There are few things I enjoy more than a great summertime song. They’re bright, they’re exciting, and they remind me of my favorite time of the year.

There’s no telling what this summer in K-pop will bring, but over the next few weeks I’ll be flashing back each day, showcasing a highlight from past summers. The rules are simple: I fire up my carefully compiled “K-pop summer” playlist, hit ‘shuffle,’ and if the song that pops up hasn’t already been featured on the site, it gets a post and mini-review of its own.

So, get ready for a summer of K-pop on The Bias List!

(View all the Summer of K-pop songs here)

<< Song 29 >>

SMTOWN – Let’s Go On A Trip (2007)

Back in the mid-00’s, SM Entertainment used to release special seasonal albums for summer and winter. Each contained various themed tracks from its roster of artists, as well as some collaborations. In this case, Let’s Go On A Trip sees the whole SM family covering Cho Yong Pil’s classic 1985 track, which is widely considered one of Korea’s definitive summer songs. The original has its lo-fi charms, but I love this version as well. The arrangement is fuller, but loses some of the classic rock edge. Instead, this is a good old-fashioned, clap-happy singalong, rollicking in its energy and infectious in its unrelenting optimism. And where else are you going to hear legends like BoA, TVXQ and Super Junior performing together like this?