Given Cube Entertainment’s once-savvy position in the K-pop industry, I’m surprised how soft their launch of new boy group Nowadays has been. Their debut came and went without much fanfare, followed by a cover version of Beast’s Rainy Day. Neither of these tracks helped establish Nowadays as a unique group of their own, so first … Continue reading
When this LIGHTSUM comeback was first announced, my immediate thought was: “didn’t they disband?” Obviously, I was getting them confused with another group (probably Cherry Bullet), but it says something when a K-pop obsessive like me can’t even remember the status of LIGHTSUM. The group just hasn’t released much material and their long hiatuses make … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I look back at my three favorite title tracks by K-pop artists. I take my own ratings into account, but there’s a bit of wiggle room as certain songs tend to grow or fade. July 2024 Overall Thoughts After a stellar June, July was always going to have a hard … Continue reading
BTOB are most celebrated for their stately ballads and light pop music that showcases their vocals. However, the group are capable of much more than that. I’m partial to their many dalliances with new jack swing, mostly because those songs let the guys have fun in a more carefree way. New sub-unit single Tang Tang … Continue reading
Rather than contain my “Risers and Fallers” feature to a single post in June, I’m going to share a bite-sized version at the end of each month. This will let me account for more songs and make a nice lead-in to the monthly round-up post. I anticipate most of these ratings adjustments will be negligible: … Continue reading
While there have been plenty of great title tracks so far this summer, we haven’t heard many that are explicitly themed to the season. (G)I-DLE are here to fix that with new single Klaxon (클락션). Following 2020’s DUMDi DUMDi, the girls are back with another summer track that hearkens back to K-pop’s distant past. The … Continue reading
When writing about Yuqi’s pre-release Could It Be several weeks ago, I was hoping we’d hear more edgy rock influences from her title track. After all, 2021’s Bonnie & Clyde remains a high water mark for both her and (G)I-DLE. With the release of Freak, I (sort of) got what I hoped for, though it’s … Continue reading
New girl group Unicode is unique in that all its members are Japanese. I’m not sure how that’s going to serve them in an industry that feels quite insular, but their agency has been smart to give them a quintessentially Korean sound for debut single Let Me Love (돌아봐줄래). Most pertinent to my interests, the … Continue reading
Three years ago, (G)I-DLE’s Yuqi released the brilliant Bonnie & Clyde — a pummeling piece of pop/rock with the driving energy of a dance track. That song utilized her husky tone in ways we rarely hear from (G)I-DLE’s work, making me long for more solo work. That era is finally upon us with a mini … Continue reading
Today marks the debut of Cube Entertainment’s Nowadays. They follow in the footsteps of agency seniors Beast, BTOB and Pentagon, each of which debuted with a song very in keeping with their K-pop era. By all accounts, we’re now in K-pop’s fifth generation, but the boisterous OoWee feels more in line with the industry’s past … Continue reading
I wouldn’t say that (G)-IDLE’s Super Lady has grown on me, but I appreciate its bold EDM energy and commitment to old fashioned showmanship. With that said, the group feels far more at home on grittier material that evenly spreads its time between the members’ various tones. Revenge falls much more in line with what … Continue reading
(G)I-DLE’s music has gone through many transformations — most recently in the form of the polarizing, meme-ready Wife. Regardless of genre, their title tracks have become known for their catchphrases. Leader and composer Soyeon loves a concept, and nuance isn’t really her thing. Whether they’re a wife, a tomboy, a queen or a nude, the … Continue reading
Rather than contain my “Risers and Fallers” feature to a single post in June, I’m going to share a bite-sized version at the end of each month. This will let me account for more songs and make a nice lead-in to the monthly round-up post. I anticipate most of these ratings adjustments will be negligible: … Continue reading
To be honest, this year I tended to watch most K-pop music videos one or two times before moving onto the song and leaving the visuals behind. The water mark for music videos has become very high, with the industry churning out cinematic, big-budget works every other day. While many videos could comfortably slot into … Continue reading
Disclaimer: As with my write-ups on K-Pop’s biggest agencies, this is written from an outsider’s perspective. I’m not privy to any business-related financial information beyond what any other fan would know. The purpose of these articles is to examine how well these agencies are serving their artists and the general K-pop fan-base. If you’re curious … Continue reading
It’s not often that K-pop releases collaborations between its major agencies, but Nobody sees representative artists from SM Entertainment, Cube Entertainment and Starship Entertainment come together to deliver a theme for Busan’s bid to host the World Expo 2030. I didn’t know these things warranted a theme song, but I’m glad to have Nobody regardless … Continue reading
Cube Entertainment’s girl group that’s not (G)I-DLE continues their ‘one comeback a year’ streak. I don’t mean this as a diss to LIGHTSUM — more as frustration with agency’s ability to promote them properly. How are you supposed to develop a fanbase with such infrequent releases? Making matters worse, their ranks are down to six … Continue reading
A few months ago, (G)I-DLE previewed their first English-language EP with I Do — a synthy, atmospheric slow burn that worked well for the group. That sound didn’t turn out to be an indication of where the EP would go, as (G)I-DLE explores a multitude of genres. The dancefloor drive of I Want That is … Continue reading
K-Pop debuts can be tricky things. At times, they’re the best song a group delivers. Sometimes, they’re the only song a group delivers! But, debuts can also be huge wtf moments in an artist’s career. In this feature, I’ll be looking back at debut songs through the prism of time, re-evaluating how well they hold … Continue reading
At the end of each month, I look back at my three favorite title tracks by K-pop artists. I take my own ratings into account, but there’s a bit of wiggle room as certain songs tend to grow or fade. July 2023 Overall Thoughts This July was characterized by several things, but on this blog it … Continue reading
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 