[Review] Fei - Fantasy

I've ranted about titles before but this one is just plain weird. "Fantasy" is the English title but "It's Okay Fantasy" is the Korean title. I dunno. Anyways, Fei having a solo debut was an important process because not only is she the least thought-of member in terms of solo ability in her group, this release would at least hold down the fort in a world after Jia's departure put miss A's future in the uncertain air. Unfortunately, it came at a problematic time, what with all the Chinese politics everywhere. Regardless, I only care about the music. So let's dive in.

"Fantasy" plays out like a song from a fantasy alright. The instrumental is smooth and gives off R&B vibes, which assist in Fei's breathy vocals. Wait, hold up a second. Fei sounds like this? It's a serious surprise that Fei is capable of delivering such a vocal performance. You don't really get to hear much out of Fei in miss A's pop-oriented music, so that's neat. You'll note that I didn't say "pleasant surprise" because honestly, you can't convince me to say that she sounds great in "Fantasy." In terms of difficulty Fei gets high marks because I doubt she ever has to sing like this, but she's an average vocalist at best so she ain't making me swoon or anything.

[Blog] Kpop in Seoul-ish

If you, dear reader, are like me, then you are probably curious about Kpop in Korea. After all, most of us are international fans. I had the opportunity to be in Seoul (more specifically, the Myeongdong and Hongdae area) for a week. While I was enjoying my time buying and eating everything in Seoul, I paid attention to the songs that Korea (or rather, Korean shops I suppose) were listening to. A few notes before moving forward:

- I recorded songs that were within hearing range. I wasn't about to bulldoze my way through a crowd to figure out a song because that's unnecessary. And like mentioned earlier, these were primarily in the streets of Hongdae and Myeongdong.

- My library is not all-encompassing. There were certainly songs that I didn't recognize, and I tried to account for them as best I could whenever I had the time (because an international plan only gets you so much data).

- Girl groups and soloists only. I didn't pay attention for boy groups, but even then I could easily tell you that the three dominating parties were: ballads, hip-hop and rap (plenty of San E), and Big Planet (Big Bang and EXO). I also heard more Psy than I would have thought.

[Bonus] Best Of 2014 Revisited

Continuing the revisited series, we stop at a shy two years back in 2014. This was one of the more diverse years and I expect a handful of new entries to join the fun. Writing these redos have been fun and I may go in reverse after doing the 2015 set, although I'll probably only write 2011 and 2010 because my memory doesn't go much further back. At some point, I even plan for a "Best Of 2010-2015" and basically pit the top 5 of each year against each other to see which songs come out on top.

#12. INFINITE - Back (--)
Original: INFINITE - Back
Zero changes here. Infinite's "Back" was a reliable release with all the trademarks of the group in tow. Solid vocal showing from Sunggyu and Woohyun, and a dance performance that lives up to the Infinite name. In terms of the individual categories they all did well and came together well, too. There were some boy group songs competing for this spot (namely Block B's "Her") but at the end of the day the consistency of Infinite's track record proved stronger.

#11. Lovelyz - Goodnight Like Yesterday (NEW)
Original: Wheesung - Night & Day
Lovelyz kicks off five consecutive new entries to the 2014 list. Most of the songs that were replaced were ones that didn't have staying power, whether through the songs not being as good as initially interpreted, novelty wearing off, or a combination of those and other factors. "Goodnight Like Yesterday" is a premier ballad and helps out Jieun in that genre's representation. Soft soothing voices led by Kei make this a lullaby for the ages. The best part? "Destiny" showed that this wasn't a one-trick-wonder either, this style could be their bread and butter if they wanted.

[Misc] 4th Anniversary Post

On July 21st, 2012, I posted my first ever Kpop review of Wonder Girls' "Like This" on my Tumblr. At that point, I was about 3 years into my discovery of Kpop. Fast forward four more years, countless different "generations" of writing, and now we're in 2016 and the 7th iteration of reviews. It's always been an intriguing affair and I doubt I'll stop anytime soon. This blog has helped arch me away from the super fanboy phase (2011 to early 2013) and into a more standard consumer of Korean music, and that's pretty important. I can't keep hoping Taeyeon or Younha will marry me, heh.

I appreciate each and every one of you who take time to read my reviews, power rankings, etc. Writing about Kpop has and will continue to be a fun and awesome experience and I look forward to what the future holds, for both myself and Kpop. You the reader, the audience are part of the process, too. So thanks! Four years have passed, let's see how the next four years go! I've not got anything fancy so here's Taeyeon. :3

[Blog] The Soloist J-Trinity

Today is a short and light blog post that sort of doubles as a spotlight-esque article. We'll see how I feel about it and go from there if I have similar ideas in the future. We all know the J-Trinity that is Twice's Mina, Momo, and Sana. But there's another trio of J's who are nowhere near as popular or discovered, and that's a damn shame. These three are all underrated soloists that don't get anywhere near as much love as they deserve, for reasons (mostly) beyond my understanding.

[Review] Wonder Girls - Why So Lonely EP

It's been a long time since I reviewed an album. Or rather, a mini album / EP because the previous three installments (Taeyeon, IU, 9MUSES) have all been mini albums haha. Anyway those classification and syntax things aside, let's take a brief look at Wonder Girls' return with the "Why So Lonely" EP. Their comeback last year with a new lineup and band concept was well-received and their legend continues to grow.

1. Why So Lonely

"Why So Lonely" is a wonderful thing. Retro swag and reggae swag combined into one masterpiece. These vocals are fun but sultry at the same time, and that includes Yubin. Wait what. Holy shit! Yubin got to sing?! My hype and appreciation for this can't be expressed enough. I'm hoping that this will magically pioneer a shift where rappers get at least some singing lines. Moonbyul, Bora, Woori, etc. Anyway Sunmi and Yeeun continue to deliver and the more you look, the more valuable 1-2 vocal punches seem to be really damn good. The entire song is full of reggae feel, so I know a certain Running Man cast member is probably really happy about this one.

[Review] GFriend - Navillera

The girls of GFriend are now onto their 4th song and gaining momentum fast. They have evolved piece by piece from the days of "Glass Bead," each subsequent comeback adding a little more depth to their style. At the beginning of the year, "Rough" was a sensational effort that established the group among the titans. With all the lore of legendary title track runs of old (9MUSES, Girl's Day), could GFriend be embarking on one of their own, from debut no less?!

GFriend continue to do a really good job with their signature style. Every title track is distinct enough to not be a clear copy, but still maintains their sound enough that you know it's GFriend. I think this style of marketing is the best: keep a standard formula with minor tweaks here and there, but don't fix what ain't broke (maybe a blog post about this whole strategy later). But the key ingredient is that the music still has to be good. And man is "Navillera" good. I don't quite understand what that's supposed to mean, and once again the Korean title of "You And I" makes much more sense but whatever. A main component of this song's quality is the electrifying instrumental. It's really damn good, and reminds me of another excellent instrumental in 9MUSES' "Wild."

[Bonus] Best Of 2013 Revisited

As a heads up, I'm gonna be pretty busy over the next few weeks. Apparently my next online course is no joke with the amount of reading materials, and I'll be traveling to Korea for a week (which is gonna be awesome!). I have a plethora of writing I want (and started) to do - as evidenced by the "Coming Soon" section, but no idea if they'll come to completion or not. Anyway, here's a look back at my picks in 2013 and how the list would look like now in hindsight.

#12. Davichi - Turtle (NEW)
Original: Davichi - Be Warmed
Davichi's original two tracks have been dropped and replaced by the lovely "Turtle." I consider "Turtle" the medium between "Be Warmed" and "Because I'm Missing You Today." It possesses the lighthearted feel of the latter while still maintaining an intensity in the powerful vocals of the former. Sure there's no Verbal Jint appearance but he's already a bonus to begin with. The vocal work between Minkyung and Haeri is divine in "Turtle," and has over the years risen to be my 2nd favorite Davichi track (behind "Don't Say Goodbye," naturally).

#11. Gaeko - Rhythm Is Life (NEW)
Original: JeA - Days & Nights
In the first list, Dynamic Duo was the sole male representation. This time around, only Gaeko returns (though there is another male artist later). Like I mentioned in Best Of 2012 Revisited, Korean hip-hop didn't fly onto the radar until 2013, and this was one of the pioneering tracks. Gaeko's "Rhythm Is Life" is a straight masterpiece in terms of the execution of lyrics. His delivery is pretty close to flawless and the replay value is through the roof. Gaeko and Dynamic Duo helped pave the way for other hip-hop artists to join my library.

[Bonus] Girl Group Power Rankings III: Summer 2016

Welcome to the latest edition of the Girl Group Power Rankings. Being the first installment of the 7th season, I'm going to write down a little of my thought process regarding how the rankings are worked out. The primary criteria for my evaluation are as follows (in order of importance / weight): quality of music (with emphasis on title track material), consistency (past history and legacy), individual and team performance / talent, miscellaneous data (variety shows, etc.). The music factor will only be accounted for the period between the previous Power Ranking. So for this series, only content from around mid-March was considered, but will also include anything I may have missed.

Honorable Mention: Wonder Girls

* New Releases: To The Beautiful You (upcoming)
Wonder Girls make a return to the Power Rankings, though this time as a Honorable Mention. They've been rather quiet since the revival as a band, and their comeback didn't get enough praise as I thought it would. Still, they're veterans with serious experience now, and their lineup boasts plenty of talent from Yubin's glorious rapping to the equally strong vocal tandem of Sunmi and Yeeun. By the by, Yeeun did join Younha and Cheetah for "Get It?" but it's not her work, even though she did participate heavily. Anyway, with a comeback happening very soon, they'll put on their best effort to fight among the rookies that are everywhere.

Honorable Mention: Red Velvet
* New Releases: One Of These Nights

The female maknaes of S.M. have come on strong lately. They own 2016's best ballad in "One Of These Nights," and their resume is further backed by addicting dance numbers in "Dumb Dumb" and "Ice Cream Cake." Ignoring their debut, RV have shown mastery of both elements, touting both versatility and consistency in two different concepts. I consider this group one that is more than the sum of its parts. Individually, the talent on he roster isn't that noteworthy, but they always make their songs work, which is a testament to good music production. With rumors of another comeback coming later in the year, Red Velvet is only going to climb higher.

#10. 9MUSES (-2)
* New Releases: N/A
Truth be told, the only reason 9MUSES is here at this stage in their careers is for legacy reasons. If not for their 2013 and 2015 runs (which were amazing and good, respectively), I'd have given this spot to Red Velvet, who are more deserving of the spot given their recent additions. Even though this will likely be the last time we see 9MUSES here, there is still a little bit of hope for them. Some form of a comeback or promotion cycle will come later this summer, and whether it's a "full" group or a subunit, it'll help ease the pain of losing yet more members. Even a Nasty Nasty-esque collaboration would suffice. We'll just have to wait and see.