Category: KPOP

Time Spent Together – 2PM

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2PM is back with a brand new song. But you haven’t heard of any comebacks from 2PM? Well, that is because this is a Japanese song for a Japanese comeback. Well, more technically it serves as a goodbye single, from what I heard, as 2PM will be enlisting this year and this would mean that this could be the last song we see from 2PM for a long time (two years or so). Given that fact, it shapes our perception of the song. But more on that below!

Yeah, this is a very sad song. I am quite sure it was not written to be like that, but given the circumstances. But anyway, when I say “sad”, I actually do not mean literally. The reasoning makes the song sad, but the song can be described as touching and quite nice. 2PM has gone for a ballad this time around with all members singing in it. I repeat. All members sing in the song, even Taecyeon, who is the rapper of the band. And damn, do they do a good job at it. The song itself has this warm feeling when you listen to it and you can honestly feel the emotion that band tries to rely across to us. During the time I was listening to the song Beside that, I don’t have much more to say about the song. It is a great song that has a nice warm feeling to it. A song that I would listen to remember good memories and enjoy those times.

The music video that came with the song shows the guys having fun and enjoying each others company. For all we know, this could be their final time together as a group. And to the person who pointed it out when Nichkhun looked at the picture that he took of the others when he was sitting on the stairs alone, it is kind of sad to see something like this, since Nichkhun will be the only member who will not be enlisting and hence would have more of those moments in the future. Way to dampen my viewing experience, but honestly, I can’t say much. The video’s slowness complimented the slow tempo of the song and fitted in with the happy feels. What more can you ask for?

So you can tell I am very impressed with this Japanese comeback. Hopefully, 2PM will return one more time to South Korea before enlisting. 10/10

 

Crush On You – The Legend

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The Legend has returned onto the stage… as well… I really need to find new creative ways to start off my review. They popped onto our radars last year with the release of Shadow. They made their comeback with Nail, which failed to capture my attention. And now they are back and kicking the year off with Crush On You.

This is a completely different style of song than anyone probably expected. Their last few songs have been very serious and mysterious. Quite a dark aura was associated with their name. But then this song pops along and shows a completely different side to the band. First of all, the song is quite upbeat and very “bright” in terms of the sound. This song has that very vibrant feel to it and it pretty much addictive to my ears. The vocals in the song were pretty good and the rap (minus the bridge) was made to fit in with the song. The chorus (with its upbeat sound and the high pitch vocals) reminds me of Maroon 5’s Sugar. And it is pretty awesome, might I add. That bridge though. Completely changed the song up and it felt pretty much out of place. Really disappointed with that part of the song. It made me go “huh”? when I first heard it. This would totally be an awesome song if it was not for the bridge. Song was downgraded in my point of view, but it is still a great song to listen to.

The music video featured Kyungri from Nine Muses. And while I do find her pretty and I think she has a nice body, that was not that well featured in this video. I think it was because of the filter that was applied to the video during editing. But that filter did make it feel like the late 90s. Furthermore, the setting, which I think was pretty good and well designed. It was the American high school setting that we often saw in many different tv shows and movies. I don’t know why I am saying this, but I am always shocked to see an empty swimming pool. I understand that they clean it or evacuate the water in case of an emergency (was done once before at my local pools), but it is so weird to see pools empty. Anyway, no complaints until the turtle neck came in. Why is Drake’s turtle neck clothing so in season at the moment? It made me cringe when I first saw it. Urgghh…

The dance was honestly quite cool. I matched the style of the song and I liked it a lot. It feels like a party on stage every time I see the performance.

Overall, their were some very small and minor things about the song and the video, but overall, it was a great comeback and a lot better than Nail, which I am still disappointed in. 7.5/10

End Of Year “Music Festivals” – Favourite Performances

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2015 recently came to an end just a few weeks ago and per usual, the “end of year” music festivals were held over the final days of the new year. These festivals are held by the three major broadcasting companies in South Korea. These festivals bring the biggest artists of the year back onto the stage and form a massive festival which allows the broadcasting companies to end in style. This post allows me the author to list my favourite performances from each festival. I also plan to do one for the award ceremonies and also recap the winners of those ceremonies for you. I have linked all the performance down below after each comment regarding the performance.

SBS was the first company to hold their Gayo Daejun on the 27th of December. They had such an amazing and diverse lineup, that they were applaud for it. Artists that featured on the show included: Twice, iKON, Mamamoo, BTS, GFriend, Seventeen, VIXX, 2PM, GOT7, B1A4, EXID, SHINEE, Monsta X, EXO, AOA, CN BLUE, Wonder Girls, Infinite, 4Minute, A-Pink, BTOB, Red Velvet, SNSD, B.A.P, Ailee, Lovelyz. IU, T-ara, SNSD.

The stages looked really cool and while the camera work at the SBS festival could always use some work, I thought majority of the stages were satisfying to watch. One thing I have to mention is GFriend’s stage. Out of all the stages on the night, this one looked the most edited and it feels like they were robbed of time of the stage. Talking about being robbed of time, Seventeen had the shortest performance of the whole night and it amazes me how they managed to fit everyone in their short 2:16 minute long performance. Other performances that I liked from the night:

  • Twice’s cheerleading/ school band remix. I honestly really liked the performance and thought they did a good job changing up the song. (CLICK FOR TWICE’s PERFORMANCE)
  • Exid’s Hot Pink remix gave off a really cool and landback concept. Really enjoyed the hip hop vibe and every time LE raps is just bliss. Though, Hani being off stage Hani at the start when the stage scared her for a second. (CLICK FOR EXID’s PERFORMANCE)
  • Mamamoo’s mash up with Um Oh Ah Yeah and Uptown Funk was belong cool. Did not expect this mash up but I did totally expecting a cool performance and that is what we got. (CLICK FOR MAMAMOO’s PERFORMANCE)
  • IU performed her 23 song for the first time live and like all performances by IU, she managed to rock the stage. I thought she would have some trouble getting the crowd to cheer with her, but I guess she still has a mass following regardless of what happens to her. (CLICK FOR IU’s PERFORMANCE)
  • VIXX’s stage was incredibly … well… hot. That is coming from me as a guy. Their dance break for Chained Up was on point and Ravi going shirtless, well, made a whole heap of girls squirm and scream. (CLICK FOR VIXX’s PERFORMANCE)
  • Wonder Girls had a great performance, but that drum solo at the end. Hmmm… Please, I don’t want to see it no more. (CLICK FOR WONDER GIRLS’ PERFORMANCE)

The next festival was KBS’s Gayo DaeChukJe which was held on the 30th of December. The stage was spectacular and I can ensure you that I will be going on about how grand and fantastic that stage was. KBS Gayo is a lot harder to be invited to, but the following managed to get an invite to perform: Mamamoo, GFriend, BTS, GOT7, EXID, Infinite, SHINEE, VIXX, Ailee, Red Velvet, EXO, AOA, BTOB, A-Pink, CN BLUE, Noel, Dynamic Duo, Zion.T, Crush, SNSD and the regulars of the show Immortal Song 2. Furthermore, many collaborations between idols occurred on the night. Solo artists were also a big feature of the night with Taeyeon (SNSD), Jonghyun (SHINee) and Yonghwa (CN Blue) performing their respective solo songs.

Out of the performances, here are the few that I liked:

  • EXID’S really cool medley of their releases this year plus Up and Down. The sexy dance intro by Hani was really cool and I am glad they chose to perform Ah Yeah as their main song since I have been hearing so much Hot Pink. Hot pink is still a good song. The use of the stage was amazing. The camera work and use of the spider cam in this performance was probably the best of all. (CLICK HERE FOR EXID’s PERFORMANCE)
  • BTS’s medley was also good. Butterfly, Dope and Run formed a really cool medley. Dope’s Jazz remix was perfection waiting to happen. Pity Rap Monster was injured, even the butterfly formation was incomplete without him. (CLICK HERE FOR BTS’ PERFORMANCE)
  • SNSD’s winter arrangement of their song Party gave off this really warm feeling which I really liked. Marshmallow, Hot Choco, Cappuccino. Once again, the stage looked really awesome with the girls on it. (CLICK HERE FOR SNSD’s PERFORMANCE)
  • GFRIEND’s performance was really good as well. I have loved each and everyone of their stages at the end of the year where they combined both Glass Beads and Me Gustas Tu together. Their small yet satisfying dance part for each performance have all been different and it just showcases their talent and abilities. (CLICK HERE FOR GFRIEND’s PERFORMANCE)

Lastly, MBC held their Gayo Dae Je Jun on the 31st of December and hence being the last final time fans could see their favourite idols before the year ends. As per usual, the festival went through new years and fans got to celebrate (with their idols and biases) the new year. The lineup for the 2015 MBC Gayo Daejun included: Oh My Girls, UP10TION, GFriend, Seventeen, Monsta X, Sonamoo, Mamamoo, Red Velvet, BTOB, B.A.P, VIXX, BTS, GOT7, EXID, B1A4, Teen Top, Dynamic Duo, Zion.T, Crush, APINK, AOA, Ailee, EXO, Infinite, 2PM, SHINee, 4Minute, CN Blue, Wonder Girls, SNSD, Hong Jin Young, Tae Jin Ah, Shin Seung Hoon, Baek Ji Young & Park Jin Young.

Out the variety of performances on the night, I favoured:

  • I am going to put down Seventeen’s Mansae remix. It was remixed into a rock track, which sounded really cool (but it sounded a little awkward at times). Overall, it was a great performance and I thought the guys did the performance really well. (CLICK FOR SEVENTEEN’s PERFORMANCE)
  • Red Velvet’s Ice Cream Cake was shortened, making way for a really cool dance break at the end which really showed for their talent and how in sync they were with each other. The stylist also somehow broke into SM’s basement and grabbed the fluffy white jackets with the glowing lights in it. (CLICK FOR RED VELVET’s PERFORMANCE)
  • GOT7’s sexy If You Do on this stage, well, was very sexy. The members did a great job at the performance as well, nailing it completely. Body waves galore and if you were lucky, maybe some abs through the mesh fabric some of the guys were wearing. (CLICK FOR GOT7’s PERFORMANCE)
  • EXO’s Remix of Love Me Right was a little awkward at first to my ears, but it grew on me and I thought the extra instruments to the song made it sound a lot funkier than it originally was. I always expected SM artists to have a really boring dance intro or break, so this caught me off guard. (CLICK FOR EXO’s PERFORMANCE)
  • Mamamoo’s Single Lady mash up with Um Oh Ah Yeah must also be mentioned. I had a feeling this mash up was going to come up once in a while, after I heard them sing Beyonce’s song so flawlessly. (CLICK FOR MAMAMOO’s PERFORMANCE)

 

Noona, You – Cross Gene

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Cross Gene has returned to the stage with a brand new mini album. This is my first review for the band. Cross Gene made their debut back in 2012 with La Di Da Di and this is a band that also promotes regularly in Japan. They actually made their debut in Japan around the same time with the same song. They received a lot of love and attention in their more recent comebacks from fans especially with their last comeback: Play With Me.

This song isn’t that bad. I don’t really like this style for the boys. I don’t honestly pay attention to them, but their best song to date is Play With Me. Beside that, their other songs have all be lacking for me. This one is just another song to add to the latter list. It does not appeal to me and it really can’t get into no matter how much I listen to it. It is a much brighter song and has a catchy chorus but that is all I can say about it. The verses just feel like they don’t belong to the song and the rapping just doesn’t feel like it fits in. The vocal work in the chorus is pretty good but the verses is just another story. The instrumental feels like 10 different song styles have mashed into it and that confuses my ears quite a bit. So overall, I am quite disappointed with the song.

The music video reminds me of Wipe Out. Hahaha. The Sucker Punch Wall, the big ball that swings from side to side and the rolling barrels. The video is literally the boy group going into this abandoned warehouse to save their lover, which was where they went to go on dates in the past. Their girl is kidnapped by these playful and idiot kidnappers who where clown faces on cardboard boxes to protect their identity. First of all, why not clown masks? You drew clown faces which I am 100% sure you can buy in the form of masks. In the end, the girl takes her two kidnappers out and scares her “saviours” who probably did not expect it. Well, I predicted as soon as I saw her sigh. It was a video with a good concept and idea. The way it was presented was pretty good and easy to decipher. Just the close up scenes of the members do not match the style of the video.

The dance fits in with the playful vibe the song had going. But it is not as good as their previous dances. They had this serious expression at the start but I am so happy they changed into smiles and surprised faces. Their slow mo small distancing running weren’t that great and I can’t seem to pinpoint the key move.

Overall, disappointing song and dance but the music video was pretty good. 4.5/10

Sting – Stellar

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Stellar has returned with a brand new song. My last review of the group was when they promoted Fool. Since then, they actually did make another comeback with Vibrato, which I tried to review, but it end up getting cut from the agenda due to time constraints. But I shall return to it one day. But now, they have returned with a brand new mini album and their newest title track, Sting.

This is a much better song than Fool. Fool was pretty boring and to me, was more of a step back. Vibrato was that step forward which caught everyone’s attention. Now with Sting, it really is not up to par with Vibrato, but it much better than Fool. The instrumental starts off the song with an addictive and funky sound. I really enjoyed the EDM style instrumental. I love the chorus. It just makes it much more catchy and interesting to listen to. In terms of colour, this song is quite lacking. It really does not make me go wow or amazes me. It barely deviate from the core of the song and feels mostly like the song is going in a straight line, with the song’s style not moving anywhere from that straight line. Think of it this way, a song that I personally find amazing is a song that goes in that straight line, but have those peaks and troughs, like in a roller coaster. A roller coaster would not be fun if it was a straight line. That is what the song feels like. The vocals were great but the rapping once again was a little awkward to listen to.

The music video was a lot more interesting this time around than compared to Fool. Not exactly sure if they used the same music video producers for each music video, but I honestly love the style they going for. I am not going to say it reminds me of the following videos, since I am 100% sure they used the same producer, but Ladies Code’s Kiss Kiss and Fiestar’s One More. The position of the mouses and how they were kind of the main focus of the videos gave off that feeling as in Kiss Kiss and the how the cameras looked like they were filming around corners and such gave off the same effect as in One More. Honestly, I think the video was shot pretty well. Though, I am not 100% what the mouse clicks were meant to represent, the stinging sensation? The girl’s expressions were on point. I love the very pale and neutral colours of the video. I thought it would be bright since they went for that sexy concept again, but it gave off that classy feel and also a bold (or bright) video would not have suited the song.

The dance was not featured in the music video. This dance reminds me of the Vibrato dance. While the girls physically turned around and did their mini bounce in their last comeback, this one was just mini bouncing without the turning around and they were holding their shirts as well. Honestly, I don’t mind the dance. It doesn’t draw me in, but I can’t say it is bad either.

Overall, I think this is a solid effort from the girls. 6.5/10

Warning Sign – Teen Top

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Teen Top have made their comeback since releasing Ah-Ah back in September last year. Since then, there have been very little talk about them (apparently they went on a mini hiatus and focused a lot on solo promotions). But now they are back with another song that I think is destined to be a hit.

Not a style I would have thought Teen Top would go for. I was hoping for the band to go back to the more EDM based songs, but instead, we got this classy type of song. To me, the song has a Shinhwa type of feel to it, which makes it pretty addictive. It honestly reminds me of those songs released by Shinhwa back in the day, but with a more modern feel to them. The song was sung mostly in a higher pitch compared to their past songs, but the way they do it flawless. Did not hear a single hitch. Even the vocals of the members that I know are not commonly known for their vocals were superb. Chunji’s high note can only be described as spectacular. This song honestly needed more of a rap sequence to it. I was so disappointed with the amount of time that C.A.P and L.Joe got in the song. That is the biggest complaint about the song that I can make, beside that, everything else was flawless.

The music video had a really nice dark style. The lack of colour and also the grey-scale look on the video gives it a very classy feel to it but also a nice dark feel to the video. Even the scenes where it was not filmed with the grey-scale filter had a lack of colour. I believe the video can be described as minimalist at some parts. For example, the dance scene  where there is nothing but concrete looked quite cool and stood out. I really enjoyed the unfocused camera work. It did get me a little confused when I watched the video the first time around, but how the camera was not positioned in the middle and the camera moved around a lot made the video more fast paced, which reflected the song quite nicely. There is one thing I do want removed from the video and that is L.Joe’s glitter sweater. You have all that smashed mirror and glass around you, the sweater was un-needed. Furthermore, it made him look completely out of place.

The dance looked quite cool. I agree with a lot of people with the fact that there is not much to the footwork of the members. Teen Top’s dances always have a lot of footwork, but this one lacked a lot. But what they did not do with their feet, their facial expressions and hand movements made up for. Not once did I see a flaw in the dance. Amazing.

Some small complaints, but overall this is just another comeback that already shows the forever increasing standard for the year ahead. And yes, this comeback exceeds that standard by more than a mile. 9/10

roco drama – Shin Hye Sung (Shinhwa)

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Shin Hye Sung has returned back onto the stage by himself for solo promotions with his brand new mini album. For those who don’t know, Hye Sung is the main vocalist of the band Shinhwa which made their debut back in the late 90s. He made his official solo debut in 2005 and since then have been a highly sought after vocalist.

roco drama is a very slow song. A little too slow for my liking. I can’t really seem to get into it. The slowness really prevents me from “feeling the beat or the music”. Personally, I feel like if the song had a somewhat faster tempo, the song would have been more enjoyable. Once again, it sounds like a song that you could hear in a more cafe like setting.  But given my circumstances where I listen to songs on a daily basis to avoid being bored or to enjoy my work more, this song just does not do it for me. It’s rather soft and the clicks that we hear throughout the song gives off a nice contrast.The vocal work of Hye Sung is pretty much on point. Not once did I think his voice was a problem. To me, he sang the song within his own range and did not, at all, push his voice to the limit to impress people or to show off. Nonetheless, he did manage to impress me with what I heard, just not really digging the song as I would like to.

The darkness of the video fits in really well with the video. I love how the light bulb places the attention on Hye Sung in the video and love even more the effects to make it look like a cloudy night or foggy. Honestly, a dark background plus one glowing light bulb sounds quite boring, but to me looks really abstract and simple in my point of view. There really is not much else to the video, beside that. There are a few extra scenes of what seems to be random but from what I can tell, it fits in with the lyrics. There really isn’t that much else to the video. The song gives off a sense of a heavy plot in the video, but I guess that is not the case.

However, the video is also very dance oriented. The dance is pretty nice to watch. His face throughout the dance is very serious and there is this mysterious side to it as well. I think the sexy concept describe the dance really well, but it is more of an urban style of dance. The use of the chair is not that spectacular, but it places the right amount of emphasis on the artists and how the back up dancers dance around the chair adds the emphasis on the artist as well.

Overall, pretty good comeback. Song could have been better, the video was simple and the dance was pretty much solid. 7/10

You Call It Romance – K.Will ft. Davichi

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One of the top RnB artists of the Korean Pop industry has finally collaborated with the queen duo of Korean Pop ballads.

This is a much better song that what he released last year. To me, this song goes back in time to the Last Blossom days where his songs were a lot more bright and cheerful. So, I found this song very cheerful and bright. The instrument reminds me of that as well. I prefer K.Will’s vocals that way since it sounds a lot better. Davichi’s vocals in this song were pretty good as well, just I sense some autotune was put on top of their vocals. That disappoints me quite a bit, well, since Davichi has a really nice vocals and it is a shame that they are not really recognised for those vocals in this song. The chorus of the songs sounds quite catchy and does have a nice ring to it. The times where they sing “니가 하면 로맨스” throughout of the song was pretty nice but it sounded a little awkward. However, I think if the producers of the song did not place that auto tune on the girls’ vocals, then I would have been more happier. 

The music video is a little confusing. It seems like the lead actress is two timing the young guy, who (from what I read from the comments on YouTube) is Hyungwon from Monsta X and the more older looking dude who happens to be a co worker. She is obviously in a dilemma in the video, unsure of who to choose. I assume she was the choice between the “sweet” younger dude or the “warmer” mature dude. Notice how when she returns from the date with the younger guy, her house is full of treats and candy, while when she returns after a coffee date with the older guy, her house is a lot more warmer and Autumn like. In the end, she chose the mature looking dude over the younger dude, which was illustrated by the boxing match between the two guys on her TV, which was apparently very scary. Hahaha no. I find that particular scene extremely cringe worthy. Never liked it how girls from k-dramas act like that to be honest. Towards the end, I am glad she chose the mature dude because the young dude, well, was still in school. And it turns out that he had liked another person instead, which makes the lead actress happy, because she knows she is not making him unhappy. Honestly, a great video with a very cringe worthy way of presenting a scene in the video.

When you put these two videos together, you get a pretty much good release. 8/10

Dream – Suzy (Miss A) & Baekhyun (EXO)

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Currently the hottest song out at this very moment. This unexpected (kind of was expected after images were leaked though) between Suzy from Miss A and EXO’s Baekhyun has been staying at the top of the charts of a few days now and have apparently been there for over 100 hours, which is a feat considering the competition that they are facing with powerful digital artist’s comeback and also the release of OSTs for Reply 1988, which rise to the top of charts quite quickly.

Lovely song. It’s the type of song that you would expect in those cafes that we see often in the movies. The jazzy feel the instrumental gives the ballad really gives off that feel. Their vocals compliment each other quite well. Their vocals both also fit in very well with the jazzy feel. While it is not a catchy song, the chorus is pretty addictive to listen to. It makes me want to sway along and furthermore has this relaxing feeling about it. Suzy’s voice starts it off with a really soft and husky Dream and Baekhyun joins in afterwards with his husky voice as well. Even their “mmmmsss” sound really cool and go hand in hand with each other. Personally, this song feels like perfection in my eyes and every one of those hours the song is recorded at #1 truly reflects the amazing nature of the song.

The music video, well, matches the jazz ballad feel of the song. I love their set up, but I personally thought a more French or cafe setting would be more suitable. But I love how simple it was. Just position the right instruments around them and have the singers it there. But I don’t know, the instrumental playing people seem to know what they were doing, but they look awkward as hell. But beside that, I thought the video was very nice and complimented the song in many ways.

Yeah, probably not going to hammer down on them for my thoughts on the music video, but this is a perfect song. 10/10

No Love – Lucky J

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Lucky J is a trio that made their official debut in 2014 with Can You Hear Me?. The trio is made up of Jessi, J’Kyun and J-Yo. You may recognise Jessi as one of the rappers from Unpretty Rapstar, earning runners up place on the show. She has also featured on JYP’s Who’s Your Mama? and released solo work since being on the show, which has allowed her to gain a huge following. Now Lucky J is back with a brand new song, making this their first comeback in nearly two years.

Not exactly a big fan of their debut song nor have I grown to become fond of Jessi. This song has mixed feelings attached to it for me. It is an interesting combination of a traditional instrument (apparently, a haegeum, which is a traditional Korean string instrument) and the RnB genre. It isn’t bad and all I can describe it is quite interesting. Jessi has an interesting voice which I can appreciate in some songs. I find her “no love” vocals in this song quite nice and adds another dimension to the song, but the rest of her vocals sounds really disjointed and a little awkward to listen to. The other two, the rapper and vocalist do a great job with the song. It sounds like I am blaming Jessi for all the flaws, but it is just I am disappointed in her vocals this time around. Her vocals in her debut song was pretty good.

The music video is unappealing. The video just didn’t reel me in and make me go wow. I was mighty disappointed with the entirety of the video. There were lovely shots of nature and then shots of the members walking around and then close up shots of them. And that is essentially the video. There isn’t anything else to it. I honestly did not expect much but this looks really low budget. Yeah, they used a drone, but beside that, it does not look like much was invested in it. Jessi’s solo music video had a lot more going on and looked like it got a decent budget for it. So why not this?

Yeah, this comeback was not for me. The song was quite interesting to be honest, but the video was a major let down. 3/10

 

 

Someone Like U – Dal Shabet

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Dal Shabet has returned with a brand new song after a years absence from the stage. Their line up has changed after two members (Jiyul & Kaeun) left the band, leaving the group with just 4 members. This comeback also marks their 5th year on stage.

The song is honestly a really nice dance track. As soon as I heard the song, I thought about how funky and disco-like their song is. All of Dal Shabet songs have that disco and retro vibe to it which makes it stand out a lot. I absolutely adore the instrumental of the song. It just fits in really well with their vocals. As mentioned above, two of the members left the band. One of them happened to be the rapper of the band, so everyone’s question was like “who is going to feel in the shoes of the B.B.B rapper?”. Okay, I added the B.B.B rapper to it, but honestly after that rap, who honestly was going to replace her? Well, I think Serri handled it pretty well in this song. Sure a little more practice and experience would make her sound better but she has what I think the basics are down pat. The song was pretty catchy and addictive to listen to. It took one or two listens to get into it, but once you get into it, you will feel how good of a song it really is. It would have been a little more nicer to appreciate if a little more colour was added to the song. It could have potentially been an okay song or a great song in my book, but a little more colour added to the song (could be in the form of a high note or an extra instrumental which brings out the funkiness) could have boosted it up past that line, making it a great or excellent song.

The video was boring. Parts were copied from their B.B.B song and the plot was just weird. The plot twist at the end seems typical of a KPOP song, but at the end of the day it was hella cheesy. The girls get their revenge on the guy that cheated on them by putting on a party and shooting out streamers? You see, that just takes something that could have been dramatic and hella cool into something that an 8 year old child would think of. Further more, the parts where the girls were lounging around the speech bubbles and all were directly taken from their B.B.B video. Which shows to me a lack of creativity and honestly proving to me that watching this video would be a waste of time. And once again, 4 members dating the one guy. Makes total sense.

The dance fit in with the funky sound which the song had channelling through it. It is a nice dance and looked pretty cool. Not as loud or sexualised compared to Joker or B.B.B, but I have a feeling those part where they open their jackets is going to be something that could earn the interest of a few netizens. But hopefully it won’t. I probably just jinxed it. Hahaha.. But honestly, I don’t see the trouble with all the dance moves that Dal Shabet do that ends up getting banned.

Song is great, video is boring and dance is pretty nice. 7/10

Again – Turbo

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Big name groups which started off the KPOP genre back in the 90s have been making their comeback by reuniting and performing for big milestones. Turbo is the latest group to make their return. Originally a duo, Turbo went line up changes during the time they were active between 1995 – 2000. For their reunion (and possibly future releases), they returned as a trio with all three members (Kim Jong Kook, Mikey and Kim Jung Nam). And yes, Kim Jong Kook is the same as Sparta or the Commander from Running Man. Again and their latest album was released in celebration of their 20th year.

Again is a pretty good song. When I listen to it, it gives off that feel of the 1990s but also has that modern flare to it. I honestly do think this is a song that can be released back in the day, but can still also be rocked to these days. The rapping by Mikey and Kim Jung Nam was pretty much solid. Kim Jong Kook vocals fit in well with the song and matches the electronic style. But I am not exactly fond of it in this song. A little too high pitch for me. the song flows pretty well and I love the short break between the choruses at the end. Beside that I don’t have much to say about the song. I think the “whop whop whop” sounds are pretty addictive.

The music video is definitely better than the videos back in the day. But that is just common sense. Look at the advances in technology. My only complaint is that everything looks confined in the video and there was not much room, but yet they manage to fit everyone in. But honestly, the video shows a great contrast on how KPOP has grown from being low-budget to what it is today where budgets are higher and a lot more of investment is poured into the production of songs, albums and promotions. Everything else in the video looked fine. Maybe some people are right and that Turbo collaborated with a Chinese company to shoot their video, because the credit scenes are exact replicas of the credit scenes in every Chinese movie. Lee Kwang Soo and Cha Tae Hyun made funny cameos as well at the end. The song was also sung in Chinese at the end of the video as well.

The dance is okay. They dance is done mostly by the back up dancers and not as much by the actual performers. I guess their aging and not every one of a higher age can bend their back and do crazy dance moves. I feel like I am just pointing out and making fun of old people in this review. I do apologise if you are taking it that way. I don’t intend to complain or talk down on older people. But the b-boying or popping in the video looks cool (but I don’t know who does it).

Overall, a nice comeback and great way to throw back to the 90s but at the same time make the release fit in with songs nowadays. And is doing well on the charts, hitting the top and gaining all kills. 6.5/10

 

 

Flame – Choa (AOA)

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For a while, we all thought that Choa would be officially make her solo debut with Flame, but rather she is only credited as an artist featuring on a project album. Which is somewhat disappointing because Choa was good vocals that managed to wow audiences last year when she participated in King Of Masked Singer. Flame is a remake of a song released by Jang Hye Jin back in 2006 which featured Gary from Leessang (or Running Man). Unfortunately, Choa’s single did not make much of an impact when it was released (even though the anticipation was high) and was sadly forgotten.

And I am going to be truthful, I was one of the people who have forgotten about the song. You all probably know that I am a major sucker when it comes to ballads, falling for them almost instantaneously. This ballad, even though the melody was great and the song had me swaying for it, did nothing to satisfy the need for the song to be addictive or somewhat catch my attention to continue going back to the song to listen to it. The orchestral instrumental was really good, but the drums that were playing throughout the song were either overpowering or had the bass turned up quite a bit. The original song is said to be quite emotional, carrying the sorrow feeling. Choa did an excellent job of carrying the same feeling over for the remake, but as I said before, failed to make the song more appealing to the listeners.

The music video is amazing. I don’t think any other video would have suited the song anymore. We see a vampire, who used to be a young girl and at certain times can become deadly and kill people. Since becoming a vampire, she cannot go into the sun and hence sets up all these lights and candles in her room to remind her of the memories of the past. Of course it is not enough and she finally decides to venture out into the sun, even though she knows she will die. I can say that the her memories of the sun and light are like lovers who want to be with each other, but cannot due to some sort of barrier. Essentially, the flame is still there to rekindle their love but it is up to the people to make that flame become a fire. That is how I interpreted the video, and thought it was rather nice. I love it how Choa was singing in the caged area in which the girl had kept as a place to keep her prey. It adds that extra excitement to the video. How it does? I sat here wondering if Choa was the prey.

The package was great, but if the song appealed to me a lot more and was not easily forgotten, it would have been perfect. 8.5/10

D×D×D – SHINee

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One of my goals for this is to review more Japanese songs. And it has been a goal that I have been trying to achieve for the past few years. While I spent some time reviewing only a limited amount of Japanese songs during the first six months of last year, I barely did any reviews in the second half of the year. But I did take some time to discover new artists from Japan and hopefully, when they release something this year, I will jump onto it and review it. SHINee made their comeback to Japan after promoting in Korea last year with a brand new album. D.D.D was the title track for the album, which had the same name.

The song is like a rock and dance mash up which sounds pretty good. There is a lot of auto-tune to start off the song and that was a major turn off for me. But I stayed around and the rest of the track is great. Just that auto-tuned was too excessive in my opinion. When I first heard the chorus, I was a little torn. The genre of the chorus seemed to be a little different compared to the rest of the song. I personally like the chorus now, just sometimes when I listen to the song over and over again, it just feels a little disjointed and does not match well with the rest of the song. Vocals were not that strong in this song, but it suited the instrumental. Minho’s rapping was bomb as hell in the song. Personally, this sound goes well with SHINee in my opinion. If they went with this sound in Korea, I think it would be a worthwhile move for them. Come to the think of it, a Korean version would be nice. Overall, I think this is a great song, but it took a few listen to take everything in and consolidate different aspects of the song.

The music video had a more edgier feel to it. More than what we are used to. The video is quite dark and suits that rock theme that the song had going for. I feel like the solo shots of the members where they were standing in the corridors or in tight places were the best part of the video. The dance set seemed generic and boring. Not exactly fond of the holograms of the members that appeared in the video. It just looked like their souls were leaving their own bodies. And of course, everyone in the comments on the video is enjoyed the SHINee times 2. Why ahve one SHINee when you get the option of two. I also like it how they have them positioned as if they were having some duel or dance off. The ending was somewhat dramatic. Fire setting the alarm off, chair is being smashed, TV is being smashed, Minho ripping this shirt (per usual) and Onew with his gas…. I had to. Could not resist.

The dancing was not that impressive. There was a lot of bouncing and all, but beside that, there was not much to comment on.

First Japanese review of the year and I promise you: more will be coming. For D×D×D, 7/10.

 

What’s Wrong? – iKON

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This is iKON’s second song for their full debut album. Check out their other release: Dumb & Dumber, which was has been reviewed. But on with the review.

I really don’t know how to start off this review and I tried my best to avoid starting it this way. But, I just can’t think of any other way to start off the review. So, compared to Dumb & Dumber, this song was a let down. “If you ever loved somebody, say yeah” sounds like an awkward start to an awkward song. I don’t know, but there are more creative ways to get the audience into the song and have them participate. The song has the rock and hip hop vibe to it, which sounds nice, but sounds so generic. There really is nothing that sets this song a part from the other songs that you get throughout KPOP. It seems boring and quite unappealing to me. Beside Junhoe’s vocals, I feel like everyone else had to strain their voices to get it into the way the vocals are presented in the song. Once again, that complete halt in the song is back to haunt us. Only once, but damn, it ruined the flow of the song for me. But other good points of the song: it is great head banging music.

The people in the video, looked so scary with their colourful socks on top of their head. I know YG has a habit of covering their dancer’s faces and all, but this just looks so low budget and slapped together at the last minute. The video fits in well with the song. The boys are singing what happened to us and the video showed the boys and girls (or their partners) battling out. In what seemed to nearly escalate into a food fight, a massive fist fight and also a little bit of dodge-ball. Ahhh dodge-ball. It has been years since I last played that game. All them painful memories of always having the ball slammed into my nose/face. The video was nice and reflected the song pretty well.

I am glad they got rid of those socks for the live performance. Much cringe worthy. Beside that, I could not see much of the dance. The camera work manage to avoid most of the dance and filmed all the parts where they are avoiding the girls and running around. I don’t have much to say about the dance until I see more.

Quite disappointed with this particular song. To me Dumb & Dumber was much better. 5.5/10

Which iKON song did you like more? I have decided to include all of their promoted songs to in the below poll, so vote away.

Dumb & Dumber – iKON

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Opening the 2016 year with fresh new reviews of acts that either made their comeback in the later half of December 2015. For those who don’t know, I stopped reviews for newly released songs after the 15th of December and went on to focus on End of Year charts, the BOBs and also finish the year off with some reviews that I managed to miss out. iKON is one of those groups that released their official full debut album after the 15th.

I think I can now safely say that iKON is a group that I think has improved greatly with each release. Their debut wasn’t that great in my standards, but every single song they have released so far has shown a new talented side of them to me. This song feels like a party anthem made specifically for the boys. Their rapping and vocals match the song really well. Not exactly fond of the complete halts that the song has throughout it. While they ahve their charm, I also think that something can be used to fill that void. Don’t take me the wrong way, there are some songs out there that need the halts or utilise the silence really well, but this isn’t one of them (at least that is what I think). The song is catchy and addictive. I have a feeling that this song can become trendy as it has that feel to it. The same feel I get when I listen to viral songs like Psy’s Gangnam Style. Like the title suggest, the song sounds wacky and for some reason, completely out of context for a YG group. But they manage to keep to their roots and style.

Every single time I watch the video, I get a feel of the weird and wacky side that Big Bang gave us in Bae Bae last year. Their previous releases have all been serious or light-hearted, but this. Only wacky and crazy can describe this video. The video was well shot and had a great concept to it. I just feel like for some reason, that the Dumb and Dumber duo style would have been a more well suited concept given the title of the song. But I did say that the song was like a party anthem and this video manages to channel in that feel as well. I personally like the ending of the video where the song drops its final beat. Everything becomes down to earth but at the same time still manage to have that wacky feel to it. The video as a whole, is great and suits the song exactly.

The dance for this song makes me think they had a bit to drink just before going onto the stage. Their stage presence is quite large when they performed the song for the first time. (I am watching the performance that performed at the 2015 SBS Gayo Festival). I like how tough they managed to showed themselves to the audience, but with use of fun and a very odd concept. There really isn’t a thing about the dance that sets it apart, but it something that goes well with the song.

Great comeback to start off the year. 7.5/10