[Recap] 2016 May-August: Explosion

I've figured out how to do spoiler / dropdown buttons so that's where I'll shove the list of songs reviewed in the period, which will help clean up the appearance of this section at least. Additionally, more ghetto banners will make their kickoff across each section, which should help break up the monotone appearance of blocks of text. All for fun artistic imagery that tricks me into thinking I can make stuff look nice, haha.

[Review] Cosmic Girls - Secret

Allow me to start off on a tangent: I don't consider junior groups (of the same company) to be "successors" of their seniors if the member count is mismatched. Twice isn't the successor to Wonder Girls, and neither are Cosmic Girls the successors to Sistar. The member difference is too extreme a factor - so for this argument, you can look at Black Pink as the successors to 2NE1, as well as EXO to Super Junior. Anyways, speaking of SuJu, Cosmic Girls (or WJSN) is Starship's newest group which is more a 3rd generation female remake of Super Junior than the next Sistar. Though outside of the 13 members to the Korean and Chinese nationalities on the team, the similarities stop there.

"Secret" is a song with a delicate aura. The instrumental definitely sounds like one from a fairytale or anime opening of sorts, which isn't really straying from the group's debut releases. It's still the group's best instrumental thus far, and there's something very peppy about the audio that makes you bob your head to the beat, and I for one always welcome something like that. The members of Cosmic Girls don't really impress in terms of their voices themselves, but I think they make a great unit collectively. There isn't a particular member that sounds ahead of the rest (even if the line distribution suggests otherwise) and having a unified sound is awesome with a group as big as they are. At the same time though, it's more difficult for anyone that isn't Exy to stand out.

[Review] I.O.I - Whatta Man

I've been rooted in comfort lately, so let's change that. As someone who didn't watch Produce 101, I literally have no idea what's going on with this group. From what I understand, the trainees are part of a project group but other members have joined other groups like DIA, CLC, etc.? It's like Kpop's equivalent of the NFL Draft or something. Anyway, the subunit (which is also called I.O.I?) came out with a new song and so it's time to try and observe some new talent.

This may be some of the strongest harmonization we've heard that isn't from Mamamoo. They sound really really good, and I can always appreciate some vocal splendor. "Whatta Man" is not a cute song and therefore is free from splashes of aegyo or generally uninteresting stuff. What I like most about the chorus is that it's deceptively not repetitive, and that's more than likely due to the harmony work between the girls. Some of the reaches by Jeiqong do hurt, but overall there's very little about the music quality that I can complain about. The members all seem to be on par with each other in terms of their voice, and this song doesn't really distinguish any one member from the rest. Part of that is because of the line distribution, which is fairly well done and an underrated aspect of the song. The roster receives relatively balanced opportunities (outside of Sohye) but the diversity of one-liners in the chorus is a nice touch.

[Bonus] Best Of 2015 Revisited

The finale to the Best 201X Revisited is probably premature, considering we're only barely halfway through 2016, but I committed to it and wanted this one written before anything like a Best Of 2011 so here's another look. Unlike other installments, I'm pretty satisfied with my 2015 set (and part of that is certainly due to the shorter time between revisions) so there are relatively few changes across the board. With the said, it'll likely prove difficult to write anything substantial about the songs that I didn't already say before in December. Still, we'll give it a go and wrap up this series today.

#12. Big Bang - Loser (-2)
Original: 9MUSES - Hurt Locker
Simplicity is key, and Big Bang capitalize on that statement with the quiet and calming track that is very much the successor to "Blue." However, while no one can question the quality, it simply loses out to other songs based on their general noise and energy. When you need some relaxing tunes, or want to emo out for a bit, "Loser" has your back. "Loser" falls to 12th not because it's a loser - it is very much a winner, but because it's the most boring song on the list.

#11. Mad Clown - Fire (NEW)
Original: IU - Twenty Three
Honestly, Mad Clown has some transcendent stuff. He has a pretty unique flow and his voice can sometimes be grating, but it's never really turned me away from his music. With "Stupid In Love" having placed him on the radar, Mad Clown joined forces this time with the less known Jinsil for "Fire." Jinsil has a sultry seductive voice, which is a pleasant counter to Mad Clown's explosive rapping. By all means this song should've catapulted both into stardom but that hasn't happened quite yet.

[Review] Black Pink - Whistle

After being teased about for god knows how long, YG Entertainment has finally debuted their new girl group. And if there was any convenient time to debut them, now would be the time. 2NE1's status is still very much uncertain after Minzy's exit from the group, so a new group is their entry into the next generation of competition and to hopefully distract people from 2NE1's continued hiatus. Black Pink is certainly an interesting name, and it doesn't roll off the tongue easily, but they are from YG, and would be debuting with two different songs - "Whistle" is the one we'll be taking a look at today.

Let's start with the negatives: this song's chorus is awful. The whistle hook is insanely catchy, but that's all the chorus has going for it. Jennie and Lisa's blurbs are not exciting in the slightest and would have been better off with just the whistle and instrumental. As a result, the song does get some of those disjointed vibes, but not to the extreme of the other songs that share this attribute (4minute's "What's Your Name," Girls' Generation's "I Got A Boy," etc.). What really surprised me is how much I liked the bridge, despite it not really being connected to the song in any way. The buildup drops dramatically into the whole "whistle like a missile" shenanigans which aren't that great to begin with. I'll never enjoy random blurbs like the ones in the chorus and those in Mamamoo's "Piano Man.." They more often than not just ruin the flow of the song for me.

[Review] AMUSE - Lip 2 Lip

I'm going to be sensible and use "AMUSE" as the name because what an awkward name 9MUSES A is for a subunit. The idea is that 9MUSES A stands for 9MUSES Amuse, but if that's the case why not just use AMUSE? It's a clever name, but could've been better with how they actually presented it. Anyways! After losing Minha and Erin (I'll stop crying whenever I type this eventually), they wouldn't be denied activity in 2016 with this new subunit. The quartet would comprise of the remaining muses minus Hyuna and Sungah. At a glance this seems like a push in the vocals direction, with Kyungri, Hyemi, and Keumjo fronting the bulk of the attack. Will their track deliver and help the group rebound?

For starters, "Lip 2 Lip" is a pretty standard dance track. The girls sing lightly but also with purpose, while the instrumental provides a bounce on their step. Hyemi and Kyungri take center stage, charming us with their voices from start to finish, but when has Kyungri ever been away from the spotlight? I'm pleased to see Hyemi get a fair share of the singing, because frankly she doesn't normally get these kinds of opportunities. In that vein though, I once again find myself lamenting the lines that Sojin was unable to acquire. Even though I didn't predict she'd have a rap, I still expected her to get some form of singing because we've seen her do it in releases past, even if only briefly.

[Review] Hyuna - How's This?

We have a Hyuna sighting. I repeat, we have a Hyuna sighting. But is that really a surprise? This is her first release since the disbandment of 4minute, which also doubles as her first as an official solo artist. She has never been shy in any of her songs since the days of "Change" and if the teasers were any indication, there's to be zero changes from the standard Hyuna formula. We're likely in for some electrifying beats, some snappy rapping, and plenty of explicit material. Korea hasn't been able to handle Hyuna videos for a long time now and 2016 should be no different.

This song is indeed a spiritual successor to "Roll Deep" AKA "Because I'm The Best" AKA "Ilhoon's Rap and Nothing Else." It's extremely repetitive and simplistic in nature, and I don't think has worked for either release. A bright spot here is that Hyuna's voice is not as nasally (for the most part) which does work in her favor. She sounds more comfortable and outside of the "eoddae?" screeches is tolerable to listen to. On the other hand, the instrumental touches base on both extremes: during the chorus it's very grating and almost hurts my ears, but is pleasant during the verses justifying "How's This?" as a dance-happy anthem. Even though the verses are the best-sounding part of the song, "How's This?" will almost certainly be defined by the snazzy prechorus sections where Hyuna and the instrumental climb together to reach the chorus. It's embarrassing that I don't have more to say, there's simply a verse, prechorus, and chorus repeated ad nauseam so if anyone can figure out how to write more about this song, please let me know.

[Bonus] Wild Kpop Episode I: Wonder Girls Edition

"What if Hyuna stayed with the Wonder Girls?"

Welcome to a new series I've decided to call "Wild Kpop." This post is inspired by the Reckless Speculation posts over on the NFL subreddit, which in turn was inspired by the "N-if-L" series by Dave Dameshek. The "wild" is a reference to the wild format of Hearthstone where any and all cards are available. In short, it theorizes how a single decision or event being altered would create a series of domino effects and change the future. Granted, the world of Kpop is more rigid than the world of football (there's no free agency, different contracts, etc.), but it's all for fun speculation and puts my imagination to the test, and that's precisely why I decided to take a crack at it. In today's pilot episode, we explore the status of three girl groups if one member decided to stay with her original group.