Favorite K-pop of the Year - Comebacks 2014

I liked a lot of comebacks this year. I think there were more than last year and that caused me problems in the beginning drafts. The post was too long, I ran out of label space, and the boys were crushing the girls because I generally like guy groups more than girl groups. In the end, the way that I chose which comeback to talk about is which groups do I really care about. There are comebacks I like from groups that I don't really listen to, so they were the first so go. So that means that TVXQ, Boyfriend, and god were out. Sorry guys. I didn't really want to, but I nixed U-KISS and CN Blue too. I loved those songs and I'm more into these groups then the before three, but I still am not as big of a fan of them as I am of other groups.

It was at this point that I felt comfortable with my picks

Debuts               Solos and Sub Units 

Winter K-pop Favorites

It's spring! Hooray! Even though I don't feel like I can really say that because it has been raining all winter here in Utah so there hasn't really been any snow for me to curse at like there was last year.

Over these past three winter months, there have been quiet a few songs that have come out that I loved but unfortunately couldn't write about because that would be ridiculous. Sometimes I feel like I can hardly get one post out.

Something that I have also come to - not really realize, but maybe come to a deeper understanding - is that some of he best music is the stuff that you have to go digging for. Most of these videos, with the exception of SPICA who is at a little over a million views, don't have very many views. Their view counts are sitting at five digits or the low six digits and that is an absolute travesty! A travesty I say! 

Before we really begin I realize that this isn't all K-pop, it is a mish-mash of K-pop and various other things. My main issue with Korean music is that I don't know what it truly popular in Korea because it is easier, as an international fan, to find things that are heavily publicized and just because you have a lot of money, does not mean that you are the most popular person out there.

In this post I am talking about songs that don't have a high view count on Youtube that people should definitely be watching and listening to because these songs are awesome.   

Wax - Coin Laundry (Never Loved)

This song is absolutely gorgeous and the video is heart wrenching, sounds like a winning combination, yeah? This video could probably be made into some horribly romantic tear jerking melo, heck it probably already is and I think that I would like to stay as clear as I can from that story. This four and a half minute video is enough for me.
 
Royal Pirates - Drawing the Line  

Upon first listen, this song grabbed me faster than "Shout Out" did. Where "Shout Out" was kind of electronic, this song has more of a traditional sound but it is still a Royal Pirates song. I think that says a lot about a group if they can completely change their sound from one album to the next but still stay true to who they are as a group. 

SPICA - You Don't Love Me 

That intro though. These girls can SING and it's too bad that they aren't that popular in the K-pop world. They have definitely become more popular since "Tonight" though which was also a fantastic song. I also like that they can be sexy but also funny, i.e those butt pads. This video is full of contrasting scenes of one moment they are looking might fine and then the next there is someone squatting in front of a toilet and pouring Lucky Charms on their head. What?
 
Yoo Seung Woo - Hesitating Lips
 

I am not ready for Yoo Seung Woo to shed his adorableness and become an adult! He's just so cute with his bowl cut and his guitar! I was hesitant at first because it is a ballad and the teaser was two people looking longingly at each other. Oh yeah, that's super original. This song is actually really good though and I don't mind looking at that male actor who I only know as Man Won from Golden Rainbow, he is a fine looking human being.
   
SPEED - Don't Tease Me

SPEED has never really done it for me, but for some reason I really like what they have been doing lately. This is the first song that caught my attention as had their most recent song "Zombie Party". And while we're on the topic of "Zombie Party", are they filming in the same decrepit old building that Block B fimled "Nalina"? It's too bad that "Don't Tease Me" didn't get a real music video because it could have been awesome if they went with this circus theme. If anything, this dance was a-ma-zing. 

Boys Republic - Video Game 

This group debuted middle of last year and their song was okay but it didn't blow my socks off and cause me to fall in love with them, but I was slightly interested in their future ventures and I must say, I quite like this song. The song itself isn't life altering and I'm not going to devote my life to Boys Republic, but I will continue to listen to this song and continue to watch them. After reading what I wrote I realize that this is like a gigantic backhanded compliment. I feel bad now, go listen to this song, it's pretty good.

UglyPumpkin - From Yesterday 

These guys just debuted and I am kind of in love with them and when I say "kind of" I mean super in love with them. This was also my song last week because last week kind of sucked and may I say, I played this an obscene amount of times and I still kind of am. It also makes my heart happy that there is a little round guy in a group that has so much potential to be amazing. The video is also really chill with the three of them goofing off and looking to be enjoying the creation of their debut video.

Space Cowboy - Falling  

This song is one of those beautiful examples of autotune used well. When I first listened to it I thought of Imogen Heap's "Hide and Seek" mixed with a little Daft Punk and something beautiful was created. Listening to this song I can see this story being created of two people meeting in a smokey bar and then hooking up  later. Nothing I have said makes any sense for me to say because I don't really believe in doing any of that, but that's what I think of.
  
40 - Counting Stars 

What is this song that has just graced my ear drums with its presence? I got goosebumps the first time I listened to this song and still do after listening to it multiple times later. This man has the voice of an angel and he made this entire song by himself and he plays the piano. So, basically, this man is perfect. Perfect! Darn him! So, what I'm trying to say is that you need to drop everything right now and go listen to this song.

And there you have it! Some wonderful people whose talent needs to shared with the masses! You know what to do! Go! Go! Go!

~ Alora

K-pop End of the Year Show 2013 Comebacks

Another year has ended and this later half has been just as busy as the beginning. Some people are making their millionth comeback of the year and others are making comebacks after what feels like a painful amount of time. For the half time show back in July, I chose songs I liked whether I had already reviewed them or not, and at the end I felt like I had become rather redundant, so I'm going to just stick with the artists that I liked but didn't review this time around.

I'm going to only slightly contradict myself now and mention B1A4's "What's Going On?", Block B's "Very Good", and VIXX's "VooDoo Doll" because they all won their first award with these songs and I have a great love for all of these groups. It was even better because they were all up against really big groups so the wins were that much more incredible. The only thing that would have made this better is if U-KISS had won something for "She's Mine" because seriously, why can't those guys catch a break, they're awesome.

Debuts            Solos and Sub units            K-pop Half Time Show 2013

 

Comebacks

Girls

 

Tiny-G "Miss You"

When I first heard this song, I didn't really like it. I felt that it was too repetitive and I was still grooving to "Minimanimo" because, let's be honest, that song is awesome. I think what threw me was how different this song was from "Minimanimo" and I obviously wasn't ready for that. This song has a more mature and sexy feel to the candy colored before mentioned song. They also kept it in the realm of classy/cute sexy and there can always be more of that and less of the overt sexy that was the trend this year.

Miss A "Hush"

Whenever I think of this song all that comes to mind is jji jji party, Block B what have you done to me? It's also recently been ruined again since Min got punched by a back up dancer during a performance. I'm not a huge fan of Miss A but I do like that they have a powerful image. I was really impressed with this song because it did have a different sound than usual since it wasn't written by JYP and I wouldn't be opposed to them continuing with this sound for a while, nothing against JYP. The video was also interesting and kind of creepy. All the head shots of them singing and staring into the camera was so haunting looking and then at the end when their faces changed from one to the other was a cool effect.

SPICA "Tonight"

This is one of the videos and songs that grabbed me the moment that I hit the play button. I didn't really know anything about SPICA before this song, and I still don't, but they have song amazing vocals. This song is so fun and the video represents that too. The whimsy in the video and the bohemian style of the shoot fit perfectly with the song. The video also seems really candid even with all the obviously staged parts of it. These girls look like they are genuinely having fun during this shoot and seeing this I hope that they can get some more followers in the future. 

 

Rookies

Ladies Code "Pretty Pretty"

Ladies Code debuted in March 2013 with the song "Bad Girl", because everybody this year was a bad boy or bad girl of some sort it seemed like. This was their comeback song and I think that I like it a little more than their debut song. I'm still not totally sure how I feel about them but they have killer vocals and they have a definite style. I am looking forward for what they put out in the future. 

GI "Gi Yeuk"

So, I'm kind of in love with these girls. I'm also glad that they put out a MV for this song because I like it better than "Don't Lie". This song has a really cool Bollywood sound and that isn't something that you hear everyday. GI is also a group that you don't see everyday. I like that in their videos they are dancing and wearing baggy clothing and looking fierce rather than being super aegyo and sexy because there is more than enough of that going around.

Boys

MIB "Master"

This is one of those songs that within the first ten seconds of hearing it, I went to iTunes and bought it. I think that the reason that I liked it so much it because it has such a smooth sound. This song also came out about the same time that Kangnam made a cameo on I Hear Your Voice as the guy who stole Soo Ha's bag, so when I watched the video I had the "why do I know you?" dilemma. They have also put out another video which I didn't love right off the bat like this one, but now, I also love their new song. What I don't love is Sims little goatee thing. It's kind of creepy and it makes his chin looks dirty.  

SHINee "Everybody"

When I first heard this song I was a little underwhelmed because it was so dubstepy.......no wait, it's actually compextro. Yeah, whatever. I have come to love it though. It is a fun song and SHINee hasn't done anything that sounds like this before. This was predominately a dance video though, let's be honest, that dance was freaking amazing and Taemin is a beast. Anyone who says otherwise is a liar. 

Drunken Tiger "The Cure"

Okay, so technically this is a solo thing, but Yoon Mi Rae and Bizzy are in it, so I am making the executive decision to put it here. Tiger JK is one of those people that I only occasionally listen to since he is a rapper and I have never been one to listen to rap, this song is fantastic though. Even though it is a rap song, it has a melody line since Yoon Mi Rae is in it and instead of a "normal" rap beat, it has a reggae feel to it. This is one of those songs that makes you feel good while you are listening to it, and then it sticks with you as you go on with your day.  

Rookies

Airplane "Give Me a Chance"

I'm so glad that these guys are finally back because I fell in love with them when they debuted earlier this year with "You Are Pretty". Something that I mentioned about them before is that since they are a trio, I can hear all the members and they are have a sound that is their own. I don't know their names, but I think that I am in love with the member that sings the "kajima~" part. It's so clear and wonderful and I always have to sing along at that part too. I say that anyone who doesn't also jam to that part as well is a liar, because how can you not? 

24K "U R So Cute"

When I heard this song in July, I really liked it, but I didn't take the time to actually look into this group because if I looked into every group that I thought was interesting, I wouldn't get anything done, ever. While going back over the things I liked I found this one again and looked into the group more. They debuted as 4K and then added two more creating 24K and I think that it is pretty safe to say that I am hooked.

~ Alora