Man, it seems like this year has gone by both really quickly and slowly at the same time. There's been...a lot going on. But we're not hear to talk about the whims of the world in 2020, we're here to chat about various stuff that happened in November. Unlike the average Thanksgiving plate, this edition won't be so stuffed.
More Of 1million
Ah, 1million. I remember attending KCON and attending their dance workshop and also being in their video during 2017. Good times. Anyway this crew has been pumping out content for a long while now and the quality continues to improve. This time with Soyeon and Miyeon joining them in studio. It's really unfortunate how awkward Miyeon is in her stage presence, as she pales poorly in comparison to Soyeon and all the other dancers. Yoojung is still impeccable, and her movements are easily the highlights of the video (even if her pants aren't...). Listening to this again reminds me that I wanted to review the whole album, but maybe I'll get to that in December.
November really do be ending soon huh. And I've done jack shit for wiring this month. The good news is that even if I never published another post the remainder of the year, 2020 would still be on the top half of all years regarding number of posts. So maybe we'll set a soft goal of 80 posts before December comes to a close. In theory that should be doable, as we still have two Late Reports, Best Of 2020, Kpop Awards, and then three song reviews next month would put us right at 80. Anyway, here are some of my favorite songs to sing. Treat this as a slightly modified shitpost.
#7. Baekhyun - UN Village
There's a soft spot in my list of favorite songs to sing from the EXO squad because they have consistent quality tracks and simply put, I enjoy singing their tracks. Mostly the slower ballads and the like, as "What Is Love" barely missed the cut. "UN Village" is fucking smooth and I wish I memorized the lyrics to this song. Baekhyun really shines in this element and yeah that's all there is to it.
#6. INFINITE - The Eye
Rarely does an energetic dance number like "The Eye" become a primary karaoke target, but this is a special case. Back in my college dance crew days we covered this song and I was on this team, and I have memories of singing along at practices to help get the timing down. Most people know it's difficult to sing and dance at the same time, and being a part of this song really hammered that thought into my brain. Shoutouts to another song that we covered: Madtown's "Emptiness" that also was similar in terms of the singing plus dancing combination.
Guess I've been in a TS mood. Well that's not really true considering how little Kpop I've actually listened to over the last few months but whatever. TS Entertainment have run into the ground every group they've been in possession of. After just talking about the disappearance of Sonamoo, there's also B.A.P to talk about. Yongguk and Zelo left TS three months after this release, and then everyone else in the group followed suit. As far as I'm aware there has been no noise from then since. Maybe a few of them have released some individual material, but as we close in on three year mark for their hiatus, any reunion or comeback seems more and more unlikely. As such we'll take a look at "Hands Up," which was their final release as a group under TS.
This will be an interesting revisit since the original review was a shortened version. I'm guessing I'll pick apart lines more minutely than other normal revisited pieces, which will potentially let me expand on stuff some more. To be fair the random number generator decided this was the song to go for so you can't call me lazy on this one.
Sadly, this piece won't be published on a Friday night.
Fuck Blogger. This shit is impossible. No I'm not over it. Yes I will whine and bitch and complain about it every time I need to link something. Which is every single post since the site update. Looking back at September, it was quite ambitious of me to say I'd write up three reviews per month when I don't even follow the Kpop world anymore. But hey I set a precedent and I will be damned if I don't follow it for at least the remainder of 2020. So here's some GFriend for ya.
GFriend have embraced the changing of the tides over the last year. Songs like "Crossroads" and "Apple" signified that these girls have been evolving and their newest release "Mago" falls into a similar pattern. There's a heavy disco influence which works well thanks to the driving instrumental which doesn't really let up at any point in the song (aside from the bridge). People are swooning over the chorus but I actually consider it the weakest point of the song. Yes, it's catchy but Yuju still sounds like she's reaching despite the filters. Also, "mago" apparently means magician or goddess or some other term but that still doesn't really make sense fitting into the lyrics where it does. The verses are way more interesting and SinB's "it is midnight" bridge is striking, too. But before y'all attack me on the chorus, it's good haha. I just don't think it's as good as everything else.
What's up with the very light eyebrows look that Eunha has going. First Hwasa and now her, I have to say that I'm not a fan. GFriend as a whole seem to be fans of elevating themselves into that mature image, and that comes with mixed results. Yuju, Sowon, and SinB are stunning while I think the baby faces of Yerin and Umji can't quite match up. Of course it doesn't help that they were heavily marketed in their early days as the new era Apink. But regardless the aesthetics are very strong in "Mago."
As a potato it's hard to be captivated by choreography unless it's completely insane, which isn't the case here. Much like the writing about music videos, I can only see this dwindling over time and overall be a miniscule factor in whether I think the song is good or not. Both are more complimentary pieces at the end of the day. I'm not listening to the choreography, nor am I invested in watching videos. I did find it hilarious when Sowon did the kick at the final chorus, that shit almost hit me through the screen.
Given my lackluster interest and exposure to Kpop this year, any songs up for review immediately have more weight to them when considering the Best Of 2020 piece set for next month. As it stands, "Mago" has been a very complete release with consistent audio, gorgeous visuals, and a comfortable next step for a group that has come very far since their debut days. If you looked at "Glass Bead" and then this track, you'd think they weren't the same group. They've essentially gone through the Apink maturation arc in a much faster sequence. Props to them.
