With over 4,000 songs on my iPhone’s “K-Pop Singles” playlist, I thought it would be fun to add a bit of unpredictability to my song review posts. So as a result, we have the “Random Shuffle Review” feature.
The rules are simple. I fire up my playlist, press “shuffle,” and whatever song plays first gets the full Bias List treatment!
Year Released: 2010
This week, I went back and watched the 2012 MBC Gayo Daejun for the first time in many, many years. It was such a rush seeing so many classic songs performed back to back, and made me realize once again just how much the sound of K-pop has changed in the past decade. One aspect that stuck out most was how powerfully almost every artist sang. Songs were built around a steady stream of robust melodies and extended, show-stopping notes. I miss this style of singing — not only in K-pop, but in pop music more globally.
This brings me to today’s random shuffle review. Nothing Lasts Forever precedes 2012 by two years but would have felt right at home during that Gayo Daejun (the group performed their even better Don’t Forget Me, btw). Before Girl’s Day found a signature sound, they dipped their feet in a few disparate genres. Nothing Lasts Forever stands as a unique point in their discography and the song is downright perfect.
Forever‘s frantic, electro-edged verses share much in common with the then-dominant 2NE1 and also feel oddly similar to today’s sing-talk style. But as soon as we hit the chorus, the song reveals itself as the kind of belt-it-out stunner that goes down in history. I love the sheer power of this simple refrain, allowing the girls to lay everything on the line.
As good as this is, it’s Nothing Last Forever‘s final minute that ensures the song’s legendary status. Imagine a 2024 version of this track, defiantly cutting off at the two-and-a-half minute mark and robbing us of the swirling fantasia of epic vocal harmony and ascending synth that follows. Forever transforms completely during this segment, offering its catchiest vocal hook and most dramatic production. Talk about ending on a high! You can almost feel the producers’ excitement upon reaching this turning point. Everything about the song was built to climax in this cathartic finale, making for a satisfyingly full storyline that sounds as stunning today as it did fourteen years ago.
| Hooks | 10 |
| Production | 10 |
| Longevity | 10 |
| Bias | 10 |
| RATING | 10 |
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
My personal favourite Girls Day track by a long shot. God that final minute is a rush.
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my favorite kpop song of all time. You cannot change my mind otherwise
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That last high note really is euphoric. Reminds me of Beast’s high note in Breath and Chamgmin’s always iconic ‘Do You Know Whyyyyyy’ high note in Rising Sun. Though I’m always an electro-pop enjoyer, I was feeling sorta lukewarm at the beginning, but once the second chorus hit, I was sold. Another ‘Nothing’ addition to the 10/10 club (I believe the other one is Infinite’s Nothing’s Over?). Funny enough, the Girls Day song I’ve played the most is Twinkle Twinkle (I know, but it’s has its 2nd gen quirkiness and camp 😭), this is welcome addition to my downloads!
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Funny, just last week I was doing a tour through old SHINee performances on the music shows.
If this were released today, it would end around the 2:00 mark. The slow break 2:00-2:30 would be the EP intro. The final chorus =this time with FEELING= from 2:30-3:30 would never be sung on any show but would be the music behind the pre-performance glamour poses.
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such an epic song, thats all
anyway, what are your thoughts on these new singles? already saw ur thoughts on the weeknd’s new song so im not gonna post it here
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Okay… I’ll bite.
TATE: I get why people are excited about this kind of throwback pop star presentation (I am too!), but the songs just aren’t there. This chorus is absolutely nothing. It’s a shame because she clearly has the charisma to pull off much better material.
KATY: You know, I thought I wanted a new Katy Perry album in 2024 but it turns out I don’t. This is… fine. It’s like a good dance track flatlined of all its energy.
SHAWN: Not interested in this sound or this performer.
DEMI: Nope. I’m sure this is very meaningful to Demi but it does nothing for me. Not a fan of “diary pop” like this.
FKA TWIGS: Easily the most interesting song here. I’m not sure it 100% holds together, but at least it’s trying to do *something*.
God, mainstream Western pop music is just awful this year…
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the fact i can envision all the ratings you give these songs lol
yeah, apart from singers like chappell and charli, a lot of the mainstream western pop songs this year just aren’t good, we need to spice it up more…
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This is such a good song. I hadn’t thought of it in ages! Now I need to listen to more Girl’s Day.
I agree with the sentiment that a 2024 version of this song would be a sad, truncated little thing, ending before the best bits.
(Unrelated, other than it concerns a girl group: Did you see that Le Sserafim performed “1-800-hot-n-fun” for The Late Show With Stephen Colbert? It’s not my fave of their recent songs, but still…rather an unexpected occurrence.
YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YxenUCa1_k )
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They seem to be pushing this song globally. I think they also performed it at the VMA pre-show? It’s kind of a cringy introduction to them, though…
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There can be this Rock purism in America, and this kinda campy song, I don’t think it’ll particularly appeal to anyone outside the kpop or kpop-adjacent bubble. It’s just more preaching to the choir (it honestly only works for audiences that are already open to it)
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Nice! But NMIXX released a video for love is lonely and RESCENE released a mv for New World. Are you planning on reviewing them?
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