[May 21, 2010] KBS Music Bank Highlights + Commentary

Apologies for being MIA this week - I was so busy with review classes that when I got home I was too tired to even think, which is why I felt like I was gonna go crazy if I didn't write today. Hence, my review of the new Wonder Girls single AND today's MuBank commentary.

Quite a number of comebacks today, but all the acts had already performed on Mnet Countdown yesterday because none of them were from SME (long story) so technically today wasn't the first time they all performed their singles. I don't wanna do a recap of Mnet M!Countdown because I'm freaking out already with the 3 music shows, what more if I add.

I also noticed that a lot of the bigger artists used hand-held mics instead of hands-free ones. Usually hand-held mics sound better so yay. Although I'm not used to some of these idols actually holding mics anymore. Oh well.

Once again, YT credit for all videos goes to UnknownCarrot110.

CN Blue - Love + Sweet Holiday
The producers of MuBank committed a very, VERY grave crime with CN Blue today. Well at least it's grave for me. WHO THE CRAP OSTRACIZED THE DRUMMER TO A TINY LITTLE CORNER ON STAGE? That's just stupid - the 3 other guys have to actually HEAR the drummer because he lays down the foundations of a song. He lays down the tempo, the feel and the way the song flows AND YOU THANK HIM BY PUTTING HIM IN A CORNER? I know it was just for one song when they sang two but still. UGH. However I think I have new-found respect for CN Blue because I'm 90% sure that they're playing live - I hear hints of live drums here and there when it's not drowned out by fancy guitar lines. I hear wood clanking on metal. Yayyyyyyyy.

MBLAQ - Y
I won't deny the fact that MBLAQ have improved A LOT since their crappy Oh Yeah days, but their material is still generic as hell and they're still not the best singers in the world. In reality, I find their vocals very lazy - the reason why it's like they're going out of tempo is because they don't sing with conviction, their vocals have no kick. Their vocals are stronger than before, but now they lack kick. I mean a lot of pop singers lack soul, but at least some of them have kick in their vocals - they don't make it sound like the song's being forced upon them. Rain is trying way too hard to make MBLAQ 5 Rain clones music-wise but he has to understand that there's only one of him - that his ability to perform even without the best voice in the world is something he can't just tell 5 random guys to do. The 5 guys have their own style, and they'll learn that as time passes, but if Rain keeps pushing songs that could've been for him, they won't get anywhere. I'll expand on this once I whip up my review - hopefully by tomorrow morning.

f(x) - NU ABO
Their live vocals are getting better, and Luna's middle 8 is starting to sound fantastic - atta girl. I'm still not sold on the song as a whole though - f(x) have A LOT to prove to me in the coming months/years, but this performance was relatively good.

4Minute - Who's Next (with BEAST) + HUH
That's it, I'm writing a review for this single too, that makes 2 reviews to write tomorrow morning. GREAT. I like how BEAST kinda "passed on the Cube torch" or whatever at the beginning, and that track has grown on me. I'll save a lot of my observations on Huh for my review and just focus on the performance first - once I've said my piece by tomorrow, I can start ranting here. One thing I noticed about Cube idol groups, namely BEAST and 4Minute, is that when they're actually singing live, they're pretty good performers. These 2 bands know how to sell a song and they both started out kinda bleh in terms of performance but they've learned and grown - that's what's important. They tweaked their sound a bit, but I can still tell that it's from Cube, there's a certain combination of the instrumental and the melodies and the vocals that makes this entire package look, sound and feel very much like something Cube Entertainment would do. They've got a long way to go performance-wise, but hopefully by the time they're halfway into promo it'll get better.

The Wonder Girls - 2 Different Tears
One thing I like about never bothering to learn their names is the fact that I'm not biased when it comes to their vocals. The girl who did the hook at the start is really good, and I mean REALLY good, but the girl who did the first verse is very lazy - her runs at the end of lines were sloppy and her nasal-ness can get a bit irritating. The one doing the bridge is OK, but one line alone isn't enough to gauge if the nasal-ness is good or bad. The girl singing the so I hate you.... part has weak vocals, but a lot of potential - with a little technique I might just like her vocals.

Rain - Hip Song
The fanchants made this performance. I mean yeah Rain sang a bit more than usual but I still hate his wardrobe - it's irritating. Rain does what he does best on this performance and that is command an audience into thinking he's the best thing since anything, which is probably is.

Hyori - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
*sigh* When's she wrapping up promo? I hope she does soon. She isn't doing anything different to amuse us anymore, so I'm bored for like a gazillionth week in a row.

2PM - Without U
2PM are starting to bore me as much as Hyori now, I'm sorry. With Wooyoung, my favorite voice, lip-syncing his parts, I have nothing to get excited about anymore. They're good performers, yeah, but the song bores me now. Oh well.

Super Junior - Bonamana (WINNER)
SuJu score their first win on Music Bank today, and I have to admit that it was deserved - even if it's against my "beliefs" or whatever, I can't stop listening to it. Today's performance gained a few eyebrow raises from me in terms of their vocals, but SuJu aren't known for their strong vocals so today was a pass. The performance was tight and a lot more lively than the recorded version, and the vocals were comfortable. Not necessarily strong, but comfortable. Although I am surprised that Heechul sounded pretty good today. No magic trick during Donghae's line, I believe he did it earlier during an interview and gave the rose to the girl host.

So there you go, the weekend of comebacks is just beginning. Over the weekend I'll be reviewing 4Minute's HUH, MBLAQ's Y, a few of the World Cup songs and possibly the new Kylie single, POSSIBLY. That plus a recaps of MBC Music Core and SBS Inkigayo - that's a lot of posts! Well I gotta make up for the 4 days I was MIA.

[May 16, 2010] SBS Inkigayo Highlights + Commentary

Apologies for my absence for yesterday's Music Core recap, but I was at a resort in the mountains staring at orange and blue skies with stars scattered around and lounging around taking in the 17-degree temperature all day while you guys back in Metro Manila were melting in 30+-degree heat. Not bad, eh? I thought so. I wanted to show you guys some pictures, but I'm far too lazy to move them from my camera to my computer. Maybe next time - for now let's just get on with today's recap.

Never did I think I'd see the day (well since I started writing recaps) when Inkigayo would have decent sound. Not great, but better than usual - MuBank still has the best sound for me. We say hello to Davichi and Super Junior but goodbye to BEAST.

Credit for all videos goes to the fantastic CrazyCarrot310@YT.

f(x) - NU ABO

The only thing I actually take notice of when I watch f(x)'s performance now is Luna's middle 8. Of course I listen to the other parts and all, but I pay attention to that middle 8 in particular for the simple reason that it's the only part worth watching for me. Luna did it impeccably today - probably the best she's ever done. The middle 8 was nicely delivered and the high note wasn't off - yay.

BEAST - Special

BEAST ended promotions for their second mini-album Shock of the New Era today, and I'm impressed. When they debuted I named them better than their then competition MBLAQ, and I still think they are - better vocals, better material. I watched their debut performance after I saw this and they really have turned into true performers - they've got decent material, they tried some harmonies here and there and they've gotten more confident on stage, you can see that they have good group dynamics and they're comfortable with not only the stage but each other. Seriously, all they have to do is give me one drop-dead-gorgeous single and I'll be all over it.

After School - Bang!

Someone please fire the cameraman today - he's making my headache horrid. Their vocals were good today - probably the best they've ever been since the start of promotions. The two girls were actually singing, Gahee sounded nasal but her vocals were decent, that girl in the pony tail was OK and except for the fact that her high note at the end made my head throb, Raina was good today too. Maybe a few more voice lessons and some intense technique sessions? That should do, they're capable of it after all.

Davichi - Time, Please Stop

Davichi - gorgeous voices. The girl doing the verses was a little shaky at the start, but the second verse was a lot better. The chorus was very scream-y, but it fits the song - their vocals during the higher parts were brilliant and the harmony part (I just heard one!) was pretty. Here we go again with the fake band though. Ugh. Props?

Rain - Hip Song

Fanchants make Rain's perfomances - that accounts for about half of their outstanding-ness (LOL), but today's chants weren't as loud as one of his earlier performances on Music Bank. It's also with his performances of Hip Song that the importance of decent outfits really sinks in - I liked it when he was doing it a few weeks ago but the change of outfits just made me go "bleh". As a performance it was good though, as Rain's performances always are.

Hyori - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

I'm still bored with Hyori - there's only a certain number of times I can see this song performed live before I start losing interest, and Hyori has exceeded that limit. I saw her duet with Daesung yesterday morning before I left for the mountains (LOL) and I was all over it, still am - Hyori needs to give me something new with her performances, and by that I mean a new song. Oh well. Her vocals were so-so today, not bad but not spectacular.

Gummy - As a Man

Gummy seemed a lot more comfortable today, as if she wasn't already comfortable during the previous performances, but the sound engineer still can't seem to understand the meaning of TURN DOWN THE BACKING TRACK. Oh well, at least she sounds OK. Stellar vocals, good stage presence and a decent sound system make for a brilliant performance.

Super Junior - Boom Boom + Bonamana

I hate to admit it but they actually did relatively well with Boom Boom today. I wouldn't call it a spectacular performance but considering that they don't exactly pwn anyone when it come to live vocals, they did well today. Kyuhyun started it out strong, Donghae surprised me yet again with his now-existent live vocals, Sungmin was competent and Ryeowook did what he always does. Heechul's line was far too backing track-ed for my liking but his really short line at the end was OK. What kinda disappointed me though was the rather bad performance of Bonamana. Siwon still can't sing live, Heechul's vocals sounded weak and what surprised me the most was the fact that you could hardly hear Kyuhyun or Yesung - I once again blame the engineer. It's not the mics since they brought their own today (or SM did), it's the mixing and rendering of the vocals which is the engineer's main responsibility while the performance is going on. The backing track still pisses me off and the camera angles made my head ache a bit. However even if there are a gazillion people on stage in boyband language, it didn't seem like it - that's what separates Super Junior from the other bigger bands like ZE:A, their group dynamic. They looked like one single unit today and that's the foundation of an entire group's performance - everything else can be learned and acquired with time and practice.

2PM - Without U (WINNER)

And 2PM win again today - they haven't won a triple crown yet, right? *sigh* I'm bored with this song too, but then again I never thought it was any good when I first heard it. Their vocals were surprisingly relatively good as well, like a lot of other acts, and the performance as a whole was tight. I guess they do deserve the win today.

That wraps up this week's incomplete music show recaps - apologies for the second week without an MBC Music Core recap. Catch me this Friday for a live tweet+recap of KBS Music Bank!

[May 9, 2010] SBS Inkigayo Highlights + Commentary

Before we get to today's Inkigayo recap, HAPPY MOTHER'S DAYYYYYYY! Weeehee. OK moving on.

Last week I stressed the fact that the Inkigayo sound engineer must be fired and burned in hell for his crimes last week. He should be for this week's crimes too, the sound today was even worse than yesterday's MuCore. BOO.

YT credit goes to UnknownCarrot300. *bows down* Apart from the Gummy vids which are courtesy of the equally brilliant CodeMonMonMixes.

ZE:A - All Day Long

Someone has to go teach this engineer how to TURN THE BACKING TRACK VOLUMES DOWN. You know, SOFTER? The track on this performance was so loud, you'd think the boys were miming 70% of the song when they actually only usually mime around 30%. I heard traces of live singing on a few parts, but if you were casually listening to the song, the backing track is loud enough that it literally drowsn their vocals.

Secret - Magic

Just for this performance, someone PLEASE fire the cameraman along with the sound engineer. ALTHOUGH, Secret seem to be one of the two groups least-affected by the curse of the stupid sound engineer (we'll get to the other one later), maybe because a lot of the performance used pre-recorded lines, but maybe because they may actually have enough vocal ability to carry themselves. IF they can make those vocals into fantastic performing packages, they may possibly stick around for longer than I first thought they would. That and the rapper is quite a good singer, reminds me a bit of how CL 2NE1 can sing too, but she's not as good as CL yet. I'd give it some time.

B2ST - Special

Right now I'd very much like to fly to Korea, hunt down the SBS sound engineer, scream at him/her, cut off his/her fingers and ears, then watch him/her die a painfully slow death. Seriously, does the engineer even have ears? B2ST sounded crap today because of those stupid hands-free AND hand held mics - if it was just the hands-free ones I'd kinda forgive him since they're always a problem but even the hand held ones sounded crap! Although if you listen carefully their vocals weren't at their best, but that doesn't excuse the sound engineer from crimes of crap sound. AJ doesn't have a very nice voice to start with and the sound today made it worse, heck it even made Yoseob sound bad, and he's pretty good! BOO. (to the engineer, not B2ST - they were fine.)

f(x) - NU ABO

Let's put it this way - the only person who was affected by the crap sound today was Luna, because she had to actually sing without a lot of backing when she did the middle 8. It sounded held back, soft, and she didn't really hit some of the higher notes right. The rest of the performance was bleh. NEXT ACT.

U-Kiss - Mworago

Just when I thought ZE:A's vocals were drowned, looks like I hadn't heard U-Kiss yet. UGH. Heck, even that blonde dude (sorry, don't know his name) sounded like he was miming, and in the past performances he was supposed to be the one who could sing. I just hop for everyone's sanity that the engineer dies a very painful death one day.

After School - Bang!

The other group who sounded pretty good today were After School - does the engineer favor the two groups? Ugh, just like the MuCore engineer - playing favorites. Although After School sounding good today might be a blessing in disguise, their vocals are really getting better and better. The middle 8 was still a FAIL vocally and there were parts heavily backed-up by the recording, but most of the vocals were quite good if you compare it to their past performances.

2PM - Without U

OK so some of the comments for yesterday's MuCore recap said that Wooyoung has vocal chord nodules, which is why he's miming so OK, he's forgiven. But why's Junho (Junho? not sure about the names.) miming too? Please don't tell me there's a nodule outbreak within 2PM. (just joking, it's not contagious. At least the one I know of) Other than that and the fact that Junsu apparently hurt his knee, there really isn't anything else to talk about. Their vocals were consistent with yesterday's more comfortable ones, and the performance was OK.

Rain - Love Song

Compared to everyone else, Rain sounded pretty OK today. I mean, the Inkigayo sound engineer didn't let him off sounding bad just because he's Rain, but at leaast the mic wasn't shaky - because he brought his own. Lesson learned idols, if you wanna sound even the least bit better on Inki, bring your own microphones.

Gummy - There Is No Love + As a Man

Can I resurrect the engineer and kill him/her again just so he/she gets the right punishment? Seriously, who turns up the backing track to the same level of the vocals of someone who can actually sing? Stupidity. You can still hear traces of her live vocals when the backing track's on but because they're at the same level, the live and recorded vocals mix and you have to listen even more carefully to actually hear it. Her vocals were a bit lazy today at some parts, but she was consistent for most of the performance(s). I've noticed this even as early as yesterday but I didn't say it because I thought it was just a one-off mistake - Gummy's having some tempo problems during the first verse of There Is No Love. It's nothing serious, like she's missing the instrumental by one one-hundredth of a second, but to a trained ear and/or someone who's tempo-perfect (me) it's very obvious. She could be doing some of it on purpose though.

Hyori - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang(WINNER - TRIPLE CROWN)

Before I start the commentary, WHAT THE CRAP IS SHE WEARING?!?! OK on to busines. The engineer finally figured out how to turn down the backing tracks, just a teensy bit for Hyori, sice she's Hyori and all. Ugh. Today's Hyori performance was Hyori, that's all I have to say about it. And now that she's won her triple crown, I wonder who's gonna win next week. Hmm.

Well that wraps up this week's music show recaps - will be announcing via Twitter whether or not I'm doing a live Tweet for KBS Music Bank on Friday at 5:30 PM Philippine Time, so if you aren't already, follow me. Once again, live Tweets will span the entire show, but recaps will only feature idols. If you're watching too, don't hesitate to tweet me - I want multiple discussions running while it's on, OK? OK.

[May 8, 2010] MBC Music Core - Highlights + Commentary

I didn't get to do a recap of Music Core last week because I did my recap of KBS Music Bank this time last week. But I'm doing it now so here it is. Music Core is MBC's counterpart to Music Bank and Inkigayo, and it's emcee-d by SNSD's Tiffany and Yuri - ooooohhh. LOL. Read on for highlights of today's episode.

Today's commentary will mainly revolve around one thing - the crap sound system and how the engineer of today's show should be fired along with the engineer for SBS Inkigayo and the cameraman for KBS Music Bank. Burning them in hell and torturing them is optional, but recommended. Other than that, you'll have to read the recap!

Credit for all the videos goes to the brilliant UnknownCarrot220@YT - just as brilliant as CodeMonMon. Performances are in no particular order.

ZE:A - All Day Long

Apart from the still-bad group dynamics and the horrid hair+wardrobe, ZE:A were pretty OK today. The vocals were good, the performance as a whole was tight. When they first debuted I thought they were a lost cause - their material sucked, they didn't have any group dynamics and their vocals weren't at their best - but look at them now, it's a lot better than what they were back when they debuted. They managed to fix the bad material thing, and although the song's still generic, it's decent - if they can fix that within the span of one single, then they might still have potential. We'll see.

Secret - Magic

I still don't like the song, but Secret are slowly growing into performers - they have the ability, they just need the practice. There's a word for that in Filipino and I like how it sounds - "bihasa" (pronounced "Beeh-ha-sah"). It means "practiced" or "able", and I think it perfectly describes what they're slowly but surely approaching. They just need better material and more time - they might even grow into good songwriters if they're exposed to enough music.

B2ST - Special

I'm liking B2ST now. Not A LOT, but I don't hate them so that's a good sign. Their vocals are getting stronger, their performances tight, and they really look like they're selling the song. I'll be interested to see them face-off with MBLAQ again once they come back - it'll be fun to see how these 2 bands have grown. And it's got nothing to do with the performance today, but I saw their stint on last Thursday's mnet Countdown and you gotta hand it to them for TRYING harmonies. They weren't exactly the best, but the simple fact that they tried has got even a small part of respect from me. If they ever pursue the harmonies and actually manage to do them well, I might fall in love. For now though, this is all we have to work with. It's OK.

f(x) - NU ABO

I. Hate. This. Song. Seriously. I've tried, I really have, but I can't stand it. Once again, songs like these aren't really meant for singing which really pisses me off. Although I've got to admit, their performance as a whole today was a lot better than yesterday. And Luna, THAT'S MORE LIKE IT - the middle-8 and the adlib at the end were pulled-off a lot better, and her vocals were great today. A few problems with the mic, which didn't happen in MuBank yesterday, but other than that as a performance this was OK.

After School - Bang!

I think I know one of the reasons why After School's vocals have gotten better - it's because UEE isn't there. Right. Moving on now. Their performances are getting better and better - the vocals, the stage presence, everything is just falling into place more than it was before. The 2 girls singing the "duet" lines are getting a lot better too - stronger vocals today and they were singing all the right notes which is good. They still can't pull off the middle 8, but pulling off the verses is a good start. Yayyyy.

SNSD - Run Devil Run

What do you get when you mix SNSD's far from amazing vocals with a crap sound system and horrid mics? A disastrous last performance of RDR. *sigh* The girls aren't the best singers in the world to start with, then their mics failed on them - it's like the only one who had a decent mic was Seohyun! Does the engineer over at MBC like her or something? ooooohhh. Even if the performance as a whole was really ruined by the crap mics, they we're OK. I wish they would've ended promotions with decent vocals though. Oh well.

2PM - Without U

Surprisingly, some of their vocals are getting better - like a lot of acts they're warming up to performing. They're still not the best thing since anything, but there are some of them who are iff-y. HOLD ON. Did Wooyoung just mime that middle 8? It sure sounded like he did. Uh-oh, I take back what I said if he did - dammit. You know I hate miming. Oh well.

Hyori - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Here we go again - Hyori, please stop trying to go all GaGa on us, it's not working. OK maybe it is for everyone else, but it isn't for me. The sound was still crap, Hyori's vocals weren't exactly in top form today, and on top of that what the crap was everyone wearing? It was distracting. The GaGa-esque get-up isn't working for me, I'm afraid. Try again, Hyori.

Rain - Love Song

Rain was nothing special today - the crap sound made his vocals sound hoarse and there was no special whatever. The performance was standard Rain, but standard Rain is damn good. That's basically it.

Gummy - There Is No Love + Because Of You + As a Man

If all idol singers had live vocals at Gummy's level, the world would be a much better place. But they don't so it isn't, and Gummy is one of a kind. Which is fine with me because it just goes to show exactly why YG didn't dump into an idol group. I'm not saying that ALL idol groups suck, but you get my point right? Right. She doesn't need theatrics to carry a performance even if she does have backup dancers - her voice is her performance and that's the way it should be for everyone. Gorgeous voice, brilliant performance - I can die happy now.

[May 7, 2010] KBS Music Bank Highlights + Commentary

OK. Just a little addition to this entire "korean music show recap" thing - a few hours before Music Bank starts I'll be announcing whether or not I'm doing a live tweet on my account, since the show's broadcast simultaneously on KBS World here. If I am, you guys are welcome to @reply me your thoughts and stuff, would be nice to talk to everyone and get more opinions on the show! It'll help me think of stuff to write here as well. OK, let's get to business.

Today's Music Bank was rather good in terms of performance, actually. For some reason almost all the idols sounded good, or decent at the very least. There were performances that really stood out, and performances that were a bit bleh. Credit for all videos goes to CodeMonmonMixes - brilliant to the gazillionth power.

ZE:A - All Day Long

OK. So here we go again with ZE:A - I still have the same problem. It's not so much that there ARE too many guys on stage because SuJu's like 4 members more than them, it's that they don't have a good sense of teamwork and whatnot - they don't LOOK like one cohesive unit. If they did, 9 guys on stage wouldn't be a lot. Their vocals today were quite OK though - nothing to rave about, but they were consistent and at times, good. All in all I'd say it's a PASS this week.

Secret - Magic

Over the past few performances of this song I've been quite convinced that yes, their vocals may be competent but they've still got a heck of a lot to work on - they have the foundations of good singers, the voice, but they don't have all the technique and style to back it up. Today I was rather surprised at their vocals, because they were a lot better than they were last week - it's like the nasal and strained qualities were significantly lessened. If they keep this up, they could possibly be one of the most vocally-strong idol girl groups we've had in a while.

B2ST - Special

OK so apart from the fact that they were in suits today and I fall for anyone in nicely-tailored suits, B2ST were pretty good today - mainly because their vocals were rather good. They didn't sound like they came straight out of the recording, but they've had worse days, so today's performance was good. See? When the vocals are good, everything else about the performance will fall into place. Once again, I know nothing about dance, so I can't really say anything about the choreography apart from the fact that I found some parts a bit strange. Dunno.

f(x) - NU ABO

*sigh* I've tried, f(x), I really have, and I had this tiny little spark of hope that their performance would be strong enough to make the song sound good, but it wasn't. The performance was good alone, it made the song sound better than it was on the recording - better, but not good. Everyone's chanting and whatnot was a little "hinihingal" in Filipino, which means they sound like they're out of breath most of the time, Luna's middle 8 was a bit sloppy and her high note was a bit off, but I'll forgive them for everything since it's their comeback, even if they're supposed to be at the top of their game. From what they've done today, the performance will never be able to carry the song and make it good, but their performances have the potential to get better and better. We'll see.

After School - Bang!

Even After School sounded good today! Seriously. The vocals were still on the nasal side, but they were stronger and sounded more effortless today. Goes to show that they could actually become better singers! Like I said, all Pledis has to do is have the useless members "graduate" and add maybe 2 or 3 girls who can actually sing. As usual their performance was solid, no significant slips, plus their costumes today looked very nice on stage.

Hyori - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Hyori performed rather early today, hmm. I quite like the set design today, it's clean and "tasteful" - lots of white lines. Her vocals were strong today, and once again she has a gazillion backup dancers, but there insn't anything else to say about it, really. It's Hyori. That's it.

Rain - Love Song

Just one song each from the top 3 today - Rain did his stripping and mic-stand kicking song. Just a glittering suit today - doesn't light up like last week's. Like a few of the acts today, his vocals are getting much more comfortable on stage. You can't just listen to Rain though, because if you close your eyes or switch the tab he sounds like any run of the mill solo idol - when you see how he moves and how he sings, that's where he pwns everyone else.

2PM - Without U (WINNER)

2PM seem a lot more comfortable as well. Still not a big fan or them, the song or their performances, but they were OK. Their vocals are still off but not as off as they were last week and I'm actually surprised that they won, but whatever.

I will only be doing live tweets for KBS Music Bank, so only expect a recap of MBC Music Core tomorrow night! Yayyyy.

B2ST - Shock Of The New Era

So the album is out. I wasn't expecting it to be out until maybe tomorrow, but it is and I've heard it.

B2ST are under Cube Entertainment, a subsidiary of JYP, but what puzzled me the most was that last year, Cube signed a deal with Universal Music - this EP could either been done with American producers or with America in mind. After all, their sister group 4Minute was already featured on an Amerie remix.

There are a few very fine and small but recognizable clues on this that it could just be for the US in the near future - there's a lot more English in it than the group's first release and the production has just gone from mediocre to FANTASTIC. I don't just mean they got new producers, I mean they got DAMN good ones.

The basic material can still be improved and most of the album sounds like R&B staples but then again everything sounds the same in Korea - what's drawing me in is the production. Like, this is better produced than all the other crap that's out right now.

I was really, REALLY let down to find out that the song on the teaser ISN'T the lead single/track - it's sort of an intro. The song I was digging yesterday is actually called Just Before Shock, 2 minutes long. Regardless, it's one of the first kpop songs that have genuinely made me smile. Heck, I don't think I've ever smiled listening to a kpop song. Damn. It's as American and as R&B-ish as it can get but considering their previous sound, it's an upgrade - the production on this song is just WHOA. This is tied with Genie for one of the best-produced Korean songs I've heard. It's epic, it's got a gorgeous piano line and when it explodes it's like WHOA. Now I wish I had damn good earphones to listen to this. I wish this was the lead single - seriously.

So now what does the lead single sound? Like a B2ST single. To a certain extent I'm glad they grew and didn't completely change but a part of me absolutely ADORES the previous track. But back to the fact that I'm happy - goes to show there is some semblance of musical growth in kpop after all, thankfully. B2ST are really growing on me, and this new single has just made me appreciate them even more. It's catchy, it sounds like something from Cube Ent and it's well-sung, the vocals are strong. If there's one compliment I can give this band, it's that they're probably a lot better in the vocal department than a lot of other boybands. I'm not saying they're the best, there are better bands, but considering that their main competition is MBLAQ, these boys have nothing to worry about. The single is a lot less pop-y and a little more mainstream, although I don't think they can crack the US with this - their best shot is with Just Before Shock.

To be completely honest with you, Special sounds like something for the US. B2ST are surprising me more and more with a well-produced album - I never knew Koreans had it in them. The vocals are a little too throaty for my taste (I can feel my throat cracking just listening to them) but the production is pretty darn good. The eurocrap loops can get a little too annoying for my taste as well but most of the time the song is bearable. I just can't stand the vocals though.

In comes one of my favorite tracks on the album, 내 여자친구를 부탁해 (My Girlfriend? Or something like that.) - it's like a continuation of Just Before Shock in terms of style. I like the chorus, I like the epicness of the entire thing and surprisingly, this is one of the few songs with rap parts that don't annoy the heck out of me. And here we go again with the 'are they breaking the US?' thing - the hook is in English. A girl can dream, right?

And to close off the album, Easy. I'm not gushing about this track as much as I am the others, but the verses are TO DIE FOR. lol. Gorgeous, gorgeous melodies. The hook isn't my type but the rest of the song is cool - reminds me of one of the tracks off their first EP.

This EP is well-produced, well-sung and well-made - it shows B2ST's growth and who they are as musicians. It PROVES that they're worth my time and they're worth listening to more than just a few times. They have a long, LONG way to go in terms of musicality (with the linear instrumentals and all) but they're one of my only hopes of having REAL musicians in Kpop.

No sum-up, since this is an EP. lol.

4.7/5

The new B2ST teaser

...is BRILLIANT. Or so I think it'll be.

Last year I crowned them victorious over fellow rookie boyband MBLAQ but my consensus what that they didn't have striking material yet. They had material that sold them and they had decent vocals but nothing out of the ordinary.


When news of their comeback first broke, they said they'd be coming back with a 'heavy metal' sound. I was skeptical but I said I would wait before denouncing them - I was right in not believing a Kpop boyband would even attempt to do heavy metal. Like, even if they tried, I don't think it'll sell.

All I have is a teaser, but the teaser is enough for now. I hope.

From the one-minute clip, the song is less pop/R&B and more in the realm of a Big Bang release - sounds like something YG would mastermind. It also sounds very American, like something they'd push in the US (MEL! lol.) which I don't find surprising since Cube signed a deal with Universal last year and the whole Korean wave thingy's trying desperately to open the floodgates in the US.

SO, the album is out next week, we hear the song next week as well. And from what I hear, their comeback is next week as well (any B2uties around to clarify?) so YAY. Full review to come when I hear the song.

Friday Night Post. Yes, another one.

Expect this every week from now on, as well as the resumption of MY WEEKLY TOP 20. Yes, after a lull last December that lasted until January, my top 20 will resume next week, February 1. HAHAH. But let's get to business now.

The second part of the soundtrack for the Korean soap opera/drama God Of Study was recently released (gah, I sound like I'm writing news) and with the line up of idol groups like Secret, f(x), B2ST, 4Minute and FT Triple (who're headed here sometime in the first quarter of the year) I could resist giving it a try. Apart from the stereotypical OST ballads that I either hate of have had way too much off, there were two songs in particular that REALLY got stuck in my head. They're not the most musically proficient things since anything and they're not anything new but they have enough power to get me listening to them non-stop for days. They're happy, upbeat and though at times they sound really cheap, they're worth the listen. Both songs are by sibling groups B2ST and 4Minute under Cube Entertainment (aka the 'we don't think you'll be extremely successful as a JYP artist so we're dumping you here' company). The 4Minute song is a cover of Canon in D. Although not obvious, the chords are the same. It's not plagiarism, if any of you crazy anti fans start crawling out of nowhere.

(click the read more function for the rest of the post. Yes, there's more.)


I think I should formally write about this on the blog before it actually comes. I GOT AN INTERVIEW WITH SHONTELLE. Yes, SHONTELLE. Her new single Impossible is actually pretty good - it's epic and the melody's gorgeous. Love the piano loop and I love how you'd think it'd build up by the second verse but it doesn't as much as I expected it. Hahah.

I'm headed to the 4Minute promo tour next month - they're hitting Manila! Hahah. So expect pictures and a review of the event. And just to let you know, 4Muzik is being promoted like crazy over here - in one record store alone it's in THREE DIFFERENT PLACES. Make that 4. But Mel will be pleased to know that Muzik is growing on me. Hot Issue is a little too out for me but Muzik is pretty catchy now that I'm not hearing it all over the kpop sites.

To be honest with you I was expecting a lot from the new SNSD album before Oh! was released and although my expectations were lowered when I actually heard Oh!, I don't think the album is as good as I hoped it would be. It's confused - one minute they're cutesy and the next they're trying to be French or wannabe Bossa Nova (*throws up*) with the vibe. Of course they're not copying French pop (I know a thing or two about that courtesy of Priscilla) but the 'vibe' is like stereotypical French. Gah. But anyway, there are however 2 songs worth listening to for me - the gorgeous, gorgeous ballad Forever, one of the few songs that actually show off whatever semblance of voices most of them have, and Boys and Girls, their 'duet' with SHINee's Key which is attitude in the right way without losing whatever 'signature style' they've come to have.

Now Adam Tyler recently caught my ear. I haven't delved too much into his music but I got a megamix a few days back and mini-raided his YT channel, he's pretty good. Processing like there's no tomorrow but I dunno, it sounds tasteful. That's what this guy is - catchy, tasteful autotune. Will get more in-depth when I interview him. Watch out for it.

Now for the rest of the stuff. Just very quickly.

There's a relatively new remix of After School's hit Because of You and although the song is brilliant in every way, some of the epic-ness got lost in the re-arrangement. Produced by the same team, The Brave Brothers, U-Kiss have a new digital single out - Without You. It's like a less epic, more generic Brave Brothers version of Because of You, for people who can sing. But there's no doubt that Because of You is the big hit and it sounds like one.

I got my copy of DBSK's Mirotic Version C today *dances around room* and in line with sales and all that, Break Out! sold over 180,000 copies in it's first day last Wednesday, according to Oricon. First day sales surpassed their highest total single sales, Jaejoong and Yoochun's Colors, which only managed to sell around 100,000+ copies.

There are rumors that JLS are planning a US career. Once again, you guys over need a boyband. It would be nice if it was American but as long as it's a boyband, I'm fine with that.

Best of 2009: October #3 - #1

Who made an impact in October? LOL.

#3: Lyn - 누나의 노래 (feat. e.via)

This song in particular came to everyone's attention after I had devoured it a listened to it for days - the lyrics referred to Big Bang's Taeyang and DBSK's Junsu. But lyrics aside, the melody is gorgeous and Lyn is one of those ballad singers who can pull off uptempos like they're second nature, she sounds phenomenal. The song is fun and upbeat, it's catchy and the instrumental is cutesy without being squeaky (I'm talking to you, Gee) and most of all.. IT DOESN'T HAVE HEAVY PROCESSING! I won't assume it doesn't have any processing because all song are processed but at least what you hear on the recording is closer to the actual vocal.

#2: B2ST - Bad Girl

I won't say this song is the most unique and the best song out there - it's most definitely not. But the way these 6 carry the song, the way the perform it and the way they sell it is convincing for a new band. You watch a performance and you can see they're trying hard enough but what makes them a lot better than their rival band MBLAQ is the fact that they can carry a solid melody much better than Rain's supposed 'amazing new boyband'. They know how to sing what they sing and they perform an actual song. The abundance of new boybands this year was pretty overwhelming but I just hope that B2ST make it out alive.

#1: SHINee - Ring Ding Dong

I said it once and I'll say it again, with Ring Ding Dong SHINee grew up, and they grew up fast. Despite a swine flu epidemic within the band during promotions for the single, Ring Ding Dong was a gigantic hit and I can't help but say that I predicted it. It's repetitive, it's processed and it will stick to your head - but SHINee managed to make the mould a little more melodious for their style. And that was the right move because dammit, these guys can sing, their vocals at least need to be done justice. These are the types of songs that will get big in Korea right now - they're the new world domination songs. If they used to be Rising Suns and I'm Comings, they're now Sorry Sorrys and Ring Ding Dongs. If you're a boyband in Korea right now, at one given time of your career you will have a single like this and it will hit big, but then again this style is pretty synonymous with SM acts (I think.). I swear, if DBSK get a song like this I will FREAK.

What's been happening?

Has anyone noticed that these past few months I haven't been doing any bulleted posts - they've all been paragraphs and paragraphs of me ranting on and on about trivial things. I thought for a while that I could pull off the all full review thing but I can't right now - there's too much I wanna talk about.

SO, here's a quick run-through of everything that's been going on in the world of pop I'm interested in. If there's something I didn't mention here but you think I should know of, SPEAK UP. I've been so behind on stuff lately it's pathetic.

• The Saturdays' Workshaker has been out for a while but I haven't been able to listen to it 10 or 20 times straight - there's too much new stuff coming out! However I do have my favorite songs and Mel was right in saying that I just needed to digest it a little more. When I first heard the whole thing the excitement made me fall in love with it but then immediately after I felt that the album would go right through me when I heard it. After not listening to it for some time, it's quite good! A review to come SOON, I promise. School has just been the biggest pain EVER.
• Cheryl Cole's Three Words (the song) has ALSO been out for quite a while. I don't like it - end of story.
• Amy Pearson's Butterfingers is BRILLIANT. Apart from the talking/pseudo-rapping/chanting, the song is so damn brilliant I could fall apart. I swear, you wouldn't believe this was Amy until you actually watch it 'till the end - it's so hard to believe she's the same girl who sang Don't Miss You.

• From the world of K-pop, f(x) and SNSD are both endorsing a cellphone via 2 different arrangements of the song Chocolate Love. What do I think of it? The girls sound crap. No really, Tiffany and Taeyeon SNSD and Luna f(x) who're the strongest voices of all 14 girls sound like the crap voices (won't name them anymore but you can probably guess who) - there's no difference because EVERYTHING WAS AUTO-TUNED SO MUCH. And the song really isn't that good. Yeah sure it's catchy but really, once you think about it that's all the song will ever be - catchy.

• Now SHINee, my beloved SHINee. I heard Ring Ding Dong and I personally thought it was a little too confused with the instrumental and the auto-tuning but the more I think about it, this is the logical direction for them. SHINee need a song like DBSK's Rising Sun and Super Junior's U to take them away from being the SM newbies who everyone loved and make them an established boyband - they have to mature. Ring Ding Dong reminds me a LOT of SuJu's early 2009 hit Sorry Sorry with all the repetition and the auto-tuning but surprisingly, the rest of the elements are a lot more SHINee than I first thought they were. The full video isn't out yet but we've got a pretty damn good teaser and the MP3 to hold us up 'till then.

• New boyband B2ST, now called BEAST (what the crap?), actually has debut single that's a bit better than MBLAQ's Oh Yeah recorded. Still, it's heavily auto-tuned and a bit generic. However, it's not that bad.

• Speaking of MBLAQ, my theory was right - these guys are performers. No really, they're a heck of a lot better live. The song sounds more convincing, they're pushing the not miming thing and it really sounds like the song was made for a stage. Kudos to the guys! Hahah.