A K-pop act’s title track isn’t always the best song on their album, even if it’s the one most people will hear. Sometimes, b-sides deserve recognition too. In the singles-oriented world of K-pop, I want to spotlight some of these buried treasures and give them… Read More »Buried Treasure: The Wind – I Don’t Thing
JD1 feels like one of those acts who are much more popular in Korea than abroad. This often pairs with music that sounds less internationally-minded, though his first two singles were palatable enough to appeal to a wide swath of listeners. As far as I’m… Read More »Song Review: JD1 – Be Responsible
Greetings, Decibel readers! It’s at this point in the year that I feel an extra sense of obligation to deliver this column to you, as the albums put out in the last few months of the year tend to get overlooked in a lot of… Read More »Five For Friday: October 11, 2024
One song. Every day. Alphabetical order. Keep up with GFriend’s A-Z reviews here! Better Me (Sowon & Umji) (from Walpurgis Night – 2020) For their final album, the group recorded tracks as units. Better Me sees Sowon and Umji taking a much more hip-hop influenced… Read More »K-Pop A-Z Review: GFriend – Better Me (Sowon & Umji)
As their career progresses, XG have moved between two major modes: hip-hop and club music. Often, there are elements of both in their music, but songs like Something Ain’t Right and New Dance leaned heavily into melodic house influences. New single IYKYK builds upon this… Read More »Song Review: XG – IYKYK