[Misc] Super Junior Power Rankings

Fuck it. Let's rank all the members of Super Junior. Here we go!

#15. Kibum
Was there anyone else suitable for last place? Kibum has the shortest tenure out of all the members and even when compared to the Super Junior-M exclusive members had the least amount of contributions. He was definitely one of the more popular members in their very early years, but having disappeared since 2009 it's hard to put him anywhere but dead last.

#14. Shindong
Kibum and Shindong are unfortunately the easiest two members that come to mind when discussing Super Junior afterthoughts. Yeah the meme was that he was the fat one, but outside of some dance moments Shindong didn't have much. He sings here and there, raps here and there, but has been utterly mediocre in all of his exploits. Hell, he's probably the weakest of the whole squad in everything but dance.

#13. Zhou Mi
Splicing in some of the Super Junior-M members will feel odd but does give me a rounded 15 members to rank. Zhou Mi was an unknown (more than Henry) when he debuted but it's safe to say that he contributed. His voice was flexible and utilized in all sorts of their music, and even had his own solo debut in 2014. Having actual Chinese members for a subunit aimed specifically for Chinese audiences was an obvious move, and Zhou Mi was a great pickup.

#12. Ryeowook
Oh man, back in the earliest discovery days I used to dislike this dude. More specifically, I thought his voice was mad annoying. But of course as time went on, I realized that Ryeowook just has a gift. His range is his range, and he excels at hitting those glorious high notes. Super Junior was kinda limited in the higher ranges outside of him and maybe Sungmin, so having that coverage was important.

#11. Eunhyuk
If I was doing this ranking back in like 2015, I may have given Eunhyuk the #15 spot. That's because he basically did nothing but dance and have shitty rap moments. And back then I did not give a shit about choreography points. He's one of the legends in the industry when it comes to dancing and as my interest in Kpop matured I realized that visual performance is equally as important as the audio performance, and Eunhyuk do be a danciung machine.

[Review] Super Junior - 2YA2YAO!

Oh man it's Super Junior. They're still kicking it and got something for us early in the 2020 cycle. Sungmin is still not officially back with the group despite releasing new music under their label. Here's hoping that the next release will feature his return. As I constantly debate over how much I really want to review songs, January will conclude with a second review and future months will likely see a similar number of review posts. One possible workaround is to have much bigger Late Reports per month to cover some of the music. The other option is to simply focus more on non-review writing but my indecisiveness towards this subject will continue to know no bounds.

[Bonus] The Late Report: November 2019

My blog and random breaks, name a more iconic duo. It's been a rough time across the holidays...I won't front, my mental state has been in disarray for a while and even before that. Still, I'm gonna keep fighting and writing, as the latter is one of my most surefire ways to focus and recenter. I have some typical end of the year stuff to wrap up 2019, and we'll start December as we should any month: with the Late Report.

(G)I-DLE - Lion

I dread writing this group name every. Single. Time. Anyway "Lion" is their most complete work in their short careers thus far. The usual contributors are doing their thing: Yuqi and Soojin have their beautiful voices, while Soyeon drops yet another bomb rap break. But then the surprises like Miyeon rocking the chorus and sounding her best since "Pop/Stars," Minnie getting her chances to shine, and Shuhua getting more lines! This is as balanced a performance you'll ever see, and they continue to improve with every subsequent release.

[Bonus] The Late Report: May 2019

Oh boy, May was quite a doozy. There's a lot I want to mention in this post, and not all of it is music though certainly no shortage of that. Part of the reason is because I didn't really write a lot and another part is because of the sheer amount of STUFF last month. Youtube has been broken for me for the last few days so I'll probably have to edit this after publishing. But let's take a look at the mega May edition of The Late Report.

Lee Hi - No One (feat. B.I)

Praise everything that is holy, Lee Hi is releasing new music again. Of course this is only because YG is fucking sinking faster than the Titanic but whatever, I'll take it. Whatever is going on in the backing audio, I'll have that and then some. It's almost janky but reminds me of like funky reggae, which I dig. B.I shows up with a classic iKON rap and if you only heard his rap you wouldn't be judged if you thought it was a new iKON song. Her "I don't care about shit" is so soft-spoken it's like she's afraid to curse. That bridge is absolutely powerful and Kpop could learn from it. No comment on Lee Hi with cat ears or any of the other feline imagery...

[Bonus] Boy Group Power Rankings: Spring 2019

Holy shit Boy Group Power Rankings?! This year truly is a year of surprises. And this case, good ones. As someone that always paid way more attention to the girl group landscape, but hey there are interesting things going on over on this side. I doubt this will become a recurring series - at least not for a while - but it's fun to draft these and y'all know how much I love power rankings of any kind. Speaking of...I'm really slacking on the Girl Group Vocalist Power Ranking that I've had foundation work for since half a year ago. Promise I'll get that out soon.

Let's talk methodology: it's really difficult haha. Because where do I even begin? Roster, talent, discography, statistics, history, legacy, etc. It's all a foggy blend and there's no real marker of when I should begin considering - too recent and the veteran groups lose out, too far back and the nostalgia goggles kick in. It's harder since there's no previous list to reference. I don't even remember how I determined placings for the first iteration of Girl Group Power Rankings. Looks like I'll have to rely on feel and adjust accordingly. Don't expect as detailed descriptions compared to the female counterpart list.

#10. Infinite
Honestly this spot makes you feel like a loser no matter what. With the complicated formula to determine who is "better," I settled with Infinite here over GOT7. Their rosters are actually pretty similar with both housing some unsung heroes in the vocals department. Choreography is their strength while rapping their weakness. But Infinite not only has seniority, but a better resume overall. "Bad" and "Back" are a pair of tracks that best anything in GOT7's library.

[Review] Super Junior - Ahore Te Puedes Marchar

This may be the greatest cover in the history of Kpop covers. Ryeowook and Yesung are fucking hilarious, and honestly so is the rest of the gang. Here's a Twitter post detailing how accurate to the original content they were, and it makes this video even more magical. I think I know which video will win the 2019 Kpop Awards for best music video.

[Bonus] Worst Of SM Entertainment

This ought to be fun. Time for some motherfucking negativity up in here! Keeping with the S.M Entertainment theme, we're going to look at some of the worst selections (that are title tracks of course) to ever come out of that company. I did rank them, but that really means little when we're looking at the bottom of the barrel here. Some of the reasons are music-related, and some are purely hate-based. If something sounds bad, then it's bad. Simple as that. Let's see the worst material from one of the top entertainment labels in Korea.

#10. BoA - Nega Dola

Remember we're talking about bad songs so it's better to be up here than down there. Boy it feels bad to list BoA but I gotta do it. "Nega Dola" isn't even a below average song, but it would've been a great song if not for the horrific decision to make BoA rap. There are some things that you should never do. Giving BoA some pitiful rap lines in every verse leaves an awful taste in your mouth, and an awful sound in your ears. SME hardly has the rapping profile with their members, I don't know what they were thinking making BoA do that. Literally ruined the song for everyone.

#9. Super Junior - Mamacita

It's like "Mamacita" was a stepping stone or experiment to figure out how to incorporate international beats. Clearly needed some trial and error since "Lo Siento" was solid whereas "Mamacita" was...not. Everything about this track just feels awkward, like it's going through puberty or something. Even the typically sweet vocals from Kyuhyun and Ryeowook seem off. That rap break by Eunhyuk and Shindong is atrocious, so it's exactly like the average Super Junior rap! "Close your lips, shut your tongue" will always be associated with their cringe rap moments.

#8. TVXQ - Humanoids

TVXQ has had some magnificent highs and dreadful lows. They certainly support those type of eclectic tastes. I reviewed "Humanoids" on the blog before and it only scored a 70 thanks to appearance points and me liking the choreography at the time. Now with a refined taste in Kpop dances I can say it's not a strong dance. The chorus isn't half-bad...if all they were doing was singing. Too much chanting and rambling random shit. A hodge podge of mediocrity creates a mediocre product.

[Bonus] Best Of Debuts: SME Edition

They're the only label with such a large assortment of artists to even do this for, so here is SM Entertainment's version of the Best Of Debuts (which has only one prior post). Some of this will overlap with said post because a handful of their groups made it on this list. However, times change and not only that, but this is only having their debut tracks in direct competition with each other. How good the song is / was overall matters most, but I also took into account relevancy at the time and if it withstood the modernization of Kpop. Because we wanna see each of their main superstars go head-to-head, TRAX and Zhang Liyin will be absent from this list, as will subunits and project groups like S.M. The Ballad and EXO-CBX. That could make for an entertaining revisit in the future though.

#10. Red Velvet - Happiness

Yeah...there's no way that Red Velvet wouldn't be last on a list like this. I still have nightmares about this song. From the awkward pronunciation of "happiness" to the terrible rapping heard throughout, there was a lot to forget about this debut. There was also the MV and the many issues there. Not much else to say other than thank heavens they turned it quite the ways around.

#9. Super Junior - Twins (Knock Out)

Despite not needing to compare with modern era boy groups, Super Junior 05's debut simply lacked the knock out capability their title claimed. I just don't think "Twins" is that good a song. Unremarkable in all facets, this was only impressive in the sheer number of members, as having 12 members was and still is unusual to see. In retrospect they almost had a fusion element to their early songs (almost like Dreamcatcher but a little more intense) and that's probably why I didn't like their pre-breakout era music.

#8. CSJH - Too Good

Before Mamamoo, there was SPICA. And before SPICA, there was CSJH. Pure vocalist groups can all trace their ancestry to the girls of CSJH The Grace. Their debut video has nothing but powerful voices and closeups to focus on the faces behind the voices. All these girls could sing and would dominate the competition today. Stephanie left and they've basically been dead but Dana's still kicking it today! Or at least, she did a ways back with "Touch You." Oh fuck that was two years ago...

[Bonus] Best Of 2017: Honorable Mentions

After the unofficial prologue of the previous post, it's time for some more teasing. I've picked five songs which barely missed out on being in the top 10. These will be unranked, and only have brief notes about each selection. There's absolutely zero reason why previous Best Of 20XX posts never included the music videos so I'll be remedying that starting this year. Here are the songs that almost made the cut.

Taeyeon - Fine

"My Voice" assembled many superstar tracks together, and leading the charge was this song. "Fine" is probably the strongest of her title tracks up until now. It's not a pure ballad / lullaby like "11:11," nor is it the dance number like "Why." Since she has many beautiful moments in this track across her vocal range, "Fine" was a lock for the top songs, and her appearance here as a solo act previews what is to come in tomorrow's reveals.

[Bonus] Best Of 2009

Now that I'm obsessed with these Timeline posts, I want to make another where I see which groups have made the most appearances in my Best Of 20XX series. But in order to do that, I'll have to go back at least one more year. That way, the compilation will cover 2009 through 2017 (this year's edition will be coming out in early December). Plus, writing this post will refresh me and act as a primer for the Best Of 2017. I've taken the liberty of tagging the Best Of 20XX with an additional "20XX" tag if only for easy organization when looking at all my Best Of posts (since they're not simply restricted to these year-end runs).

#12. After School - Because Of You
This song is great at describing 2009 Kpop. The beat, the dance pop, the haircuts (...) and the MV quality all scream 2009. It might not be the best song from that year but "Because Of You" is one of the most iconic, without a doubt. After School is a group that you can really see the evolution of, mostly thanks to the graduation system (that was somewhat legit then). Bekah Raina, and Kahi were the driving forces of After School in this era and the microscopic amount of lines from Jungah, Jooyeon, and Nana highlight that.

#11. Davichi - 8282
Davichi has been killing it for years. I can't imagine that they have been even more underrated back in the day than they are now. "8282" The switcheroo that occurs going into the first chorus is a hilarious wake-up call because you're sitting there thinking this is another traditional Davichi power ballad but instead you could dance during the first chorus. They even include a pseudo-dance break that cuts immediately back to a slower second verse. It's a classic Davichi track through and through.

[Review] Super Junior - Black Suit

It's due time to revert to some old-school blogging for a change. Starting with the "DDD" post, I'm gonna write at least three (full) reviews before the next Blitz piece. Doesn't matter if I complete this next week or next month. No Blitzes until that happens. Super Junior steps up to the plate, with yet another change in the promotional lineup. Siwon, Kangin, and Sungmin are absent from this comeback - though Siwon is part of the song and video. Since "Bonamana," they haven't had consecutive comebacks with the same roster. Even though comes from mandatory military service and controversies, that's crazy. Having at least seven different lineups since 2010 is tragically impressive.

This song is classy as fuck. Everything about "Black Suit" screams class, even the title. This is to be expected now that Super Junior are reaching crazy levels of longevity but yeah. Particularly killer is that chorus, giving plenty of breaks for that juicy instrumental to pop in. "Black Suit" and "Devil" have the similar strong sound and really lets the vocalists shine. And by vocalists I mean Yesung. Since Kyuhyun and Ryeowook are in the army (plus Kangin making more stupid decisions), he's all that's left for their strong vocalists. And man this song shows me how much I've missed Yesung. I know he's been back since "Devil" but he's always been one of my favorite voices ever since I first got into Kpop.

[Review] Super Junior - Magic

In natural S.M. tradition, Super Junior has returned with a repackage album. The album cover is absolutely atrocious, which frankly seems like they don't even care. But really, S.M. probably hasn't cared for a long, long time. "Magic" is like the late spiritual successor of "No Other" however many years ago, both in the sounds and the style of the MV. The audio is happy and energetic. In contrast to "Devil," Super Junior sounds more together and in sync. Perhaps that's what you want if all of your members are chasing after the same girl...again. Even though it's almost certainly not on purpose, the pronunciation of "girl" creates a utility phrase, where they could be heard saying either "magical" or "magic girl." Both make sense, so even if this was unintentional, well done.

The majority of the video is dominated by the basketball court scenes where tacky dancing, mediocre basketball skills, and a plethora of special effects come together. It's certainly eye-catching at first, but gets boring rather quickly, despite all the fancy moves the boys try to break out. Thankfully we're treated to Kyuhyun being downright hilarious at 1:59. He is probably the last member I would think of doing that move. The remainder of the MV revolves around the Super Junior team trying to show off and attract attention from the lovely lady. I was expecting the cliche Siwon pick but in the end Kangin wins. They should've had him at center for the ending shot. The magic tricks edited in throughout the video were quite the treat, both entertaining and effective at supporting the overlying theme of the song. Heechul and Eunhyuk handle the rapping and the former does a better job than the latter. Eunhyuk's voice was never really that suited to rapping so it's not surprising that Heechul sounds much better. He's been on the upswing with raps since "This Is Love" anyway. The English used is still a little suspect, but not quite as bad as those seen in "Dumb Dumb." As this is a project / celebratory release, I doubt we'll be seeing the full set of choreography anytime soon (save maybe for the major performances come the end of the year).

Comparing Super Junior to Big Bang this year comes down to a battle of quality vs. quantity. Big Bang certainly made more noise and waves with their months of releases, while SJ dropped "Devil" and "Magic." Super Junior's titles were simplistic in nature but very charming to the average listener, whereas the plethora of Big Bang songs could be used against them if people aren't prepared for what's coming. Big Bang also had a few misses, whereas both Super Junior songs are most certainly huge hits. I said in my "Devil" review that Super Junior have aged gracefully since debut, and this release doesn't alter my opinion in the slightest.

[ Overall: 87 / 100 ]

[Blog] S.M. and the Kibum Factor

Let's be honest. How many people even realize that Kibum was / is a member of Super Junior? Of course he's inactive, but he's still listed as an official member even though he hasn't participated in group activities since 2009. Funnily enough there was very recent news from Kibum himself that he is no longer under contract with S.M. Let's start there I suppose.

Kibum hadn't been active as a Super Junior member since something like 2009. Yet for all intents and purposes, he was still technically a member of the group, even though he hadn't been in a single promotion and was literally 100% on the acting market. There were no lawsuits, no contract terminations, no shenanigans, just the joke of an excuse that he was still "a Super Junior member that we would welcome back anytime." I'd be willing to bet that he had no intentions of coming back to the group, and indeed since his contract ended his Instagram post sure sounded happy he was no longer with the company.

Now we look to Sulli. Sulli's case is probably most similar to Kibum's, in that she hasn't really been active with the group and didn't seem to care much about her future in f(x). Sulli was the reason "Red Light" promotions cut short and the whole attitude debate along with her dating Choiza didn't really put her in the best of lights for fans. There was speculation she'd leave the group eventually and that turned out to be true. To this credit she was treated the same way as Kibum. While her hiatus wasn't as concrete as Kibum's, she was still listed as a member up until the announcement of her departure.

As for Jessica, Tao, Kris, and Luhan (those "lazy" foreigners), They're different in the sense that they had definitely wanted to stay in the group, but have individual activities (or more of such) on the side. Jessica with BLANC, and the EXO boys with overseas activities in China. Ms. Jung still expected to be a Girls' Generation member while maintaining her fashion line and either S.M. or the other members (or both) were against. We'll never know the truth, but again when you look at what happened with Kibum and his status, I don't get why the same couldn't have applied to Jessica. What's even more bizarre is that for a short period after, she remained under S.M.'s management before they finally let her go. As for the Kris / Luhan / Tao trio, health conditions were also cited a la Han Geng's lawsuit, so to me this looks like following a sunbae's footsteps in this regard but again without the full story it's difficult to say. Supposedly Chinese queen Victoria also has separate promotions in China, so I find difficult to believe that something worked out with her and not for the Chinese EXO trio. I'd imagine the key difference being that the EXO members wanted nothing to do with the group anymore due to health / schedule concerns.

The aftermath of all this? Super Junior will continue as if nothing happened because in reality, nothing did happen. They have been promoting with slightly different rosters for years now and "Devil" showed they're still good.  Girls' Generation have trekked along with Jessica for almost a year now and in my eyes have redeemed themselves in terms of music, with a capable "Lion Heart" album. Losing Jessica has freed up line distribution, giving other members like Sooyoung and Yuri more chance to shine. EXO has watched the months go by, losing a member every so often. The quality in their music certainly hasn't decreased, and most of the main talent is still there, but the pressure is on Lay as the only remaining Chinese member. Eyes will be on him like a hawk for who knows how long. As for f(x), Sulli contributed very little to their music, so losing her would ideally give Amber and Victoria some more lines, which is perfect in my book. Her status as the team visual is also highly questionable what with Krystal and Victoria existing. To be honest, f(x) is probably better without her. In the end, S.M. still can't be trusted. The company only has SHINee and Red Velvet that can boast a (mostly) problem-free journey, and RV is but a little over a year old. Time will truly tell for S.M.

[Review] Super Junior - Devil

S.M. Entertainment is moving their gears again. EXO, SHINee, and Girls' Generation had their appearances in 2015, now we move up the ladder once more with Super Junior. We're welcomed to another iteration of the group, as Sungmin and Shindong have departed for their mandatory military service, and Yesung's return from his own. Another change, another comeback.

If there's anything to notice about this comeback, it's that Super Junior as a group have aged very well. From their beginnings as Super Junior 05, across the 10 years following of success and shenanigans, they really won't be going anywhere anytime soon. I'll talk about the MV first since it's quite the spotlight. Firstly the video is rated 15+ for...? I never really understood that to be honest. The MV is a hyper blend of various smaller "movies" with their own "plot" compiled together. I phrase those terms quite loosely because they're more like scenes and there's no real connection between them, outside of the woman / devil of interest. However, the acting is well executed and in the end makes for an enjoyable watch despite the excessive guns and the constant tagging of each member, which got a little bothersome, even if the purpose was to introduce members to new fans. There are plenty of minor quirks that are nice to see, like Kyuhyun's completely flabbergasted expression, the hat shenanigans, and some lyrical inputs during the bridge. All in all this is an A+ for video effort.

"Devil" takes a departure from the Super Junior releases we've seen recently. From the loud and sassy"Mamacita" to the excellent dance track "Sorry Sorry," the approach of "Devil" is classy and doesn't try too hard. The vocals are light, but still have character. Though I must admit that as a Yesung fan, I'm kinda upset he didn't have as much spotlight as I'd have liked, considering this is his return song. At the same time, for a song with such a range, especially during the chorus, I'm surprised that Ryeowook had such little impact on the song. He is pretty much the master of this vocal range, kind of a shame this potential was wasted. Also worth a quick mention is that there's no real rap segment, and even then Eunhyuk isn't as focused on as some earlier tracks, which I can applaud. For a song as relaxed as "Devil," the bridge might actually be my favourite part of the song. It's very chill and doesn't really care about anything else. Thankfully though it's just audio because the choreography is quite disappointing. The choreography just doesn't appear innovative, flashy, or interesting. It's quite laid back which is nice in the sense that it matches the song but when you consider that this is the same group who had the breakout dances of 2009 ("Sorry Sorry" and "It's You"), is really not all that impressive. In fact the dance is so lackluster even the performance video (thanks for this by the way) is literally a completely white background / room.

Super Junior's comeback with "Devil" has many highlights. The videography is excellent, the return of Yesung, and the song itself is smooth and charismatic. However, it's a crime that Ryeowook is underutilized, and the choreography just isn't the usual from Super Junior. Perhaps it truly is impossible to recapture the magic from the "Golden Age of Kpop" but this is a commendable effort by the group nonetheless.

[ Overall: 86 / 100 ]

[Bonus] Best Of Pioneers

I wanted to show appreciation for a select set of songs which helped bring me into the Kpop fold. There’s a mixture of nostalgia, first impressions, relevance in time, catchiness, etc. On Thanksgiving weekend, I’m thankful for these Kpop songs, as they’re responsible for attracting and keeping me in the Kpop world.

12. Wheesung - Insomnia

- Arguably one of the first of the Kpop videos I’ve ever watched, and despite it technically being a cover, Wheesung does a delightful job with the vocals and impressed. The flashes between scenes coupled with the dance would almost make it seem as if the vocals weren’t the main sellling point. The MV was pretty boring, but being one of the first videos, I had no idea what a stereotypical MV it was just yet.

11. Wonder Girls - Nobody

- It’s hard to argue the explosiveness that Nobody had during the 2009 year. The pretty dresses, catchy dance, and equally as catchy lyrics make for one hell of a song, along with a fierce rap segment. Speaking of, Yubin made a strong debut showing for rappers of any group.

10. KARA - Lupin

- Lupin was my second exposure to KARA after Mister, and what a follow-up punch. Lupin delivers in the powerful introduction and instrumentals, with Nicole’s rapping being very strong. When I first listened to this song though, the latter half of the song wasn’t as appealing to me, for whatever reasons it may have had that effect.

9. Younha - Ima Ga Daisuki

- Okay so this song is technically a Japanese song, but hear me out. This was my first Younha song ever, and therefore also my first Younha video ever, so it as to hold a special place in my heart. It’s a addictive pop rock style that instantly drew me to her and her works.

8. Wonder Girls - So Hot

- Even though Wonder Girls’ Nobody was extremely addicting, I was drawn more to So Hot because of the standard pop sound, and the chorus was equally as catchy as Nobody’s was. Serving this song as a follow-up to Nobody, Yubin continued to deliver on the rapping.

7. Super Junior-M - Blue Tomorrow

- So just two more songs later, we’ve got a Chinese song. During early drafts of this list, Super Girl was on the list but Blue Tomorrow wasn’t, until I realized that the very foundations of what I enjoyed and was attracted to in Kpop are the vocals, and the vocals in Blue Tomorrow are arguably one of the best on the entire set. Throw in a very serious MV, and you’ve got one incredible ballad.

6. Big Bang - Koe Wo Kikasete

- I promise that this will be the last “foreign” song on the list, heh. Big Bang’s debut for me wasn’t the stellar Haru Haru or Lies, but Koe Wo Kikasete. The rapping of G-Dragon and T.O.P were easily the highlight, since not many of the groups had standout rappers, but the vocal work between Taeyang and Daesung was even better.

5. Girls’ Generation - Genie

- Yeah, Gee isn’t on this list. Believe it or not, I was turned off by Gee at the beginning, since there was way too much “cutesy sound” (ahh, how weird the term aegyo would’ve seemed if I had heard it then). Genie, on the other hand, delivered a strong chorus, and absolutely amazing vocals from Taeyeon, Sunny, and Tiffany (Taeyeon’s adlibs at the end are what essentially earned her the #1 bias spot).

4. f(x) - La Cha Ta

- My first f(x) song was f(x)’s first (title) song. Luna and Krystal were outstanding in both looks and vocals, while the dance was impressing, while Sulli and Amber would go on to be undiscovered players. Even after four years, this is still my favourite f(x) song. The raw dance pop sound hasn’t been topped by the girls since.

3. 4minute - I My Me Mine

- Can you believe it? I can’t either, but certainly 4minute places in the top 3. If I thought La Cha Ta was the epitome of dance pop, then I My Me Mine certainly was the epitome of the more electronic pop songs. There weren’t many other electronic songs on the list or drafts, but the dance and vocals complimented each other very nicely. And may I mention that (a) the video effects on the “Click click” part of the dance was awesome, and (b) Gayoon’s belt still sends chills down my spine.

2. Younha - Hero

- I’ve mentioned Hero so many times on this blog now that I reallywanted to omit this song from the list, but it simply has to be here. Badass instrumentals, beast piano solo bridge, 110% high level vocals coupled with belts and the like. I’m still amazed this was never a title track. But all this talk aside, it’s still not #1 (I even surprised myself).

1. Super Junior - It’s You

- You’ve probably noticed that there have been a lack of comments regarding music videos, and a majority of remarks for vocals, because that’s what really drew me to Kpop and absolutely It’s You. Between the overcrowded choreography, steady background music, calming choruses, and superstar belting from Yesung (won’t sell out the other members’ vocal performance either though). This song was and still is dangerously addicting and once you get this in your head, you’ll have a tough time getting It’s You out.

~

“Honorable Mentions”

Younha - Telepathy

Brown Eyed Girls - Abracadabra

Younha - Houki Boshi

Super Junior - Sorry Sorry

Girls’ Generation - Girls’ Generation

~

What about you guys? What were some of the songs that brought you into the Kpop world?

[Bonus] Best Of Collabs

I’m a huge fan of collaboration work. Whether it’s within the company, between companies, or even two members of the same group, collabs help bring out sides of singers you may not get to see as often (or at all) when they are part of the group. I tried to have most of these selections have considerate portions, as opposed to short clips by one person and then 80% by the other. So without further ado let’s talk about some of my favourites.

~

Super Junior & Girls’ Generation - Seoul Song

If there was a better song to be used to advertise Seoul, I have yet to find it. Take some higher tier vocalists from SNSD and some higher tier vocalists from Super Junior and you have a delightful melody. The spotlight was surprisingly for Sunny and Donghae for each group, both of which sounded incredible with Sunny’s high notes and Donghae’s verses. This is the type of range I’d love to see more of Sunny, but I digress. The music video was artful and is of course, a necessity given this is to attract tourists, and the cute coupling of various members and additional touches (like Leeteuk helping Taeyeon, etc.) made the MV even more enjoyable.

GD&TOP & Park Bom - Oh Yeah

You can’t go talking about collaborations without this glorious party piece. The chorus by Bom is kinda repetitive, but bright and rich thanks to her vocals. Backed by G-Dragon and T.O.P rapping the verses, it’s just the perfect song to emphasize the rapping highlights with Bom’s vocals. The English scattered throughout the song like some kind of condiment for a recipe is also pronounced accurately, given YG has some of the best English speakers / pronounciation in the industry. The ending where GD&TOP took the chorus for a final spin was also pretty nice.

Zhang Liyin & Junsu - Timeless

One of my favourite and earlier ballads during my initial wave of exposure to Kpop, “Timeless” brings two distinct voices together with some more than impressive results. Junsu is incredibly talented but Zhang Liyin more than pulls her weight here, with some lovely high notes, belts, and harmonizations. The music video was also a masterpiece, utilizing the acting skills of buddies Han Geng and Siwon of Super Junior along with Lee Yeonhee. Truly a tearjerker, and the emotional vocals did well to support it (or vice versa).

Jongkook, HaHa & Gary - What I Want To Say To You

I have to rep my Running Man buddies here, this song from Jongkook’s 7th album is a happy mix of ballad, reggae, and hip hop and the three pull it off smoothly. I actually thought the order of transition from Jongkook to HaHa to Gary was really good. You can’t undersell any of their talents, whether it’s Jongkook’s high voice, HaHa’s antics, and Gary’s light paced rapping. If Gary had more similar presence to HaHa I think this would have been even more enjoyable, or maybe utilize his voice, which I consider pretty decent.

[Bonus] Best Of Rappers: Part II

Jaebeom - 10 Points Out Of 10

Listing someone of 2PM background here is laughable but this was a different place, a different era so bear with me. 2PM’s debut had flashes of brilliance, from the various choreography to the hilariously crafted music video. Hell, even Chansung’s stuff wasn’t that bad. The attention was of course on Jaebeom and I think Jaebeom did the best job out of everyone (save Nichkhun’s all English line) with his light but energetic rap. It’s a shame the 2PM controversy happened and Jay branched into more vocal-oriented work since I think his rapping highly overplays his singing.

Eunhyuk - Sorry Sorry Answer

Even more ridiculous is the thought of putting Super Junior here, but I have to give credit where credit is due, and Eunhyuk (and Donghae)’s work in “Sorry Sorry Answer”. The R&B rendition of “Sorry Sorry” was really good, powered by Kyuhyun, Yesung, Ryeowook, and Yoo Young Jin. Donghae and Eunhyuk’s casual rap was smooth and complimented the remix very well. I can’t say the same for the English pronunciation, though. A lack of presentation from the other members was disappointing, and it’s really just a remix but the rap certainly brought something extra.

Miryo - Sixth Sense

Don’t worry, CL is not alone. Miryo rings up the other slot with her work in “Sixth Sense”. Throw in a few foreign words and she sounds awesome. The rap is absolutely badass, aggressive, feisty, and right in line with the nature of the song. The triage of wonderful explosive vocals from JeA, Gain, and Narsha, with Miryo’s aggressive rapping and the artful music video certainly made “Sixth Sense” one of the more memorable Brown Eyed Girls releases.

Zelo - Warrior

I’m aware B.A.P has released a year’s worth of content already, but “Warrior” is a standout because it’s a debut, ridiculously catchy, and impressive for his age. It’s so good and infamous now that Zelo paid homage to it in later release “Power”. Yongguk’s rap was harsh and forceful, but Zelo’s was youthful and quick which provided solid complimentary pieces for each other. As I mentioned in the song’s review, the highlights of the song were easily the rapping and dancing.

[Bonus] Best Of Vocalists: Specialists

Some may not have the widest range, some may not have the most powerful voice, but one thing is for sure. They’re incredibly talented at a specific aspect of music. Most of these people are members of very specialized groups, most notably main ballad singers (because I just fall for those easily), which only furthers their ability.

Minkyung is a member of Davichi, one of the best groups in terms of vocals. Their R&B ballads are amazing, and Minkyung’s solo appearances across shows are something to speak of. “Don’t Say Goodbye” is the main standout track that comes to mind, where she and Haeri pull off some consistent strings of graceful high notes. Minkyung kind of struggles in lower ranges, and sounds uncomfortable, but she makes up for it by having some rapping potential (“We Were In Love”).

If Taeyeon’s voice is “bright” and Park Bom’s voice is “vibrant”, then Juniel’s is certainly “sweet”. It’s a very soft and pretty voice, the epitome of sweetness and for that reason her ballad works (“Bad Guy”, “Illa Illa”). An apt comparison is to IU, but Juniel has a lighter voice and higher register. Like I mentioned for Juniel’s excerpt in the Best Of 2012 set, she has a magnificent ballad voice but not so much for other genres, so that makes her a specialist.

While it seems to have faded away with recent releases, Gayoon possesses an incredibly powerful voice. It’s not as husky as someone like Ailee or Hyorin, but it’s extremely sharp sounding, in nice relation to her image. Whether it’s a surprise high note belt (“I My Me Mine”) or a predictable climb (“Mirror Mirror”), Gayoon is still able to send shivers with her powerful notes.

As a queen of KPop, BoA is certainly perfect for pop music. Her voice is lively and rich, making even doubtful and mediocre pop songs like “Hurricane Venus” and “The Shadow” sound good and of course excel catchy music like “Copy & Paste”, amongst other old songs. Utility wise, BoA has a smooth voice for ballads but even then, her ad libs clearly give off a pop vibe, like the wondrous work in “Dear My Family”. How this woman meshes her voice with choreography live is beyond me; she’s incredible.

Ahh, there you are, Yesung! Even apart from splendid work in non-ballad songs like “Sorry Sorry” and other Super Junior works, your voice is perfect for ballads. Between performances on Immortal Song 2 and stuff like “It Has To Be You”, there is nothing like listening to a ballad of yours to give my daily dose of emotion. And of course, one cannot forget how unbelievable the last 45 seconds of Super Junior’s “It’s You” are.

Ryeowook joins Yesung to make three Super Junior members so far. Ryeowook’s voice is quite unique in sound, and his range is extremely expansive. I’ve heard some Michael Jackson comparisons in regards to his singing but I think it’s more distinct, a little more energetic (“Moves Like Jagger”). Being a member of the KRY subunit gives him plenty of work to show off his ballad prowess, and collaborative work like “Falling In Love With A Friend” has also done him good justice.

Lee Hyun is known for being a member of 8eight and project group Homme with 2AM’s Changmin. Among those, solo work has also highlighted his ability / smooth voice. Like Hongki, it’s a delightful mixture of clearness and husky sound which creates a unique vocal timbre. “Still Eating Well” and “You Are The Best Of My Life” are some of Lee Hyun’s most outstanding songs.

The only non-ballad master for the guys’ list, Changmin makes an appearance because his specialty isn’t tied to a specific genre, it’s his impressive ability to hit those high power notes he does all the time. Whether it’s “Mirotic” or “Catch Me”, Changmin is belting his head off and he sounds so good at it. Like Gayoon, his power notes are capable of impressing no matter where and what he sings.

[Bonus] Best Of Vocalists: Balanced

In this “Best Of” series, we’ll be taking a look at the various fields of talent in KPop. What kind of talent? Vocal talent, of course! I’ll bring up eight of my favourite singers across four different categories, while highlighting some of their most impressive works of course.

While none of these are particular rankings, these eight might just be the overall best, balanced in pretty much every way between control, pitch, range, utility, and more. While they are essentially capable of being leads, they’re just too strong at everything else to be labeled as such. 

Younha leads the pack as my favourite vocalist ever. She may not have the widest range or the most powerful voice, but the ability to put emotion, innocence, and consistency in her voice is unrivaled and her versatility is remarkable. Through the emotional “Broke Up Today”, energetic “Houki Boshi”, and the powerful “Hero”, Younha is allstar material.

Hyorin is known for carrying Sistar, who are at best mediocre singers without her. Her prowess in lower ranges is incredible, and her high notes and belts are something, too, if but a little airy. Hyorin’s voice is probably best described as “running velvet”, or “silvery”. It’s like methodical but precise, able to adapt to various styles at ease. Hyorin is hailed as Korea’s Beyonce, and justly so.

In contention for said title is rising rookie Ailee, whose explosive voice (“Girl On Fire”) is also the same lofting beautiful light ballads (“Evening Sky”). Throw on being a native English speaker and the ability to rap (Wheesung’s “He Is Coming”), and Ailee was my candidate for “Best Rookie 2012” or at the very least the solo artist recipient. If all else, Ailee will probably have one of the best covers ever (“Halo”).

Taeyeon finishes off the girls’ list in glory, as the most impressive female group vocalist with 5+ years in experience. Years have gone by and all Taeyeon has is matured since 2007. Complete versatility (“7898”, “Devil’s Cry”, “Hoot”) and angelic power notes (“O Holy Night”) are some of the best qualities.

Over on the males side, Kyuhyun tops out Yesung for Super Junior’s representative (don’t worry we’ll talk about Yesung later). While Yesung is definitely the expert at ballads and emotion, Kyuhyun isn’t that far off and is also stellar at various genres like rock (“Pretend Party”) and pop (“Rise & Shine”), too.

When one brings up DBSK, Junsu is the essence of prime vocal ability. The unique sound he possesses and quality control make Junsu instantly recognizable and with work like “In Heaven” and even older releases like the “Timeless” duet with Zhang LiYin (which was lovely, may I add), it’s not hard to see why. Since the DBSK / JYJ split, JYJ’s music has always tailored more to the vocal talents, and Junsu utilizes that as much as possible.

Seulong has the smoothest voice in 2AM and thus overall. Being a member of 2AM, most of his work is ballads (“You Wouldn’t Answer My Calls”, “Even If I Die I Can’t Let You Go”), he has branched off so to speak with collaboration work in “Nagging” with IU and even under “I Did Wrong”, too.

Originally, I thought of Daesung as a support role. While he does do the vocal work in Big Bang, it’s not typically expressive enough as some of the other singers on the group. However, going back through older stuff reminded me on just how brilliant he can be, with more recent things like “Baby Don’t Cry” and “Bad Boy” highlighting his smooth voice. The very fact that I feel his voice is more utility but at the same time omnipresent is proof enough of his skill.

[Review] Super Junior - Sexy, Free, & Single

Vocals: 7 / 10

Continuing on with the usual expectations from Super Junior’s vocals, the song is clearly dominated by Kyuhyun and Yesung. Ryeowook, who is usually also a standard in the Super Junior lineup, seems to have taken a more supportive role, only getting one main line and a few short belts in addition while Donghae seems to have stepped up via utility voice. This song sounds better with lower voices, favouring Kyuhyun, Eunhyuk, and Yesung (and Donghae’s first line), so Sungmin, Kangin, and Ryeowook seemed out of place. Siwon, Shindong, and Leeteuk received like three second lines, something I find strange since the previous releases have been a little more balanced in terms of line distribution (especially selections from the 5th album). As far as the English in the song goes, Yesung and Donghae received a majority of the English, and both of them are…well, to put it simply, pretty bad at English. Actually, all of Super Junior are pretty terrible at English…speaking of which, I think I speak for everyone in that “Sexy, free, and single I’m ready too, bingo” is probably the most pathetic line ever. They could’ve at least paused for half a second to create the space needed between “too” and “bingo” but no. And even if they did, it’d still be a terrible line. I’ll just pretend the line is “Sexy, free, and single I’m ready to mingle.”

Appearance: 8 / 10

Has Super Junior ever disappointed in looks? Not really. Has there always been one awkward man out? Pretty much. Lately, it seems Donghae and Eunhyuk are getting more and more of the spotlight while Siwon gets less and less (is this because of Siwon’s various acting roles? I pray he is not the next Kibum). That said, even with Donghae and Eunhyuk getting more screentime, the others are still minimal compared to them, especially poor Shindong. A mix of hair colours with that at least looked okay with the full group. The blondes in Sungmin, Leeteuk, and Shindong pull the look off better than Eunhyuk did, especially since two of the three have been blonde before. However, it seems once Super Junior departed from the days of “Sorry Sorry”, “Bonamana”, and “Mr. Simple”, their outfits have deteriorated quite heavily. Just look at Siwon, Kyuhyun, and Leeteuk if you really want to see.

Dance: 9 / 10

This dance is upbeat, synchronized, and catchy, nothing new in terms of Super Junior choreography for the past couple of years. Continuing off the success of past releases, there’s a visually appealing fluid dance style. There really isn’t too much to say except for how hilarious the dance is during “Sexy sexy sexy.” Highlight: Eunhyuk’s dance segment was amazing. The sliding and all that while the rest of the members stood solemnly behind him was very classy, so much so that during this clip from the music video teaser, I thought it was a rap / dance bridge segment and not a line from the verse. The clapping and snapping in tune with the instrumental was also neatly coordinated. All in all, impressive work per usual.

Music Video: 5 / 10

I am being really lenient on SM here with this score. EXO had interesting enough sets with dust particles flying around with their “Oh~ Oh~” and f(x) had uniquely coloured sets to match the style of “Electric Shock”. But Super Junior literally has a white room with a black section running across. Are you ****ting me?! This is Super Junior, one of the veterans of the Korean music industry and they get something like this? The other sets aren’t exactly revolutionary either, to be honest. But, then again, this is Super Junior, who seem to have made their new home in these fancy sets for the past three years. The saving grace for this music video is the complimentary if not controversial (Leeteuk) costumes. Other than that, it’s merely another stereotypical (and this bears negative meaning here) music video from SM. “Let your artists out of empty rooms for crying out loud.” Or, at the very least, show the members doing something interesting circa “No Other,” like picking up girls or something, any action is better than none at all.

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Overall: 72 / 100

The question with Super Junior and “Sexy, Free, & Single” isn’t whether or not the release is in the right direction, it’s where they will go from here. The 6th studio album is one with the absence of Heechul, the return of Kangin, and signifies Leeteuk’s enlistment to military service. Having already managed the departures of Han Geng and Kibum, how will the group approach the future? Maybe Kibum will come back? With repackaged release in “Spy” showing some more of retro Super Junior, stuff may be looking up.