Red Light Posted January 3, 2018 Author Posted January 3, 2018 (edited) #20 Spoiler I hate it when I discover a great song at the very end of the year and don’t have time to decide exactly where on the list it belongs. Last year it happened with Navillera, and this year it’s happened with Black. Black is full of the edgy, adventurous weirdness that only K-pop would consider churning out, layering twangy country guitars over a muffled Industrial beat. The track teases you multiple times, seeming to gain momentum, only to fall back and start building tension all over again. The closest the listener gets to a true payoff is the brutal drop after the first chorus and the distorted electric guitar near the very end. Thus, diabolically, the torment from the lack of a definitive climax makes Black annoyingly addictive; always just out of reach of giving the listener a high. This has undoubtedly earned a spot in the Top 20, and should probably be a little bit higher, but having just discovered it I only feel comfortable placing it here. Edited January 3, 2018 by Red Light
Red Light Posted January 3, 2018 Author Posted January 3, 2018 (edited) Oop, guess I'm talking to myself again tonight! #19 Spoiler Similarly to the work he did with T-ara, Shinsadong Tiger landed on a formula that works with EXID and rarely veers away from it--and, when the formula is like DDD, I have no problem with that. With T-ara, his signature was the addictive synth riff after every chorus (see: Roly-Poly, Lovey-Dovey, Sexy Love, Number 9). With EXID, his signature is a funky, repetitive hook right off the bat, followed by explosive, melancholy choruses with wailing vocals; almost always incorporating a few sharps or flats. Being a complete sucker for semitonic melodies (which is pretty clear by now, as nearly every write-up has mentioned them), I shamelessly eat up the vast majority of EXID’s singles, and I have no qualms in admitting that. Edited January 3, 2018 by Red Light
Antunes Posted January 3, 2018 Posted January 3, 2018 4 minutes ago, Red Light said: Oop, guess I'm talking to myself again tonight! #19 Hide contents Similarly to the work he did with T-ara, Shinsadong Tiger landed on a formula that works with EXID and rarely veers away from it--and, when the formula is like DDD, I have no problem with that. With T-ara, his signature was the addictive synth riff after every chorus (see: Roly-Poly, Lovey-Dovey, Sexy Love, Number 9). With EXID, his signature is a funky, repetitive hook right off the bat, followed by explosive, melancholy choruses with wailing vocals; almost always incorporating a few sharps or flats. Being a complete sucker for semitonic melodies (which is pretty clear by now, as nearly every write-up has mentioned them), I shamelessly eat up the vast majority of EXID’s singles, and I have no qualms in admitting that. I forced myself to like it by overplaying it and when I finally started warming up to it I got tired, the chorus still knocks though
Red Light Posted January 3, 2018 Author Posted January 3, 2018 #18 Spoiler SNSD’s last effort as an 8-member group was probably their most solid Korean record since The Boys back in 2011. While still plagued with their trademark tepid filler ballads (NOT including Light Up the Sky, which is terrific), Holiday Night had a noticeably funky tinge, and it was executed most effectively in Holiday. Mixing short bursts of effervescent brass with buzzing analog basslines, a bittersweet choir-like I-bVI-II64 chromatic ascension at the center of each chorus, and a pounding beat reminiscent of Carly Rae Jepsen’s Cut to the Feeling, Girls’ Generation as we know it manages to go out with a triumph--no matter how much sabotaging is done to them by SM’s management or Hyoyeon’s rapping.
Red Light Posted January 3, 2018 Author Posted January 3, 2018 #17 Spoiler While still carrying a hint of APRIL’s diabetically sugary bubblegum pop that they became best associated with due to a certain convulsive egg (most likely laid by Ori herself), Mayday proves that aegyo doesn’t have to be synonymous with embarrassing. This exceptionally quirky, garish tune would have fit in nicely on f(x)’s Electric Shock EP, particularly because of the whistley, extraterrestrial synth accents. Most importantly, of course, is that the song is just plain catchy--and catchy enough so to redeem it of any flaws. What’s more, Mayday saves the best for last, with a sinfully enjoyable nananana melody that sounds as though it were snatched right out of Red Velvet’s hands.
Red Light Posted January 3, 2018 Author Posted January 3, 2018 #16 Spoiler Even if I did end up finding Peek-A-Boo to be terrible instead of innocent, it would have been pardoned out of respect to the song immediately following it. Probably the best 80’s synthpop song K-pop has churned out since Reboot, Look is the textbook definition of ear candy. A good pair of headphones is absolutely a must-have to truly enjoy this one. Everything, from the pulpy snare-claps to the warm basslines and glossy synth squelches is mixed and mastered magnificently enough to make your ears purr. There's no further fancy or pretentious descriptive I can attribute to it--you just have to experience it yourself to fully understand.
Antunes Posted January 3, 2018 Posted January 3, 2018 16 minutes ago, Red Light said: #17 Reveal hidden contents While still carrying a hint of APRIL’s diabetically sugary bubblegum pop that they became best associated with due to a certain convulsive egg (most likely laid by Ori herself), Mayday proves that aegyo doesn’t have to be synonymous with embarrassing. This exceptionally quirky, garish tune would have fit in nicely on f(x)’s Electric Shock EP, particularly because of the whistley, extraterrestrial synth accents. Most importantly, of course, is that the song is just plain catchy--and catchy enough so to redeem it of any flaws. What’s more, Mayday saves the best for last, with a sinfully enjoyable nananana melody that sounds as though it were snatched right out of Red Velvet’s hands. I never expected to hear moaning on an April song and for it to actually work.
Red Light Posted January 3, 2018 Author Posted January 3, 2018 Tomorrow: An aegyo massacre as we reach the top 10!
IamCY Posted January 3, 2018 Posted January 3, 2018 33 minutes ago, Red Light said: The GG stanning, they won
Red Light Posted January 4, 2018 Author Posted January 4, 2018 #15 Spoiler If my year-end lists were 100% objective and focused solely on production value, Take My Hand would be near the top. This is a particularly lavish instrumental, mixing a pelting beat with clean, attack-heavy synth pads and stabs, scrunchy basslines, and baroque strings sections that call back to the rich, cinematic production that was formerly prevalent in KARA’s more mature hits. I also can’t help but draw comparisons to Orange Caramel, who were at their best when they used their aegyo stylings to disguise the theatrical moodiness present in a lot of their songs. With Orange Caramel all but confirmed dead, this would certainly be a nice niche for APRIL to fill.
Red Light Posted January 4, 2018 Author Posted January 4, 2018 #14 Spoiler This delightfully trashy banger sounds like it’s straight out of 2009, and considering the state of the K-pop industry in 2017, that’s a very welcome throwback. You can always rely on RaNiA to bring heavily-produced, aggressively energetic hoe anthems that gag at the idea of subtlety, and this is no different: The drum kicks are huge, the basslines are fat, the vocals are aggressive, and the synth leads are brash. The instrumental during the pre-choruses is actually mixed louder than the vocals, and I’m still not sure whether this was intentional or unintentional, which gives it an amusingly campy charm. What really pushed its way onto this list, however, is the final chorus--strengthening the drum kick to the point that it has a crushing, rave-like distortion, and abruptly changing key for no reason other than the fact that it can, RaNiA becomes the unexpected winner for the best climax of the year.
Red Light Posted January 4, 2018 Author Posted January 4, 2018 #13 Spoiler As with APRIL’s Mayday a few spots up, Momoland’s Freeze is an insufferably aegyo song with such great qualities that it completely cancels out its drawbacks. The hook is an idiophonic-sounding spin on classic circus music (you’ll know it when you hear it) and it meshes surprisingly well with the rest of the instrumental. It may be a bit dissonant during the choruses, but its effectiveness during the post-chorus breakdown makes it all worth it. That post-chorus breakdown essentially takes sole responsibility for pushing the song so far up the list--implementing a slow, heavy, dubstep-like beat, with dirty blasts of brass instead of bass wobbles--the erratic carnival melody adds a layer of subtle chaos to the mix, and the result is sensational.
Red Light Posted January 4, 2018 Author Posted January 4, 2018 #12 Spoiler This is a tough song to review because there’s really nothing terribly special about it. The production is terrific, as is expected from SM, the harmonies are on-point, as is expected from Red Velvet, and the song is a hectic, catchy grower, as is expected from K-pop. With a handclap-driven beat, similarly deep-voiced male chants in the background, and adventurous orchestral hits, this is basically a more exotic version of Red Dress. It’s not anything especially new or interesting in RV’s discography, but it’s mind-bogglingly addictive, and damn if I don’t get chills from Wendy’s bellowing high-notes during the climax.
Red Light Posted January 4, 2018 Author Posted January 4, 2018 AND THE LAST SONG BEFORE THE TOP 10 IS... Spoiler While GFriend’s sudden Bionic-levels of floppage this year is still a shocking head-scratcher, it isn’t totally beyond understanding, as this group is being managed by an agency who thought Summer Rain was a better promotional single than this gorgeous masterpiece. While starting off as expected from GFriend--with cheesy, baby-voiced falsettos and their practically trademark delicate piano intro--Rainbow is sonically one of their most mature tracks (because lyrically it’s unfortunately a cringe-inducing mess), taking more influence from their other appearance on this year’s rate, Fingertip. At first sounding like it will be taking you down the usual GFriend course, the song wastes no time making a sharp turn into unexpected territory, with a truly epic distorted guitar solo. Unfortunately, the rest of the song never quite matches up to that high bar set at the beginning, and would have been well-suited to include a follow-up solo near the end, but Rainbow still has plenty to offer.
Red Light Posted January 4, 2018 Author Posted January 4, 2018 TOP 10: What do you think the Top 5 will be?
Vilppu Posted January 4, 2018 Posted January 4, 2018 Except for Red Flavour, 15-11 are all fantastic songs and I love what you said about them but they're also better than pretty much all of what made the top 10 The top 3 should be Fingertip and both 9Muses songs but I know it won't n.
ATRL Moderator madonnas Posted January 4, 2018 ATRL Moderator Posted January 4, 2018 Look by RV sounds like an Annie song
Red Light Posted January 4, 2018 Author Posted January 4, 2018 12 hours ago, Vilppu said: Except for Red Flavour, 15-11 are all fantastic songs and I love what you said about them but they're also better than pretty much all of what made the top 10 The top 3 should be Fingertip and both 9Muses songs but I know it won't n. Yeah, the top 10 is much more subjective and personal to me instead of rated by production etc., hence what I said about Take My Hand. Hear the Sea in particular is a weird one that pretty much nobody likes except me.
Vilppu Posted January 4, 2018 Posted January 4, 2018 28 minutes ago, Red Light said: Yeah, the top 10 is much more subjective and personal to me instead of rated by production etc., hence what I said about Take My Hand. Hear the Sea in particular is a weird one that pretty much nobody likes except me. Well ofc, it's your countdown after all, glad you enjoyed those songs so much either way HTS was actually my favourite on Red Summer at first nn but after a while You Better Know ended up as the only song from it (or from everything they did after Rookie, really) I like.
Red Light Posted January 4, 2018 Author Posted January 4, 2018 Fingers crossed that there's more of an audience tonight. **** gets real from here on out with much more detailed write-ups and graphics slayage. 25 minutes ago, Vilppu said: Well ofc, it's your countdown after all, glad you enjoyed those songs so much either way HTS was actually my favourite on Red Summer at first nn but after a while You Better Know ended up as the only song from it (or from everything they did after Rookie, really) I like. You didn't like anything on Perfect Velvet? That sucks.
Vilppu Posted January 4, 2018 Posted January 4, 2018 56 minutes ago, Red Light said: You didn't like anything on Perfect Velvet? That sucks. Look had some cool production details but I feel like eventually they were wasted on a song itself a tad underwritten. Everything else was boring and completely unremarkable at best to me. Though every artist/group I start hardcore stanning for is bound to go wrong in some way pretty quickly so at least I was prepared for it ddd Anywho in between now and my previous msg I decided Loonatic is a good song so it can replace Love City in the ideal top 3
Red Light Posted January 5, 2018 Author Posted January 5, 2018 #10 Spoiler With half-baked energy and dull, interchangeable tropical synth plucks running rampant in 2017, BoA’s comeback was like a drop of water in the middle of a desert. Oozing mature, understated confidence from beginning to end, the slow, teasing tempo combined with BoA’s sultry vocal delivery makes this one of the sexiest K-pop songs ever. The instrumental is almost entirely built in low-range frequencies, whether that be in the clean 909-esque bass kick, the plethora of pulsing, murky sine basslines, or the faint sub-bass that fills in the leftover space in the soundscape. The song steadily builds as it progresses, sneakily dropping in bits of cowbell, funky acoustic guitar riffs, and spacey whooshing effects before it’s all over--but the main events are the tense, steeley pre-choruses and the satisfyingly melodramatic bridge. Admittedly, the choruses could be a LOT better, even as the instrumental becomes more layered, but unsatisfying choruses are nothing new in K-pop and are part of what makes it so addictive. Effortlessly cool, sexy, and mysterious, Camouflage is the kind of track that could only be delivered believably by someone who knows that she is a pro, icon, trailblazer, and indisputable queen of a major music genre.
Recommended Posts