Tag: Jun.K (2PM)

[International Song Reviews] Jackson Wang & JJ Lin, The Boyz, AB6IX & Why Don’t We, Jun.K, WAYV

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It is time for another post International Song Review segment. As promised last time, I would write the post as soon as there are five songs eligible for review (i.e. any song by a Korean or KPOP-related artist who has released a song in a non-Korean market). In this post for this week, I will be reviewing the collaborations between Jackson Wang & JJ Lin, the remix collaboration between AB6IX and Why Don’t We. I will also look at The Boyz and Jun.K’s recent releases in the JPOP market and WAYV’s return.

Should’ve Let Go – Jackson Wang & JJ Lin

Should’ve Let Go is a collaboration between Jackson Wang (member of GOT7) and JJ Lin (a famous Singaporean artist) and was released at the end of 2020. The biggest asset in this song are both Jackson’s and JJ Lin’s vocals. They sound stunning throughout the song with their raspy vocals. The melodies in which carry their vocals are so smooth and this makes the song even more impeccable. And don’t get me started when they harmonise with one another. Those sections are just blissful. Another really great aspect of the song for me is the R&B instrumentation. While I do describe the song as a ballad, the R&B roots are very prominent and give the song a little bit more appeal than a usual classical instrumented ballad would. Oh, and per usual, the ballad makes me sway along (Props to you if you know what that means). The music video shows two love stories. The first is a couple who have been together for some time. The male partner gets into college or a job that requires the pair to go into a long distance relationship. The female partner does not like this idea and chooses not to kiss him one last time before he leaves. The second story is of a high school crush. The male partner has a crush on the female and hesitantly tries to get close to her. One day, she drops a necklace and he picks it up. Using this as an excuse, he plans on confessing to her through a letter. But when he is on his way to the next day, he witnesses his crush accepting flowers from another guy. At the end of the video, we see what should have happened (i.e. the guy moving away hugs his partner as he leaves, and the younger guy makes his move earlier on). I have an interesting theory that suggests Jackson is the guy who moved away as all his scenes are on the bus (which was the mode of transport the guy was taking to move away), while JJ Lin is the high school guy as he is seen holding the necklace that the female character in that story dropped. I liked how the stories felt fitting for the emotional side of the song, and the ambience of the scenes that involved JJ Lin and Jackson were optimal for a ballad like Should’ve Let Go. (10/10)

Breaking Dawn – The Boyz

The Boyz made their return to the Japanese market at the end of February with Breaking Dawn. However following the confusion caused by Tattoo (their first original single in the Japanese market), I still feel like The Boyz, their company and their producers are a little confused with the Japanese market. Three quarters of Breaking Dawn is prosed in the Korean language, with the other quarter being in Japanese (and is limited primarily to the end of the song – i.e. half of the bridge and the final chorus). Moving away from the language confusion, Breaking Dawn is a okay dance track. It isn’t one that I am super excited about. It doesn’t really offer us anything different to what we know The Boyz for. The only observation I made in regards to the song that I felt was a substantial difference was that the vocals and rapping sound a lot rougher in Breaking Dawn, compared to their other releases. While I usually would be praising this modification in sound because I really enjoy textures in my song, its instrumentation is plain and doesn’t provide any dynamic backing to these vocals. The chorus was also okay. It wasn’t the best, but it wasn’t necessarily terrible. I would have enjoyed it more with better hooks and maybe a punchier instrumental piece to liven the song. The ‘Breaking Dawn‘ deep toned whisper that kick starts the chorus doesn’t really do achieve any of that. I feel like its whisper really sets the tone for the chorus, which resulted in it not being as dynamic as I thought it could potentially be. For the music video, I really like the visuals that we got. This includes both the visuals of the members and the sets in general. I really like how they used fluoro colours as the main colour palette of the video, which looked stylish and trendy. The choreography was pretty good. To me, it felt like a continuation of the same themes and style as their The Stealer choreography. They show off their performance skills in this routine and there is also that tinge of sexiness in the performance, thanks to the bending back move that kicks off the chorus and the outfits worn by some of the members. (7.3/10)

Fallin’ (Adrenaline) – AB6IX & Why Don’t We

While there is no music video for the collaborative remix for Fallin’ (Adrenaline) by AB6IX and Why Don’t We (one of the criteria a release usually must have to be reviewable), I still want to write a review for it. While the main differences between the two versions is simply the multi-language approach of the lyrics, I have classed Fallin’ as an International Song because it was previously released as Western single and this particular version still involves the original singers of the song. Why Don’t We’s version was already really captivating, thanks to its instrumentation. But I also have really enjoyed AB6IX Remix for a number of reasons. Firstly, I enjoyed the instrumentation of both. They are effectively the same background piece, with really thrilling drumming that really get the adrenaline pumping. Secondly, I really liked how AB6IX really fitted into this song and alongside Why Don’t We. There synergy really made it feel like this was the original version of the song. Thirdly, I really enjoyed the addition of the rap sequence that Woojin contributed as part of the bridge. It continues that momentum from the chorus and it didn’t ruin the integrity, structure or overall feel of the song. I wish that one day (after this pandemic) we will have the opportunity to see a live performance of this collaboration. Just imagine Why Don’t We playing their instruments in the background and bringing us a live performance of that adrenaline rush, while AB6IX throws in a bit of choreography that taps into that energy and vibe. Already sounds like a performance to watch out for. (10/10)

Hide & Seek, 1995 – Jun.K

A release that has probably gone under the radar for a lot of people is Jun.K’s most release Japanese release, Hide & Seek, 1995. The song dips its toes into that groovy trend that has been ongoing in the KPOP music scene, however still keeps a R&B profile. I quite like this combination. It might be a bit typical in hindsight. But it is a good listen, nonetheless. I really like Jun.K’s vocals in this song. His husky tone is used really well and his vocals in general feel really lively and upbeat. Interestingly, his more recent Korean release (30 Seconds Might Be Too Long) actually has a similar sound. But yet, Hide & Seek 1995 seems to sound like a complete turnaround in sound thanks to his brighter sound. The music video for Hide & Seek, 1995 actually looks nice. Through the short previews that you get when you hover your mouse over the thumbnails on YouTube, I thought it would be a dull video. But the post-production, including colours and effects, all really helps the video work in harmony with the song. It is also a stylish manner to make the video appear more energetic. Jun.K also had good chemistry with the camera, which also helped as well. I quite enjoyed it in the end. (8/10)

Kick Back – WAYV

Kick Back is the latest release from WAYV, the Chinese based unit of NCT. Kick Back starts off like your typical male group dance track. I did like the hefty momentum of the song and the percussion in the background. The song then progresses into the pre-chorus, which brought in some dramatic flair. They merged some classical instrumentation into the song and I found this part of the song to be the most engaging. Just before the chorus, we get a long note from Ten, a bit of rapping from Lucas and what I would describe as ‘sparks’ in the instrumentation. This transition felt quite smooth and really connected well with the catchy and repetitive chorus simply. I really like how amped up everything felt in the chorus, but I think it could have gone an extra mile (more on that in a second). Moving along, I also really liked the bridge of the song. The focus is more so on the vocals, which I think was a very strong aspect of Kick Back, and I really like it how the instrumental felt like an extension of the pre-choruses (which I have already mentioned that I enjoyed a lot). The rapping in Kick Back was more forgettable. I felt like this was a missed opportunity to have the rappers deliver a sequence with a little more power and dynamism to offset the ‘neutral gear’ that the song was stuck in. And that is something that I must admit really stuck out at me. While the song was good and what I have described Kick Back is quite positive, I can’t help it but think the song was ‘safe’ for the group. We did get a tease of an octane sequence at the end with a dance break sequence at the end. However, I would have preferred it more if the producers somehow integrated this into the song, rather than just sticking it at the end. I think this would have helped make the song a lot more appealing in the long run. Based on what I am reading, WAYV’s music video for this release is connected to past NCT and WAYV music videos. Watching the music video a couple of times for this review, I didn’t really catch any references to those videos. But maybe my mind isn’t working right today. But the video has good cinematography, which made the video engaging for me to watch. The sets also looked good. Their outfits felt questionable for me. Their choreography routine looks really cool. I really like the footwork that you can see throughout the video and their jelly leg move during the chorus. While the footwork does look easy, I am sure the balancing act they had to do at the same time on the other foot made it really hard. I also liked the subtle tinge of aggressiveness in the choreography. (7.6/10)

[Review] 30 Minutes Might Be Too Long – Jun.K (2PM)

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It has been a while since we heard anything from 2PM due to military enlistment. As far as I can tell, the rest of the members (Junho and Chansung) who are currently enlisting will complete their mandatory military enlistment next year. In the meanwhile, the members who have completed their enlistment (including Nichkhun) have been focusing on solo promotions. Today, Jun.K (who completed his enlistment early on in 2020) dropped his newest single, 30 Minutes Might Be Too Long, which is featured on his fourth mini-album, 20 Minutes. However, this isn’t his first song of the year. His first was This Is Not A Song, 1929, which was released back in June (which I completely missed).

Jun.K’s latest song is really good. But it really isn’t the reason to why I am reviewing the comeback today. Given that this particular comeback has no choreography, the only other reason to why I am writing this review is the music video. But more on that in a minute. I still need to write out my thoughts for the song. 30 Minutes Might Be Too Long is an acoustic mid-tempo R&B song. I did like how strong the acoustic guitar was throughout the song, even during the more upbeat sections of the song. The more upbeat parts of the song, which made the song feel more pop than R&B, definitely infused a lot of energy into the song and definitely gave a kick to an otherwise pretty standard track. Another really great element about 30 Minutes Might Be Too Long are his vocals. While he did get a little shouty during the chorus, it felt intentional to help make the song feel a lot punchier, which compliments the energy. The only thing I am a little confused about the structure of the song. Correct me if I am wrong, but it seems like 30 Minutes Might Be Too Long was extended and the first round of the chorus was quite prolonged, before we went into a bridge and back to the chorus. I personally don’t have any issues with abstract song structures usually, but this one felt particularly odd. Not exactly sure why. But other than that, Jun.K’s newest single has an awesome vibe to, with great vocals and music.

With the song part out the way, I can now focus on the music video. The juicy bit of this comeback. It is a very interesting music video with two plot twists. The first felt very predictable. We open with a very stormy setting and a guy running away from this crazed lady. He tries to run as far away from her as possible, even seeking the security of his own home. But to no avail as she somehow makes it in. After a little teasing from her, she finally captures him, paralyses him (somehow), puts a ring on him to make him hers, and ends up putting a stick of dynamite in his mouth. She has this crazed moment where she does her evil laugh to signify her happiness in succeeding and lights the dynamite. But it slowly turns to regrets, showing us how mentally unstable her character is. We then cut to Jun.K, where it is revealed that he is shooting a music video (the first plot twist). Upon completion, he leaves the set and sends the text message to the actress who was playing the crazed lady to meet up later. They end up meeting up at his place, where he plans a cute date. But from my understanding, it is revealed that he is the crazed one. Firstly, she looks very disinterested in their relationship. Secondly, he does a lot of preparation for this one ‘date’, similar to her character. Thirdly, there is a stick of dynamite under the table (second unexpected plot-twist), which presumably blows up 20 minutes into their date (which matches his request for a final 20 minutes to win her back). Fourthly, I assume he survives and ends up returning to a place that looks exactly like the set of the video that was being shot, telling us the story in the video was his story. While I feel like a few kinks can be smoothed out with this music video, I really enjoyed the dark vibes and and the overall storyline of the video.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8.6/10

[Review] Think About You – Jun.K (2PM)

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[This review was written and scheduled a few months back in preparation for my absence in December. The standard posts for the end of the year (comebacks I have missed in November & December, the end of year charts + KPOPreviewed awards) will be written and posted after my return. No weekly charts will be uploaded for the last week of November and all of December.]

Jun.K (formerly known as Junsu) is the main vocalist from 2PM, under JYP Entertainment. He previously made his solo debut a few years back. He has actively promoted as a solo artist in Japan when he is not promoting with 2PM. Thinking About U marks his solo return to South Korea, in August of this year.

Thinking About You is a song that has the RnB sound, but is mixed with an EDM instrumental.  It is an odd mix but it works really with each other. Vocally, he sounds outstanding. His singing style doesn’t typically match the genres of music that the instrumental has us expecting. But somehow he makes it work. Those ad-libs at the end really do end the song quite nicely, boasting his talents even further. The lyrics of the song talk about the regrets that the guy has, who previously cheated or left his previous lover behind. Overall, I think it is a really good track. It is interesting that it combines genres that don’t usually go well together and still it manages to work.

The video was extremely boring to watch. There wasn’t much going on in it. Though, for someone who never took his shirt off, he has his fair of shirtlessness in this video. There just wasn’t anything captivating in the video. There were many close up shots in different sets and a few choreography scenes. But nothing that worth talking about.

During the live performances, Jun.K doesn’t participate in the dance (he focuses on the singing only, only dancing during the dance break). The dance is okay. His performance overall is a little boring to watch as well. I would have preferred just him singing into a microphone with this song, though.

Rating – 6.5/10

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

 

My House – 2PM

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2PM is finally back with a new song. Last year, they made their comeback with Go Crazy which was seen as a go to party song for everyone to dance to. It did that job and probably turned into one of the most popular songs for parties for last year. This time, they are back with a more fantasy world comeback. I can’t think of the word for it. Maybe mystical?

The song is a pretty solid song. Though I have to admit it was a little disappointing for me. I think the song was a solid display that the vocal work and rapping was still pretty decent. But I don’t really associate this sound with 2PM. Jun.K wrote the song and I think he did a wonderful job with a song that had a bit of a mix up in the middle in terms of the sound. I feel like Nichkhun, Chansung and Junho got overshadowed in this song but I feel like they got their parts at the same time. It is a pretty nice song that reminds of the late 90s boy bands. I really enjoyed the autotune ad-libs during the song (the Rabbit in other words). I liked the guitar at the start with the slight electro feel we get in the song. The chorus wasn’t that appealing in my point of view and it just didn’t get me into it. But I think the song did its job pretty well, but it just lacked for me.

As for the music video, I liked the concept they are going for. It is pretty original. While I am sure we have all seen 1 fairytale story in a music video somewhere, I don’t think there has ever been a combination of them together in one video. We see different fairy tales in this video mashed up into one including: Cinderella, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves,  Alice In Wonderland, Red Riding Hood, Beauty and The Beast, Rapunzel etc. I thought it was a very well thought concept that matched the song as well. And the animals in this music video. I kid you not, the rabbit made my day when I watched the music video. I thought the rabbit scenes were adorable and so freaking cute. The wolf matched Taecyeon very well, so I guess their Beastly Idol image remains. It is a little confusing to talk about how it all fits in but I think the music video was pretty nice to watch. It wasn’t boring because I found that I was more intrigue about who she was going to choose.

When I first saw the dance, I thought they were pulling luggage. Not joke, it just made so much sense to me. So when I found that they were holding the girls hand and leading the way back to “their house”, my mind was blown. The dance fitted the style of the song (and the lyrics)  but to me it doesn’t have that 2PM feel to it. It just seemed like a pop song’s dance.

Overall, even though I find 2PM now losing a lot of their colour and identity, this was a pretty nice comeback. 7.5/10

Guilty Love – 2PM

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2PM is back in Japan with a brand new single, Guilty Love. For a while now, 2PM has been focusing more on the Japanese industry with more regular releases of albums and songs than compared to the Korean market. With both Jun.K and Junho starting their solo careers in Japan in 2014, 2015 will see 2PM’s Wooyoung make his official debut later this month (according to insiders). On top of that, their newest Japanese single is receiving a lot of love with the song peaking at number 1 in the Japanese charts.

The title of the song sounded a lot like a ballad, so I was quite surprised when I first heard this song. But instead we get this Las Vegas sounding songs with a lot of trumpet work and with a grand feel to it. It really does not have that 2PM feel to it. Instead there is more of a popish feel to it, rather than a manly feel to the song that we usually get from 2PM.  The song is actually pretty good, and I feel that Jun.K’s (well the chorus) parts hook me to the song. The 5 grunts were totally unnecessary after Taecyeon’s rap.  But his rap is pretty good still. I feel that 2Pm really needs one of their Japanese songs to be one of their Korean songs. 2PM put out good music while in Japan, and sadly, they haven’t been as successful for their last two comebacks in Korea.

Prepare for me to review 1 minute and 32 seconds of basically the first part of the song. They carried the Las Vegas feel of the song to video. The background looks like the Las Vegas lights we see and think of when we hear about Las Vegas. The combination of the band and black and white filter gives off this really retro feel to the song. Even their hairstyles remind us of the retro times. I’d be a little creeped out my jukebox has a bunch of dudes just waving at you. And really beside that, I can’t say much about the music video. Seriously, Japan really needs to start releasing the full version of their videos, like when the song is released. Makes my life 10x easier.

As for the dance, it looks pretty solid. Not as memorable or catchy as their previous dances, but still pretty good.

Nice comeback for Japan. I think we need a comeback in Korea. Comeback to Korea after Wooyoung’s solo okay? 8/10

Alive – Jun.K

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Song

Wow, this is a style that  would never had expected from 2PM’s Junsu. From what I understand he is just the vocal person in the group but to hear him rap and sing what I understand to be Hip Hop kind of scares me. I quite surprised that he even can rap because I am just used to hearing him sing not rap.

Anyway, I really like this song. It is “ALIVE”. The vocals in the bridge, the rap and the hip hop beat is definitely cool. The whole song was the highlight for me. I just can’t pick between a certain section over another. His English in the song is really good. I find it much better in this song than in his previous song as he has this Engrish pronunciation. In this song, there is no English pronunciation.

Music Video

I thought there was a music video for this. I want a music video for this. There was news that he was mean to have a music video but currently we are all waiting. JYP do not become like SM , don’t make us wait. Turns out the music video for this song just happens to be what they filmed at 2PM’s concert (if I am not mistaken). That sucks.

Live Performance

Okay, yeah. Lost for words. Its not a good performance since it is a music video as well, but it is not also a bad music video. I do like the start where they are all dressed up in these ghostly figures and then Junsu turns around a few times and then he is like in his full suit wear. Yep, got to love stage effects. I also like the long line of fireworks.It is pretty cool.

And The Rating?

8.5 out of 10. Nice song. Still awaiting an actual music video, one that is not filmed during a live performance.

Have Fun Watching. Troy. 😀