#weirdly jazzy post-metal

[circleofbirds]

It's an intricate fold It's the cure For us trying to speak And it works Look at the overcast people Then look at their overcast sons

[eldritch-spouse]

Hello I made some music taste headcanons for the lads. I was on a 12 hour flight and had nothing better to do so here’s my notes madness

Nebul: likes witchhouse according to Pinnie

Breg: seems like he’d not be picky, since he has a love for humans, feels like that’d extend to what they create

Santi: Rap, specifically Rico Nasty and Megan Thee Stallion

Fasma: Jazz. Seems like a jazzy creature

Patches: Classical, relaxing during work

Fank-E: EDM, possibly breakcore/speedcore?

Morell: good ol fashioned country. Johnny Cash and the like

Vinnie: Insane Clown Posse. ‘nuff said

Grimbly: Pop, similar to Santi’s tastes though in liking lewder songs. Seems like a Britney guy,

Gallon: classic rock’n roll. Jams out to David Bowie while tending to the bar

Krulu: either finds music dumb or listens to the weirdest shit. like Gregorian Chants from the 1500s

Sybastion: eats headphones/earbuds

Ludwig: Strikes me as a metal guy with the wrath demon thing. Seems like he’d use some industrial metal to destress

Obie: Lo-fi. Something nice to listen to while enjoying a meal.

Mervin: Seems like one of those gatekeepers who are PROUDD of knowing super underground bands. Will pull up darkwave/post-punk bands with 3 listeners a month typa shit.

To be honest I mostly agree?

Except with Santi. I just don't see him listening to rap at all. Funnily enough, I think he'd like classics. Call On Me, fucking Careless Whisper. He listens to a lot of weirdly romantic shit, which would turn most concubi off.

Grimbly is a 2000's pop stan. Just fucking unbearable. Type of dude that listens to Slayyyter.

Krulu does think human music is mostly stupid, but you could probably make him listen to playlists with very specific vibes, or things like TOWERS: TOWERS.

I think Fasma would come to enjoy electro swing at some point.

[idiotic-genius]

Describing and associating color

First of all, it’s important to understand the associations people already have to colors, so here’s a quick general guide:

Yellow- Happiness, bright, sunny

Orange- Warmth, fire, jumpy

Red- Soulfull, energetic, boldness

Purple- Noble, rich, calming

Blue- Deep, mysterious, darkness / moderness, brightness, flying

Green- Nature, untouched, uncivilized / kindness, energy, daytime

Brown- Terrestrial, grounded, natural

Black- Nighttime, dark, peaceful/scary

White- Innocence, cleanness, pure

Now for the comparison of colors to things that are not a color but typically have a certain shade of one. That’s not only helping the reader to better imagine the exact color you mean, but also to subtly pushing their emotional state in a certain direction. If you e.g. compare someone’s haircolor to something pleasant, the reader will subconsciously like the character better. Contrary to that, when you compare something with unpleasant things, it makes the reader’s mind associate that thing described being unpleasant even though you didn’t specifically said it was. Here’s an exaggerated example:

“The walls were as green as those small plants you can buy at Ikea.”

vs.

“The walls were as green as that invisible algae that touches your leg when you’re swimming in a lake.”

If you read the first sentence in a room’s description, it would make you subconsciously think of it as cute and bright because you associate it to cute and bright things like small Ikea plants. However, the second comparison rather gives you an uneasy and oppressive mindset about the room described.

Many colors have overused comparisons, like green and emeralds or blue and the sky. If you want to use those, it’s of course okay and simple, but also consider using things not many authors use to compare colors to, because it gives you something special the reader will remember. It’s your choice if you want to make those comparisons funny, relatable, weirdly specific or just fancy and special. Here are a few examples of things to compare colors to for some of those categories that can e.g. use by writing “Their hair was [color] in a way that reminded me of [comparison].”

Weirdly specific/funny

Yellow- Pikachu’s forehead, the frenchiest fry McDonalds ever made for me

Orange- Trump, garbage truck that comes every tuesday

Red- Weasley hair, Elmo’s prettiest curl, Knuckles the Echidna

Purple- An evil Minion, that one tasty grape that’s better than the others

Blue- The tardis’ front door, that one pair of jeans you kinda like but never wear

Green- Kermit’s ruff, Mike Wazowsky, Shrek’s ears, Yoda but only in VI

Brown- Gumba’s shoes, Timon and Pumbaas’ supposed lovechild

Black- A cat with green eyes named Loki, Buttercup from Powerpuff Girls’ hair

White- Some paper you stare at in class because you don’t know what to write

Grey- Karen’s hair before she dyed it, my favorite werewolf’s fur at their neck

Rare/special

Yellow- A bumblebee, a daffodil, happiness

Orange- A lion’s mane, sandstone, a salamander

Red- Fire bricks, chili, imperialism

Purple- Heathers, summer rain, dusk

Blue- [random specific ocean], a swimming pool, an iceberg, space

Green- A post-apocalypse, mint ice cream, seafoam, the jungle

Brown- Ginderbread, cinnamon, walnut, espresso, syrup

Black- Leather jackets, charcoal, ravens

White- Winter frost, antique ghosts, bleached parchment

Grey- Evening shadows, summer thunderstorm clouds, sea stones

Next up is the description of the colors without comparisons. Here are some cool words to avoid cliche descriptions with by saying e.g. “They were dressed in [word] [color].”

bleached – very pale by chemicals/sunlight

bleak – gloomy

blotchy – patchy

bold – clear, strong in colour (thus easy to notice)

brash – unattracively colorful

brilliant – intense

clean – clear and fresh

cold – (a color mixed with) white, blue, or grey

cool – colours mixed with blue or green

delicate – pleasant, but not too strong

dusty – a color mixed with grey

electric – metallic (mostly blue and green)

festive – bright and colourful

fiery – very bright in colour (mostly red, orange, yellow)

fluorescent – seems to reflect light

glistening – shiny

glowing – seems to emit soft light

harsh – very bright in an unpleaseant way

jazzy – bright, colourful, and attractive

loud – ‘very bright’ as in ‘bad taste’

mellow – soft and warm

opalescent – seems to change color/hues

pastel – pale and soft

rich – strong in a good way

sepia – ‘old’, colors mixed with yellow-brown-red

soft – pale, gentle

splashy – brightly coloured

tinged/tinted – a color with another color hidden in it (e.g. reddish blond)

vibrant – bright and colourful

violent – so bright it almost hurts

vivid – strong, lively

warm – (a color mixed with) yellow, red, or orange

watery – pale

I hope this helps you guys to better describe colors and create associations for your reader through comparison :)

[thesunlounge]

Reviews 120: 雲の向こう (Kumo No Muko)

Jazzy Couscous take a deep dive into the blissed out balearic textures of 1980s Japan with 雲の向こう: A Journey Into 80s Japan’s Ambient and Synth-Pop Sound. This magical collection is the result of over a decade of patient digging by co-label head Alixkun and sees him sharing some of the wide-eyed and adventurous sounds he’s discovered…sounds that are full of drifting wonder and shining innocence. Every song is a self-contained fantasy universe and the whole compilation recalls pastoral jazz, minimalism, and progressive and psychedelic folk as strongly as it does ambient, synth-pop, and new age. The compositions move with an exciting and often unexpected energy, and several of them (Masaaki Ohmura’s “A Touch of Temptation” and Mami Koyama’s “Love Song”) are now among my favorite songs ever. And accompanying the dreamtime musical journey is a stunning 2xLP layout with illustrations by Lucy Harris. The front and gatefold pieces so perfectly match the vibe of the music and the rear cover is quite unique, with Lucy delivering wonderful hand-drawn renditions of each and every album cover from which the songs were pulled. All in all, it’s one of the years most amazing packages, both sonically and visually.

雲の向こう: A Journey Into 80s Japan’s Ambient and Synth-Pop Sound (Jazzy Couscous / HMV, 2018) Takashi Kokubo’s “Underwater Dreaming” alternates back and forth between two movements: one comprised of radiant waterfalls of glistening harps and echoing chimes backgrounded by swelling romantic orchestrations and glassy pianos, the other focused around dreamy plucked string arpeggios and hollow bass notes, gliding and gliding, with synthetic panpipes floating in the sunlight. It’s ecstatic and joyous, as the senses are overwhelmed by a subaqueous wonderland of shimmering lights and flowing colors. There is a Canterbury feel to “Kitsu Tsuki” by Keizo Inoue, based around a squelching sequence under warehouse reverb, blissed out acoustic guitar locking into 60s psychfolk fingerpicking, and breathy woodwinds dropping pointillist and exploratory solos. It’s rustic and futuristic progfolk for afternoon picnics surrounded by infinitely stretching expanses of flowers, with sunshine raining down and a few storm clouds hovering in the distance. We head further into realms of progged out psychedelia with Nobuyoshi Ino’s “Window”, starting on a weirdly flowing synth sequence sounding like shattered starlight. Then the song morphs deliriously through several varied sections, including pastoral psychedelia with massive bass and kosmische flying saucers, moonlit serenades led by aching cellos, 70s krautfolk with flowing leads washing over gentle chords and liquid bass guitar, blazing acoustic guitar solos like solar flares, and big rushes of anthemic and arena-sized synthesizers recalling nothing so much as Rush that lead to powerful builds and mournful jazz anticlimaxes.

“A Touch of Temptation” by Masaaki Ohmura is stunning, starting with a slow stomping kick drum and wiggling synthbass textures overlaid by glistening pads and repeated chimes, the vibe similar the horizontal leaning moments of Atlas’ Breeze. There are also shimmering ocean guitar atmospheres that cascade alongside seaside pads and unexpected explosions into schmaltzy sax perfection. And as the song really takes off with nostalgic synth fantasias underliyng Café del Mar guitars, it feels like sailing off the coast of some fabulous island with white sand sparkling like a field of diamonds and green palms blowing in the breeze. At the other end of the B-side sits Shigeru Suzuki’s “Silver Snow Shining” and its early post-rock perfection comprised of washing echo guitar riffs, cycling digital pianos, and new age harps. The mix is eventually joined by a tapestry of chimes…like vibrating metallic light, and basslines underlying the ambient dreamscape with fretless fusion spells (and a subtle 50s pop vibe). It all comes together like sunlight refracting off snow, with every single flake emitting a harmonious and pastel-hued rainbow. In between, Miyako Koda delivers a soft lullaby above lustrous strings and glossy chiming synths. This is dip in the pool’s “Kuroi Dress No Onna,” also replete with moments of sliding funk bass and smashing downtempo rhythms. The chorus is like an enveloping dream with shades of Julee Cruise and Twin Peaks…a sparse mix, a gaseous waltz, and a cosmic angel pulling our hearts and souls into a warm ether of light and sound.

Mami Koyama’s “Love Song” is anchored by panning toms, cavernous bass drums, and pads like a majestic mountain mist. The vocals are amongst the dreamiest I have ever heard, dropping intensely emotional melodies of love that wrap my heart in a golden warmth. As the song progresses, the mix grows ever more wide-lensed and spacious, with interstellar fx flying around and sparkling guitar arpeggios raining down like neon shooting stars. And best of all, there is a jaw dropping section where the vocals are replaced by whistles and forest flutes…the beauty of it all becoming almost unbearable. Chika Asamoto’s “Obsession” exudes the atmosphere of a serene tropical bay bathed in moonlight, with everything emitting a lustrous silvery incandescence. Streaks of color move through the water in the form of square wave synth leads and melodious pianos intertwine with synthetic strings. We then flow into the peaceful motions of a towering yet barely there downtempo march, the bass and echoing snare miles apart, with most of the rhythm carried on shakers. And all the while, loving ivory melodies and meditative orchestrations weave a luminous web of harmony up in the sky. For Fumio Miyashita’s “In the Beginning,” drones from the depths of space join mutating currents of interstellar gas. It’s a striking contrast to the preceding euphoria, moving for a seeming eternity until a freaked-out motorik beat emerges. But then we take a surprising turn, as strings fade in and out like breath over a downtempo pulse, sparse chimes dance in counterpoint, and fast circling arps fade in, their shining melodies smothered in hazy filtering. Then, as brass pads swell continuously, we miraculously find ourselves waltzing on the rings of Saturn, our feet kicking up millions of particles of gleaming ice that float away in parabolic arcs.

Yoshui Suzuki’s “The Mirage” sees thick foggy pads and their disjointed yet peaceful chord progressions flowing into 808 drum accents and propulsive pianos. Galactic synths grow in strength and then recede, leaving behind a mesmeric driftscape that orbits some distant star…circling forever and ever. Then comes Yumi Murata’s “Watashi No Bus” and our most overt taste of Japanese pop yet, based as it is around jazzy machine drums and dancing e-piano chords. The vocals are expressive and sensual, sitting somewhere between a soulful croon and a sassy whisper and there are whiffs of prog in the strange stuttering flow, including sections where tapping cymbals support fluttering lounge rhythms. And after the vocals really take off, their eternal beauty backed by subdued organs, whistling tones, and swelling strings, there is a chic trumpet solo that rides the intoxicating vibe to perfection. The upbeat pop energy continues with “Itohoni” by Chakra, ending this spellbinding journey on a note of effervescent ecstasy.  We get another captivating vocal performance…spritely, almost operatic…dancing and darting over drums that move between kinetic propulsion and start/stop dominated downbeat crashing. Glowing pads and a breathtaking yet restrained psychfolk guitar performance support the irresistible singing, with the movements of the voice more akin to birds than human beings. Eventually we burst into a swaying sunshine fusion passage where exotic drums are surrounded by layers of chattering voices and there is even a bombastic ending with wild tom fills and an epic voice calling out to the horizon.

(all images from my personal copy)

[sinceileftyoublog]

Keiji Haino & SUMAC Album Review: American Dollar Bill - Keep Facing Sideways, You’re Too Hideous To Look At Face On

BY JORDAN MAINZER

The collaboration between Japanese noise legend Keiji Haino and Vancouver post-metal titans SUMAC is improvised. Its title is long. Its song titles are longer. (For the sake of your sanity, I’m not going to refer to anything by its full name--I’ll let you look it up.) It’s ridiculous and mostly great, because it somehow doesn’t drag over its hour-plus run time because, for the most part, they change things up.

The title track opens the album at almost 20 minutes. At first, it sounds composed, Aaron Turner’s doom riffs fitting alongside Haino’s atonal flute. The percussion starts out chaotic but morphs into something resembling a beat and builds up as Haino begins to sing, his voice slowly bubbling to the surface. As he screams, Turner’s guitars squall with feedback, the drums become more limber, and the song becomes a flat-out free-wheeling rocker. Eventually, it slows back down, showing intensity only with Haino’s snarls and the occasional Nick Yacyshyn snare hit and guitar stab. And once again, it builds up with blast beats that dissolve into chaos as Turner’s guitars scrape along Haino’s yelps. Trust me--it’s more exhausting to read about than listen to.

Impressively, the next two tracks have similar structures but different elements. The pounding, rolling drums and staccato guitars of “What Have I Done? Pt 1″ are what drives the song into noise, whereas “I’m Over 137% Pt 1″ starts off with jazzy tremolos and warbling tones, Haino’s screaming alone bringing the intensity. (It’s almost like he’s screaming because the album’s gotten too pleasant, quiet, or easy.) Each song is a mirror of the album itself, which also resembles a sort of circle--Haino’s isolated voice over SUMAC’s instrumentation connect “I’m Over 137% Pt 2″ to the opening track. If I had one bone to pick, I wish they’d have returned to a more abstract theme instead of repeating elements verbatim, but the explicitly repeated moments are minimal. Swirling guitars become circular drones, SUMAC at their best, and it’s what you notice most when listening to the back half of the record. And on “What Have I Done? Pt 2″, even when the drums have no discernible beat, they’re loud as hell, Haino’s piercing flute contrasting in tone but equally beautifully cacophonous. The juxtaposition shows that American Dollar Bill, like Scott Walker/Sunn O))), is yet another entry in the line of weirdly natural collaborations between extreme bands and experimental singers.

7.7/10

American Dollar Bill - Keep Facing Sideways, You're Too Hideous To Look At Face On by Keiji Haino & SUMAC

[rebelwith0utacause]

2, 31, 36, 39 if u haven’t answered them yet!!

I have 36 here, but honestly dunno if it’s the perfect description. Like, the only way I could describe my aesthetic is constantly looking for that unattainable aesthetic, I just know that it’s a dark song, with a few sexy mysterious progressions, but also melancholic and heavy. So maybe Ashes to Ashes by Faith No More or Palo Santo by Years & Years? Idk, it’s complicated.

2. Favourite song?

Right now it’s Youngblood, like... that one fits the aesthetic question too somehow, but for years and years it was Face of Melinda by Opeth, there’s such a duality to the song, it’s driving me wild. Plus the jazzy guitar in a metal song? the classical guitarist in me was thriving.

31. Nostalgic song?

Weirdly enough, it’s Dakota by Stereophonics because it reminds me of my first kiss.

39. An artist you used to dislike and now love?

Pft, like I’ll just lump all the rappers I listen to here. I genuinely dislike rap, hate the culture, especially with the way it’s represented in media, but I’ve found that I genuinely like rap that is influenced by other genres. So, MGK, Post Malone, Yelawolf, Doja Cat, the king Mike Shinoda (altho I’ve never hated him, he’s a sweetheart).

[oishioshis]

Favourite Songs 2016 ~A Mixed Bag~

This is probably the longest I’ve put something off in my life, for one reason or another whenever I started writing this list I became overwhelmed or really down on myself. What do I know? Who am I? What value is this at all? Well, none of those questions really matter. I’m doing this for myself and hopefully there’s the added benefit of friends looking at this and maybe getting an idea for what I’m into.

It’s no secret my interests have vastly changed between 2015 and 2016 making this an incredibly hard list to curate, but that process made me realise that this whole thing is kinda nonsense. It’s a fun thing I’m throwing together based on what I enjoyed, it’s not me scouring every release throughout a year and giving you my take on it. I’m going to miss things and skip songs and entire albums, this is an unranked list except for my absolute favourite of the year.

However, before I get into my favourite releases I want to give my take on a hobby I had a couple years back. While I think their releases are often really poor and lacking in mostly every regard, it’s worth highlighting the very rare gem they manage to spit out.

AKB48 - Love Trip

This song is kinda fantastic in that it’s everything I personally feel AKB48 should be. It’s energetic, youthful and intense. AKB48 is often bogged down with releases that are mellow and way too easy going for the sheer amount of personality they have. They should be fun, and Love Trip is exactly that, and well executed, too. The mix of acoustic guitars and wailing electric guitars throughout give the song an energy more reminiscent of their older output, the accompanying layered gang vocals, while they leave something to be desired on a technical level, do add to the intensity of the song itself. It’s not abrasive, it feels just right. Love Trip could be described as a beautiful chaos, as it is a mess, but a mess that works to the benefit of the listener, it’s a song about young love, and the song sounds as chaotic as that moment in your life feels. Overall, I’d say this is the best AKB48 song in years, and continues to be.

Nogizaka46 - Harujion ga Sakukoro

I was once writing what was basically a love letter to this song that I never got around to posting. When this song first came out I adored it, the composition and arrangement is so uplifting and beautiful that it’s hard to put into words how exactly you feel about it. The song is a mix of a thumping house beat and string sections with what sounds like a synthesized chorus vocal line, and it works perfectly. The music itself never really resolves itself in its transitions from chorus to verse until the end where the story of the song is resolved, and I thought that was a very smart, well crafted touch.

I don’t hold Nogizaka46 to the same standard as AKB48. I personally feel that Nogizaka46’s output is very solid for most releases even if they falter in some coupling track decisions here and there, but Harujion ga Sakukoro is a very, very special song and I feel it is a highlight when it comes to idol songs.

Now with that out of the way I get to my favourite songs of the year. These songs are in no real order but at the very end I’ll give my absolute favourite song of the year, so if you only came for that then just skip to the end because this’ll be real boring otherwise.

Favourite Songs

Perfume - Flash

People like to rag on Perfume these days for whatever reason, can’t say I really get it. I understand the music has changed but that doesn’t mean it’s objectively better or worse. I find Flash to be a highlight in Perfume’s discography, and the Cosmic Explorer album, while I understand it’s a bit more western influenced and trendy, it’s a lot of fun. Flash kinda just goes in, heavy on the synth leads, snares for days, it’s dumb fun. It knows it’s dumb. I’d also like to give a shout out to the album mix of Flash, it’s rearranged and the dynamic and structure of the song sounds completely different but it’s also really good, just in a different way.

Kariya Seira - Colorful World

A very fun, electro-funk song. I love the electric piano throughout, the bendy bassline, swimmy, sparkly and stabby synths. I also love Seira’s singing, she’s become a really beautiful singer over the years and this song highlights it unlike no other. If you’re ever feeling down I’d really recommend this song among Seira’s other songs.

BiSH - Orchestra

Probably BiSH’s most ambitious song to date. It gives off the melancholic yet optimistic vibes of a smoother Nogizaka46 song, but with a really intense double-kick build into a flurry of orchestral strings. It’s not really a mix you think of to often, but the mix of metal and a string section with this really off-kilter idol punk singing works beautifully. Idol music can sometimes feel a bit fake, but BiSH always manages to feel authentic and I feel Orchestra is a good example of that.

Fujiwara Sakura - “Kawaii”

My favourite side of Fujiwara Sakura is her really emotive singing, and that especially shows in the chorus of “Kawaii”, it’s a very pretty, sentimental jazz song. It’s very jazz, so if you don’t like jazz maybe this won’t be your thing, but it’s jaunty, it’s a lot of fun. Please try it, she’s really good. I’m on my knees begging. I love her so much.

Maison Book Girl - lost AGE

I’ve never been able to describe Maison Book Girl, they’re a unique genre unto themselves, very heavy on strings and acoustic guitars but chopped and mixed incredibly weirdly. I honestly wouldn’t recommend a single song by them, but their entire discography. It’s so unique, it’s indescribable. It’s all one cohesive style so if you don’t like one song you won’t like any of their songs, really, but you need to check them out.

Ladies’ Code - Galaxy

More jazz! But now lower key and subdued. Galaxy is very pretty musically and visually, so definitely check out the music video. I really like the places the song goes, in the bridge it kinda builds this jazzy momentum in contrast to the very mellow beginning and they carry it towards the end. It’s a very neat, chill song, I thoroughly recommend it. Also I adore the bassline.

Ladies’ Code - The Rain

More upbeat and less subtle than Galaxy, but the bouncy synth on top of the continued jazzy feel from Galaxy makes The Rain my favourite of Ladies’ Code releases from 2016. There’s also something about the lead in with the heavy violin into the hard hitting chorus that makes The Rain feel a bit more intensely emotional than Galaxy. Can’t quite put my finger on it, but I like it a lot.

Lee Hi - My Star

Lee Hi continues her motown streak with My Star, and it’s kinda motown-lite but there’s something about it that I really like. The hook is really catchy to me, it’s reminiscent of contemporary motown where it sounds a bit more pop than full motown and that’s alright for me. I also reward any song for expensing actual session played instrumental work, like this song has actual brass sections. However the main snare they’re using sounds EDM as heck. Song’s produced by Teddy so it’s to be expected to some degree isn’t it.

TWICE - TT

What hasn’t been said about TT at this point? It kinda became a cultural phenomenon in East Asia. It’s a really great song. Excellent use of space in the mix, makes the song sound huge and ethereal, the deep house-esque bass synths are wonderful and the hook is super catchy. It’s a perfect pop song if you ask me.

WJSN - Secret

I adore secret, some would call this maybe the biggest surprise of 2016, but it’s an e.one track, of course it’s fantastic. e.one can do no wrong. The music box lead into the melodic synth with an accompanying string section is probably the thing that immediately hooked everybody into this song. It’s a great, fun way to start off your song. That and, of course, the bimiliya aaaaaAa, it’s incredibly catchy. It never gets boring for me.

REOL - Give me a break stop now

REOL’s vocal inflections and general vocal direction is the hook for me, I love her style, but the song is also the type of EDM trap I’m way into. Abrasive trap horns, heavy ass synth, weird ass BONK replacing the snare, the entire thing just kicks you in the teeth and it’s great. REOL and GigaP did a fantastic job at producing this.

BLACKPINK - Whistle / Boombahyah / Playing With Fire

I’m putting most of BLACKPINK’s discography into one because I thoroughly, thoroughly enjoyed every release they put out in 2016. Whistle’s low-key, simple melodies are something I’m not typically into, but I was immediately hooked by the song, it’s so catchy.  The heavy sub-bass, cowbell rhythm, snare rolling into the bouncy, acoustic build unusually works very, very well and the hook itself is simple and fun, I recommend it.

Boombahyah is basically a pop-ified, big room house banger with all the arabic scale and reverb heavy snares you can handle. It’s almost comical how ridiculous the song is, but it’s a lot of fun, and that’s all I really want.

Playing With Fire is probably my favourite BLACKPINK song of 2016, the electro swing feel throughout, especially in the synth hook is really enjoyable. It’s a very charismatic song, Lisa especially hooks me as I love how she delivers her lines, she’s such a goof but in this song has a lot of attitude.

Red Velvet - Russian Roulette

Russian Roulette is, despite the name, a fun synthpop song with a disco influence. The song is presented in a very monotonous fashion, it leads in with a flat, stuttering “la, la-la, la” and throughout the song the vocals are delivered in a similarly robotic way, very atypical for the blues-y, soulful vocals you’re used to from Red Velvet. I think that’s what makes this song really interesting. It’s a 180 from the absolute belter that was Dumb Dumb, but they still make it work, they, and pop music in general, do not need to be hinged on technical ability to be a fun, entertaining song. While not everybody can make it work, Red Velvet impressed me with their versatility. The music itself is very nice and simple, lots of synth drags, stuttery vocal leads and it even has the rare musical interlude which Korean pop tends not to do too often. Definitely one of my favourite songs of the year.

Oh My Girl - Windy Day

Probably one of the weirder Korean idol releases in recent years. Windy Day is an acoustic heavy, ethereal, bubblegummy type song with very beautifully arranged vocals and an arabic scale (at least I think it’s the arabic scale) influenced musical interlude that completely contrasts the feel of the previous verses. The song is fucking nuts, and it’s great. It’s hard to describe. I really recommend you check it out regardless of the type of music you’re into because it’s a weird one.

Lovelyz - Destiny

Synth, string heavy and intense. It’s not a mellow track by any means, but there’s something about Destiny that is eerie and even haunting. I’d go into Destiny further but I want to write a post in itself about Lovelyz discography at one point where I delve deeper into the sounds and style, but I need to include this because the song is fantastic and you should listen to it.

Absolute Favourite Song of the Year

Gfriend - Rough / Navillera

Both of these songs, to me, are perfect. I find no faults in either of them. They both easily go onto my favourite songs of all time. From the string, guitar heavy Rough to the synthy, discopop Navillera, it’s hard to find a fault, they’re both essentially perfect songs for me. The vocal delivery is beautiful, the way the strings and synths are arranged are both beautiful and powerful, the cute guitar solos feel nostalgic yet unique for the current pop landscape. It all just works perfectly for me. They’re both perfect songs.

And that’s about it. You probably noticed “hey these are all title tracks” well, yes, they are. I wanted to make it easier for myself but I do recommend if you enjoy any of these songs that you check out the respective single, mini-album or album they come from. Also, respect to everybody who produced and was involved with the production of these songs and music videos.

Iggy Youngbae are my dads