#i like zombie more than ponzona though

[married-2-the-music]

K-pop Discography Deep Dives: Purple Kiss

A Disclaimer: I was planning, when I first started Tumblr, to be a lurker, but then I began an office job and needed something to listen to to keep myself occupied. And then, I started going through entire K-pop groups’ repertoires, album by album, and jotting down my thoughts. And then, I stumbled into K-pop tumblr and decided, you know what, there’s at least four people on this hell site who would read in depth rants about these discographies and at least five who wouldn’t read it and then get mad because it’s kind of our job as K-pop fans. My lukewarm takes should be taken with an entire silo of salt and the knowledge that this is completely for fun and occupying my very bored, very neurodivergent brain. All this to say, for the love of god, I’m a sleep-deprived student and I don’t have time for internet hate, so don’t kill me. With that being said, enjoy!

Here are my credentials: I’ve been what I’d consider a casual fan of Purple Kiss for a little while now, and I first found them through a cover of Seventeen’s Adore U. I know their singles, their names and a little about the members of the group, but I’m the first to admit that there’s far more that I don’t know, and far more that I’m open to learning. So, let’s get started!

Before Purple Kiss’ official 2021 debut with seven members (Goeun, Yuki, Chaein, Swan, Ireh, and Dosie; Jieun left earlier this year), they had two pre-releases in 2020. The first, Can We Talk Again, is a bit of an odd choice for a k-pop single. Its beginning is slower than a usual single, but it’s also a bit fast for a traditional ballad, which makes it difficult to classify. It’s pretty but also a little meandering, and though I think it needs a better build and climax, I appreciate that it immediately sets them apart from other groups of their time’s brasher girl crush. When I’m in the right mood, I enjoy this one (although the rap is unnecessary).

If Can We Talk Again is a gentle plea, My Heart Skip A Beat feels more like a declaration of war. From the second those guitars sound, I’m nodding my head. It’s very much a product of its girl-crush era, but the rock elements and the fullness of the chorus (no anti-drop here, folks) sets it apart. The rap works far better here than in Can We Talk Again, and the song never loses its momentum. I especially liked the two-part bridge: the sung-through section and the more odd EDM section, which feels more thought through and not like they’re rushing to the end. So when that last chorus does come, it feels earned.

After two wildly different beginnings, the middle path of Ponzona is their official debut. Its name is the Spanish word for poison, and they take that horror element and absolutely run with it. This song begins the trend of Purple Kiss’ title tracks, which often stay in the slowly creeping, oddball “witch-pop” style, which suits them well. It isn’t a style that’s for everyone, but I think that when it’s done well (as it is here and in a few of their other songs), it can really work. The song reminds me a little bit of Spider by Hoshi, albeit with a less tightly-wound arrangement than that one. I like this song; I could do without the breakdown in place of a bridge, though.

From Into Violet, the first album, I liked both Hello and Period. They’re similar, but Hello just edges it for me. It has that quietly twinkling guitar and piano in the background and such nice use of their voices, with a lovely mini-explosion of emotion at the beginning of the choruses (especially the last, which has some excellent harmonizing).

Zombie is the first Purple Kiss song I heard, and I liked it right away. It starts with the satirical tone and poppier beat, and the abject oddness won me over before the first chorus. Speaking of choruses, this one is a lot of fun: it’s anthemic, and while the post is a little repetitive, I appreciate that it isn’t as a whole. I even don’t mind the rap in this song, since it does a good job keeping the energy. Its off kilter humor reminds me of Sunmi’s You Can’t Sit With Us, right down to the zombies. I really like this one.

Though I think Zombie is their strongest single, I think Hide & Seek is their weakest EP. While I like parts of the songs (like the calmer jazz of 2am and the soothing mood of ZzZz), I don’t like any of them enough to feature as a hidden gem. Cast Pearls Before Swine comes close with that pre-chorus but something about the follow-up doesn’t work for me.

My My isn’t part of an album, but is instead a special Christmas track. I’m a bit of a hater, truth be told, and it takes a lot for me to enjoy a Christmas song, so I’m already biased against this. Look, I don’t really like this one, but I’m not going to judge it too harshly because I feel like that wouldn’t be fair. Their voices are pretty nice in this one, though, it just doesn’t feel at all like Purple Kiss.

MemeM, at first glance, seems like a return to form, and parts of it follow a usual Purple Kiss template. I like the pre-chorus, and especially the bridge, but I just can’t get past that repetitive anti-drop chorus; I find it utterly grating on the ears and had to resist the urge to turn the song off. Unlike with Ponzona, which somewhat has an anti-drop, there’s not enough drive in this and it leaves the song feeling…empty, and not in a way that feels intentional.

Fortunately, I like the album (also called MemeM) better than the title track. While I do agree with public opinion that Pretty Psycho would’ve made a better single for them (“maestro, maestro, I’m a pretty psycho” gets a good laugh from me every time), my hidden gem is Hate Me, Hurt Me, Love Me. Despite the quiet, almost mournful beginning, it quickly blooms into a very fun pop song, and I admit I went “aww” a few times at the cute special video they released with it.

Nerdy, like Zombie, follows more of a fun-creepy vibe, which I naturally prefer to the “I’m so cool” concept. It’s both a niche that sets them apart from their peers and a style that Purple Kiss pulls off well. I absolutely adore the completely unnecessary, over dramatic classical dance break during the bridge and the sarcastic tone of the verses, although I wish that the choruses had a bit more heft to them, as they’re around half vocalizing and repetition, but overall I like this one.

The Geekyland EP is really strong and probably my favorite of their works, and I loved the acoustic guitar in Summer Rain, the wispy instrumental of Can’t Stop Dreamin’, and the Latin-pop influence of Fireflower, but my hidden gem is Love Is Dead. From the start, the strong beat, the slinky (definitely not the right word, but *shrug*) vocals, and the rock influences had me tapping my foot. This was an instant standout for me, and not something I’m used to hearing from k-pop. The “love, love, love is dead” hook has been stuck in my head since.

Sweet Juice comes right out of the gate with that tense creepiness and a far-too-quick-for-my-liking classical sample, before spiraling into an equally tense chorus. I like the sparseness of the instrumental and especially the added atmosphere the voices have, but I wish that the classical instruments made a return and that the chorus had just a little more “oomph” to it, to make the building tension feel more genuine. Like with Nerdy, it’s a good song, but with just a few changes I feel like it could be great.

I liked the Cabin Fever EP too, although not as much as Geekyland, so I have a clear stand-out in Autopilot. I’m a lover of synth and citypop, and this song’s crying-on-the-dancefloor vibes immediately made it a favorite. Its quiet ending and emotional, acoustic plea add a little bit of heft to its hook of “I feel like a monster, oh, but I can’t stop”, and, given Purple Kiss’ affinity for telling stories of monsters, I choose to read it as a look at the other side of monsterhood: what happens when the kind of self-acceptance they so often sing about isn’t enough? I acknowledge that I’m probably reading way, way too much into it, but Swan’s voice makes me have emotions (lol).

7Heaven surprised me on first listen, because it sounds nothing like a Purple Kiss song. I have no idea what caused such a dramatic shift in concept, tone and vibe, but I was a bit confused. 7Heaven is a very catchy song and feels like somewhat of a spiritual successor to Autopilot, but without the interesting lyrics that made Autopilot still feel like a Purple Kiss song. While I do like the song itself, it’s fairly standard for k-pop and doesn’t distinguish itself like the rest of their catalogue (whether I like every song or not) does.

Festa is only a three-song single, and neither of the b-sides really stood out to me. Truth be told, I’m a little annoyed that they didn’t wait another month and a half or so and released another great full EP for Halloween, which would’ve fit their vibe so well and probably felt more complete, while this one feels a little more rushed and very not-them.

Groups having their own, very clear, identity is a topic I genuinely care about, and something that I feel is becoming less common, which is one of the reasons I mostly stan 2nd and 3rd generation bands. I’m not saying that I want groups (or the idols in them) to be pigeon-holed, but looking at, say Girls Generation, Dreamcatcher, or Stray Kids, their styles (inspiration from vintage pop, rock, and hip-hop respectively) are very evident while still managing to have variety and keep innovating. Anyway, this was a longer rant than I’d planned, so let’s get back to my final thoughts.

Overall, I’m glad I did this! I got to learn so much more about Purple Kiss and who they are as people, got to listen to some great b-sides that I’ve added to my study playlists, and learned that they write a lot of their own songs, which is super cool! I’m always looking out for more self-produced groups. (And always looking for more recommendations too). Special shout-out to Yuki for writing such well-flowing raps in her second language, because I can’t even write them in my first.

My top 5 songs are Zombie, Love Is Dead, My Heart Skip A Beat, Autopilot, and Nerdy. Special shoutout to Hello. Purple Kiss gets an 8.25/10 from me, because they’re incredibly consistent in tone, style, and quality (except for a few dips), and they’ve done a great job carving out a niche, but I don’t think that they have any songs I would consider classics or favorites. I think that they, like LOONA, often stay in a middle ground of good, not terrible, but also not excellent. Also like LOONA, they do a lot of experimenting with genre, albeit in their b-sides, not their titles, which I think works better. I didn’t become a Plory through this deep dive, but who knows? I’ll be keeping an eye on them, and maybe after the next comeback, I’ll change my mind.

I’ll see you next week for a boy group (well…soloist, technically). I’m super excited for this one, so prepare for a lot of discussion. Tschüss!

[ravns-reviews]

Hey welcome for this new article which will talk about music!!

Today we are going to talk about the new Purple Kiss album: Cabin Fever.

For those who don't know Purple Kiss is a girl group of six members (initially seven): Goeun, Dosie, Ireh, Yuki, Chaein and Swan (the member who left the group being Jieun for health reasons). They started in March 2021 and even if they are not very experienced yet I think they will have a long career ahead of them.

As for the "theme" of the group, it is a magic theme, a bit dark sorcery. However each album is very different from each other.

"Ponzona" was a pretty simple, slightly sultry song.

"Zombie" was fun and colorful.

"Memem" was a bit more electronic.

"Nerdy" had a rock side to it.

"Sweet Juice" has a bit of a cabaret feel.

That's one of the main reasons I love this band is that you never quite know what to expect.

As for the previous albums the young women took part in the writing of the songs (except the intro). Yuki wrote all his raps. Goeun participated in the writing of the title track as well as another title of the album. Chaein and Dosie also each worked on a song. even the CEO of RBW participated by participating in the writing of one of the songs. Chaein also composed the song she wrote. I'm not sure about the choreographies but in general I know that they participate in the development of these.

I'm really a fan of this album. It has to be my favorite from Purple Kiss so far. Each song is different I find (except the intro and the title track which complement each other). The group uses sounds that we hear very little and stands out thanks to that. each song is a bit like a spell they cast on fans to bewitch them (which goes perfectly with their concepts 🤣).

1.Intro : Save me

The intro is very intriguing on the level of the lyrics one wonders what will happen in the rest of the album. She is very sweet and sensual. For me it's the kind of song you play at the end of the evening before putting everything away and going to sleep, just to relax.

2.Sweet Juice

A very sensual and very sweet song musically as well. It completes the intro since it talks about the same thing but from a different point of view. I find it a bit unfortunate that Ireh and Dosie have fewer lines than the others, but maybe they were busy developing the choreography and that's why they have fewer lines. I don't know. the rap is also very soft I think which goes well with the rest of the song.

3. T4ke

I love this song ! Once again we are on a slow and sensual rhythm. I think it's a perfect mood song for a romantic evening. the only small problem is the slightly dark side of the lyrics of the song but maybe it's just my personal interpretation.

4. Autopilot

So i love this song. The rhythm changes from the rest of the album and there is a little 70s air that I quite like. But I have to admit that something is stressing me out: I know the sample and I can't figure out where. So if this ever means something to you, please let me know.

5. Agit

Agit is my favorite song on the album (even though I love the others). Sounds like the kind of song that plays in teen movies during the prom dress fitting scene. I think it's the perfect song to put in the car when you're with friends.

6. So far so good

I like when albums end with a ballad. I think that's a good way to end. So far so good is an excellent ballad. And the text is just beautiful. It's one of my favorite Purple Kiss albums.

If you haven't listened to the album or seen the performances yet, don't hesitate! One of the best albums of the year.

[wickymicky]

i think ultimately My Heart Skip a Beat is still my favorite Purple Kiss song, and maybe it always will be

[fake-maknae-park-jieun]

my thoughts about the album now that I've listened to it about 100 times.

- zombie: such a good title track. it's super catchy and fun. I'm glad to see variety versus Ponzona, such didn't catch me as much though I did enjoy it. I just preferred all the bsides on that album. but this is such a nice song for the time of year. it's got a nice end of summer sound with theming perfect for spooky season.

- 2am: probably my least favorite song on the album which isn't saying much because I love all of the songs. it's just a vibey song that I have to be in a specific mood to listen to.

- cast pearls before swine: clearly this album's skip skip esque song. very catchy with title track potential. the fact they choreographed the dance as trainees means this song 'probably' has been floating around since trainee days which is impressive.

- so why: chaein songs really do hit different. one of my favorite songs. it had to grow on me a bit but I ended up loving it. I do enjoy anti drops when done well and this one was. the bass line is very chaein from what I've heard of her production/composing style. she's going to be lethal as a producer. I easily see her joining Soyeon as one of the best 4th Gen idol producers in the future. (speaking of, the fact Yuki is already the 2nd most credited 4th Gen idol, esp as a foreigner, is fucking impressive. she's going to be dangerous in the future too)

- twinkle: probably my favorite song on the album sound wise. I love me some good edm and along with the guitar riffs and the girls vocals, it's immaculate. I particularly love how some members enunciated certain lines in this song. it's very satisfying.

- zzzz: my favorite song for line distribution. it's really balanced so it's good to know they are capable of it (not that I thought they weren't, into Violet was just soo swan and goeun heavy). I personally don't mind line dist as much as some but obviously it is nice to hear more members get time to shine vocally. I hope this translates into their future tracks, esp title tracks. the lofi sound suits some of the members (especially jieun, goeun and chaein) so well.

overall it's hard to believe that they are 1st year rookies and this is only their first comeback. can you imagine what they're going to be like in a year or two? they're going to dominate. I do this I like this more than into Violet though Period is still my favorite song they're ever produced. they're my personal ROTY, (though pixy isn't far behind)

I can't wait for my copies of the album to come. might do an unboxing video for my pulls.

[wickymicky]

memem is pretty wild, huh