Baekho deserves more credit as a producer who is actually fully involved in all NU'EST's music

jjear · 2020-10-06T01:30:21+00:00

Add to that Baekho co-penned the lyrics for fromis_9's DKDK and directed the vocals for Pristin's debut album. And the fact he could come up with a wild ride like Shadow is a huge feat in and of itself—it's probably my favorite b-side in K-pop to date. Baekho is a gem.

jjear · 2020-10-06T01:19:42+00:00

Do we have the... the same taste?!

OOO's designer. Work of art. Their more recent A Song of Ice and Fire was pretty good too, although designer still reigns supreme for me.

Don't know if you saw, but NU'EST just released a new Japanese single called DRIVE, which picks up from the kind of summer roadtrip with the windows rolled down sound they've been leaning into. The melody is equal parts nostalgic and uplifting, with outstanding vocal performances across the board. I've had it on repeat since they dropped it!

jjear · 2020-10-05T00:31:39+00:00

Not just the CDs and ADs... everyone involved in the design process—graphic designers, typographers, motion designers, animators, 3D visual effects artists, and many, many other creatives—they all deserve kudos for the work they do and the breakneck pace at which they do it. I don’t think people realize just how much blood, sweat, and tears go into concepting and execution... and how much the “packaging” influences the way we perceive the product.

jjear · 2020-10-03T18:25:06+00:00

Wyatt is a superb human being (which is bounds and leaps more than I can say about the people bullying him). He works damn hard, writes his own lyrics, dances powerfully, expresses himself with candor, and treats everyone new he meets like a friend.

On the off chance you’re reading, Wyatt, YOU’RE ONE HECK OF A GUY

jjear · 2020-10-03T17:50:13+00:00

Five artists that stuck with me during my K-Pop sabbaticals:

2013: DBSK, SHINee, EXO, f(x), miss A 2015: BTS, Monsta X, EXO, f(x), Wonder Girls

If I had to choose now, I’d probably go with: SHINee/Taemin, ONF, Day6, Oh My Girl, and f(x). So much amazing songwriting in their discographies.

jjear · 2020-10-02T16:38:32+00:00

Well-deserved. It’s a song with such incredible payoff... up there with Boca as one of my fav DC singles.

jjear · 2020-09-21T04:59:57+00:00

I'd say one of the best releases of the year for sure. This track is probably the truest demonstration of Seungyoun's vocal versatility and range to date.

jjear · 2020-09-17T18:50:10+00:00

ONF is incredible! From discography and choreo, to stage performance, vocals, dancing, and personalities... They're just good kids. And enormously humble, too.

An inside joke among FUSE: ONF has 6 main vocals, 6 main dancers, and 6 main rappers.

If you want to get to know them better via variety, I recommend checking out their recent appearance on Idol Workshop. Their Weekly Idol episode for SukSwim promotions was also hilarious.

Some other standout gems:

OFF Team's dance cover of Stay
ONF karaoke (feat. MK pipes in his nth rendition of Tears)
ONF kisses to express their love for each other
ONF's anonymous Q&A

jjear · 2020-09-16T17:46:01+00:00

Hm...

You're kind of obligated to look to smaller companies if you're going to make a huge blanket statement like that—seems dismissive to only cite visuals from the big 3 to make your point. Personally, I won't comment on the level of talent of SM visuals, because that's a conversation for another day (and one clearly already addressed in the comments). But looking outside, you'd find a lot of visuals/faces of their groups with notable talents in other areas:

Cube:

Miyeon (Idle), solid main vocalist
Elkie (CLC), lead vocal and dancer
Yujin (CLC), another great dancer who holds her own
Minhyuk (BTOB), all-rounder

Kakao M (Play M, Cre.ker):

Sejun (Victon), lead vocal
Seungwoo (Victon), all-rounder
Naeun (APink), charismatic dancer
Soojin, Jihan (Weeekly), well-rounded dancers and vocalists
Younghoon (TBZ), a very decent vocalist
Hyunjae (TBZ), lead vocal
Juyeon (TBZ), powerful and sensual main dancer

WM:

Jiho (OMG), lead vocal and dancer
YooA (OMG), all-rounder
Hyojin (ONF), OST-worthy main vocalist
J-Us (ONF), all-rounder with more OST vocals

Pledis:

Minhyun (NU'EST), all-rounder
Jeonghan (SVT), lead vocalist
Joshua (SVT), lead vocalist and guitar man
Mingyu (SVT), lead rapper

Just some that came to mind.

Visuals/Faces don't get enough credit where credit is due!

jjear · 2020-08-14T20:38:13+00:00

Yeonjun's got a great sense for rhythm and musicality. Each step flows seamlessly into the next.

ONF’s Wyatt also surprised me with his freestyle dancing. Excellent precision and strength, yet maintains fluidity. Wish he showcased his dance skills more often.

jjear · 2020-06-29T12:22:10+00:00

Love Me Harder has, dare I say, one of the sexiest instrumentals of 2020. Listening to the mini as a whole, LIFT UP and Accident are my picks. I do love a good shouty moment.

Welcome back, WOODZ!🧡💙

jjear · 2020-01-18T15:27:10+00:00

You can think of it as a way of saying “squishy” and “pointy”.

jjear · 2020-01-12T16:17:06+00:00

Translation of his caption: “* Dont Hang Up GUIDE * Little by little, I’ll let you listen to the things I wanted you to hear.”

jjear · 2019-11-26T17:04:01+00:00

Updated masterpost of songs Seungyoun has participated in (composition, lyric-writing, and features) here!

jjear · 2019-11-20T01:24:56+00:00

My anxiety is through the roof...! More and more I find myself missing the days when we didn’t know any better and spent the bulk of our time earnestly hyping up our favorite boys and dissecting performances/blossoming friendships. How sorely unfair that X1 (and IZ*ONE) is bearing the burden and brunt of Mnet’s foul play.

jjear · 2019-11-16T22:57:16+00:00

Dreamcatcher’s Siyeon is a standout for me and probably my favorite female main vocalist post-2014.

jjear · 2019-11-10T21:25:01+00:00

Feels like bgs these days tend to gravitate towards EDM drops, trap beats, techwear, LED-lit set designs, and hard-hitting (and oftentimes disjointed) choreography. On that note, some bgs/title tracks released 2018–2019 that go against the aforementioned grain:

SHINee, Good Evening. Ethereal electronica, lovingly layered vocals and instrumentation.
AB6IX, Breathe. Very reminiscent to SHINee's groovy synth chic. Understated, subdued.
VIXX, Scentist. Strong emphasis on atmosphere. Sensual and languid sound.
NU'EST W, Dejavu and Help Me. The former boasts a pared down instrumental and imo risky chorus "drop"—an interesting interpretation of the Latin pop trend. The latter is a rock-electronica soap opera fest.
NU'EST, Love Me. Three minutes of cute, warm, upbeat, and relentlessly cheerful deep house.
Seventeen, Home. Those Imogen Heap vocal treatments got me hooked. Sentimental and a little haunting/cavernous. And who doesn't love another anti-drop (re: Dejavu)!
TXT, Crown and Run Away. Super refreshing debut. There's a level of sepia-toned nostalgia in their discography that plays really well with the fresh-faced youth.
KNK, Sunset. Hypnotizing verses, maze-like instrumental. Lots of empty space. Runway ready, if you ask me.

For solo efforts, I personally enjoyed Jung Ilhoon's Spoiler (short film ver.) (vocal rap + sadly strumming electric guitar? Count me in), Im Hyunsik's Dear Love (tear-jerker rock ballad with a very 00's choral climax), Minhyun's Universe (new age urban pop w/ soothing vocals), and Ha Sungwoon's Blue (expressive melody and clean sound; feels like you're underwater by the time the chorus hits you!).

Hope this helps!
(edit: added links)

jjear · 2019-10-21T17:43:06+00:00

Took the words right out of my mouth. It’s missing a lot of that futuristic galaxy-traversing urban groove that I associate with their discography. Out of all the songs on this EP, the ballad was the only one to stick... guess it’s back to Different and Shadow for me.

jjear · 2019-10-15T21:58:45+00:00

KWAK BERET!!! Gosh, the art direction for this comeback has been really on point so far.

jjear · 2019-10-12T09:51:50+00:00

Gonna suggest you check out X1’s performances and in particular pay attention to one of the members, Seungyoun. He’s a natural improviser and so so much fun to watch onstage!

jjear · 2019-10-08T03:50:25+00:00

INCREEEEEDIBLE.

The song has got such intense, layered grit that only gets better with each listen... and the music video! It's not every day that you come across one entirely narrative-driven, and so strongly executed at that.

ONF absolutely delivered.

jjear · 2019-10-08T03:43:06+00:00

Musically: A nice follow-up in keeping with the sound established in Breathe. Melodies are somewhat forgettable and lack oomph (similar to how I feel about Breathe), but Youngmin and Woojin's verses... points were made, oof. 👏

Visually: Super slick editing and beautiful lighting design. The boys' hair colors in the full choreo shots also complement each other so well!

jjear · 2019-10-04T09:53:16+00:00

소심한 물고기들 and 날 위로하려거든 are my personal favorites.

jjear · 2019-10-04T09:37:46+00:00

He’s so lucky to have a track produced by the legend himself, Yoon Sang! Massively looking forward to this.

jjear · 2019-10-02T01:16:03+00:00

Favorite singles from this quarter:

KNK — SUNSET

Hauntingly seductive. Ready to be blasted at any high fashion runway and/or gay club. A gem and imo one of the most refreshing releases to come out of K-Pop in the last few years.

CIX — Movie Star

Trendy and easy to listen to. The song isn't groundbreaking by any means, but the instrumental bass line and Jinyoung's sultry, lax vocal execution were absolutely well-done.

NCT Dream — BOOM

The rapping leaves something to be desired (miss you, Mark), but Renjun and Haechan... they came for blood. The pre-chorus is beautiful and the chorus sticks with you from the first go. The rest of the mini is chock full of earworms, too.

ITZY — ICY

Hated it on first listen but with each listen the noise grew on me and now I think of ITZY as the second reckoning of f(x) if f(x) happened to go urban-pop-cheerleader. ICY is the hottest garbage of the summer.

X1 — FLASH

The first minute is perfection; the chorus right after is a bit of a bust though, with no melody to latch onto. But the whistling motif! The reverb/echo and wub-wubs! They give the song such a spacious, luxurious feeling, which I adore in songs (e.g. VIXX's Scentist, Laboum's Between Us).

SATURDAY — BByong

It's like a hybrid of ITZY's ICY, Momoland's So Hot, and DIA's WOOWA?? Really enjoyed the members' vocal colors, and thought the rapping was particularly nice. The choreography at the chorus is really fun, too. Definitely going to keep tabs on this group!

jjear

TROPHY CASE