[Bonus] EXO Tier List

This week(end) is all about gaming: Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Hearthstone, and Runescape DXP. As you can see this has been reflected in blog activity. So I'll drop a quick pilot for a new series in Tier Lists. These have been exploding in popularity from all reaches of the Internet so it's only natural I join in. Especially with my obsession of trying to link Kpop to videogames. The inaugural episode will be my EXO Tier List, including the ex-members. Audible gasp!

Like always, the formatting and whatever will change over time so we'll start with this structure. Tier List posts will substitute for Power Ranking posts when I simply can't decide between a specific order, and or when the number of participants is too damn high. The post that immediately comes to mind will be the next Girl Group Vocalist Power Rankings, and also allows for some mega posts too. I'm pretty excited for these prospects. Anyway let's get into the group.

[Review] EXO-SC - What A Life

EXO are not very clever with their subunit names. There was EXO-K and EXO-M in the beginning, and after they merged back into one group they had EXO-CBX with initials for each member. Now we've got Sehun and Chanyeol making EXO-SC. Color me surprised because these are the two rappers in the gang, and I can't imagine they'd actually try their hand at serious rapping. That'd be disastrous... Chanyeol could hold his own but Sehun is a different story.

[Review] DAY6 - Time Of Our Life

Here we go, I'm actually reviewing a song that I put in a teaser post. DAY6 earning this honor is perhaps fitting seeing their high levels of consistency across their entire discography. And considering how (a) I've enjoyed listening to bands since I was in middle school and (b) my two sisters blast the ever-living shit out of their library, it's hard to not like them. With their coming to a concert near me in September, this new release is what we all need to hold out until then.

[Bonus] The Late Report: June 2019

It's the late edition of The Late Report haha. Almost two weeks into July and we've got our retrospective into June. From now on, these posts should be out before the first week on the month. Can't wait until August to break this rule immediately. Let's look at the selections.

Sulli - Goblin

June was kind of an average month for music (that interested me). Chungha's "Snapping" was the headliner so I'll use Sulli's unexpected song "Goblin" in its place. How fucking sad is it that Sulli released music before the rest of f(x) did. Probably as shocking as her lack of eyebrows in the music video. The song itself is alright but the message and theme about psychology and dissociative disorder is the more prominent aspect.

[Review] SPICA - Russian Roulette (Throwback)

Despite nearly ten title tracks across four years, I never once reviewed a SPICA song. So as much as I praised them, I didn't give them the love they needed. Sad sad sad. Thus they are rewarded by being the first retro review in over four years. Hopefully this will suffice. "Russian Roulette" was their essential debut - they released "Doggedly" before, but that was some more "predebut" bullshit. They were the standout vocalist group that set the precedent for Mamamoo, and "Russian Roulette" shows off their talent with a splendid-sounding track.

{Review] DAY6 - Time Of Our Life (Teaser)

DAY6 announced they'd be touring in Boston later this year and that's fucking amazing. Not too many artists come through here so I'm glad to participate (though my wallet won't) there instead of all the way in New York. As I've said many times before, I'm much more fond of their faster more intense stuff. You know, music a real band would (should) play. I wasn't particularly fond of "Days Gone By" so definitely color me invested in this comeback. The teased section certainly feels like an anime opening, so it'll be interesting to see how the full track spins it. Exciting music should be exciting. DAY6 HYPE. Well, as long as Brian doesn't rap.

[Bonus] Best Of 4minute

Happy 4th of July or something. 4minute had their debut roughly two weeks ago with "Hot Issue" and became a strong girl group that ultimately found their demise at the hands of Cube and their own superstar monster they created. Let's take a retrospective at their career and single out their best singles from their fiesty beginning to somber end.

#10. 24/7

Kinda unfortunate that one of the tracks here is from the subunit because they have more than enough material to have all title tracks here if they were worthy. Oh well. Gayoon and Jiyoon combined forces to make 2YOON and they delivered something...different. Kpop has likely never infused pop with country before and that's what "24/7" was all about.

#9. Hot Issue

This was their debut song and although it hasn't aged that well, "Hot Issue" was a hot issue back during their day and for the late 2000's era it was very appropriate. Whether it still holds up now is a side bonus at this point considering the group disbanded. Hell, some girl groups today have songs that emulate some of the cringier moments here so if anything it shows how powerful 4minute were throughout their years.

[Bonus] Best Of 2019...So Far

It'll be tradition to post a Best Of the year at the midway point because I loved the idea that some songs would start strong early and then falter off, or new challengers would rise up during the second half. In the 2018 edition four of the nominees would go on to make the final list at the end of the year so let's see if 2019 can do better. Compared to last year, I haven't paid as much attention music-wise because I've been busier (though blog production is the best going into July over the last three years) but I'm pretty comfortable with my list. This time we'll go in alphabetical order by artist, to prevent bias when I reference this at the end of the year for Best Of 2019.

Chungha - Gotta Go

Oh look it's Chungha again, back so soon? "Gotta Go" is the pinnacle of her solo career thus far, showcasing her wide range of vocals, enchanting choreography, and gorgeous visuals. She struts her stuff from start to finish and the fact that it kept improving off her previous releases makes things even better. Extremely consistent, excellent composition, and stellar aesthetics make for a well-rounded track out of this well-rounded artist.

GFriend - Sunrise

This entry is a painful reminder I need to finish the next iteration of Girl Group Power Rankings seeing as GFriend is coming back very soon. Nonetheless their "Sunrise" was a perfect way to start the Kpop year. The main selling point of this song is the chorus, which is once again spearheaded by their two-headed vocal monster in Yuju and Eunha. Said chorus is exhilarating and climbs in both the notes and energy, something which you'll see from another girl group later in this post. Between the strong team performance and beautiful structure of the song, "Sunrise" is yet another addition to GFriend's repertoire.