K-Pop Appeciation Thread

[Cheap21]

SHINee

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It finally happened. They performed Odd Eye! They did it twice for their goodbye stage and I posted the better version

Jonghyun is serving me up some grown and sexy

The real star though was Key. Man he looked good with the eye patch, eye liner and was overall oozing sex appeal

I REALLY love this group. Here's some good news:

http://www.kpopstarz.com/articles/212567/20150620/shinee-odd-repackage.htm

YES! I am here for it

DEAD at Taemin shading BIGBANG and EXO....LOL

Edited June 21, 2015 by Cheap21

[Cheap21]

BTOB

the boys are back

BTOB have been out since 2012 and they FINALLY released their first full length album, Complete

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The title track "Its Okay" is a ballad and the video is a bit more serious than they typically do. I dig it.

So I spent the past few days listening to BTOB's albuma nd while it wont win Album of the Year (that goes to SHINee), its really good and an improvement for them. I thought they had peaked with Thriller in 2013 bc their next 2 EPs were more of the same. Their Christmas EP was a step in the right directio bc it was a different sound and this album continues on that. They've grown vocally and this features more ballads and singing and less of the cookie cutter cliche boy band sounds.

My Friend's Girlfriend is probably my favorite track on the thing. The thing starts off sounding like a remix of WOW but goes in a different direction. Yo-Ho-Ho is my second favorite followed by Complete (Intro). They also have an Acoustic Ver. of Insane and that shows how much they've grown vocally.

Thats a teaser for the entire thing since Cube seems to be cracking down on YT pages of the individual songs. Im glad to see that the album is doing well. #1 on the charts!

http://www.soompi.com/2015/06/28/btob-on-charting-1-for-the-first-time-we-thought-it-was-photoshopped/

[Cat]

OMG I love Odd Eye so damn much. That song is close to perfect and I love the live version. Key rocking the English and the eyepatch (nice touch considering the song title) and being super alien fabulous with his blue eyes. Taemin moving like a cat and FINALLY they gave that poor maknae some decent hair. Jonghyun and Onew slaying those high notes. Gosh I really love Onew's voice particularly. But you know what? Visual Minho holds his own in the vocal department because his deep voice is a nice contrast to all the high notes from the other guys. Also, on a superficial note, his torso and hands are exquisite!

Taemin shading BigBexo is EVERYTHING. And I am looking forward to the repackage.

Wow BtoB. Way to surprise me! They were under pressure last year and being written off but it looks like they went into the recording studio and decided to step it up! I'm really thrilled for them that they got a #1 spot and that it wasn't all the major bands stealing everybody's thunder. I like My Friend's Girlfriend too. And can I say that those photos are the best I have ever seen them.

Did we already post this 2PM track My House? It came out in mid-June.

[Cheap21]

I posted 2PM's video on the last page....lol. I really love that album as well, probably more so than Go Crazy. Another favorite from that is "Red"

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Love the vocals.

BTOB

Scratch what I said about SHINee being Album of the Year. I think BTOB's is better. I think its pretty consistent and I love all the songs. Whereas with SHINee, I skip half of them when they come on my playlists. With that said, the songs i do love on View, I prefer over Complete, but as a whole, Complete is more solid. That title track is everything and their live performances have been magnficent to watch. This song is their "Fiction" (that was Beast's breakout song). I especially love that Changsub seems to have gotten more lines

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9UZBvk6sfo

And yes IA on the photos. What a fantastic photoshoot. They all look good. Although Im not sure why Peniel is bald. I guess he has that cap to hide it

BEAST/DongWoon

His album dropped last week and the guy has such a good voice.

One of the tracks on it is a remixed version of "When the door Closes" called "To Become a Star" which adds Yoseob into it in addition to Dujun

http://www.kpopstarz.com/articles/217297/20150706/beast-junhyung-2015-comeback.htm

On a sidenote, Beast make their comeback later this summer

YG/WINNER

I dont know what the hell YG is doing with them. They came out with such a splash last year and now it seems to have fizzled. Ikon too. Why launch two new boy groups, if you arent even going to support them? It seems that all they have going for them is BIGBANG as they seem intent on ruining 2NE1 as well. YG's a mess right now

Edited July 7, 2015 by Cheap21

[Cat]

So BtoB wins Album of the Year for you, huh? I understand your logic -- SHINee had some great songs but also songs you don't really care about, while BtoB is consistently solid all the way through. Although when SHINee gets a song right, imo they get it REALLY right. Kind of like EXO for me -- Exodus is not perfect and not as good as XOXO imo, but I listen again and again to a couple of songs (What If, My Answer, Call Me Baby) and they are perfection for me. Lady Luck otoh I don't care if I never hear again.

And I hope BtoB get some more music show and chart wins under their belt. Right now it seems to be Attack of the Girl Groups with all the Girl's Day, Miss A's and SNSD's having their comebacks. I'm still not as enamoured with kpop girl groups as with the boy bands tbh.

In Scandal News, Tao has definitively (well as definitively as possible since SM still won't officially acknowledge it) cut ties with EXO, releasing a new album next week and unfriending all the EXO guys on social media. Baekhyun was the last to unfriend him. The rapid timing suggests that a Chinese entertainment company was likely waiting in the wings to snap him up because goodness, that was quick.

Scandal #2 involves my beloved Song Mino of Winner. As you may know, Mino is currently participating in Show Me the Money, a TV rapping contest. He says he is doing this to prove to YG and the fans that he has what it takes, and the street cred etc. I personally figured he already had it after his solo song and the collaboration with Epik High but whatever. Seems like YG has pitted Winner against iKON and blatantly favours the latter group, especially Bobby, iKON's Face and Lead Rapper who has been featured in a bunch of other collaborations. So maybe Mino feels pressure as the Face of Winner to match up to Bobby. Anyhoo, all this to say that on one of the shows, he rapped out some mess about wanting to be some woman's gynecologist or something and the Korean gynecologocal association got involved and Mino had to apologize. I can't even explain this mess adequately so here's perhaps a link that might shed better light on all this:

http://omonatheydidnt.livejournal.com/16177422.html

And yeah speaking of YG I don't know wtf is going on over there. 2NE1 are NOWHERE to be seen (Minzy's IG doesn't even mention the group by name anymore), Bom has been missing in action since mid-2014, lord knows where YG buried her, Daria is... around, I guess, and CL is in the US, tied to that awful Diplo and making shitty songs about Dr. Pepper. I guess Big Bang are touring? Meanwhile IKON are nowhere to be seen and Winner are grounded. I don't even know what is up but Boss Man YG needs to get off the crack pipe and start figuring out some kind of strategy for his company.

You know things are bad for YG when its biggest rival SM -- which is hopeless in managing its artists, losing all its major Chinese stars (and some Korean ones) in steady succession -- is still releasing back-to-back comebacks and its (remaining) artists are scoring high in sales and wins. In fact, SM has a new boy band it is getting ready to debut later this year, as yet unnamed, but they sure are leaking their dance practice videos and interview segments. Probably because they know IKON is going to be tough competition, and probably because they can see that YG is dropping the ball. Here are two short videos featuring the new group's dance skills:

https://www.youtu.be/JHPIG1DgvtU?list=PLA91TLEzZINvopb2EdZadIW6-yhL94ta2

https://www.youtu.be/7hSQGm-YMWc?list=PLA91TLEzZINvopb2EdZadIW6-yhL94ta2

There are other sandals out there featuring groups you probably don't follow (and neither do I), so I will leave it at that.

Thank goodness BEAST are relatively unproblematic and letting the material speak for itseld! I really like Dongwoon's songs, and To Become a Star is especially good. LOL at that picture though. Hyunseung looks possessed!

Edited July 14, 2015 by Cat

[Cheap21]

LOL...speaking of girl bands, did you check out their concepts?

SNSD

A Pink



Girl's Day

Its summer so lets go to the beach! How boring, generic and unoriginal. I cant beleive these 3 girl groups all came back with the same concept

Junho

His new album is supposed to drop today. He released two short version MVs for songs on it

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I really love So Good. Its so good!

BEAST

Comeback in 2 weeks! Love that Dujun went back to blonde and 3 others followed suit!

YG

yeah they are a mess I wouldnt be surprised if the entire lineup outside of BB is pissed with the company. They are treating their artists' sh-tty!

[Cat]

YAWN. These girl groups concepts bore me to tears! I'm already mad that girl groups the most boring choreography and songs at the best of time. Now we have the opening credits to 90210 as the theme? Bye. Although I hear Vanity Fair gave SNSD's Party song of the summer status on its website. Um. OK.

Junho is always doing his thing. And yes I saw about the Beast comeback. Hope it slays!

In other comeback news, remember Super Junior? Sexy Siwon? Mamacita? They have a new song out. It's called Devil:

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It sounds fun and they obviously put some money in the mv. But it ended kind of abruptly for me lol

And her is TVXQ's Spellbound. It came out in 2014 but I wasn't listening to kpop then. Still, I thought I would post it because I really like the song and the mv. The long-haired female backup dancer is so fun to watch, she should actually become part of the group.

P.S.: Changmin is the name of the hot dark-haired one.

Edited July 15, 2015 by Cat

[Cat]

CL... you look different. I know she has a new make-up artist called Pony who is completely amazing so hopefully that isn't a new nose she's sporting but just some artful shading.

[Cheap21]

I just saw that SJ video. Interesting concept. 9 members? Did they lose someone bc I thought they had 10 the last time

BEAST

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Yes! Their comeback is incoming and they've released a pre-release track called Gotta Go to Work. Its cute and I LOVE that Dujun is once again the star. Im guessing they filmed this a while back bc Yoseob and Hyuseung are the only blonde ones

I love him

Its so rare to hear Junhyung do the chorus but I love it bc it gives the group a different and interesting sound

One more week

CL

Yeah she definitely has a new face and I dont like that she did it bc I liked her old nose. She looks less distinct and more generic now

TAO

Tao has gone solo and is releasing his first digital mini album soon

Edited July 20, 2015 by Cheap21

[Cat]

Well I'll wait to hear what this album of Tao's sounds like but it's hard for me to believe that it wasn't in the works before he departed EXO...

OMG that Beast song Gotta Go to Work is hilarious. That is called "making the most of a tiny mv budget" ! I love Dujun leaping over the turnstiles.

I think with Super Junior, one of them is doing his military service, hence why they are only 9.

[Cat]

SHINee released their repackage Married to the Music and a new mv/comeback!

 

It's so weird but I love it. 

 

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[Cat]

I especially love Key's head being kicked across the room. LOL. What on earth have SHINee been smoking.

 

What is cool about SHINee is that unlike a lot of SM artists (YG is a bit different and allows their idols more autonomy) they have a lot of say in the music and sound and concept. Jonghyun writes songs for just about everybody in SM (CHangmin of TVXQ does too), he and Taemin already had solo albums where they included their own material (you can really hear Taemin's sound in Odd Eye imo). I just think their sound is so cool and fun and retro but not too retro.

 

Also I never ever paid attention to Minho much but OMG he is really kind of hot and charming in that mv! 

 

Speaking of Minos.... I miss Song Mino of Winner! I want to see some Winner!

 

Here is Tao's solo effort. 

 

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I don't know. I mean, it looks very pro, very SM-in-a-box. But I find it ungracious of him to dismiss his time with EXO as meaningless (apparently the lyrics to this song make reference to that). Quite apart from SM being a ruthless company which ties these kids to slave contracts, I thought he was close with some members of EXO, namely Kris (before he left), Sehun, Suho and Baekhyun. I also think that without the EXO training in singing, dancing and wushu, the TV opportunities and the EXO name, Tao would have found it near impossible to make a name for himself in entertainment. Oh, well. I guess it's done now. Hopefully SM will learn to treat their Chinese trainees better after this mess but I doubt they will change anything at all.

 

By the way, do you remember Red Velvet? The girl group that did Happiness last year? Ice Cream Cake? I had a listen to their Ice Cream Cake mini album and they have some decent songs. I like Something Kinda Crazy (ICC is good too).

 

 

August is going to see GD and TOP do a "duet" lol. Apparently August 5th (tomorrow! Well, tonight for us) is the release day, and it is going to be full hip hop).

 

http://www.kpopstarz.com/articles/224474/20150728/gd-top-fantastic.htm

 

In other news I am listening to Nicki Minaj and Pink Print and strongly considering posting on the Minaj thread. I already lurk, lol. Don't worry, kpop is still my obsession!

 

Edited August 4, 2015 by Cat

[Cat]

Whomp! There it is!

 

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Crazy but I'm feeling it. 

 

[Cheap21]

Im saddened bc so much in K-pop has happened since I left. Beast and SHINee both released material and BIGBANG will soon. The WiFi in Spain SUCKED so I couldnt even view the MV or follow. It seems to be better in France but I'll likely wait till i get back to the US till i fully immerse myself in all of this

[Matt]

Accidentally stumbled down the rabbit hole of K-Pop a few weeks ago thanks to an article on Billboard about K-Pop boybands.  I'd never listened at all before that, but now I am OBSESSED.  Quite literally, K-Pop is just about ALL I've listened to for WEEKS now.  It started with MVs on youtube, progressed to buying songs on itunes, now watching reaction vids, countdown vids, & performance vids from the various K-Pop music shows.  This has become a sickness.  I am not seeking an antidote.