bold colours and very fitting sets for the video. The video does let Somi stand out and shows her in a very confident and powerful limelight, which is the only aim for her and her solo debut.

Like the strong drop of the track, the performance gives her a powerful dance move to compliment that. I also like the attitude she manages to channel through the post-chorus hook. As for the rest of the choreography, we have to wait and see when a live performance comes out.

Song – 8.5/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 8.5/10
Overall Rating – 8.7/10

[Review] FUN! – fromis_9

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It is time to get back on the ‘catch-up train’. Making their return last Wednesday, alongside WJSN and BoA (review coming soon!) was fromis_9, with their latest comeback single, FUN! And with a title like that and past fromis_9 songs, you can definitely expect the track to go one particular direction. This is the group’s first comeback since the release of the forever catchy Love Bomb back in October of last year.

I think we can all agree that the track is loaded with colour and energy, which goes hand-in-hand with its title name and the group’s identity. The song is best described as ‘fun and whimsical, which I think are all words that could have described their past title tracks thus far. The chorus stands out for obvious reasons. That downward spiral effect that the chorus has is very unique. And the short ‘Fun’ punchy hooks are very memorable. The vocals were quite nice and I liked them best during the slower pre-choruses. I found it interesting they gave the slight hip-hop twist to the vocal fragment of the second verse, while the rapping continued the momentum from the chorus. Another very unique touch to the song. I think I enjoyed every part of the song. I just felt the instrumental break could have potentially gone that extra length and have been more quirky to be a perfect fit, but it is fine as it is.

I actually think this was a very cool music video. The video is a whole heap of tiny informercials, showcasing a number of familiar brands. But the group puts a spin on each of these brands by incorporating their name. So basically the video introduces us to ‘Funta’, ‘Fromi Sweat’, ‘Bomb Noodles’, Fromis (a play on Adidas) and ‘Funsilk’. Unidentifiable is the green apple drink and I think the only legit company in this video was ‘Clear & Clean’. I also like their ‘NG sequence”. Not sure if it was real bloopers or staged, but it showed the members having an enjoyable time. Overall, a very ‘fun’ music video.

I love how energetic and cutesy the performance is. It is a song that begs for a lot of energy, and the performance serves that energy in a very enjoyable and organised manner. While it does look like a complex routine, I find it amazing how the members don’t look like they went through 3 minutes of cardio and movement.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 8.8/10

[Review] Follow – Yunho (TVXQ)

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While I have only completed one review for a release last week, let’s take a break for one of today’s releases. Today marks the official solo debut for Yunho, one of the two members of the TVXQ duo and has been active in the industry since 2003. The title track. Follow, is featured on the artist’s first ever Korean solo album as well. Previous solo singles from Yunho that I have reviewed are Champagne and Drop, which were all special singles a part of SM Station.

Right off the bat, I find Follow to be extremely fitting into a style of music that I listen to. I find the instrumentation that kicks off the track to be mysterious and dramatic, which are all things that I am drawn to. I really like the bass element in this track, which really makes the song sound so punchy and deep. I think the vocals are a tad weaker. I thought Yunho showed great vocals, with that odd growl in this voice and that really nice display of a high note at the end of the track. Rather, I think it was the integration of the vocals into the electronic side of the song that failed him. But that was only for the verses. I found they did a good job of incorporating this voice during other parts of the song. That raspier and electronically filtered background vocals that appeared during the hooks of the track were quite fitting and gave an added texture to the track. I think overall, I find the song to be interesting and engaging. Whether if I find myself to be a fan, I guess we have to see with a few more listens, even though it ticks off a few of my interests.

I think when it comes to Yunho and TVXQ in general, a dark concept is definitely a must. What makes this music video stand out is the fact there is a futuristic vibe to it, which I found to be very cool.  Per usual, I don’t have any clue on what is happening in the music video. I did see that Yunho may have awakened some motorcyclist spirit in this futuristic world but I hardly doubt that would be the plotline of the video (i.e. a little paranormal thrown in the mix). But this dark concept has me interested and I guess I need to rewatch a few more times to really grasp a plotline to it.

Per usual, Yunho doesn’t disappoint with his choreography. My thoughts are all based on what I saw in the music video. I find his moves to be extremely stylish in this comeback. ‘There is also some attitude in this performance, which makes it very worthwhile to check out whenever it is performed on stage.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 8.5/10
Overall Rating – 7.6/10

[Review] Boogie Up – WJSN (Cosmic Girls)

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As promised, we will be re-focusing on some releases from the previous week. And I think we should start off with what I consider to be my most favourite release from the last week. WJSN made their return last Wednesday with Boogie Up, their latest title track from their very first special Summer album, For The Summer. The Chinese members of the group, Cheng Xiao, Mei Qi and Xuan Yi, remain absent for this set of promotions due to overseas schedules.

I wasn’t sure what I was expecting when it came to Boogie Up but I felt an overwhelmingly strong expectation for disappointment. I honestly do not know why that was the case, as I pretty much enjoyed all of their previous tracks. But rest assured, Boogie Up is a gem that I cannot stop replaying. It is a Summer track with a retro sound. I found the track to be quite fun-sounding, very energetic and had a fair amount of cuteness, which was all elements that made me smile and want to dance to the track. It is super catchy, especially with the ‘Boogie Boogie Up‘ hook in the chorus, which my mind begs me to continually replay for. I like how straightforward their chorus was, with only the vibrant instrumentation and hook at the forefront of the track. I liked the verses as they had a nice flow and melody. Vocally, the song is sound. Dawon really got an opportunity to feature more in the track, which made me even more happy (she has an interesting voice). Though, I felt like they could have gone with a little more kick for the rap sequence. Mainly to fit Exy’s voice more neatly into the track.

Like most Summer seasoned music videos (as I have been mentioning in the last few days), the music video shows the members having a lot of fun in the Sun and heat. With the sun shining brightly, vibrant colours and the fact that the music video is set on the beach, I think this has to be the best Summer themed music video thus far this year. Other than that, it is rather typical.

I thought it was a really good performance to watch. I really like the ‘Boogie Boogie Up‘ move they have at the start of the chorus. Thought it was very cute and fitting with WJSN’s more youthful image.

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

[Review] Heart Sign – Ong Seong Woo

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We have heard music releases from all the members of Wanna One since their disbandment, besides Ong Seong Woo and Kang Daniel. It seems like we will be seeing the latter artist sometime in the coming months, with promises of an impending debut.  Things will change today as we move Ong Seong Woo to the list of music releases, who has been notably absent from the music scene since the disbandment. Technically, this isn’t a solo debut, but rather a special single release, joining hands with Pepsi, who recently kicked off their ‘The Love of Summer‘ project with Eunha and Ravi’s collaboration, Blossom.

Listening to the track, the song brought me back to memories of Wanna One debut track, Energetic. It had a similar beat and felt very nostalgic. It isn’t clear if it was meant to be intentional. But given how they managed to slide in the line ‘We Always Wanna One‘, it seems like they are doing it intentionally.  However, it isn’t a direct copy of Energetic. This nostalgia was only present during the chorus of the song. The verses and its buildup, while it still follows the electronic dance pop style like Energetic, is quite different. I appreciate this difference to an extent, as I did find those sections to be quite bland in comparison to the chorus and didn’t really feel like it was contributing much. Seongwoo’s vocals were nice. I think he did a good job of making the song feel very dynamic with his vocals. The song does suffer from a linear nature as it sounded so alike from start to end. I feel like this could have easily been avoided with a rap sequence. But overall, ticks for a little throwback to memory lane.

I don’t know who in their right mind would drop food on the ground over images of a beach and ignore that array of fast food on the table. But I guess, Ong Seong Woo had to be completely bored out of his mind to do that. Hahahaha… But he solves that boredom by going to the beach to take images and join up with some friends to have a good time (a common theme in a lot of these Summertime music videos). I think it was a nice video. Of course, Pepsi was on full display, while the emphasis on the blue in the sea, sky and clothes was definitely noticeable. But they made it all balance by featuring a fair amount of yellow (through the sand and beach hut).

Song – 7.5/10
Music Video – 7/10
Overall Rating –  7.4/10

[Review] Wave – ATEEZ

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And I am back! Thank you for putting up with my disappearance. Without any more delays, let’s jump right back into the review grind! I thought I start with more recent releases and ‘work my way’ backwards. The first artist up is ATEEZ, who returned yesterday with WAVE and ILLUSION. As I will be trying to catching up on many reviews as possible, I have decided to review WAVE first and return to ILLUSION another day. We last saw ATEEZ through their Say My Name and HALA HALA promotions earlier this year in January.

WAVE features that tropical sound that is heavily overused by industry due to its perfect fit for the Summer season. And while that could be a good cue to start rolling eyes, the song does feature a number of great elements that really throws out that belief of being ‘another’ tropical house track. The first has to be the inclusion of ATEEZ’s intense style that we have seen from day dot for the group. While this isn’t as heavy or serious, I find the song having a good balance between their serious nature and the lightheartedness of the bright season. The second has to be the guitar, which I find really refreshing. It adds to the lightness of the track and really drives the song melodically, which isn’t something I found happening that much in their previous tracks. The vocals and rapping is the third element that makes me enjoy the song. The vocals add to the melody-driven side of the song, while the rapping adds extra texture to the song, which I find to be equally as enjoyable. Overall, WAVE is a nice track. Sure, it turns towards something typical but the group manages to make it one of their own.

When you think of the title WAVE, the first thing you will think of is the beach. And well, we get fairly close to a beach for this music video. While I think a small section of the video is set by a beach, the main ‘wave scenes’ we observe are along the coastline. And I think the coastline is at a place that has featured heavily in past music videos. On top of that, the video showcases the guys having fun at a local supermarket and at a skate park. Not exactly an eventful video when you watch it but definitely quite fitting for the song’s atmosphere and the season they are in.

If their past performances had intensity, then the accompanying choreography for WAVE has personality and character. All smiles throughout the performance, which is a little foreign for ATEEZ in my books. But I like how fun they make the dance, especially with those facial expressions and smiles.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 7/10
Performance – 8.5/10
Overall Rating – 7.8/10

[Review] Run Away – Teen Top

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Making their comeback today is Teen Top with Run Away. As much as I enjoyed Teen Top back when they peaked with their more popular releases, I find that they have dropped considerably in the competitive climate of the KPOP industry. I don’t mean this in a bad way as I find their persistence to be a very motivating influence in my current life. But I cannot simply deny that Teen Top’s tracks are moving towards a ‘typical and mediocre’ description, which was the case for both of their title tracks last year. Let’s seen if they can change the description this time around.

I will get straight to the point. The song suffers the same issue. It is typical and mediocre. Best words for me to really described the song in a nutshell. There were some moments that did grab my attention but the effect did not last long. While I did like the burst of energy that the drop to the chorus gave us, I felt like the buildup towards the drop was quite underwhelming. Hence they couldn’t successfully extract the drop’s full potential. The track does have a beat suitable for the Summer season. It goes for a tropical house instrumental, which we all know is heavily relied upon during this season. I thought the vocals were nice but they don’t go that extra mile. Maybe some power vocals could have lifted the song up to a whole new level? It does sound like I am pointing out something good and then finding the bad in it. But that isn’t the case when it comes to the rapping. C.A.P sounds different. Not a bad different but a very intriguing good different. I personally thought his rapping was probably the song’s most dynamic point. It is clean and it diverts away from the rest of the track (in my opinion). Unfortunately, Run Away does have some negative and positive points but it is a fair track overall.

Music video wise, I thought it was rather colourful, which earns big ticks from me. The colourful nature of the video is also another fitting aspect of the Summer season. Other than that, I don’t have much else to say about the video. It is mainly made up of closeup shots of the members and choreography scenes. I felt like I have already poked their song enough, so to do that to another part of their comeback may rub off as if I have no soul and do not like this comeback at all.

I think the saving grace of this comeback is the performance. I think the best of the performance has to be the powerful chorus. It is fierce and definitely demonstrates that they are still capable of strong dance moves. I do notice some things based on their showcase performance. But I am hoping they are more one-off occurrences or because of the way the video is shot.

Song – 6/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 7.5/10
Overall Rating – 6.3/10

[Review] One Fine Day – Sandeul (B1A4)

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Making his solo return yesterday was Sandeul with One Fine Day. It has been a while since we heard from Sandeul or B1A4 for that matter. The group went through some changes recently, with Jinyoung and Baro (the group’s most popular members) departing WM Entertainment (which leaves a very large question mark on top of the group’s name) and CNU’s military enlistment. Hence their lack of members has left B1A4 absent from the public. Sandeul’s last comeback was his solo debut, which occurred back in 2016 with Stay As You Are.

It is no surprise to me that that One Fine Day is a ballad. That is also no surprise, as well, coming from Sandeul, who is quite well known for his vocals in the industry. One Fine Day has a straightforward ballad instrumental, consisting of mainly piano which builds up to a climatic classical infused track. Based on that description, there really isn’t anything fresh or new about the track. The one thing does stand out is Sandeul’s voice for me. I find his vocals to be a little different from before and this becomes a drawing point for me. I find the melody to be soothing and I can feel some emotions creeping up on you towards the end of the track. As much as I think it is decent, the track does seem to drag on, mainly because it is 5 minutes long (which tends to be uncommon in the industry). Decent yes but I don’t think it will be a song that I would continuous replay due to its length.  I feel like multiple listens will make this song extremely heavy on me and that wouldn’t be a ‘soothing’ feeling.

The music video falls in line with other relationship centred ballads. But it is one of those rare cases where the majority of the story is there and you don’t have to guess your way through it. Sandeul and the actress meet in a very empty theatre and their relationship blossomed from there. I find this to be a cute relationship and their interactions depict them as a genuine couple. I think along the way, their relationship does seem to become lost and they end up breaking up. While I think she tried to break up in a ‘clean fashion’, he does end up chasing after her, leaving her in tears. I also feel like the bus stop scene was after their breakup and they go onto one last bus trip into the sunset (she doesn’t smile when he smiles and he takes the bus back during the nighttime in tears). I think this indicates that he let her go but tried his best to be cheerful for her. Like these small details and thought it was a nice yet typical story.

Song – 7/10
Music Video – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.4/10

 

[Review] No One – Lee Hi ft. B.I (iKON)

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Probably one of the biggest comebacks of last week was Lee Hi’s long-awaited return. And unfortunately, I missed it and delayed the review until today. Not to blame other people but I felt like if the comeback didn’t seem too sudden (Her teasers did come out of nowhere for me at least), I would have planned it into my agenda somehow. No One is Lee Hi’s first comeback since 2016 after the release of My Star. Since its release last Thursday, the song has topped charts all over South Korea, showcasing her power has remained the same despite an almost three-year break.

To me, No One starts off with a decent reggae beat. I did feel like the song did lose that particular colour that we normally associate with reggae as we progressed along with the song. While I think that sound compliments Lee Hi’s well-known vocals well, this ‘ loss of colour’ does make way for B.I’s rap feature. It gives the song a blast of intensity, which I think was much needed. Particularly after choruses that did not really seem to be captivating and were significantly underwhelming in my opinion. And it is because of this, I feel like the song hasn’t had the opportunity to stick into my head. It isn’t memorable and it doesn’t have me wanting to replay it. Based on what I have written, I think it is safe to say that I am not exactly into the song. The only thing (at this very stage) that has me interested is the fact that Lee Hi sounds like she curses in the song. ‘Officially’, I think she is singing a Korean word, but there is no doubt that about the presence of the ‘Shit’ in the song (even the English lyrics say so!). I am surprised about the lack of publicity or comments about this.

Not exactly sure what is going on in this video. But Lee Hi seems to be playing a cat with big dreams of falling in love and going on an adventure. While I do think the video is very YG, I felt the video to be extremely bland. I feel like the video is a good reflection of how expressionless Lee Hi’s face, as we have seen throughout her career. On top of that, we are treated to a lot of it throughout the video, as it did a good job of portraying some mystery. Lee Hi looks very pretty and mature in this video, which I think everyone is appreciating. I am not sure about B.I’s hair though. I did catch me off guard and looked messy (I talk from experience as I have a similar shaggy-like haircut as well at the moment).

From memory, Lee Hi doesn’t participate much in the choreography aspect of her performances. So it was nice to see her participate during the chorus. Though, it did seem obvious that she was more focused on live singing and not really perfecting the moves. As for the dance moves, I felt that they were quite bland, channelling the rest of the comeback.

Song – 6/10
Music Video – 6/10
Performance – 6.5/10
Overall Rating – 6.1/10

[Weekly Chart] 5th Week of May 2019

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Welcome back to the Weekly Charts post for this week. As you can see, reviews this week from me were probably rarer than some group’s comebacks. Hahahaha… I have been just loaded with assignments from the university. And while I have wrapped some up, I still got a few to go on with. But I do have the week off, so I will try to do better this week. But then again, I should study for my exams…

Topping the charts this week is, once again, EXID’s Me & You. As this is their last song for a while, let’s hope they do not keep us waiting for long and that they can top charts with some new songs soon! Rising to the second position is AB6IX’s Breathe, the group’s formal debut track released last week. Oh My Girl’s The Fifth Season (SSFWL) and GOT7’s Eclipse remains steady this week in the third and fourth positions respectively. Finally, the final song in this week’s Top 5 is CLC’s Me, which I expect to rise further on next week’s chart!

For more of the charts, scroll down below!

26th May – 1st Jun 2019
Title Artist Status
1 Me & You EXID (=)
2 Breathe AB6IX (▲ 9)
3 The Fifth Season (SSFWL) Oh My Girl (=)
4 Eclipse GOT7 (=)
5 Me CLC (new)
6 UNDER COVER A.C.E (▲ 11)
7 Beautiful Days Lovelyz (▲ 3)
8 Superhuman NCT 127 (▲ 1)
9 Twilight ONEUS (new)
10 Begin Again Kim Jae Hwan (▼  8)
11 Feedback Ladies Code (▲ 7)
12 Really Really Cherry Bullet (▼ 7)
13 Ah Yeah WINNER (▲ 8)
14 No One Lee Hi ft. B.I (iKON) (new)
15 Bet Bet NU’EST (▼ 2)
16 SSFW Chanyeol (EXO) (▲ 35)
17 Hollywood AB6IX (▼ 1)
18 Runaway Eric Nam (▲ 11)
19 Violeta IZ*ONE (▼ 5)
20 Unspoken Words DAVICHI (▲ 6)
21 Focus Kim Dong Han (▲ 20)
22 You’re My Jung Daehyun (▲ 10)
23 Dramatic BVNDIT (▼ 4)
24 Spring Again Golden Child (▲ 19)
25 You Xiumin (EXO) (▲ 25)
26 Kill This Love BLACKPINK (▼ 2)
27 Spring Memories N.Flying (▲ 24)
28 Fancy TWICE (▲ 3)
29 Beautiful TARGET (▼ 4)
30 Bloom Bloom The Boyz (▼ 10)

Songs leaving the charts this week include:

  • Violeta – IZ*ONE
  • Beautiful Goodbye – Chen (EXO)
  • Bom – BOL4
  • Stars Over Me – BOL4
  • Universe – Minhyun (NU’EST)
  • Kill This Love – BLACKPINK
  • You’re My –  Jung Daehyun

Hopefully, I will be back this week with more reviews! Expect Lee Hi’s review to be published sometime today! But just in case, see you next week!

[Review] Me – CLC

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I think one of the most anticipated comebacks of this week is CLC. For those who don’t know I been enjoying what the female group for Cube Entertainment has been putting out. I also think CLC has finally found their style and are sticking with this very edgy concept, especially after the success of Black Dress last year and No from earlier this year. Me’s teasers look like it is going to be an exciting comeback. So let’s have a review of Me.

I think the most prominent and memorable section of the track is the very heavy yet deep beat drop during the chorus. It does remind me of 4Minute’s Hate. This, however, feels very in your face and explosive. I personally quite like it because listening to this track is a wake-up call in its own way. And it is definitely a development in CLC’s mature song collection. I really like the hook of the track (Beautiful, Beautiful Me), as well. I really like the vocal section of the track. The pre-chorus was also a personal favourite section of mine. Mainly because we get to hear more of Seunghee’s vocals (who has pretty much been hidden since CLC has taken this concept change). I also really enjoyed that rush of energy her section delivers. I think the song would have benefited from a heavier rap sequence. What we got was a little bland in comparison to the rest of the song (i.e. they could have used a different instrumental beat (possibly hip-hop) that really brings more intensity. I will rather be overloaded with intensity in a song like this than not overwhelmed. But that is just my personal preference. Overall, a very good track.

Unfortunately, I am writing this review with very little time on my hands. So I don’t have any time to really sit down and take in the video. And I definitely do not have time to interpret the video. Though, there is something aesthetic about the video, which I think make it a very pleasant video to watch (if you don’t factor in the edginess of the song).  If you think about it, the video doesn’t feel quite edgy, especially after you strip the music away. There is a play on beauty in this video with the number of masks and Seunghee admiring that painting at the start. There also seems to be an emphasis on art in the video. This is just me putting a poorly understood theory out there though. Out of all the sets in the video, I think the one with the red paint stroke was the best. It is simple but definitely speaks volumes.

I feel like the choreography does tick the edgy box. But it falls short if they were going for something sensual (which I kind of got from the verses). The song doesn’t really offer them a chance to showcase a sensual side since it was jam-packed with energy and had loud synths. I did like the chorus moves but I feel like, overall, the routine one wasn’t up to par compared to No or Black Dress.

Song – 9/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 7/10
Overall Rating – 8.6/10