Tag: APINK

Still lagging behind with these album reviews. The focus of this post was released mid-February of this year, and I am only finally getting around to writing it and posting it! The album belongs to none other than APINK, who returned with a special full-length album (though, it is also their fourth studio album since their debut 11 years ago) HORN. Headlining HORN is the title track Dilemma and it also features 10 other tracks (including their 10th anniversary single Thank You). HORN is also the last album to officially feature Naeun as a member, as she pulled out of the group two months after the release of HORN.

I picked APINK’s album to review because I feel like I have neglecting female groups in the album review segment. On top of that, I really enjoyed this album whilst vetting to see if it is worth writing an album review for. So it made logical sense for me to put this onto the album review agenda. There are few gems amongst HORN‘s tracks, so do check out the album if you have not done so yet. Though, I presume you would have already listened to the album at least once in the past five months.

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

2. Holy Moly – There was some good pop energy to Holy Moly once the song reaches the chorus, my pick for the highlight of the song. The bridge comes in a close second thanks to its melody. The etchy effect just before the chorus was cool and added an unexpected zing to Holy Moly. The verses, whilst featuring really nice vocals, felt like a slow burn and sluggish. In particular with the second verse, I wished the energy was maintained from the chorus. I also did not enjoy the autotuned ending, simply because it felt unnecessary. (7/10)

3. My Oh My – My Oh My was the group’s secondary promotional track, performed in the first week of promotions alongside Dilemma for their comeback. And I completely understand why My Oh My was chosen. It is the type of song that makes you want to smile whilst listening to it. It also stands out for its pleasantly light atmosphere, instrumental and melodies. There is also a brightness to the song that I really enjoyed. (9/10)

4. Nothing – Nothing is the first of two unit tracks, consisting of Namjoo, Chorong and Eunji. It breaks away from the lighter pop tracks that followed the title track. There is a hard beat and strong energy coming from this track. The vocals help makes Nothing feel more explosive and bolstered. The ad-libs are also on a whole different level. Nothing also features some catchy hooks, making this one of the stand-out tracks of the album. (9/10)

5. Red Carpet – It seems the common thread with the unit tracks is that they stand out. Red Carpet is performed by Bomi, Naeun and Hayoung, who brings some attitude to the album. It continues the dramatic turn in the album, but with a much harder beat and stronger energy compared to its predecessor. Unlike the predecessor, however, Red Carpet utilises the instrumental to make the song bolstered and explosive. The harmonies help out with this, as well. This in tandem with the unit’s mature and alluring vocals creates a more powerful atmosphere, making it more memorable. The repetitive and memorable hooks and squeaky synths gives Red Carpet a lot of character and profile. (10/10)

6. Single Rider – Single Rider has such a funky and bouncy instrumental, along with a subtle mature atmosphere. I love the upbeat tempo of Single Rider, which help give the song so much captivating energy. The vocals were superb, especially when the falsettos were effortlessly used. The dance break sequence we got in Single Rider was very intriguing and different, and I mean that in a good way. APINK and their producers on this album also seems to enjoy adding ‘endings’ to the end of their songs, with Single Rider closing out with a funky piano line. For this song, this ending feels just right and fits right in with the rest of Single Rider. (10/10)

7. Free & Love – Continuing on with the groovy and energetic aspects of the last track is Free & Love. I have to be honest, but Free & Love is a little more typical and straight-forward. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t a great song. I enjoyed the bright and vibrant energy that Free & Love exudes. The brass plays a bigger part in the song, and this adds a golden vibe to the song. As a result, Free & Love is another song that makes you feel good and want to smile. (8/10)

8. Just Like This (그날의 봄) – Just Like This takes it down a notch, going for softer jazzy pop and laidback vibe. The instrumental has a nice upbeat feel to it, but the instrumental feels a bit generic. However, I really enjoyed the vocals in this song, and the melodies had a nice ring to them. The ‘Just Like This’ repetitive hook was quite catchy, as well. (7.5/10)

9. Trip – Trip starts off with the sounds of a plane flying above us. It then proceeds to enter balladry territory, before unexpectedly going with a stronger instrumental in the chorus. From there, the instrumental maintains that stronger atmosphere, but the vocals continue to remain within that balladry territory. This stronger instrumental helps makes Trip more captivating than compared to a classically instrumented ballad. (8/10)

10. Dream (작은 별) – Continuing with the balladry theme and style is Dream. But like Trip, Dream is not classically instrumented. Instead, Dream incorporates synths into its backing and consists of a mid-tempo beat. It sounds atmospheric as a result, and is also quite captivating to listen to. The vocals in Dream are another showcase of APINK’s abilities, with the members sounding ethereal in this track. This helps adds that extra 0.5 in its ranking. (8.5/10)

11. Thank You (고마워) – The album closes out with Thank You, which was originally released last year to celebrate the group’s 10th anniversary. In case you cannot tell, the song was written to say thanks to their fans (PANDAs) for supporting the group over the last 10 years (or 11 years, for its inclusion in this album). The pop track brings back memories of their cute roots, especially thanks to that ‘Da Di Da’ hook that started off and ended the track. I quite enjoyed the song, overall. (8/10)

Overall Album Rating – 8.5/10

It is time for another album review (sorry that this is another day late again). Before I slip back into reviewing some of the earlier albums released in April, I wanted to review two album this weekend that would be considered more recent releases. The first album is by one of the most senior female groups currently still active in the industry. Actually, I think APINK one of the only remaining groups to have debuted in 2011 to actually be actively promotion. Their latest mini-album is titled Look and features the title track Dumhdurum, among a number of other songs.

1. Dumhdurum (덤더럼) (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review for Dumhdurum. (7/10)

2. Yummy – Yummy is a classy upbeat R&B number that has a groovy instrumental. That aspect one a really attractive as it felt refined and bold with the thumping and percussion. What drew me in even more was the vocals. I liked how each member stood alone in the song and wasn’t masked by the instrumentation in any way. The song had a really nice fluid melody and I liked how it picked up at certain points, which help with adding definition to the song. An example would be Bomi’s section in the verses, which had a good wow factor to it. Another would be the ‘Do It Do It’ sung by Namjoo. (9/10)

3. Be Myself (JJR Unit) – This is a JJR unit track, consisting of Chorong, Eunji and Namjoo. Be Myself is your typical pop track. Its main instrumental centerpiece is synth beats that keep the song lively and bubbly. And I like how the upbeatness of the song suits the message of the song of being one’s self, as the title suggest. Eunji had an impressive display of vocals towards the end. Namjoo was pretty much forgettable for me, as I don’t remember much from her in this song after finishing a listen to it. But the main star is Chorong, who contrasts with her nasally vocals. The other two have clear and crisp vocals, but Chorong brings a little texture, boosting the song in my opinion. (8/10)

4. Love Is Blind (Y.O.S Unit) – We get another upbeat track. This time it comes from the Y.O.S Unit, which consists of Bomi, Naeun and Hayoung. It is a little odd situation as I had expected this unit to have a more dynamic and appealing track as opposed to the other unit. But the situation ended up being switched. There is a bit of a fun vibe that cannot be denied. I just feel that the song doesn’t go past that appeal, which is quite disappointing. Not even the hooks or melody offer much appeal beyond typical. Same thing can be said for their vocals. (6/10)

5. Overwrite – Overwrite is the first ballad on the album. But it isn’t that slow and typical natured ballad that one would usually think of. There is a beat to this ballad that gives it some energy, along with a really nice orchestral touch. The piano melody was also really beautiful. The vocal work here is superb as you can once again hear all the members very strongly. The melody that the vocals carry was also quite nice. I also enjoy how they sing the title of the song, bringing a slight twist to the end of the third ‘Overwrite’ that they sing. (9/10)

6. Moment – The second ballad-like song is Moment. This features an explosive instrumental, which is also very different for a ballad. There are orchestral roots to the instrumental, but I don’t think it is a clear-cut classical piece due to that explosive nature. Their vocals in this song is something to be talked about. As the instrumental is a little louder than usual, the group has to up their vocals in order to be heard. I did wish they pushed a little further as I felt (just) some of their vocals got lost in the instrumentation or felt overpowering. Not really a major issue, as for the most part they sounded good! (8/10)

7. Everybody Ready? – We end the song with a very fun song. It has an instrumental that will blast you and definitely get you pumped, as the members ask you if you are ready. For those who don’t know, Everybody Ready? was released in April 2019 as part of their 8th year anniversary celebrations. Dedicated to the fans, it features fans cheering them on as they sing in this loud yet enjoyable song. It is a lot different to their other fan-centric songs that they have released in the past, which were a lot less energetic and more melodic. But definitely a strong hidden gem on this album. (9/10)

Overall Album Rating – 8/10

It is time for another album review. And this time, the focus is on APINK, who made their comeback at the start of last week with %% (Eung Eung – if you are wondering how this is pronounced). This title track is featured on the group’s 8th mini-album, Percent. You will notice (as I have stated it quite a lot throughout this album review) is that the group had taken a more mature approach with their music, which is many miles away from their previous albums. Let’s see how I liked these track by going forth with the review.

1..%% (Eung Eung) (응응) (Title Track) – Click here to read the full review for %%. (8/10)

2. Hug Me (안아줘요) – Hug Me is an R&B track that brings out their mature side very well. I really liked the instrumental to this track as it has a no-nonsense type of vibe, getting straight to the point without dwindling between genres, which is something that occurs often in KPOP. You also get that sense of confidence from the members, who do an amazing job with the vocal side of the song, which is something I also quite like. It isn’t necessary memorable when you think about the track in a melodic sense. But it was still good. (7.5/10)

3. What Are You Doing? (느낌적인 느낌) – What Are You Doing? Is another R&B track but it is a lot more upbeat and what I would consider dance-centred. I say this because the song has a club vibe and also an instrumental break, fitting for a dance break. It has a very addictive nature, which helps with the memorability factor that I tend to comment about it. Vocally, it is decent. Not necessary their best vocals on the album. But that short line in which they speak just before the chorus was definitely the key point of the song. (9/10)

4. Push & Pull (줄다리기) – We now encroach into something more upbeat. It has been building up since the title track. There is still a mature vibe to the song but there seems to be a nice retro influence in the instrumentation, which I quite liked. I particularly liked the way they changed the pre-chorus up to give the song an extra rush of energy, setting the chorus up. The bridge of the song featuring some rap-speaking, which is a rare element in APINK songs but something that I would love to hear more of in these mature songs. (9/10)

5. Enough – We continue the retro influence and mature sound with Enough. And like the preceding song, it is also continuing with the upbeat instrumental. I think the right word to describe the song is that is rather soft in nature, which is one of the song’s main charm. The vocals in this song were nice and conform well to the main charm. But I think the real winner of the song is the rapping. As mentioned previously, APINK rarely attempts raps but once again, if this the quality that they put out with the rap sequences, I will love to listen to more. (9/10)

6. Memories (기억 더하기) – The only thing missing from this album is the ‘mandatory ballad’. And Memories ends the album with just that one track. I have to admit that it has a rather touching sound to it. Most of the time, artists slap a very typical ballad onto the tracklist in the hope it makes up for the ‘mandatory ballad’. But while the instrumental is typical, the members give the song that much needed emotive element, through their vocals. (7/10)

Overall Album Rating – 8.3/10

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APINK recently made their return with a completely different image than what we have seen ever before. APINK’s latest title track, I’m So Sick, takes on an exciting mature concept, which is proving to be quite successful. I’m So Sick is also the title track of the group’s 7th mini-album, One & Six, which is the focus of today’s album review. Apologies for the lack of Sunday’s album review. I was so busy that I had to cancel it. It is here now, so let’s move!

1..I’m So Sick (1도 없어) (Title Track) – Click here for the full review of I’m So Sick. (9/10)

2. Alright – Alright is your typical pop song when you just glance over the track. However, when you listen to it, you notice it is a lot more than the ‘typical pop song’ description. Overall, the song felt fitting for the group who establish what can be described as a ‘lovely’ vibe and hence I thought it was a good selection for a promotional track. Starting off the song were these beautiful sounding twinkles, which gave me shivers the first time I heard the song (which is a good thing). The chorus was catchy with the ‘Alright’ repetition and melody. I particularly liked the drop, as it felt just right for the entire song. I really liked the suspense created before the final chorus. (9/10)

3. Don’t Be Silly – The song felt very mature, even more than the title track, which I think is a rather interesting direction for the group. But they pull it off well. The song feels like an R&B dance track with an extra something that makes it work for APINK. I thought the chorus was quite good, despite the questionable English. I liked the epic feel in the bridge, which was my favourite section of the song. I was disappointed, however, when the song didn’t carry on that epic feel into the final chorus. But other than that, it was a good song. (8/10)

4. Forever Star (별 그리고..) – Forever Star is just your typical ballad from a girl group. While the rest of the album did showcase some great ‘typical’ songs, Forever Star doesn’t really feel great. Instead, it felt a little bland and doesn’t really capture my attention on the album. But it was still listenable. It did feature good melody and nice harmonies. It was quite delicate and did a good job keeping that innocent sound that the group is widely known for. (7/10)

5. Promise Me – With the piano in the first few seconds of the song, I thought the song was going down a ballad route. But the way the clock was ticking soon after gave me a hunch that it wasn’t going to be a ballad. This proved true once the violins kicked in and you could hear many synths during the chorus. Once again, I liked how the chorus felt and hook made the song quite catchy. It had a particularly happy tone, which appealed to my personal taste quite well. The song did feature great vocals from all members, but the spotlight was on Bomi and Eunji (especially the end). It is also one of my favourites on the album! (10/10)

6. I Like That Kiss – A review or description of the song will not do it justice. I highly recommend you give the song a listen as it is extremely hard for me to explain in words. The energy on this track and its quirky instrumental makes the song stand out, particularly that changeup prior to the chorus. The chorus was extremely addictive with the title repetition. The bridge was extremely unexpected, going for a remix style feel in the first half and a totally different sound in the second half.  As I said, my description isn’t enough, and you should check it out for yourself. (9/10)

Overall Album Rating – 8.7/10

APINK are one the leading girl groups in the industry and they are back with a brand new mini-album for all their fans out there. The mini-album, titled as Pink Up, is their 6th mini-album to date. To be honest, I really need to think of a better way to open up these album reviews. I apologise if I bored you. So let’s continue one!

 

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

2. Stinging (콕콕) – Stinging is a very mature sounding track, which is a complete turnaround to their first song on this album. While they do keep a small playful sound to it, it felt more sensual, which is unexpected. The girls do a wonderful job with using their husky vocals, which fit very nicely. The small rap sequence was nice as well. I would love to say it was catchy with its funky instrumental, but rather, it didn’t feel like a memorable track. (7/10)

3. Eyes – Eyes was nice but it lacked a selling point. It just didn’t stand out compared to the other ballads present on this mini-album. I did like how they were going to drag out some of the lines and each member did shine vocally in the song. I would have loved it if there was something that gave the song a bolder side, rather than feeling a standard ballad. (6/10)

4. I Like It – While I don’t think it is worthy of ‘title track’ standards, this song is perfect as a non-title track. It was quite catchy and felt uplifting after the previous two tracks. I love the instrumental, which gave the song a nice foundation, but the vocals felt like it gave the song some life. It falls nicely under the cutesy portfolio that we know and associate APINK with. (8/10)

5. Evergreen – This is one amazing ballad. Eyes didn’t have that bold effect, while the changes in Evergreen was that bold factor that I wanted. It gave the song energy and emotion to motivate us. The vocals are amazing and their best on this mini-album. Listening to the album the first time yesterday, this song caught my attention and was the one song I was looking forward to writing about. (10/10)

6. Always – Another great song. I liked the simpleness of the instrumental. A nice step back from all the electronic songs constantly released. What I loved about this song is that the chorus was super catchy and nice-sounding. I loved the harmonies present in the chorus. The verses felt empty and dry in comparison. It felt like the chorus was sung by all members, while the verses felt unsupported. (7.5/10)

Overall Album Rating – 7.5/10