Big Bang - Alive EP

To say that the all-male Kpop group Bing Bang is huge would be an understatement. Big Bang has achieved a level of popularity that transcends the borders of their South Korean country, and indeed, has even broken through to American audiences. Upon review of their 2012 EP, Alive, I tried to discover what all the hype is about. What I came out with was a little less than I was hoping for.

The album kicks off with an energetic, dance pop opener, replete with jump style beats and some decent melodies. Not a bad first impression, except for one factor, one which reoccurs continuously on the album: the poor vocals. Throughout every track, the vocals sound either nasally, fake, or over-produced, making it difficult to listen to and enjoy. Tracks like "Bad Boy" and "Fantastic Baby" actually stick out more for how obnoxious the vocals are than for anything positive. 

However, like Iron Maiden's stint with ex-vocalist Blaze Bayley, the crummy vocals are not the only problem here. The songwriting overall lacks melodic development, focusing mainly on vocal melodies alone (which aren't exactly mind blowing anyways), and therefore, denying these songs decent layering and melodic production that would have greatly benefitted them. Songs like "Blue" plod along without really standing out, and the previously mentioned "Fantastic Baby" is pretty much a Korean LMFAO, with some of the most generic electronic production I've ever heard

Now, that's not to say there aren't positive moments on the release. There certainly are. The pumped-up energy of the intro track, the almost captivating chorus of "Love Dust," and the entirety of "Ain't no Fun," which shows a greater maturity and attention to songwriting, with more competent melodic sense, than any of the tracks on this album.

So, do I personally go along with the hype? Not really, but I do understand it. While the group lacks a lot in the talent and songwriting department, their sound is accessible. Any casual pop music fan can get into it, and they seem to be perfect for those who cling to obsessions with boy bands and pop stars in general. The group here shows a little promise, but as genuine pop musicians releasing genuine, serious albums, Big Bang, with this EP, did little to impress me.

-Andrew Oliver

Kara - Step

          This is the release for anyone wanting to get their Musical feet wet in the Great Lake that is K-Pop music, for anyone who listened to Gangnam Style and thought: "wait a second, this chorus is actually pretty damn good." Maybe there's something to this K-Pop stuff, but there's so much of it. Where do I start?

          Well, my friends, look no further than girl group Kara's EP release, Step. Accessible, well-written, dynamic, and diverse enough to be interesting after many listens. They bring it all to the table with this one, creating a stylish and sexy release which crushes the typical cutesy girl group image of many K-Pop acts and displays a competency in songwriting and performance.

          Melody reigns supreme on this EP, and we are rewarded one stellar melody after the other, from the jaw-dropping first synth line in "Ride" to the beautifully sustained "ooohs" over the chorus in "Follow Me." There's enough ear candy here to give your ears some deep cavities, for sure, but while every melody and section of each song proves to be more than catchy, the choruses here really bring it home.  Every track displays an utterly tremendous chorus, rife with bombastic, powerful vocal melodies and energetic and infectious electronic melodies. Indeed, throughout the entire EP, both vocal and electronic melodies intertwine in powerful, infectious ways, from the hard-driving "Ride" and "Step" to the sweeter "Strawberry."

          The real victory here is the incredibly competent songwriting from the spectacular, soaring melody lines, yes, but also from the interesting sections peppered in and structured to make the songs more interesting lending themselves to a more diverse and engaging listening experience, such as the brief rap in "Follow Me," the melodic guitar parts in "Step," and the spastic, energetic rhythms in "Strawberry."

          On Step, Kara proves themselves to be heavyweights in the increasingly crowded K-Pop world. With an arsenal of undeniably infectious electronics and powerful individual vocal performances, Kara creates an EP capable of entrenching any newcomer deep into the genre and becoming any music elitist's newest guilty pleasure.

-Andrew Oliver

A Pink - Une Annee review

What would you get if the current pop artists in America lost their citizenship, spoke Korean, and started writing good songs? Well, in this reviewer's opinion, you would get K-Pop music. Now, some might say that I'm pushing it when I say that K-Pop artists release good songs, especially since one can, without a doubt, draw some clear similarities between those Korean Pop groups and the current American pop artists littering the radio waves. However, I can say with a fair amount of certainty that K-Pop music enjoys  a level songwriting that is far more developed and skillful than its American counterpart, employing melodies that are far more musical, and certainly more well-written. The song structures and arrangements, too, achieve a balance that it is foreign to the aforementioned American pop music (for the most part). The power in each song is not concentrated in the chorus and bridge, leaving the other sections of the track weaker, as if the chorus of the track was a parasite feeding and becoming healthy at the expense of its host. More often in K-Pop, the strong sense of melody and clever songwriting are spread fairly evenly throughout the song, ensuring that every section is memorable and infectious, enforcing my belief that K-Pop is far more well-thought out and well-executed.

All of these traits are evident in K-Pop girlgroup A Pink's "Une Annee."As is the case with any good K-Pop album, what makes this release a real winner are the melodies and the songwriting. For A Pink, it's not enough to have just an insanely catchy vocal melody. Songs like the electronic, synth-driven  "Boy" exemplify the group's proclivity for a sound based around an almost chaotic myriad of electronic and synth-powered melodies playing simultaneously, hitting you with a barrage of infectious songwriting and making every section of every track immediately irresistible.

Seriously, this album just hits you with one catchy melody after the other: the sultry bridge to the pre-chorus on "Cat," the main synth line in "Boy," and many more. Songs like "Up to the Sky" affirm the fact that on this album, everything is catchy. I mean literally everything, not just the choruses, but the verses, bridges, pre-choruses, instrumental sections, everything. However, though there is a very impressive balance in terms every section of the tracks being competent and catchy, the choruses are truly the aspect of this album that is totally jaw-dropping. Every single chorus soars, lifted by meteoric melodies from the impressive vocalists and the instrumentation. Choruses in "I Got You" and "Hush" leave me completely floored every time I hear them. I'm not sure who writes these ladies' songs, but whoever they are, they sure can write a melody, to say the very least.

This attention to the development of clear, soaring melodies ensures that each and every song is distinguishable from the others. Sameness is no problem here, and though most tracks are naturally of the typical upbeat, high-energy K-Pop style, there is definitely some notable variation to be heard here in the slower, more smooth R&B Pop style of "Step," the fluctuating speeds and dynamics of "Bubibu," the rapping and rhythmic vocals in "Up to the Sky," and the almost Latin flavor in "Cat."

From start to finish, "Une Annee" is utterly enjoyable. Sure, it's no musical masterpiece, but when it comes to modern pop music, you'd be hard-pressed to find better.

-Andrew Oliver