#also yall should check out lucid fall's album 'nowana' after this which is co-produced by his DOG

[monstress]

                        Favorite 2019 Korean Album Releases

GENERASIAN - Lim Kim

following a four year hiatus at the blossoming of her career, Lim Kim comes back independent with a crowdfunded album that is nothing like her pop idol days and she's here to make a statement as an Asian woman. GENERASIAN is cynically political with massive production (the pansori!! the grunge!! the drums!!) and is, by far and large, one of the most exciting releases of the year. Also it's a great breather from western artists using ~*~oriental~*~ instruments to sound exotic lmao. 10/10 unlocks feral, vengeful witches sleepless in ______ - Epik High remember how last time i thought We've Done Something Wonderful was their last album? i'm so glad to be wrong. Freshly released from their YG sub-label (and a shrewd decision at that), Epik High released a short yet effective love letter to insomnia, depression and loneliness. the tracks are seamless; the flow from Sleepless to In Seoul, reverberation of Sunwoo Jung-A's chorus from In Seoul in Lullaby for a Cat are beautiful. there's just so many things i personally love about this album: from the Yuna feature, the mix-up of Eternal Sunshine in iTunes with Kung by Youra to #LullabyForACat hashtag. just music and social media crossover perfection. Vivid - ADOY 

ADOY really came through in the last minute to this list. full of that 80s synths with modern rock twist, you’d think this shtick would get old but each track is way too artfully arranged to fall for that! i am, in essence, just a robot living in the pixel console game tracked by their music. and the song swim makes me cry Our Love is Great - Baek Yerin the dreamiest album of this year. Soothing, romantic and absolutely delightful. Each track is crafted like a string of fine pearls and petals. From the first track Merry and the Witch’s Flower (which title alone sound like a quaint childhood short story with a future ghibli adaptation), the album gives us soft r&b and jazz that promises love, redemption, and tender pining. also if you haven’t watch this songstress sing live, do yourself a favor.

Love Part 1 - Colde

It’s all about love, yall! as expected from one half of offonoff, this album’s arrangement? production? execution? top notch! the tracks starts romantic and wistful declarations and as the albums proceed, turns outright darker. I Fxxking Love You is the BEST track hands down---the plain-as-day lyrics, the multiple howling confessions, the desperate energy of it all, the guitar solo. absolutely rancid vibes my mans. g o d

Thirsty - The Black Skirts

at first listen, this album didn’t strike me as the lightning bolt of Team Baby but later in the year after a few listens, i keep coming back to the buzz that Wrong Question gives, the sweeping verses of island (queen of diamonds), the shoegaze Hawaiian black sands, the ballad of Thinner than water and realize i went through the whole album from start to finish. another quintessential rock album to add to the mantle of The Black Skirts’ already impressive discography.

Entropy - DAY6

this is not something they made...this is some professional shit like this shit is in different areas what the fuck. in all seriousness, day6 released the best kpop/rock album of the year with elements spanning from classic rock, bossanova, electronic, garage rock, latin r&b and dancehall while keeping the arrangement interesting and cohesive? she has the range, darling! i’m not exaggerating when my jaw dropped multiple times at every new track. this album is just THAT good. how they pulled it off, i don’t know but, as always, i’m grateful.

So!YoON! -  황소윤

stepping into a solo stint, hwang soo yoon (band se so neon 22-yo lead vocal and guitarist) embarked into wider musical territories: adding synths, electronics and r&b production into her fold with her eclectic guitar-playing and some amazing collaborators (secret zion.t cameo? yes secret zion.t cameo!). and did i scream at my tv when she appeared on Yoo Flash with sumin? yes, yes i did. a great album powered by her husky voice. for everyone wondering, the album cover is from Australian artist Patricia Piccinini’s ‘The Rookie’. no, i don’t know either.

LEGEND - Jannabi 

for any other band, this album would be called their magnum opus but for jannabi, i hope it’s just the first stepping stone. frontman choi jong hoon said they want to make songs our parents would listen to and boy do they delivered. an instant classic that can be played 20 years from now and no one will blink. a glorious, seasonal album with no seasons, an excellent case for ‘maybe commercialized nostalgia isn’t so bad?’. all i know is: i’ll be playing land of night to end my decade while weeping because i’m still alive and i’ve made it!

Honoroble Mentions: neckwav x rarekook ‘249′, bewhy ‘the movie star’, samuel seo ‘the misfit’, oohyo ‘far from the madding city’, ashmute ‘night & night’, code kunst ‘all about us’, dean ‘howlin’ 404′, cl ‘in the name of love’, xin seha ‘1000′, sumin ‘your home’, lucid fall ‘nowana’