[Review] T-ARA Triplets Special

How about a tripleheader? T-ARA have fallen off the pedestal but they remain active as individuals. They're one of those "unofficially disbanded" groups because the members all say the group isn't dead but until they release music together they might as well be. In the meantime, we have some solo efforts to go over. The triplets of Eunjung, Hyomin, and Jiyeon were very powerful in their heyday and each of them have had some solo success with songs like "Never Ever" and "I'm Good." Let's see how their most recent stuff holds up.

Hyomin - Allure

I don't think it's too crazy to say that Hyomin has seen the least success as an independent act out of the three. Songs like "Nice Body," "Sketch," and "Mango" aren't bad but can't compete with Jiyeon and Eunjung's best. Hyomin's best song in my opinion is the ballad "Gold," which brought her less-exposed vocals to front and center. That song gives me goosebumps to this day, and illustrates how a perfectly sculpted song can meet a singer's needs and show their talents efficiently.

[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.

[Bonus] Best Of 2010

I may have been looking forward to the nostalgia trips of 2011 and 2010, but it never dawned on me how difficult ranking may have been. Forget that 2010 was a tough year - not only did it seem thin on hits, but of course, my memory isn't as efficient going that far back. Great songs were still found, so the list must be made. Either way, this is the last stop in the Best Of series, at least until December rolls around and I do the list for this year!

#12. G.NA - I'll Back Off So You Can Live
G.NA has been mostly a miss during her career - which is quite awkward to say, given her career is basically over or on indefinite hiatus at this point. However, her debut was what caught my attention for being a really pretty song that framed her voice nicely. This song was probably one of the best debuts for a soloist I didn't know about. Unfortunately, subsequent releases from G.NA failed to live up the expectations she set for herself with "I'll Back Off So You Can Live."

#11. 2AM - I Can't Let You Go Even If I Die
Korea loves ballads, and 2AM is one of the best at delivering them. They were the premier ballad idol group and their long history shows their pedigree. "I Can't Let You Go Even If I Die" is a lengthy title, but who cares? The voices of 2AM are beautiful and each member got to shine in their own way. This was the song that really stood out to me in terms of both their individual talent and working together with each other for harmonies.

[Bonus] Best Of 2011

We now embark on a trip down memory lane, for the years of 2010 and 2011 still house some wonderful songs to talk about. Continuing tradition, I'll list my top 12 picks of the songs of the year. This was by far one of the easiest to compile, and subsequently also one of the easiest to rank. There's a distinct hierarchy between the top and bottom half, and regardless of their position all these songs are definitely nostalgic delights.

#12. TVXQ - Before U Go
If you want to look at one of the most important comebacks in Kpop history, the revival of 2VXQ after the JYJ lawsuit is definitely a nomination few would argue against. While "Keep Your Head Down" was the official comeback song, the repackaged album featuring "Before U Go" turned out to be one of three ballads on this list. The X factor was the surprisingly formidable Yunho vocals, which matched pace with Changmin in both power and skill.

#11. Secret - Love Is Move
This song was quietly a top-notch dance number that I felt many people slept on. It had many qualities that combined together for a great performance piece. Relatively catchy hook, frantic (but still clean) choreography moves, and a smooth vocal attack by Jieun. Sure, the Zinger rap is forgettable (hey she didn't change her name yet) but then again so are half of her raps. Like Yunho establishing himself in "Before U Go," Hyosung started to gain traction as a secondary vocalist behind Jieun in this song.

[Review] Hyomin - Sketch

T-ARA has been rather quiet early this year. Finally, they're making moves. Having a Hyomin solo comeback is a little questionable, but as long as nothing like "Nice Body 2.0" is released then our ears will be spared. Hyomin really really dropped the ball in comparison to Jiyeon and Eunjung's solo debuts, so for being the member who gets another opportunity, this is her chance to make up for the disaster that was her debut.

With a single listen of the song, I can confidently say that "Sketch" is better than "Nice Body." How much better, is up for debate. My immediate thoughts were that this song is much better for Hyomin's voice. She's not a particularly strong vocalist, so having a slow sensual song is more up her alley than the more active pop sounds. Come to think of it, nobody in T-ARA really has a good voice for pop, yet they dominate with pop hits anyway. Perhaps that's the power of a group. Moving on, the other thing that instantly jumped out at me is the lack of a hook. Slow R&B tracks aren't necessarily known for being catchy, but nothing in "Sketch" really stands out musically speaking. This is basically the only thing I can write about this song. It's smooth as glass, sure, and Hyomin does a commendable job with the sensual voice, but there's a clear lack of pizzazz which is unfortunate. "Sketch" is more than likely going to be forgettable, though that's perhaps a better fate than a memorably poor song.

I think she was focused on being sexy / fanservice so much that she forgot about lipsyncing, because she does a lazy job of it in the MV. Everything else is pretty much eye candy to the max, and not in the overly obnoxious "Nice Body" style either. There's some bed game, chair dancing, and tattoos are involved. It's a video that will draw criticism and praise alike, and nothing new to Hyomin (or anyone, for that matter).

A good comparison song for "Sketch" would be Hyosung's "Goodnight Kiss." But unlike the catchy dance nature of Hyosung's track, Hyomin places more emphasis on sounding gentle and sensual, which impressed given her lack of notable vocal talent. Where "Goodnight Kiss" falters with the silly chanting and unnecessary breaks, "Sketch" delivers consistency from beginning to end, even if that is only a mediocre consistency. Maybe the bar was set to high by Jiyeon, forever dooming everyone else in T-ARA to have only decent solo showings from now on.

[ Overall: 70 / 100 ]

[Bonus] Girl Group Power Rankings (#10-#6)

Alright, here we go: Girl Group Power Rankings. I'll drop 12 girl groups I believe are at the top of the ladder. Since this is the debut iteration, the rankings are all new, though you can reference the 2015 Girl Group Radar piece I wrote back in December. With the summer season ending, this is a good time to catchup with all these groups and find out where they stand. Rankings are primarily based on music, whether it's group releases, solo projects, collaborations, etc. etc. All of that is fair game. Then of course you throw in some visuals, variety appearances, bias / preference, and we'll find out which girl groups can call themselves queen for now. We're keeping things recent though, so no major throwbacks in these rankings. Of course, it's impossible for me to get to everything so some groups/ data will be more limited than others but that's something we all have to deal with. Reminder that this is a personal list / opinion!

Honorable Mention: GFriend
I don't know about you, but if I was a rookie girl group getting "criticized" for being similar to Girls' Generation back when they debuted, I'd be pretty happy and content. Honestly, GFriend's music isn't really my style. It's very much like A-Pink in the cute pop alley, but there are key factors giving GFriend this spot and not say another rookie group. The choreography is damn impressive, no questions asked, "Glass Bead" and "Me Gustas Tu" are decent enough songs in their own right, but the choreography empowers the song to greater heights and really brings out the performance ability of the group. Another reason their title tracks impress are the vocal carries. The energy in both songs is already at a good level, but Eunha and Yuju's high notes and adlibs are both powerful and clean. Considering they're so young, they will likely mature into superstar vocalists. From a performance perspective, this group may be the most impressive of the year.

Honorable Mention: FIESTAR
FIESTAR was one of those groups that was always under the radar until the sexy concepts rolled in. Continuing with, "You're Pitiful" was an excellent way for the group to start 2015, having placed 4th in my reviews after April (only 3 other songs since have tied or scored better). The MV was artful if a little weird, but Linzy, Yezi, and Jei carry the song through vocals, rap, and performance, respectively. FIESTAR stock will rise a bit over the next couple months as Yezi participates in Unpretty Rapstar 2, and she is probably the member I look forward to seeing on that show the most. She has a talent that will surprise plenty of audiences who haven't heard of her. 4minute competes heavily for this spot on the rankings, what with the incredibly strong release of "Crazy," along with rumors of Jiyoon joining Unpretty Rapstar 2, but with Hyuna's weak solo comeback, I will gracefully give FIESTAR the spot.

10. Wonder Girls
Legacy is important, so when a group once thought to be gone forever returns to glory, people everywhere rejoice. That's what fans of Wonder Girls have experienced over the last month with their return and the "Reboot" studio album. The new lineup is perhaps equal to the previous one, trading out Sohee for Sunmi is an upgrade, but on the flipside Sunye brought a lot of depth in terms of the singing, something which Yenny can't really replicate. I haven't gotten around to the album yet, but I hope Yubin gets some singing lines. Nobody should be subject to "Bora syndrome" ever, so the sooner we cure everyone the better. As one of the most successful groups of their time, and being able to stand up to Girls' Generation, Wonder Girls' comeback is heartwarming to both old and new fans alike.

9. 9MUSES
It's only appropriate 9MUSES find themselves at #9. They've catapulted themselves after a dormant 2014 with "Drama" and "Hurt Locker." While the former was a rather safe play, the latter was the superstar summer track that lived up to expectations set upon the group after the very successful whirlwind cycle of "Dolls," "Wild," "Gun," and "Glue" in 2013. The group has suffered through a multitude of roster changes since debut, so pray that they will continue on without further problems / hindrances. The year off really hurt their momentum, but let's not focus so much on the bad. 9MUSES is probably the best-looking group as a whole (Kyungri sure comes to mind). They also have Erin, a top 3 girl group rapper, as well as Hyuna and Hyemi, consistent vocalists whose abilities are unfortunately underrated. If they can go into next year with no issues, they'll be one step closer to getting back to the level they were in 2013.

8. T-ARA
While T-ARA also aren't perfect in terms of roster consistency, what puts them above 9MUSES is that they have a previous year of content to piggyback off. Let's not forget that Jiyeon made an awesome solo debut last year, and "Sugar Free" was one of the best dance tracks of 2014. The "So Good" mini wasn't terribly exciting but it was fairly balanced with what songs it did have, Included was a Chinese version of "So Crazy" which was predominantly in Korean. That was confusing. Anyway Eunjung also made her solo debut, while quiet was also very pretty. In their current trajectory, I'd expect a Soyeon solo debut and some more Chinese activities next year. T-ARA is well-rounded in talent, just a shame their tragic scandals have yet to fully recover in the eyes of the public.

7. EXID
Ah yeah, ah yeah, ah yeah ah yeah ah yeah! The EXID train continues to move forward. Following the revived success of "Up & Down," EXID delivered "Ah Yeah" in spring 2015. The "Ah Yeah" EP has some goodies inside, notably "With Out U" which is one of this year's best B-sides, awkward-looking title aside. The roster is not without star power, either. EXID is home to LE, a standout rapper with plenty on her resume and ferocious delivery to match. Solji is incredibly overlooked with her powerful vocals but has made up for it with appearances on King of Mask Singer and various OST work. Hani needs no introduction at this point, her jack-of-all-trades utility plus a carefree and friendly personality speak for themselves. Just like their sudden explosion in popularity, EXID's spot in the rankings will also likely jump quickly. A good way to wrap up this year would be a Dasoni comeback, right?

6. Mamamoo
2014's hottest debut made it to the top in no time. The string of "Mr. Ambiguous," "Piano Man," "Ahh Oop!," and "Um Oh Ah Yeah" made for an excellent promotion cycle, while the rest of "Pink Funky" makes for an enthralling listen. Mamamoo has the vocal prowess, the retro vibe, and the addicting personalities that make for a killer group. Wheein and Solar make for an unfair vocal pairing, but Hwasa is responsible for like 90% of the charisma and sass and is plenty talented in her own right. The harmonization across their library is insane and with singers this good they have tackled all types of genres with success. Not to be forgotten though, is Moonbyul. Moonbyul is a more-than-capable rapper with surprising vocals. If they give her some singing lines they might be the most balanced group in line distribution. These girls need more variety appearances. They are extremely dorky and lovable, and their music is fantastic. What more could you want?

[Review] T-ARA - So Crazy

Another girl group giant awakens from their slumber. Following Eunjung's quiet but good solo debut, the whole group is back again. Last comebacks graced us with the dance-tastic "Sugar Free" and "Number Nine." Would T-Ara continue the trend of electronic dance tracks or go more retro / pop?

The answer is most certainly the latter. While not as infused with the pop as say "Lovey Dovey" or "Roly Poly," "So Crazy" is still influenced with those attributes. The vocals are lighthearted and the instrumental is casually fun. Soyeon continues to carry the vocals, sure, but the same synchronized T-Ara sound is still there. Hyomin graces with the opening and a rap sequence, while Jiyeon gets more time to shine with the bridge. I know I've called out Boram and Qri on being mere filler for most of T-Ara's lifetime but man this song really puts them in a corner doesn't it. The line distribution is biased heavily against them, with generous parts going to the holy trio of Hyomin / Eunjung / Jiyeon.

I'm very glad to see that I won't get exposed to a seizure-inducing video from T-Ara in 2015. There is something resembling a plot on this video. The T-Ara girls are working hard as general faculty members of some facility (it's actually called T_Ara cafeteria) frequented by sailors / military / pirates. Okay maybe not that last one. T-Ara duties are cleaning, cleaning, looking pretty, cleaning, etc. There's also some other lady who is either just more personnel or their boss, who is apparently hot shit with the men. Then some beauty pageant gets held and T-Ara pull an underdog(?) victory because surprise - everyone in T-Ara is gorgeous. Except Boram. Poor Boram got shafted in the line and appearance departments as those bangs are not doing her any favors. It always sucks to have that odd one singled out but unfortunately that's Boram this time. There are some questions I'd like the answers to though. If this is T-Ara's place why are they doing all the laymen work? Why aren't they the boss(es)? Do all the members have to share a single bunkbed? Who is sleeping with who? Seems like they left out the important details. Either way, it's a pleasure to see more content put in this video because...

The choreography is honestly really boring. Past T-Ara hits weren't necessarily focused on for the dancing, but the moves in "Number Nine" and even "Sugar Free" were a plethora of positive adjectives. Good, interesting, elegant, etc. The moves at the chorus where they stand there pointing fingers upwards is just so bland. Even the "highlight" move of the butt-shaking only shows up twice. Oh and by the way, the first iteration of the butt-shaking sequence with the finger teaser? AOA and "Confused" were way ahead of you (at least that's the usual dance I think of whenever I see that). Sidenote: going off the chorus, the song title should've been "So Startled" haha, considering how surprised they look when they do that part.

The title of this song is misleading as "So Crazy" isn't really all that crazy. After all that rightfully belongs to 4minute and their "Crazy," but anyway the song is lighthearted fun combined with an equally silly and carefree MV. The song really loses power from the weak choreography, and on a battlefield with some strong dances and other more memorable songs, T-Ara finds themselves a step behind in the girl group game.

[ Overall: 83 / 100 ]

[Review] Eunjung - I'm Good (feat. K.Will)

I know I'm a month late, but did anyone else even know Eunjung made her solo debut already? She's the 3rd T-Ara member to release a solo song, following Jiyeon's "Never Ever" (incredible) and Hyomin's "Nice Body" (LOL). Eunjung also used a stage name in Elsie for...whatever reasons. I am not particularly fond of having random changes in names (see: 2PM's Junsu) so I'll still call her Eunjung, since I'm assuming she won't be using Elsie for T-Ara group promotions anyway.

News surrounding Eunjung's solo was quiet and "I'm Good" matches that in tone. The song is very sad, emotional, and slow. K.Will's appearance on the track is definitely more than a feature haha. They split the song about 50/50 so I'd say this is "Eunjung & K.Will" more than "Eunjung feat. K.Will" and irks my OCD / organization nerves when it comes to labeling music. That all being said, it's a beautiful duet and is a perfect addition to my ever-growing sad_zone playlist. Though to be perfectly honest, Eunjung's voice has never been her strongest asset. Hell, she doesn't really have a strongest asset, she is extremely well-rounded but isn't really known for one specific thing. Just comparing her to her teammates, Jiyeon has a more sultry voice and Soyeon is obviously the ballad specialist. Still, she does a good job with what she has and K.Will certainly helps her in the vocals.

Can I just say that Eunjung looks beautiful with long hair. She's one of the most prominent girls who rock the shirt cuts but here she is. Now that I've actually seen it, I would't mind her keeping this hairstyle for T-Ara's next comeback, whenever that is. Similar to Jiyeon's video and dance, "I'm Good" also uses simple choreography combined with limited backup dancers and couple choreography, though the latter is a very loose definition. In most dance scenes, Eunjung wears the same colour as the male backup dancer, while the actor standing in for K.Will and the female backup dancer have the same colour. These little touches are generally underappreciated so it's a treat to see. It is quite the shame K.Will couldn't appear on this video though, considering he sang so much of the song. Props to the actor for playing his part well.

It's a quiet release, quiet performance, quiet choreography, and solid MV. Sometimes that's all you can really ask for. While Eunjung didn't have quite the debut splash like Jiyeon and "Never Ever", it's better and helps erase the memories of Hyomin's disaster that was "Nice Body."

[ Overall: 80 / 100 ]

[Bonus] Girl Group Soloist Theory

1. Minzy (2NE1)
Minzy. Needs. A solo debut. This girl is a premier girl in Kpop when it comes to being a jack of all trades, master of none. Minzy possesses a stable lower register, flighty rapping skills, and is a top notch dancer. That's the complete package, and if that isn't worthy of a solo debut I don't know what is. Minzy could easily have a more dance-oriented number as the title track, and have other songs on the album like a slower ballad and more poppy tunes like some 2NE1 stuff. Unfortunately, this will either not be happening soon or at all, with CL's impending march onto the American market, any other 2NE1 related activities will be on hold.

2. Taeyeon (Girls' Generation)
Rumors are this is already going to be happening, but Taeyeon obviously would excel as a solo artist. She's pretty much perfect for ballads (something along the lines with Kyuhyun's "At Gwanghwamun" for example) but has proven she can do pop and other genres, as seen in Girls' Generation's variety of music. Taeyeon is already the #1 of Girls' Generation in so many aspects, giving her a solo debut on top of the subunit might make up for the fact that 2014 was completely disastrous for GG. Oh and while we're at it, let's not have troll teaser concept photos either. Please and thank you.

3. Soyu (Sistar)
Now Soyu had a pretty busy 2014. While a plethora of collaboration projects is nice, that doesn't substitute for a full length solo album release. Soyu has a beautiful stable voice. Her range is far lower than Hyorin's, but she's very consistent and I've never heard her strain for notes (though perhaps that's because Hyorin takes all those). Each release has utilized her graceful vocals so a solo debut would be no exception to this. I think that Soyu's best song this year and a half was "The Space Between" with Urban Zakapa, which really capitalized on her smooth voice. Something similar would do her (and Sistar) a lot of good.

4. Eunjung (T-ARA)
Jiyeon, Hyomin, and Eunjung are perhaps the biggest names in T-ARA, and logically Eunjung should have her chance at a solo debut next year, following the footsteps of Jiyeon and Hyomin. Eunjung is similar to Minzy in that she's a very well-rounded idol. No specific strengths (outside of looks heh) or flaws, and if Jiyeon had a fantastic release that brought out her talents, then Eunjung can surely be just as good if not better. T-ARA had a good year with "Sugar Free" and Jiyeon's "Never Ever" (both songs just missed out being on the Best Of 2014 at #21 and #23, respectively), An Eunjung solo should help wipe the memory of the other T-ARA member solo that we don't like to talk about as having happened. Seriously.

Just Outside: Sera (ex-9MUSES)
I actually want this comeback the most, especially since we've seen Nicole leave her group to return with a produced solo, I'm hoping something like this is in the works for Sera, though I don't think she's signed on with any label. She's been uploading clips to Youtube relatively frequently. If this is the fate she's left with then it's a shame. Sera's got one of the clearest and purest voices in Kpop alongside Secret's Jieun. Would be unfortunate to see that go to waste.

Just Outside: Luna (f(x))
This nomination is also technically a stretch, given how unlikely f(x) activities will occur in the foreseeable future. Still, Luna is amazing and her versatility could also come into play, letting her tackle electronic dance pop, while still having a reliable beautiful voice for slower songs. Luna is the only person keeping f(x) relevant in terms of music, so give this girl a chance at the solo stage, I'm sure she'd kill it.

Honorable Mentions: Bohyung (Spica), Seungyeon (KARA)

[Review] T-ARA - Sugar Free

With the recent collapse of Girls’ Generation, T-Ara find themselves as a group of the previous guard with the original roster in tact. Despite the additions and removals of a few members, T-Ara returned with “Sugar Free,” which at a glance seemed like some promotional campaign for healthy lifestyles or something, and I keep hearing soda cans being opened.

The song is quite bland. Soyeon has the bulk of the work but not only does she carry the chorus but she shows up in the verses, too. The chorus itself is pretty bland, and the verses a mixture of rap-singing from Hyomin and Qri. Based on that, I guess the prechorus is the best part of the song, though the intro is strong, too, thanks to the instrumental. Speaking of which, this is what saves the song. The instrumental is killer and really generates energy and power for this otherwise mediocre song.

I’d like to see more vocal diversity in future T-Ara. Eunjung, Hyomin, and Jiyeon aren’t spectacular but they also aren’t pushovers. Qri and Boram are somewhat filler material but aren’t awful, either. A medium-paced dance track with more evenly distributed lines would probably hook me, honestly.

The video is a complete clusterfuck of seizure-inducing eye candy. That’s the simplest way I can describe it. I remember the first time I watched the MV for “I Go Crazy Because Of You” and I thought that was ridiculous, but this is probably worse. And when you consider there are multiple versions of the MV for some reason, the effect is compounded. Oh and don’t worry, all variants are just as crazy colourful and switch perspectives more often than you’d like. The choreography seems particularly lazy, but when your eyes hurt so much from the constant scene changing, you don’t get to see the dance too much. Again, the intro was pleasant but everything else looked very basic and unimpressive all around. This is a shame, since the instrumental is so damn good that I expected more out of the dance.

T-Ara stock will continue to rise as the aftermath of Girls’ Generation, combined with the death of Wonder Girls, restructure of KARA, etc. They are one of the 2 relatively unscathed flagship girl groups of the previous era (the other being 2NE1).

[ Score: 82 / 100 ]

[Review] Jiyeon - Never Ever

Jiyeon was the last of the trio of Duble Sidekick releases to premiere, and with this being Jiyeon’s first foray into solo work and curious teaser imagery, this was the song that needed immediate strong impact. Would such be delivered?

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Vocals: 9 / 10

Jiyeon has a very soft voice, and this was played to the best possible outcome in “Never Ever” (side note: I don’t like when songs have 2 distinctly different titles. Is the song name “Never Ever” or “1:01”? Neither are wrong or bad song titles, it’s just confusing to have 2 of them). There isn’t anything extremely fancy, nor would I believe such parts be possible for Jiyeon to pull off without serious strain but the song is pleasant on the ears and flows very well. The deep gasps and breathing that not subtle at all were extremely bizarre. They didn’t really add anything to the vocals or enhance the instrumental. / background. The English “I wanna be with you, but I will pray for you baby” seems a little odd at first, but I assume the praying is for the better of the significant other now that they are apart. This is a very memorable song with a strong hook without being overly loud or dramatic, which is impressive.

Dance: 8 / 10

I do enjoy some symbolic choreography and that’s what Jiyeon shows. The usage of a “mirror” and a backup dancer playing essentially an equal part to Jiyeon is quite excellent. The display of “one by one” in the chorus regarding writing letters is solid, though the other moments of the chorus could’ve been better. I’m not entirely sure what the pelvic choreography was used for outside of just pure fanservice, and the same could be said for the moves at the beginning of each chorus. Still, this style of fanservice is more aligned with Sistar’s work than the rather extremes.

Music Video: 10 / 10

What a beautifully crafted MV. I honestly didn’t expect this. The repitition and representation are all on the mark, while attention to detail like with the flowers and etc. were bonus points on an already polished video. I’m sure I wasn’t the only person who thought of Slender when the man’s face was empty / obscure, which added a clean touch to the “nightmarish” sense describe by the lyrics. I do question the necessity of having Jiyeon get wet other than, again, fanservice, and were there moments in that MV where it was raining inside? While questionable, still leaves us with a perfect MV score.

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Overall: 90 / 100

Based on score alone, Jiyeon is the clear winner but there’s really more to that. Jiyeon has a song that will loop in your head, with an artisticly and aesthetically pleasing MV. Above that, “Never Ever” shines in the areas that the other 2 songs have trouble: there’s no awful breaks or mismatching of lyrics and video in “Goodnight Kiss”, nor is there a lack of anything memorable or poor MV decisions in “G.NA’s Secret”. Jiyeon has made an excellent solo debut and I hope Hyomin’s is just as strong if not stronger.

[Review] T-ARA - Number Nine

Vocals: 9 / 10

Has T-Ara always been this synchronized in sound? Perhaps it was the melody of the verses and such, but every member’s voice flows pretty well into the next, making it really enjoyable to listen to. Jiyeon’s high notes during the bridge were also not strained. It was interesting that Soyeon didn’t take some of those high notes but I guess having Soyeon sing the chorus makes more sense. Speaking of, all the high notes and belts were well executed overall. Maybe it’s just me but it has been quite some time since I’ve heard a good belt that not only sounded good but meshed with the chorus, and the work at the end of this song is excellent. The bridge also adds a nice crescendo and Soyeon doesn’t disappoint. What does, however, is the unnecessary use of the prechorus’ half-muffled half-robotic “Number nine”, which should’ve been omitted completely.

Appearance: 8 / 10

Hyomin and Eunjung continue to be flawless. Boram and Soyeon look good, but I don’t think the hairstyles they had did enough for them. As far as Qri goes, that shade of red doesn’t work well for her, and makes her look weird and stand out amongst the other members who have darker colours. Speaking of colours, the outfits during the red box were probably the best. Eunjung and Jiyeon look amazing, but in their solo shots with the zebra stripes? Questionable. Outside of the red box clothes and zebra clothes though they looked great all around.

Dance: 8 / 10

The dance also was equally as appealing as the girls’ looks for the most part. The mixture between individual moves and synchronized choreography was of a good balance, and while they were no dance breaks or such, Jiyeon’s parts during the prechorus almost gave the feeling of a dance solo anyway. While having said all that about the dance being good, I felt there could have been some more energy and or power, given the heavy instrumentals of the song.

Rap: 3 / 10

No, no, no, no. There is anything and everything wrong with this rap. What is Hyomin saying? “I’m addict”? “I’m adding”? “I’m headache”? Even ignoring the terrible English, the rap was mediocre at best, with the weird muffled background voices backing Hyomin up. As far as songs like this go, I feel this could’ve been fine without a rap segment (similar to f(x)’s “Electric Shock”) but they just had to add this one in, and definitely a regrettable decision. Considering just how good the vocals were in this song, the rap is a serious letdown and disappointment.

Music Video: 6 / 10

From now on, any stereotypical boring box MV will get a score of 4, and then I’ll add or subtract additional points from there based on various things like eye candy, additional versions, etc. So with that said, this score gets a 6 because of the extra eye candy in both the regular music video and then the second music video, which was shot in Mongolia. Since there was no sort of drama version, and of course being the stereotypical MV that it is, there’s no plot or interaction at all. I did find the intro / first fifteen seconds a little strange, since it’s only Eunjung singing notes with no real substance and is more structured towards a ballad (or at least a softer song) but then cuts (despite the instrumental buildup) right to the “wub wub wub” intro of the song.

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Overall: 68 / 100

While the song is very good, the score doesn’t quite reflect that. Primarily because the unneeded rap was so bad, and because the music video didn’t provide much either. If you only looked at vocals, dance, and appearance, the score would be 25 / 30. Which is a shame, since these aspects were executed so well, but the remaining two weren’t. We’ll be hard pressed to find more solid releases with quality scores in all fields. T-Ara put out a good effort but couldn’t quite make things happen.