Tag: BIGBANG

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Recap of MelOn Music Awards 2015 and Thoughts

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The MMA or MelOn Music Awards were held on the 7th of November 2015. MelOn does not refer to the fruit but rather the music chart and on-line music store in South Korea. It is held by LOEN Entertainment, which owns the music distribution company. The music award has its own unique criteria where it only calculates digital sales of artists in the past year and incorporate these sales with on-line votes of fans.

The following artists, groups and actors attended the ceremony: Big Bang, Yoona (SNSD), Hyukoh, Hyorin & Dasom (Sistar) (did not perform), Toy (did not perform), APINK, Zion.T, Sane, iKON, GFriend, Mad Clown (did not perform), Hong Jin Young, BTS, Red Velvet, EXID, Monsta X, Winner (did not perform). Actors, actresses and other celebrities attended the night as presenters.

The show on the night was hosted by Yoo Byung Jae and Seo Kang Joon. They were shortly joined by Lee Boo Yi, Kim Shin Young, Kim So Hyun & Irene (Red Velvet). The red carpet was hosted by Youngji (Former Member of Kara) and Seo Yuri.

Below are the winners on the night. Afterwards, I have left some comments regarding some awards:
Top 10 Artist – SHINee, Girl’s Generation, Hyukoh, Toy, Big Bang, Sistar, EXO, APINK, Zion.T, Sane.
Best New Artist – iKON & GFriend
Best Rap/Hip Hop – Mad Clown ft. Jinsil (Fire)
Best Ballad – Baek Ah Yeon ft. Young K (Shouldn’t Have)
Best RnB – Naul (Living In The Same Time)
Best Rock – Kim Sung Gyu (The Answer)
Best OST – Loco & Yuju (Spring Is Gone By Chance)
Best Trot – Hong Jin Young (Love WiFi)
Best Pop – Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars (Uptown Funk)
Best Male Dance – BTS (I Need U)
Best Female Dance – Red Velvet (Ice Cream Cake)
Best Folk – 10cm (Sseudam Sseudam)
Best Indie – Standing Egg ft. Wheein & Obroject Yundak (The Sunlight Hurts)
Netizen Popularity Award – Big Bang (Bang Bang Bang)
Hot Trend Award – Infinite Challenge (Yeongdong Expressway Music Festival)
Best Music Video – Park Jin Young ft. Jessi (Who’s Your Mama?)
Song Writer Award – Teddy
MBC Music Star Award – EXID
1theK Performance Award – Monsta X
Album Of The Year (Daesang) – EXODUS
Song Of The Year (Daesang) – Bang Bang Bang
Artist Of The Year (Daesang) – Big Bang

I personally think above is a fair spread for award winners. While I am not knowledgeable to comment on categories such as Best Indie and Best Folk, the rest show 2015 in its glory. Once again, I think Seventeen deserves the Best New Artist award and GFriend finally got what they deserved (it’s a good thing. Kind of sounded like I was hinting at something bad). Sistar and APINK’s Top 10 awards caught me off guard since they were quickly taken over by other artists on the digital charts and failed to be up to par with the other artists. I am glad to see Kim Sung Gyu win something for his album. It was really good.

And as per usual, there were performances that night from the groups who won awards. Performers included: Hyukoh, Big Bang, APINK, Zion.T, Sane, BTS, EXID, Red Velvet, Monsta X, iKON and GFriend. It would have been nicer to see some more artists who won from the night perform. I think best performance of the night was BTS with their cool jackets that had light coming off them. A very large portion of the show was dedicated to Big Bang, which had people talking. Sure, they won a lot of award, but I agree with majority of the audience. Big Bang’s performances just made it feel like one Big Bang concert. Sure, they won prestigious awards, but it just robbed the other artists of their night, who also put hard effort into making 2015 their year. Would have I gotten angry over the fact they turned the award show into a mini concert? No, but maybe they should have dropped one or two songs.

Overall, I think MMA15 was pretty fair. They had a large variety of winners (mainly because they have a lot of categories) and minus that small complaint regarding the performances, the show was great. Oh, but damn was the presentation of the awards cringe worthy. Probably this ceremony takes the award for  “Worst Presentation of Awards” award. Could have done it in a way where the presenters did not feel that ashamed of themselves.

 

 

Recap of MAMA 2015 and Thoughts

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Did you forget about the MAMA awards held by MNET in 2015? Or are we all trying to forget it for its bias and unfair system? Well, don’t fret, I am here to remind you of the disappointment or joy that you felt.

The MNET Asian Music Awards (or MAMA) was held on the 2nd of December in… Hong Kong. Again. Voting for the awards began in October of the same year and I thought there was a fair range of nominees and the committee selected a variety if talents for each award.

The following artists attended and performed at the awards ceremony: Taeyeon (SNSD), GOT7, BTS, Hyuna (4 minute), Park Ji Young, Seventeen, Monsta X, F(x), SHINEE, EXO, Big Bang, iKON, Zion.T, Crush, Sane. 2NE1 & Psy. Pet Shop Boys were invited as special guest performers on the night. Red Velvet, Twice, Tiffany and Seohyun from SNSD also attended by did not perform.

I have recapped the winners below. I shall give some comments afterwards regarding the winners.
Best New Male Artist – iKON.
Best New Female Artist – Twice.
Best Male Vocal Performance – Zion.T (Eat)
Best Female Vocal Performance – Ailee (Mind Your Business)
Best Male Dance Performance – SHINee (View).
Best Female Dance Performance – Red Velvet (Ice Cream Cake)
Best Solo Dance Performance – Hyuna (Roll Deep).
Best Collaboration / Subunit – Zion.T & Crush (Just)
Best Rap Performance – Sane (Me You)
Best Band Performance – CN BLUE (Cinderella)
Best Male Group – EXO
Best Female Group – SNSD
Best Male Artist – Park Jin Young
Best Female Artist – Taeyeon
Best Music Video – Bang Bang Bang
Best Album (Album of the Year) – EXODUS
Best Song (Song Of The Year) – Bang Bang Bang
Best Artist (Artist Of The Year) – Big Bang

Best New Male Artist is probably the category that has me shaking my head the most. iKON is slowly showing their capability, but I feel like Seventeen is already two steps ahead of them and deserve the award more. Best Female Vocal Performance should have gone to Taeyeon and Taeyeon should have received 2 awards that night. Not dissing Ailee, but it wasn’t her best song or vocal performance. Best Music Video should have also gone to F(x). Best Male Dance Performance is an iffy category for me. SHINee did have a great dance, but sadly, I felt that BTS was missing out due to the lack of nomination in that category. Big Bang took out most of the awards, but I don’t think it matters. Big Bang dominated summer in South Korea last year with their continuous releases and had one of the most popular songs of the year (according to download and streaming charts). JYP’s award caught me a little off guard but I guess out of all the nominees, he had a good song. Besides the categories I mentioned, I think the awards were “fair”. Okay maybe not, but who MAMA awarded that night, I mostly agree with (given the nominees).

But wait, there were a few more awards that were given out that night:
Worldwide Favourite Artist – Big Bang
Global Fan’s Choice Male Artist – EXO
Global Fan’s Choice Female Artist – F(x)
Best World Performers – BTS
Next Generation Asian Artist – Monsta X
Best Asian Style – EXO
Worldwide Inspiration Award – Pet Shop Boys
There were also other awards which were awarded to artists from other countries as Best Asian Artist. Best Engineer, Best Live Entertainment and Best Producer awards were also given to 3 people for each award from different countries.

Out of these awards, I am a little confused with the Best Asian Style award. Out of all that walked the red carpet, I was shocked when EXO came along. Also, Pet Shop Boys. I am with majority of people who have never heard of the band before.

Per usual, there were many different performances on the night. The show opened up with Taeyeon’s I, which I thought was a really beautiful stage. She sounded flawlessly on the stage. BTS made their comeback on the night and collaborated with GOT7, who also performed If You Do. JYP had a special stage which probably scarred both GOT7 and Twice and he went a little wild towards the end of his performance. iKON performed a medley of their songs. Monsta X and Seventeen collaborated, while F(x) and Pet Shop Boys joined hands together. We also saw Sane perform with Hyuna and Jessi. Also a stage with both Show Me The Money contestants and Unpretty Rapstar. EXO, SHINee, Big Bang each had their stages with multiple songs and got the audience really hyped up. Psy also made his comeback and performed alongside with his new songs, Gangnam Style. Probably the most talk that night was 2NE1’s performance which caught everyone off guard. It was nice to see them, but whether it was appropriate is just another topic all together.

Out of all the stages, I thought Taeyeon had the most beautiful stage. For the dance aspect, Seventeen and Monsta X’s performance was really well polished and amazing.

Overall, I thought the night was worth it. It may seem like YG has a lot of influence over the MAMA awards and that is probably true. But whether it is right or not, is another discussion in its self. Just regarding the invitations to the awards, it did seem like someone did forget to invite people. Some stages seem like they could have used a little more attention to give it that grand feel that the MAMA awards is meant to uphold, like in previous years. But overall, I thought the night was pretty good. Wait… Did I just repeat the first sentence of this paragraph? Guess I am going to call it a day now. Hope you enjoyed my recap!

End Of Year Chart 2015 + Happy New Year!

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Welcome to the end of the year! Each year, I do this “End Of The Year Chart” where I properly rank songs via a personalised ranking system, which shows which songs I liked the most (and which songs I did not like at all – but I won’t name and shame). How do I rank the songs? Simply taking the score that I gave them in the review published earlier in the year, adding it to new review scores for the music, video and performance. Then I add those to other scores from “Songs of the Month” in my Rewind posts and to ensure that I can properly order them, I turn to my iTunes play count. And when I say “add”, there is a mixture of mathematical operations (and I am going to stop here, before I can bore you). In no way is this chart influenced by my choice of best song in the BOBs. But I do highlight them here :).

1 Ah Yeah EXID
2 Paradise Lost Gain (Brown Eyed Girls)
3 If You Do  GOT7
4 Closer Oh My Girl
5 You G.Soul
6 Love Me Right EXO
7 I Need U BTS
8 Sing For You EXO
9 Shake It Sistar
10 4 Walls F(x)
11 Dumb Dumb Red Velvet
12 I Taeyeon (SNSD) ft. Verbal Jint
13 Like OOH AHH Twice
14 Oh Um Ah Yeah Mamamoo
15 Mansae Seventeen
16 Just Right GOT7
17 Crazy 4Minute
18 Insensible Lee Hong Ki (FT Island)
19 Run BTS
20 Yey Beast
21 Between Night n Music B.I.G
22 Shake That Brass Amber (f(x)) ft. Taeyeon (SNSD)
23 Hot Pink EXID
24 Beautiful Liar VIXX LR (VIXX)
25 Brand New World Brown Eyed Girls
26 Ring My Bell Girls Day
27 Hurt Locker Nine Muses
28 Growing Pains Donghae & Eunhyuk
29 Run Away Royal Pirates
30 Black Swan Rainbow
31 Congratulations DAY6
32 Catch Me If You Can SNSD
33 Me Gustas Tu Gfriend
34 The Answer Kim Sung Gyu (Infinite)
35 Dope BTS
36 Pray FT Island
37 Cinderella CN Blue
38 You’re Pitiful Fiestar
39 Hopeless Love Jimin (15&)
40 Bad Infinite
41 Might Just Die History
42 We Like 2 Party Big Bang
43 Chained Up VIXX
44 Fire Mad Clown ft. Jamsil (Mad Child Soul)
45 Bell Bottoms PSY
46 Ice Cream Cake Red Velvet
47 Break Ya LU:KUS
48 Kontrol Kim Sung Gyu (Infinite)
49 I Feel You Wonder Girls
50 Wow Wow Wow Junjin (Shinhwa) ft. Eric (Shinhwa)

And here are some interesting facts about this year and the chart itself!

  • A total of 180 songs were ranked on this chart, but a total of 195 songs were reviewed this year (which I believe is a personal best).
  • The first song reviewed and included in the chart is BTOB’s The Winter Tale (released at the end of last year). The last song reviewed and included in the chart was EXO’s Sing For You
  • A total of 16 girl groups, 17 boy groups and 9 soloists are featured on the chart.
  • There is a better mix of boys and girl groups this year, compared to last year, where the first boy group did not feature on the charts until after 16th place.
  • BTS had the most songs on the chart (I Need U, Dope & Run). followed by: EXID (Ah Yeah & Hot Pink), GOT7 (If You Do, Just Right), EXO (Love Me Right, Sing For You), Kim Sung Gyu (The Answer, Kontrol) & Red Velvet (Dumb Dumb & Ice Cream Cake).
  • Rookies were actually a strong force this year with Oh My Girl, Seventeen and Twice ranking quite high up in the charts.
  • The following ranked after 50th place: IU, B.I.G, Crayon Pop, VIXX, Seventeen, Changmin, Big Bang, Brown Eyed Girls and CLC.
  • And finally, this year chart was actually reflected on the BOBs this year. I crowned EXID’s Ah Yeah as best song for both segments.

AND THAT IS IT!! 2015 will be ending shortly. 6 Hours To Go (for me at least)!!! Hope 2015 has been a great year for you all. I thank you all once again for another year of KPOPreviewed. Your support has been amazing. Every comment and like (heck even every view) makes me happy!! Nearly 5 years and still going strong!! Thank you 2015 and I wish you all a Happy New Year wherever and whenever it is time. Let’s make 2016 our year!!! (First review: 2nd of Jan).

2015 BOBs (Best Of the Best) – Part 1

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2015 is at its end, and with days away from the new year, we must reflect on 2015. And per usual: excellent songs, videos and dances have gracefully entered our lives and probably have not yet left us. From comebacks from big name acts to debuts of new rookie bands, 2015 has been a splendid year in my opinion. This year I decided to do the BOBs differently. Usually, I post a list of nominees and categories, but I don’t get you guys to vote for them (nor do I have the capabilities and time to allow you guys to vote for them, but maybe in the future), so I thought I should change it up this year, but posting both nominees and winners in the same post. This is part 1 of the BOBs and part 2 will be released tomorrow with the rest of the categories. Also, the traditional End of Year Charts will be released on the 31st of December, at 11:55 pm, so please wait around for that. Let’s get the post on the road!!!

These awards do not reflect any review score that I gave out this year. My personal preferences will always change (i.e. an 8 review score can currently be a 10 OR a 10 review score can currently by an 8).

RED FONT – Winners, BLUE FONT – Honourable Mention

RISING STAR

Each year, artists see a rise in popularity. May that be due to great songs or great publicity (after all: any publicity is good publicity), this year was no difference.  Each of these artists, I have personally seen, some sort of boost in popularity this year. And I get to choose two winners (one male and one female) for this certain category. For this year, I have nominated:

risingstar

My pick is: EXID and BTOB. Both teams saw a rise in popularity due to one particular member, and slowly each member in each group is become well known in the industry. Keep up the good work, EXID and BTOB!!!

BEST INSTRUMENTAL

A song is not a song without an instrumental. And in KPOP, the instrumental plays a massive part in hooking us in and getting us addicted to the music. Especially for foreign and international fans who don’t understand the Korean language 100%. So many great instrumentals this year, here are the nominees:

bestinstrumental

Out of all the nominees, there can be only one winner: Wonder Girls – I Feel You. The girls returned to the stage with a brand new band concept, which totally wowed me. This instrumental has its own retro vibe and I personally enjoyed it a lot. From the drums to the keyboard and guitars, the girls totally deserve this. By far one of the most underrated songs, that definitely deserve an award! Honourable Mentions: F(x) – 4Walls

BEST JAPANESE SONG

I also do some Japanese songs on this site. Hahaha… Yeah, I review some Japanese songs from time to time. The variety of singers that I listen to for Japanese songs is usually limited to only the Japanese songs released by Korean artists. This year, the category has been dominated by Korean artists and I hope next year, I can start to review more Japanese artists! Here are the nominees:

bestjapsong

I think, I was most addicted to Beast – Can’t Wait To Love You. And that was my pick for Best Japanese Song. It was song that I felt did not fall into the typical Korean Pop or Japanese Pop genres and was pretty unique on its own. As for honourable mentions: BTS – For You.

BEST COMEBACK

Big name comebacks this occurred and they all managed to rock our socks off. Hahaha… I take into account: song, concept, promotions, looks, impact and a few more categories and suprisngly, the biggest artists that emerge from the Golden Age of KPOP were nominated:

bestcomebackOut of all the comebacks nominated, the one that fitted the criteria the most would have been Big Bang. 2015 was one big year for the band, and they had such an unique concept in terms of promotion. SNSD takes away honourable mention for this category.

BEST SUBUNIT

Unfortunately, 2015 did not continue the 2014 trend of subunits. However, some new subunits formed from popular bands and some old favourite returned. Here is who I think should be nominated as best subunit:

bestsubunit

This one was a little close for me. But I am going to say Donghae and Eunhyuk, which is a subunit belonging to Super Junior. Their song was by far an amazing and left a more long lasting impact on me than the others. The other subunit that gets honourable mention is VIXX LR, which is a duo made up of Leo and Ravi.

BEST RAPPER

2015 saw a new wave of contestant based TV shows around rapping and hence many artists have seen a boost in popularity after appearing on these shows. Other rappers also remained on stage as part of their groups and amazed the audience continuously during each comeback. Here are the nominees:

bestrapper

Out of all the rappers on the light, I picked Mad Clown as a winner. His song was a hit, it was a great song (now) and while he is not part of some group, he still managed to be placed ahead of everyone this year. Zico (Block B) took out Honourable Mention for his active year. Interestingly enough, both selected artists had someone featuring in their song.

BEST VOCALIST

When there are rappers, there are also singers. 2015 also saw new programs (and our old favourites) made specifically for the vocalists of all groups. Some vocalists we know have always amazed us, but others have just emerged and became trends for 2015. Based purely on what they sound like, here are the nominees:

bestvocalist

I think this category has the most obvious winner, Taeyeon (SNSD). Yeah, she was quite active as an artist, but her debut for I blew everyone away. As for honourable mention, it goes to Solji (EXID). Her performance of Maria still replays in my head. Her powerful vocals in EXID’s performance are also quite amazing.

BEST MALE SOLOIST

While the above category looked like at vocal performance, the Best Male Soloist looks at their vocal performance, song, impact and dance (if applicable) – i.e. their comeback or debut as a collective. To be nominated, the artists must have been active as a solo artist this year (while the above also included group vocalists). The nominees are:

bestmalesoloist

There is only one artist on this list that managed to wow me the very moment I listened to the song and that artist is Kim Sung Gyu (Infinite). His whole album did wonders and is an album that I am continuously going back to. As for honourable mentions, Lee Hong Ki (FT Island) wins that. His solo debut song was well received and I reviewed it as an amazing ballad.

BEST FEMALE SOLOIST

While the above category(Best Vocalist) looked like at vocal performance, the Best Female Soloist looks at their vocal performance, song, impact and dance (if applicable) – i.e. their comeback or debut as a collective. To be nominated, the artists must have been active as a solo artist this year (while the above also included group vocalists). The nominees are:

bestfemalesoloist

Once again, I am going to give it to Taeyeon (SNSD). Vocally, stunning. It was memorable and lovely to listen to. Honourable Mention was a close call, but Amber (F(x)) stole it from Gain (Brown Eyed Girls). So catchy and bright.

And that is it for Part 1 of the BOBs. Check back tomorrow, where I will post the second part of the BOBs, with Best Song, Best Male and Female Rookie; and Best Male and Female groups (plus a few more categories).

*All images and gifs belong to their owners/creators. Only those tables are mine.

 

 

 

Zutter – GD&TOP (Big Bang)

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Another Big Bang review. This time. the song was not released by Big Bang, but it served as the comeback for the popular duo GD & TOP. For those who don’t know, GD & T.O.P formed their subunit in 2011 and made their subunit debut back in the distant 2010. That was five years ago. Like, we age pretty quickly.  Out of all the subunits to date in the whole of KPOP, I don’t think any subunit had surpassed the popularity of this subunit to date. They debuted with Oh Yeah, High High and Knock Out. Since then, we never saw the subunit again as they focused on regrouping Big Bang and a lot of solo work.

I was never a fan of the whole GD&TOP album and the songs on there weren’t that great in my opinion. I feel like I’ve seen better days with the duo than that album. So when I heard that they would be returning, I just groaned. But after so long, I thought they would branch off to a new genre (as their new album has been hinting at). But I was very surprised. This song, at least to me, mirrors their song, Knock Out. This song is much more subtle though. It does, however, have a more edgier sound and a more chilled vibe. I think this song can definitely come and go with trends.  The song is a lot catchier than Let’s Not Fall In Love, but then again it is really stupid to compare this song with a ballad. This song has it perks. Sounds a like a title track (see yesterday’s review) and it is a nice “pick me up” from the groups ballads and slow songs. I would listen to it continuously, no. I am already bored of it.

Lemme take a 3 minute toilet break. Hahahaha… Well… 3 minutes toilet break and they were probably still going. And it seems like they have been holding it in for quite sometime.  And it nice to see them close. Like very close. Like “let me check your dick” close. And also “let’s pee all over the toilets” close. Hahahaha… To me, it either looks like a remake of the Hangover series (without the waking up part and the hangover part as well)  or a terrible Chinese Mafia oriented story. Yeah, once again they show their wild side in this music video. It seems like G-Dragon is addicted to gambling in this video and T.O.P is some sick killer. But nevertheless, the ending shows how the two, from different worlds, can have fun and a nice dance off. Hehehe… T.O.P’s “I must try” dance vs. G-Dragon’s “zoned out dance”.

It is nice that they incorporated some of their amazing (this is a T.O.P reference) dancing skills in the performances. Yeah, there really is not much of a dance beside the fact that they can become crazy just about everywhere.

Nice song, out of this world video and Bingu TOP is always there to embarrass his colleagues. 8.5/10

Let’s Not Fall In Love – Big Bang

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Once again, Big Bang has made their comeback, for the 4th time this year. Talk about that Big Bang drought we had, I think that has cleared up totally. Yes, their MADE album is about to end. Now, the full album and the final songs are meant to be released in September (next month), but since the comebacks have been quite tiring on the members, YG has decided to delay (hmmm… why is delay and YG always in the same sentence?) the full album release, to let the members rest and to make way for iKON’s long awaited debut. But these are the song released for August. Which I am reviewing at the end of August because I am that slow (and busy). Lots to catch up on.

Big Bang have been experimenting with different sounds for these few comebacks. They continue to return with unique sounds. This time, they went for a much happier sounding (?) ballad, something that we don’t actually hear much of the band. It is probably one of their slowest songs ever. I think the vocal mix in this song is pretty nice. We have all the members singing and of course rapping from G-Dragon and T.O.P. It is a nice sounding song, which I would love to hear on a summer night when it is raining. There is something so dreamy about T.O.P’s singing voice for rainy days… It just lacks that appeal that Big Bang songs usually have. To be honest, this is just a B-sided track. It is good, but it really is not good enough to be the title track. There really isn’t a hook or anything to grab our attention. But still, nice song.

If there is another thing I like this for, I guess how the lyrics mis-match with the sound of the song and the music video. The lyrics have that sadness factor, but the sound and the music video do contradict that. Not in a bad way. But in a way that could be described as artistic. While the members sing about “not falling in love yet” and “just be my friend” or “remain friends or else I can hurt you”, we see the members play around with the girls. They have fun and no hint of sadness. No tears, no arguments. I have a feeling that Big Bang always know how to have a good time. Their company always bring along these foreign girls into their music video. Not only that, but the girls change each time, so I would expect there to be some sort of awkwardness. But the guys and girls seem to have a great time and their chemistry together seems pretty nice.

Nice song and music video. Pity that they haven’t really promoted this song at all, compared to Zutter. 8.5/10. Zutter review will come tomorrow.

[DOUBLE REVIEW] If You + Sober – Big Bang

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Once again, it has been a month since their last release. And now they are back at it with a more toned down comeback. But I am not going to use “comeback” anymore to describe Big Bang’s album’s promotion. Let’s call this a promotional run. They are going head to head with many big name groups this Summer with Super Junior, SNSD making their comeback in the coming weeks. Not only that, but other upcoming big name groups are making or have made their comeback: Sistar, AOA, Teen Top, Girl’s Day, A-Pink, Infinite etc. So essentially, this summer is going to be one very chaotic battlefield.

If You is a really nice song. Not one that is expected by many fans, however. When the song starts we hear T.O.P and G-Dragon sing. Normally, they raps. However his voice adds a really nice deep element to the song. As the other member move in to sing, we get a very peaceful ballad. I have to be honest though. I did say Taeyang did not have a suitable voice to be someone to take most of the lines, but in this song, his voice was delivered in a way that has me doubting myself. Even though it was a pretty long song and slowed down compared to the other Big Bang songs we have gotten, this song seemed to go quite fast for me. I have no complaints with this song.

Sober is a completely different song. It is toned down compared to their last releases, but it really isn’t a song that I again would associate with Big Bang. It’s more upbeat and I think I enjoyed it more than their other songs. It is quite addictive and catchy to my ears. It fits in quite well to their previous releases and it also has this strong Summer feel to it. Not as impressed with the vocals of this song though. I can see how some people are saying this song is quite similar to another song out there. Don’t remember the title of the other song though. And I get it. It does sound similar to me, just the style of Sober and the sound of Sober is a pretty much recurring sound in many music industries.

There is no music video for If You, which is quite disappointing. But then again, the company and band are filming quite a bit. Sober did get a music video which leans towards the crazy side. In other words, no where near what Sober’s definition is like. I personally like this video. It is quite wacky but it doesn’t overdo it like Bae Bae did. I did notice a few things. Why are there beds outside? What happens when it rains? T.O.P is not being T.O.P no more in any of the videos. Daesung looks pretty cool on the drums. Taeyang has been shirtless in 100% of the music videos that were released in 2015. I would like to now how they filmed the scenes where the members are in those spinning rooms. Not exactly sure if it spinning but it looks quite cool.

Not exactly sure if there are any dance to Sober. I can guarantee there be no dance for If You. But then again, I guess a lot of things and still manage to get things wrong.

If You – 9/10

Sober – 8/10

So what did you like more? Sober or If You?

[Double Review] Bang Bang Bang + We Like To Party – Big Bang

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Big Bang is trying to kill all fans out there with their continuous comebacks for the next 3 months (5 comebacks in total). Each song they release is being promoted and I am thankful I am getting this review out now, with just days until the next two releases. Wow. After Loser and Bae Bae, Big Bang returned with songs that they believed was more their style and more like their last comeback, Fantastic Baby. And I think they are right. But that is to be discussed below. Let’s just brace ourselves for the next few months.

First song was Bang Bang Bang. I find this an awesome song, but like everyone I know and see commenting, the chorus for the song was just an ear sore. Yeah, but only the chorus. I love the club and dance instrumental song the sound goes for and I feel like the lines are more evenly spread this time around. Beside the chorus (even though it has grown on me), the rest of the song was just amazing. The vocal work and rapping for this song was amazing. I feel like this is a more modern version of Fantastic Baby, with an upgraded instrumental. The ending was superb as well. Just I want to change the chorus so badly.

As for We Like To Party, guess who just found their new favourite song. I am currently digging this song so much. It just is done so well. Did not expect for Big Bang to put out a party anthem like song, but it worked really well. The vocals and rapping per usual with the band was amazing and I was not at once disappointed with the song. I honestly feel like this should have been the more promoted song than Bang Bang Bang. And to those One Direction fans who are accusing Big Bang for copying their band’s song, these songs have been out for a long while.

The music videos were pretty amazing. I feel like both music videos, while different concepts were happening in both, were still pretty solid efforts, considering they were promoting their previous songs and had to film these as well. They did not look tired at all. I love the seriousness of the Bang Bang Bang video and the contrast between the red and black. We Like To Party was a more fun filled music video and I thought it fitted the song pretty well. They were apparently a little tipsy during the music video filming for some scenes, but I feel like it paid off very well. We see them go on a road trip and have lots of fun, which is what the song suggests. I am just glad they did not go off topic for any of the music videos.

I believe Bang Bang Bang had an actual dance to it. Beside the ending, I thought the rest of the dance was pretty boring to watch. We Like To Party had a dance as well, it seems kind of lazy, but managed to fit in with the song. But only the chorus got the dance for it… so…. And poor Seungri, everytime he tried to sing in We Like To Party, he was sabotaged by the other members.

If I was to choose out of the two, I would pick We Like To Party. Bang Bang Bang was great but the chorus… Sorry for rambling on about it. But a review is a review.

Bang Bang Bang – 8/10

We Like To Party – 10/10

What Big Bang song did you like this month? Pick out the two and the results will be up on the Rewind: June 2015 post (coming soon).

Bae Bae – Big Bang

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As per my last review, I told you that I would have this review out sometime this weekend. That means I have an hour and a half to get this review done. If I post this up before 12:00 am AEST (1 hour and a half), then I successfully completed my mission. If not, I failed and really should try to push to do these reviews a little earlier. This is part two of Big Bang’s first comeback of the year. Apparently these are just teasers to what really is coming up next month (which is going to be the fan’s main course). The other song they came back with was Loser.

I don’t want to rant about what I said last review regarding Daesung, but I think I don’t have anything else to say about this song. While it was fun and “different”, I found it a little boring to sit through. The song is short, which is a disappointment, but I don’t want to think about extending this song into a 3 minute + song. We got a very different feel from the band, something that I don’t think they ever have gone for. The vocals and the rapping were just find, it just lacked a lot of appeal and I am very disappointed for that. Once again, I feel the song is Taeyang orientated, but I have already discussed that, but it seems like only Taeyang in the song got the promotion he deserve (but that can only be seen more clearly during the live stages). Even almighty G-Dragon and TOP got shut out this time. I also despise of the word “bae”. So the title gave me shivers. It is like “Yolo”. Just no.

As for the music video, whoever wrote “TOP’s sexual awakening” deserves a freaking gold star. Every time I see this video, all I can think of is TOP, his eyes and his unlikely behaviour in this music video. It kind of got me nervous and scared when I first watched it. Each member is a little crazy in this video. G_Dragon went a little crazy over breasts. Tayeang went crazy with his hair (it has to go). TOP went crazy as the Mad Hatter (his part reminds me of the Mad Hatter). Daesung was too lonely (and probably sex). And I think entirely Seungri got crazy over finding a partner (he was the one with nothing, but hands over his chest. Fake hands to be precise). Overall, I was okay with the video. Surely more could have happened for it to be something that I would rank high. The ending scenes were nice, but that just confirms the crazy nature of the music video.

As for the dance, there really is not much of it during the solo parts (unless you consider the prancing of TOP as a dance). The ending when they all sing together had a dance that kind of gave it that “different” feel. I am for some reason glad, that Big Bang embraced this side for the stage. But dance at the end was so so as well.

I think I did a good job for less than 10 minutes. LOL. Don’t know why I was begin so dramatic at the start. Sorry for that. As for this song, music video and dance, I think I am going to give it a 6/10. Music video and song could have a little more appealing.

As for the question I put out last time, which was you favourite Big Bang song for this promotions?

Loser – Big Bang

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The wait is over. After three hectic and chaotic years, Big Bang has finally returned as a five member band, not as 1 member or a two member subunit, but actually five members. This time around they went digital, with plans to release 1 or 2 songs per month and then releasing a full album later in the years with the already released songs. Yes, probably every fan has been going on non stop about this and I am too very excited. I mentioned in a past review about doing “Double Reviews”. Not this time around Big Bang, but I will be doing that kind of reviews for the upcoming few releases (given there are two new songs each month).

This is a pretty good song. It isn’t really the fun or crazy side of Big Bang we are used to. It kind of goes back to Haru Haru, Lies or Blues style of songs. I enjoyed it. There is something that I am going to rant about. But I feel like Daesung is overlooked in Big Bang. It feels like there is no faith in him. Both songs that were released consist of Daesung singing one verse and that is it. I know his sick and all (from the looks of live cams) but seriously, it is very disappointing. I understand Taeyang has a good voice and because of his recent success with Eyes Nose Lips, but to me, his voice only gets so far when it comes to emotional feels. Maybe it is because Daesung is just sick, but if the next few songs have Daesung little parts, I guess I am onto something. On the other hand, everyone else (including Daesung) have done an excellent job with the song.  The rapping, vocal work and instrumental is very calming (just maybe the “I’m a loser” part. Way to be optimistic). I really liked Seungri’s part in the song at the bridge. It is pretty unique and sets the song apart from their past songs.

The music video reminds me of Blue and Bad Boy just minus the unnecessary one shot takes. Their acting is definitely pretty good (disappointing we don’t see more of them acting). To me Daesung’s, Seungri’s and TOP’s parts in the video made much more sense than Tayang’s and G-Dragon’s. You can definitely see the loser part in the other three’s parts. But I guess Taeyang is a loser in this video because he is lonely? And G-Dragon is just walking around? I just like it how Daesung, despite getting punched and ganged up on, manages to be fashionable. It is pretty funny come to the think of it. And Taeyang, I think you have a condition. No-shirt-itis. Not complaining since you have a nice set of abs, but sometimes it is a little excessive. Out of the 5746556536 music videos he has been in 99% of them consist of a Taeyang without a shirt.  Also, I think we witness TOP stepping out of his comfort zone………. And then there is his part in Bae Bae……….

There is apparently a dance to this song. I find the song fine without a dance, but whatever floats their boats. I noticed it on their Music Bank stage, but I think it is like a one off thing. It is only this performance (I think) so far with a dance. Glad they incorporated the L sign. It makes sense after all.

Don’t worry. I should get the Bae Bae review out sometime during the weekend. Things have finally started to lift up off my shoulders and I only have exams (plus the odd one or two assignments) left. But I promise you, the Bae Bae review will come out. But for Loser, going to give it a solid 9.5/10.

But which song has been your favourite? It shall be an interesting question, since t is now Big Bang vs Big Bang.

Rewind: March 2015

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Through this new segment (Finally got to use that one word), we will be looking back at the third month of 2015. I get to rank my top 10 songs. But we also get to look back at other events that happened in the Korean music industry. This way, I can talk about big events in the KPOP industry and rely my thoughts to you all.

Lee Min Ho and Suzy Dating

This by far is the biggest news of March 2015. Just a few days ago, it was confirmed by both companies that Miss A’s Suzy and Hallyu actor Lee Min Ho are officially dating. More importantly, JYP (Suzy’s company) have announced that Suzy would not avoid questions regarding the couple. Now, usually companies try to “Hush” the rumours, so I thought it was a little wierd that JYP would say Suzy would be answering all questions. Though I get that both companies would have to confirm due to the evidence presented, but I think JYP is milking everything they can out of this big piece of news. Dating in the industry is going to be hard but I wish the very best for the two. Now let’s move along with Miss A‘s comeback, shall me?

Red Velvet First Win

The subheading says it all. Congratulations to Red Velvet on their first music show win. At the time I am writing this, they actually have won 4 music show awards. Their latest song is ________________________________________________________________. Sorry. Let’s leave this here and wait for the review to come out. Soon. I promise. I am not YG. It will come soon. Like next week probably.

2AM Members Change Companies

Another big piece of news with the 2AM members splitting up with their company. No, they are not disbanding (though it sounded a lot like it at first) but 2AM members have decided to go with different companies. Jo Kwon decided to stay with JYP Entertainment. Seulong decided to go with SidusHQ and Jinwoon decided with Mystic Entertainment. Changmin signed with Big Hit after his contract ended with JYP last year (I think?). This kind of says something about JYP Entertainment, but at the same time, we should be glad the ballad group are not going away for now. Let’s hope 2AM comebacks with a new song with this different formation with companies. (On a side note: all 2PM members – contract ended around the same time – resigned with JYP).

Comebacks for April

BIG BANG HAS BEEN CONFIRMED!!! Though, not exactly sure when the comeback is exactly. But BIG BANG HAS BEEN CONFIRMED to be the first YG artist making their comeback in 2015. On top of that, EXID will be making their comeback. Miss A and EXO just made their comeback at the end of the month. Dal Shabet, Mamamoo, Cross Gene have also be confirmed. SNSD (Girl’s Generation) will also be making their comeback in May BUT they will be releasing a track during April in both Japan and Korea.

Yewon and Lee Tae Im Scandal

This scandal I am not familiar with. Essentially what happened is that Yewon spoke informally to Lee Tae Im. After Lee Tae Im got angry and left, Yewon decided to curse out at Lee Tae Im, and hence causing this controversy. Essentially, Yewon is more of a younger person in the industry, so she had to be formal. I get it sometimes. I come from as Asian background and sometimes I don’t think the formality thing is right. Just because they are older does not mean they are right. Imagine this: the older person is cursing the daylights out of you and your loved ones, and you “disrespectfully” defended yourself and your family. Is the older person right and you are at fault? Though this is not what had happened, it seems like the industry zooms in on one part and leave the rest out for every bad situation. We don’t know 100% what happened. We will never know what 100% happened. Something could have happened before that got both angry. Those are just my loosely put together thoughts on the whole thing. Maybe Yewon is in the wrong. But what if she isn’t? Remember I am not siding with her. I am just being “opened minded” about things.

Top 10 songs of the month

1. Paradise Lost – Gain (Brown Eyed Girls)

2. Between Night n Music – B.I.G

3. FM – Crayon Pop

4. You’re Pitiful – Fiestar

5. Donghae & Eunhyuk – Growing Pains

6. I Am A Woman Too – Minah (Girl’s Day)

7. Ice Cream Cake – Red Velvet

8. Apple – Gain (Brown Eyed Girls) ft. Jay Park

9. Growing – K.Will

10. Bounce – Boyfriend

Rewind: February 2015

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Through this new segment (Finally got to use that one word), we will be looking back at the second month of 2015. I get to rank my top 10 songs. But we also get to look back at other events that happened in the Korean music industry. This way, I can talk about big events in the KPOP industry and rely my thoughts to you all.

YG says comeback for Big Bang will happen in April

This month, YG “promised” us that the first artist to make their comeback would be Big Bang, who has been scheduled for April. Yes, I put “promised” in quotation marks because half the time, we really cannot take his words as the final story. Hopefully, this time Big Bang will make their very long awaited comeback in April and for once Yang Hyun Suk say something we can actually could have relied on. iKON will always be make their debut this year, just we don’t have a clear time frame yet.

Comeback announcement for April?

About 343425946 bands in the KPOP industry have announced their comeback in April. Yes, there have been so many already that I can’t remember. As mentioned above, Big Bang is. Joining them is Girl’s Day, Miss A and Dal Shabet. B1A4‘s sister group will be making their debut in April as well. FT Island is also due to make a comeback in April as well. iKon is also another band rumoured to make their debut in April. As we look further into the future, SNSD and Infinite are both aiming for May comebacks. April is going to be one hell of a month with all the bands coming back for me. And April is going to be one busy month for me already…

Kim Hyun Joong’s Domestic Violence Scandal + Pregnancy rumours

Another turn for the worse for Kim Hyun Joong. Late last year, it was reported that his former girlfriend was a victim to domestic violence attacks from the KPOP star. She sued him for what she had alleged that he has done to her. Now, it was revealed that the former girlfriend had withdrawn the lawsuit and the two proceeded to meet up with each other. Now the ex girlfriend is claiming to be pregnant with Kim’s child as he prepares for military enlistment.  His side has been asking for the girlfriend to come out and do pregnancy tests, which from what I read, she refused (but she ended up,  through her lawyer,  giving out “her” test results). I am going to be honest, this sounds very suspicious on her part. Since she had sued and withdrew the lawsuit basically means she has a free ticket to get away from Kim Hyun Joong. Unless she is that crazy in love for him, this progression in their relationship is putting both parties in a bad light.

Top 10 Songs Of The Month

1. Black Swan – Rainbow

2. Crazy – 4Minute

3. Shake That Brass – Amber (f(x)) ft. SNSD Taeyeon

4. Love Equation – VIXX

5. 너무 Very 막 – MYNAME

6. Just – ZionT ft. Crush

7. Always – A.Kor

8. Because Of You – Berry Good

9. Beautiful – KXIS (DMTN)

10. Sniper – Shinhwa

1AM – Taeyang (Big Bang)

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Yesterday, I reviewed Taeyang’s Eyes, Nose, Lips. Today it is 1AM’s turn to be reviewed. This song was first performed at the SBS Gayo Daejun which occurred at the end of last year. It was then included with the release of this mini album. It also became another title track for Taeyang’s promotions. And I glad it was. Let’s say, this review won’t be as bad as yesterdays one, because, mainly this one is the song that I liked. And this is where I am gonna end my introduction.

In my personal opinion, I like this song much more than Eyes, Nose, Lips. Like 10 million times better. This song, though, still does not fit my idea of Taeyang, but at least this one feels more cheerful and does not sounds like “monotone” in the way he sings it and the way the song is presented. It is also a much more lively song to listen to and I honestly think this vocals in this song is much more better than his vocals in this primary song. The song is pretty catchy. I like those 1 to 2 seconds moments prior to the chorus, where he slows the song down and then enters back with power for the chorus. Though the bridge can have some work on it, this song is totally more amazing. His live vocals are much better with this song than of Eyes, Nose, Lips. The song talks about how he remembers his love at 1AM. Overall, a much better song and probably my favourite off the mini album.

This music video is a lot darker than expected. I think most of the scenes were filmed at night which contrasted the lively feel of the song. Though there is a lot more lights in this video which gives it that really nice feel to the video. I have to say something though, but I am getting pretty annoyed with Taeyang’s hair. I though G-Dragon’s colour change was a problem, but Taeyang’s fat mohwak is terrible. Anyway, the “sex scene” in this video is actually not too bad. Beside the fact that Taeyang is sill wearing clothes while making out with her (like your on a bed, making out, shouldn’t clothes be coming off?). Actually come to the think of it, this video features Taeyang in clothes for once. Like he is not showing his abs for 99% of the video. It seems like he is shirtless 1% of the time, with 99% of the time being clothed. Just an observation. Honestly, I don’t think this video is that bad. I liked it. And I don’t mind it.

There is a freaking dance. LOL jks. Well, there is a dance, just it is not the Taeyang feel that we are used to. It is just not the same, but at least he is up there dancing.

8/10. Honestly love this more than yesterday’s one. Which prompts me to ask this question. Which Taeyang song did you like the most? Was it Eyes, Nose, Lips,? 1AM? Or was it Ringa Linga? Or maybe another song off the mini album? Answer below.

 

Eyes, Nose, Lips – Taeyang (Big Bang)

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Taeyang has finally made his return with a new mini album after years and years of waiting. He, last year, released a single in November, Ringa Linga which was proven to be very popular. This time around, he had decided to tone his comeback down a bit with RnB songs, not his usual dance-heavy songs that we all associate Taeyang with. He achieved an all-kill when he released his album and managed to rank 1st for like 3 days, which from memory is a record for an artist. On top of that, he has also ranked first on many international charts such as iTunes RnB charts. Proven to be quite a successful artist and proves that he still has it, even though his official release was 4 years ago. And he has also won awards for this song as well, doing very well for 2 weeks and we are still counting.

This song, however, was not for me. I understand that Taeyang had other ideas, but I have always associated him being a dancer and even though his last few songs have mainly been RnB songs, this one was to be the worst crappiest out of all. Just listening to this song a few times, I just could not play this song anymore. I just found it boring and odd to listen to. His voice, not sure if it was the desired effect, was very shaky at many moments. His vocals were monotone to me, though he did have some moments. There was nothing in this song that “catches” my attention. I was very disappointed when I first heard this song. I am sure you guys already got that feeling from my previous lines. I just have nothing else to say about this song. Just – shakes head-

The music video, I thought would be good. Boy, was I wrong? Instead, we get a video of a camera zooming out on Taeyang (who is once again shirtless) singing, with a burning picture of a girl in the background. Oh wait, did I just spoil the whole video for you? I apologise for that. Well, I can’t really say anything about this video as well. Because there is nothing in it. Disappointment. Even a few of my friends thought the video was quite boring to watch. And didn’t he used to have defined abs back in the day? Cause his body looks weird for me. Though I am not judging, I cannot get my body anyway near his. Just a very disappointing video.

No dance, so I am going to skip over that part.

Oh look, the end. I will be reviewing Taeyang’s 1AM tomorrow, which has a lot more going on. This is probably the shortest review I have done in a long time. 1/10

‘End Of Year Music Festivals’ Favourite Performances

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Woah, 2013 is over (Soz, a tad late) and each year KPOP fans always end up looking forward to the end of year music festivals. These “festivals” are held on the final days of the year by the 3 major boradcasting companies of South Korea (ie. KBS, SBS, MBC). It is a stage where the artists who are active during the year can come together and celebrate by putting on some music and performing different stages from the ones that they had promoted during the year. So this means there are many different collaborations between artists or remix stages which would have fans screaming for. Because there happens to be little songs to review at this time of the year (end of Jan, don’t ask why), I thought I do this and release it in time for the Vietnamese (Or Chinese) New Year!!!!!

KBS Gayo Daechukje

  • Honestly, I was not satisfied with any of the collabs. They seem to be a last minute thing which made the show rather messy. They had good songs, but Iw as not satisfied with the way they were presented.
  • Crayon Pop’s Bar Bar Bar was a good stage. The start got everyone hyped up and when the song actually started, boy was the screams loud! It was rather fresh and different stage that everyone must’ve had enjoyed.
  • EXO’s Intro + Growl sounded amazing. Now if only they were not replayed 563495630295634092560 times this year and everyone talking about them, I would not think poorly of them. However the intro and the performance was really good.
  • APINK was one of the few bands to throw in a new instrumental for their “sexy version” of No No No. I enjoyed the dance and I liked the new mix.
  • Beast had a pretty cool stage as well. They kept their normal instrumental but made something interested out of it.
  • Sistar’s “femme fatale” Give It To Me looked really good. Minus the not so good looks of the dancers, I really liked their dance break and Dasom has my heart beating even faster.
  • Miss A’s remixes were amazing this year. I like them much better than the actual song. Amazing right?Well, honestly it is just a new instrumental over some parts and then the actual song itself. And Min, walking away like a boss and carrying on singing after getting hit in the face.

SBS Gayo Daejeon

  • First stage which I enjoyed was VIXX’s On & On and VooDoo Doll. I honestly thought that Hyde and On & On would have been a better match, but they still seemed to pull it off pretty well. I think I am turning into a fan. Damn.
  • Z:EA and Nine Muses collaboration stage with Ghost Of The Wind, Glue and finally hit song Bounce was another stage that literally got me into it. It is such a good stage with the two bands together, where it was Nine Muses first time and Z:EA’s second time since debut.
  • Another collaboration stage goes to Girl’s Day and APINK’s Expectation and No No No. Honestly, it seemed APINK had less airtime than Girl’s Day. Not sure about the detail, but it kind seems unfair. But both suited the stage every well singing each other’s song.
  • Crayon Pop’s Bar Bar Bar was pretty good. But the camera work destroyed the good stage.
  • T-Ara had a lot of hate, but I seemed to enjoy this stage. Number 9 but vampire version. Not much change to the song, except for really creepy dance breaks. And BOOOOBSSS!!!!!
  • 2NE1 had an alight stage. Though they just sang Missing You and Do You Love Me?, this still had remarkable stage preference.
  • Taeyang and G-Dragon seemed to had some fun on stage. I liked the lineup of songs they had coming. They sung 1AM, Crooked, Ringa Linga and Bad Boy. Considering that the whole group as not there, they did a good job filling up 3 other parts as well.

MBC Gayo Daejejeon

  • Miss A’s classy club mix for Hush sounded the best and probably has to be my most favourite stage out of all the stages listed here. It sounded to sexy and cool all at the same time.
  • T-Ara’s Number 9 and What Should I Do was a great stage. They combined the two songs into a club beat kind of song which flowed pretty well, considering the two extreme opposites for each song.
  • Ailee’s rapping before her performance , U&I, was da bomb.
  • F(x)’s Rum Pum Pum Pum was pretty good as well. Was not as impressed with the original version though.But the instrumental and ending of this stage was awesome!!! And finally F(x) gets a stage remix for an end of year festival.
  • B1A4’s rock remix for What’s Happening? was also a pretty cool performance. Literally got me going with the beat.
  • Infinite brought a new thing to the stage with Destiny remixed with the instrumental of Deception. Something that was quite unexpected but sounded pretty good despite the two songs sounding completely different.
  • Give It To Me by Sistar was pretty cool as well if the little bit of dubstep (I think) mixed in the song as well. Hyorin’s intro with Sweet Dream was pretty cool.
  • Kara’s medley of songs was pretty good. And considering the departure of two members, it fitted the occasion. They performed Lupin, Step, Damaged Lady, Mister and Honey (not sure about the last one though.

If you watched the performances, which one did you like? Honestly, when I was watching the performances on YouTube, all I thought was that it seemed too much like a normal music show rather than something to be called a “End Of Year Festival”. I think these stages are losing their purpose. But anyway, still a fantastic line-up and amazing stages!!! What were your favourite stages of the three nights?

Doom Dada – T.O.P (Big Bang)

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Now it is T.O.P’s turn. T.O.P has finally returned with a brand new single after absence of like 3 years. It has been sometime since we last heard a song from the man and now we finally get our chance. Being extremely busy with movie roles that he has to pay, T.O.P has literally spiced the stage up with something weird. I am not complaining because I freaking love this song. Let’s just say, it is a tribute to song to his hardcore rapping and extreme creativity. The only live performance was at the MAMA’s last night, and really, he does not really dance that much. So I will be skipping that part all together in the review. But I will put the video of his performance and the Big Bang crew into the playlist for you all.

The song has that exotic feel to it. No one is this world will be able to argue with that. At first, I thought this song would not make it at all, because of the exotic feel. However, the second time listening to it, I figured it is not the instrumental of the song or T.O.P’s rapping style, but rather you have to listen to the whole song together as one to be able to grasp a full understanding of the song. And that understanding is: WEIRD! Like every aspect of this comeback is “not normal”. This song talks about the evolution of the human body. Well, more like the evolution of T.O.P and how he became “hot” and “sexy”. Hell, this song is so catchy and sounds so amazing. Like the “doom da da didi da” was hella catchy. You have got me officially singing this song all day long. The hardcore rapping is amazing. The only problem with the song is one main line: “Long Time No See”. Why? Because to me, the soloist is saying “Long time no shit”. T.O.P, is work that demanding for you? You have got no time to take a dump? Wow!

This music video is so quirky and different, it made me laugh so much. There is most probably a million ways someone can interpret this video. And here is my take on it right now. T.O.P, in ape form, discovers a microphone with his gang. Gang of apes. What? Fast forward a bit and you get T.O.P in his full glory. Then we get T.O.P and the little kid with the massive head. Seriously, I love that little kid. He is basically made the video turn from a boring video into such a funny video. That or T.O.P’s ridiculously motorbike riding style. I am sorry, but if I found out that T.O.P was my chauffeur, I probably take a taxi to my hotel in Korea. I have to say this video was hilarious and a video that I would probably go to when I feel down.

9/10. Excellent and funny. This also takes me to the end of the Big Bang reviews. Now I just need to wait for their single that should be released later this year. You have one month YG, one month.