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yestodayThis week has brought us two lovely, chill, atmospheric albums. They came in the form of Kang Daniel's first full album "The Story" and Baek Yerin's triple-track single album "Pisces", or "물고기". I have very positive views on both of them, which is a pleasant wonder!
Kang Daniel - "The Story"
I also heavily enjoyed Daniel's album. His music has its fair, but grant, share of gems alongside the more middling pieces. (Actually, I think it's 55% hits to 45% misses according to my personal taste.) My initial review of the title track Upside Down was as follows:
Other notable new tracks from this week that I enjoyed include I need you 2 by ESON, Don't Mess With Me by BVNDIT, i by LIGHTSUM, Touch by BLANK2Y, and Don't Care About Me by GOT7. A buried nugu treasure that I discovered this week was Nonstop by RoaD-B (courtesy of my main man, Nick from The Bias List). Some oldies-but-goodies that I revisited after a while of forgetting they existed were Cassette and One More Night, both by DEMIAN… as well as Inner Child by V of BTS.
Moving on, but still on the music-related topic: I finished burning through H.O.T's discography this week. (It was a lot simpler back in the day when single releases and repackages and whatnot didn't exist; nope, it was just five clear full albums, and that made my life that much easier—thank you!) Most of these songs are ass, not gonna lie—and I feel uneasy saying this, as if I'm already anticipating the invisible harangue of not knowing how to appreciate the classics (the founders! the blueprint!) crashing down on me—but, to save myself, I will acknowledge that there were some enjoyable ones. The third album "Resurretion" (yes, it's misspelled on Apple Music) has the highest ratio of tracks I think are decent.
I plan to continue—slowly, gradually—taking off on my endeavor into 1st Gen. groups. It should be less taxing on my mentality, now that I have a start. (SECHSKIES next? TAN just posted a cover of them today—also, Eun Jiwon from Reply 1997, we love you.) But, of course, all that will be a side quest, as I still have a ton of 2nd Gen. to get to. Every passing day where I'm not an After School stan makes me feel like a greater unworthy disgrace to bestow the K-poppie honor.
Yesterday, I framed the Sungjae Collage™. As in, I stepped out of my house for the first time since school ended to go to Walmart and secure a frame for him. The closest fitting size I could find was 12"x16", whereas the original collage is on a 11"x14" sheet. (Actually there was an exactly 11x14 frame, but I wanted it to have some margins.) I was worried at first that it wouldn't look good, since the length dimension was only one inch longer, and the width was two inches wider—which means it would have half-inch vertical margins and full-inch horizontal margins. It turned out looking fine, though. I would drop a picture here if I wasn't lazy, but I am, so you'll have to use your imagination: it's a black-rimmed front loading frame—incredibly simple (it was $6)—with a black cardboard backing. Oh, and Sungjae looks fantastic bordered with cheap, elegant dark cardboard. I hope you're justly envisioning his glory.
Just this morning, I've gotten re-addicted to the Hyejoo Bot. By this, I mean I just added like ten 2nd Gen. groups to my wishlist. Previously, I had finished collecting the bulk of my ults, and the ones I haven't completed are only missing the Rare and four-star cards that are pretty much impossible to find, anyway. Evidently, I fell out of playing it for some time, though I casually did my dailies and worked, and I occasionally did easy quests—like the claiming and liquifying ones. All that time of slowly grinding currency without spending nigh any has resulted in my becoming quite loaded. I'm literally so rich, but rather than feeling the freedom to buy whatever I want, I've developed a frugal instinct.
This technically didn't happen this week (it actually started the day BTBT (feat. DeVita) dropped), but I have entered a devastating Hanbin phase. Hence, I plan to watch WIN: Who Is Next? soon, no matter how cataclysmic that will be to my mental health. I have, in fact, been warned by a firsthand-experiencer of WIN that "Tbh if you’re a hanbin stan it might send you spiraling though. …iKon screen time was like 85% BI being emotionally abused and 13% Bobby and 2% everyone else. WINNER screentime was 20% Jinwoo being emotionally abused 30% being told by YG they had to redo the song 12hr before the performance and 25% their “underdog story” 25% NamTae fighting the gay/bi allegations." (The real ones know that Jinu is my WINNER bias.) So, I am really just setting myself up for excruciating torment. Anything for you, Hanbin…
Yerin Baek - "Pisces"
Let's start with Yerin: as you may or may not know, I'm not that inclined to the gentle indie scene of music. It's not that I dislike that genre, it just doesn't appeal to me nine times out of ten—to put it harshly, I find a great amount of them boring, no matter how tender the lyrics are. But clearly, that didn't apply this time! What I said on Twitter, with minor edits to expand:
Let's start with Yerin: as you may or may not know, I'm not that inclined to the gentle indie scene of music. It's not that I dislike that genre, it just doesn't appeal to me nine times out of ten—to put it harshly, I find a great amount of them boring, no matter how tender the lyrics are. But clearly, that didn't apply this time! What I said on Twitter, with minor edits to expand:
oh, god. as soon as it began, it evoked a direct and distinct sense of nostalgia i haven't felt in a long time from music. it's spellbindingly simple and heartfelt. i'm not one who particularly fancies gentle songs like this, but i have to certify my love on first listen for it.
actually… i think those statements apply to this whole single album. yerin's airy voice mixed with her signature lo-fi style of instrumental and fuzzy mixing effectively puts you in a trance. the songs seemed to go by in an achromatic phosphorescent haze, but it leaves you in a peaceful headspace. perhaps, she's the blueprint of study-music…?
It was me
Hooks: 8.5
Production: 9.5
Longevity: 9
Bias: 9
RATING: 9
Production: 9.5
Longevity: 9
Bias: 9
RATING: 9
Pisces
Hooks: 8.75
Production: 9
Longevity: 9
Bias: 9
RATING: 8.9
Production: 9
Longevity: 9
Bias: 9
RATING: 8.9
The loved one
Hooks: 8
Production: 9
Longevity: 8
Bias: 7.5
RATING: 8.1
Production: 9
Longevity: 8
Bias: 7.5
RATING: 8.1
Kang Daniel - "The Story"
I also heavily enjoyed Daniel's album. His music has its fair, but grant, share of gems alongside the more middling pieces. (Actually, I think it's 55% hits to 45% misses according to my personal taste.) My initial review of the title track Upside Down was as follows:
just from the beginning, i thought this was going to be a snoozer, but the chorus was a pleasant save. this style of tide-like synth is usually a hit-or-miss for me, depending on the mood it's overlayed with. this just happened to be a hit!…of which I still agree with for the most part! I think the beginning of the choreography is innovative and cute, though. I can imagine the crew remixing that intro and doing something slightly different to play with Daniel each time during music show promotions; that'll be fun. After listening to the entire album, Upside Down did indeed seem to nest more in place. I inevitably decided that it was a good ass album. Causally, a track ranking manifested a few hours later:
this song is kind of hard to rate, because there were sections i really enjoyed, while the remainder of the song is unmemorable completely. overall, it has a satisfying atmosphere, so i'll look at it optimistically. i would like to hear how it fits into the album later.
1. parade i need to know what this is about… i was getting 'welcome to the black parade'. reporting back when i take a gander at the lyrics; stay tuned.
2. the story same statement as for parade. both of those hurt my heart so much for some reason, and i don't even know the meaning. though, i might be able to guess the gist for the story.
3. don't tell (feat. jessi) jessi singing!
4. upside down see! it's placed quite high! no, but i seriously love the chorus so much.
5. mad (feat. chancellor)
6. how we live (feat. sokodomo) wannable side of my brain said kangaroo, which was something that took a while to grow on me, initially. but the minor modulation at the bridge blew my mind.
7. ride 4 u
8. 1000x
9. moment
10. loser (feat. dbo)
Other notable new tracks from this week that I enjoyed include I need you 2 by ESON, Don't Mess With Me by BVNDIT, i by LIGHTSUM, Touch by BLANK2Y, and Don't Care About Me by GOT7. A buried nugu treasure that I discovered this week was Nonstop by RoaD-B (courtesy of my main man, Nick from The Bias List). Some oldies-but-goodies that I revisited after a while of forgetting they existed were Cassette and One More Night, both by DEMIAN… as well as Inner Child by V of BTS.
Moving on, but still on the music-related topic: I finished burning through H.O.T's discography this week. (It was a lot simpler back in the day when single releases and repackages and whatnot didn't exist; nope, it was just five clear full albums, and that made my life that much easier—thank you!) Most of these songs are ass, not gonna lie—and I feel uneasy saying this, as if I'm already anticipating the invisible harangue of not knowing how to appreciate the classics (the founders! the blueprint!) crashing down on me—but, to save myself, I will acknowledge that there were some enjoyable ones. The third album "Resurretion" (yes, it's misspelled on Apple Music) has the highest ratio of tracks I think are decent.
Anyway, I still hold firm that 행복 should have been the immensely famous one instead of 캔디. My most recent (and only remembered) impression of 행복 came from TAN's new dance cover of it, and it was that the vocal mixing was shit. I was there having the time of my life watching Taehoon vibe with the traffic cone, while wondering why the voices were barely audible over the instrumental. And that was precisely the catalyst that initiated my long-stalled 1st Gen. delve. Thank you, TAN.
Speaking of 행복, now that I've learned to fully appreciate the original, I did not like SEVENTEEN's revision of it after watching back. You know I love you, Jeonghan, but that's not my scruffy Woohyuk rap!
It baffles me how Kangta managed to stay looking so good… The fact that Tony is only one year older than him is making me lose my mind. Sorry, because hell, did aging catch up to Tony like a bitch. Maybe that's just what illegal gambling (and disappointing my beloved, fictional Shiwon) does to a motherfucker!
Speaking of 행복, now that I've learned to fully appreciate the original, I did not like SEVENTEEN's revision of it after watching back. You know I love you, Jeonghan, but that's not my scruffy Woohyuk rap!
It baffles me how Kangta managed to stay looking so good… The fact that Tony is only one year older than him is making me lose my mind. Sorry, because hell, did aging catch up to Tony like a bitch. Maybe that's just what illegal gambling (and disappointing my beloved, fictional Shiwon) does to a motherfucker!
I plan to continue—slowly, gradually—taking off on my endeavor into 1st Gen. groups. It should be less taxing on my mentality, now that I have a start. (SECHSKIES next? TAN just posted a cover of them today—also, Eun Jiwon from Reply 1997, we love you.) But, of course, all that will be a side quest, as I still have a ton of 2nd Gen. to get to. Every passing day where I'm not an After School stan makes me feel like a greater unworthy disgrace to bestow the K-poppie honor.
Yesterday, I framed the Sungjae Collage™. As in, I stepped out of my house for the first time since school ended to go to Walmart and secure a frame for him. The closest fitting size I could find was 12"x16", whereas the original collage is on a 11"x14" sheet. (Actually there was an exactly 11x14 frame, but I wanted it to have some margins.) I was worried at first that it wouldn't look good, since the length dimension was only one inch longer, and the width was two inches wider—which means it would have half-inch vertical margins and full-inch horizontal margins. It turned out looking fine, though. I would drop a picture here if I wasn't lazy, but I am, so you'll have to use your imagination: it's a black-rimmed front loading frame—incredibly simple (it was $6)—with a black cardboard backing. Oh, and Sungjae looks fantastic bordered with cheap, elegant dark cardboard. I hope you're justly envisioning his glory.
I don't have anywhere to hang him just yet, but I will. Stay tuned. I will get my dad to tack a nail onto my wall right above my bookshelf, to the left of the stack of albums, soon. Right now, though, it's just laying flat on top of the shelf. The Cryo Slime and Pyro Slime plushes are sitting on it. Sorry, Sungjae, you deserve better. Your time of prestige is approaching; fret not.
Just this morning, I've gotten re-addicted to the Hyejoo Bot. By this, I mean I just added like ten 2nd Gen. groups to my wishlist. Previously, I had finished collecting the bulk of my ults, and the ones I haven't completed are only missing the Rare and four-star cards that are pretty much impossible to find, anyway. Evidently, I fell out of playing it for some time, though I casually did my dailies and worked, and I occasionally did easy quests—like the claiming and liquifying ones. All that time of slowly grinding currency without spending nigh any has resulted in my becoming quite loaded. I'm literally so rich, but rather than feeling the freedom to buy whatever I want, I've developed a frugal instinct.
Last night, a Brave Girls collector came to my DMs asking for We Ride Minyoung. After some attempts at negotiation and realizing that they were utterly broke and had nothing to trade, I let the generosity in my heart take over and just sold it to them for nothing else in return ("…in emotional support for queendom," I said.) I ended up going to bed at 4 in the morning after uncontrollably bingeing more Ilhoon videos than I intended, and when I woke up, I impulsively went to Hyejoo Bot first thing. That was when I knew I was probably fucked again. Well, I accepted that fate pretty quickly and mass added the missing ASTRO, B.A.P, B1A4, Wanna One, HIGHLIGHT, UNB, VIXX, T-ara, and INFINITE cards to my wishlist. My notifications are already beginning to flood. I guess I better start actively grinding again.
This technically didn't happen this week (it actually started the day BTBT (feat. DeVita) dropped), but I have entered a devastating Hanbin phase. Hence, I plan to watch WIN: Who Is Next? soon, no matter how cataclysmic that will be to my mental health. I have, in fact, been warned by a firsthand-experiencer of WIN that "Tbh if you’re a hanbin stan it might send you spiraling though. …iKon screen time was like 85% BI being emotionally abused and 13% Bobby and 2% everyone else. WINNER screentime was 20% Jinwoo being emotionally abused 30% being told by YG they had to redo the song 12hr before the performance and 25% their “underdog story” 25% NamTae fighting the gay/bi allegations." (The real ones know that Jinu is my WINNER bias.) So, I am really just setting myself up for excruciating torment. Anything for you, Hanbin…