[MUSIC REVIEW] 1 2 3 4 - Lee Hi (이하이)

Before reading this review, please watch the MV: 1 2 3 4 - Lee Hi

(Lee Hi - YG Entertainment)

It is rare that I listen to a rookie these days, whether it be a solo singer or a group. The big 3 companies don`t even have my interest any more, what with all the groups making their debut these days. The only reason I discovered Lee Hi (whose debut was not long ago) was because she was the student of Simon and Martina (eatyourkimchi.com). I am so happy I gave this rookie a chance, though. 

YG is already known for taking in only the most unique of vocalists and dancers. I admire them greatly for not picking out any talent (though this isn't an accusal of other companies doing so). They certainly hit the jackpot with Lee Hi who brings a unique quality with her voice and her borderline seductive look and young age.

Considering she has only just begun in her career, I don't have many criticisms to make. I will not start on a negative note, however, as I really do love her too much to put a bad idea into people's heads. 

Lee Hi is still a young girl, hardly 20 if I recall the articles from All Kpop, and yet she already has achieved more with her voice than many, many other artists I listen to. The very first time I heard her song the first thing I thought was that she had a voice very similar to Adele's (in case some aren't familiar with her, she is a British singer who has been having great success around the world. Take a listen here). Although I'm not a fan of Adele, I cannot deny that she has supreme vocal stills and Lee Hi's style resembles her greatly. Not only does the feel of her debut song go along the same feel as Adele's works but their voices both have this raw, deep and strong quality to them. The song isn't your typical bouncy, dance track that most groups are producing now; there is a sultry tone in there that has you snapping your fingers and bobbing your head as you just jam out to the music.

The song itself is really catchy, with prominent nuances in her voice and moments where the style changes drastically and a chorus that you're singing despite not even knowing the lyrics (if you're too lazy to learn them like me). You can't help but nod along and count with Lee Hi as she sings because her voice is so alluring. She's able to change pitch so smoothly, going from the deeper ranges to this full blown high note that she can hold well without faltering. 

I love the combination of the jazzy and pop feel that YG has given her for her first song.

As much as I love the song, though, every great thing has its bad things. I find Lee Hi has a surprising amount of talent and so much promise for the future, but she is young and, obviously, she is not done learning. 

The video I found was a bit too mature to match Lee Hi. Though her voice sounds like something beyond her years, she still needs to work on her physical presence. It is not her look that makes her look young (because I think the stylists nailed the innocent-with-subtle-seduction look), but the way she acts and dances. Clearly the focus is meant to be on her voice but, as we all know, a great artist needs to be rounded in all corners of performance. Meaning that a great voice will not cut it forever. 

I'm sure with time that she will better herself and improve in her stage presence, focusing on putting more emotion into her movement (dancing and acting) so that it matches the fluxes in her voice.

Of course, Lee Hi is young and still has a vast future ahead of her. With due time I'm sure she'll learn how to explore with her voice, body and presence and if she keeps at it and YG continues to produce songs as great as these to show case her voice then she should succeed in her career as well as any other credible artist.

Over all, Lee Hi brings a unique twist to K-pop with her sassy, classy and jazzy song. It's lack of dance doesn't matter all that much as she stuns with her mature voice and with practice she will surely become a star.

Total Rating: 8/10

[MUSIC REVIEW] I Don't Need a Man (남자 없이 잘 살아)- Miss A (미쓰에이)

Before reading this review, please watch the MV: I Don't Need a Man - Miss A

(Left to Right: Fei, Min, Jia, Suzy)

To begin with, I'd like to say that Miss A was one of the first Korean groups I listened to and learned a dance to (Co-Ed being my very first and then SHINee). However, despite having been introduced to their music first I have never felt an attachment to them really until this song. I enjoyed Bad Girl Good Girl and even Breathe which is really catchy (and impossible to dance and breathe at the same time ironically), however I never felt much love for their newer hits (basing off their more popular ones) such as Goodbye Baby and I especially didn't like Touch. All of this to say that when I heard Miss A was releasing a new single through All Kpop I wasn't as excited as most Miss A fans must have been. My hesitance derived from the missing "star factor" from their previous singles.

When the single was actually released it took me a good amount of time before actually listening to it. To be fair, I think accidentally clicking on their video was one of the best decisions in my whole K-pop listening life.

"I Don't Need a Man" is a catchy, independent and strong single that fits the style of this group of girls. It is tailored nicely to the strong vocals of the group and though the dance is not as physically demanding as say Breathe (which from personal opinion I can confirm is a dance meant to torture the body) it holds a flow in which entices the audience and draws them deeper into their love for this song.

The song starts off with the chorus, a strong opening as it's repetitive and catchy and gets stuck in your head automatically. Upon my first listen to it I was already walking around the house singing, "I don't need a man, I don't need a man, WHAT!" as I'm sure many others were as well. It leads on to an easy verse show casing the splendid vocals of Min, Jia, and Fei. Suzy harmonizes in the chorus and collaborates well with the verses that her unnie's are singing. The rap was pretty great, though I found Min's rapping was somewhat of a nuisance (but maybe I am being too biased here). Nonetheless, the tune is catchy, using easy Korean and English phrases to appeal to a larger audience.

Moving on, not only is the song amazingly created but the dance has a bounce in it that has you wishing you were as great as Miss A to master it. You may view the dance practice video to the dance HERE.  The choreography is a fun mix between a hip hop routine, some sort of cardio work out and the traditional quirks of the K-pop industry. It suits the audio well, though I find some times the synchronization is not always there. All together, it ties nicely.

The video itself was lacking in creativity, but it wasn't surprising as I've noticed a decrease in the quality of music videos in the Korean music industry lately.

However, despite the few flaws I found in the choreography and the video I truly enjoyed this song. I think it surprised me more than it did all my peers. One can simply not dislike this song after listening to it. It has a swing feel mixed with this air of superiority and despite the fact that some people can't understand a good majority of the lyrics (ex. me) they feel a sense of empowerment.

I find it somewhat amusing that Miss A released this single as it follows their previous ones nicely. First they said 'Goodbye Baby' and searched for revenge. Following that they wallowed a bit in 'Touch', healing their heartbreaks. Finally, they come out with 'I Don't Need a Man' and accept the fact that they are strong, independent women who don't need men to complete them. It may not be the feel that everyone gets from this video, but it is certainly the one I get from it.

Besides that, I'm still a bit disappointed in their live performances as I don't find they have the same energy or charm that they do in their music video. However, I will make clear that this is my opinion and you can judge for yourself with the performances I will link below:

MNET Comeback Stage - Miss A - I Don't Need a Man
KBS Open Live Concert - Miss A - I Don't Need a Man
Music Bank - Miss A - I Don't Need a Man

However, despite my few critiques, I still truly love this song and I have it on repeat. I don't plan on stopping it any time soon as I truly believe this is the song of the month for the K-pop industry.

Final Rating: 9/10

Sherlock - SHINee (샤이니) [MUSIC REVIEW]

Before reading this review, please watch the music video here: Sherlock - SHINee (Official MV)

(Left to Right: (Back) Onew, MinHo, JongHyun; (Front) Key, TaeMin)

After a year and a half of hiatus, the boys are finally back and this time with a new single that has all Shawols screaming out their names in those infamous fan chants. 

SHINee debuted in 2008 under SM Entertainment with their first single, Replay (Noona Neomu Yeppeo) and immediately got a good response from dongsaeng's and noona's alike. Even young boys have become fans of this ever growing boy band. They climbed the ladder of success with various singles such as Hello, Ring Ding Dong and Lucifer. They climbed to a top band in Korea and followed suit in Japan where they performed Japanese versions of their Korean singles and released two Japanese albums.

Now, after much time spent in Japan, SHINee is back in Korea with a hot new track!

The teaser images were very misleading, though they were very pleasing to the eye. Judging by the pictures, everyone was convinced that SHINee would be coming back with some sort of R&B, hippie-esque track. 

Take a look at them below: 

Key

MinHo

TaeMin

Onew

JongHyun

SM Entertainment released the teaser March 18, 2012, leaving many Shawols anxious for their music video. The teaser showed each member in a classy ensemble, dressed in stylish vests and made up in guy liner. The overall look they portrayed was one of mystery as they seemingly inspected the room as "detectives." SNSD's Jessica can be seen in the picture at a certain time in the video, as well. Besides the brand new sleek  look that SHINee adopted, the snippets of the song is what really caught my eye. It was classic SHINee, with their powerful vocals and on point dancing. On top of that, each member came back with a sharp new look that fans ogled over as they anxiously awaited the release of the song. 

Check out their transformations here: 

(Left to right: Onew, TaeMin, JongHyun, MinHo, Key)

The physical transformation was stunning to say the least, but the new angle SM was approaching the creation of their songs is what really caught some people. The concept of combining two songs to create one title track was not a new one to the music industry but a new thing for SM. Sherlock is a combination of Clue and Note, two other songs on SHINee's Sherlock album. In my opinion, it was not a very creative choice, and Sherlock would have stood out even without it having been a combination of the other two songs. Nonetheless, the teaser captured the essence of the song and concept well, though the teaser pictures were somewhat misleading.

The music video (link can be found at the top of the post), was one of the best I've seen from SHINee so far. Not only was the choreography spot on and interesting, but the song mingled well with the theme and there was a story to follow throughout the course of it. We'll brush aside the fact that the boys were more than stunning and try to focus on the decorative backdrops, mysterious gazes and adventures found in the video. The story that led the boys throughout the music video was an interesting one where they appeared to be searching for a lost girl and her jewels. 

The ending left you with a punch of high notes, splendid choreography and a airy conclusion to their case making it a satisfying video to all Shawols.

Later on, SM released a dance version and a dance practice video where we could truly see how sharp the choreography was and how much energy it demanded. Of course, we could also see this in their comeback stages as well. Check them out below:

SHINee - Stranger+Sherlock - Comeback Stage

Sherlock - SHINee (Live) Music Bank

SM also released a Japanese version of the song which you can check out here: Sherlock - SHINee (Japanese PV)

All in all, I give this song a 9/10. 

I award it this rating as SHINee's come back has been long overdue and this song was not disappointing as you can read above. However, though it was catchy and the choreography was admirable, it was a bit too SHINee. I would have liked to see them comeback with maybe a ballad song of some sort, or something a bit more out of their range. Sherlock is excellent, but you can't deny that it rings with typical SHINee, which is why I give it this less than perfect score. 

Below you can find the remaining pictures of SHINee's Sherlock teaser photos and some highlights from my favourite YouTube coverists.

The rest is coming soon...

Sukysho [ANIME REVIEW] Spoiler Alert

Full Name of Show: 好きなものは好きだからしょうがない!! (Suki na Mono wa Suki Dakara Shōganai!!)

I recently just finished watching this anime which is a ten thirteen part series if you include the OVA. As far as my knowledge extends and through various sources I have learned that Sukysho is not only an anime but a light novel and was originally released as a game. I have less than a considerable amount of information on this, however, so this review will be based solely on the anime.

The story that developed throughout this anime was a heart wrenching one where plot twists popped out everywhere as well as side stories of romance. Relationships were built, lost and found and I was constantly on the edge of my seat with a box of tissues ready and a nail to bite on.

To say that this story is exciting is an understatement. Although it does limit itself to a certain audience by presenting itself as a Shonen-Ai style anime, it does not lack at all in character development, originality, quality of art and complexity of story.

The story itself is about two boys (Sora and Nao; Sora being the one with blue hair while Nao is the pink haired feller) who have essentially grown up with each other but an event caused them to separate for a long period of time. It starts at a school where Sora gets released from a hospital after falling from a fourth story window. He is presented with a new room mate (Nao) who is, in that time, in the mindset of Ran who is like the split personality of Nao. Both boys have alter personalities that present themselves at various times throughout the anime. While Nao has Ran (a quirky, hyper active, love struck, submissive character), Sora has Yoru who is a typical, dominant, "seme", partner  in love to Ran. 

It's an interesting aspect to the anime that always sent me careening with their appearance. At times it is a bit hard to follow because of the change being so sporadic but it is easy to adjust. I was always anxiously awaiting their appearances anyhow after their first time showing up since I favoured those personages... 

Following these two complicated boys, though, are a few highly important supporting characters that both contribute to the concept of the beginning of their friendship and the outcomes afterwards. These characters are, Matsuri (a charismatic classmate of the two boys with long blonde hair and a knack for messing in affairs that aren't his own, but with that huge heart that allows him to care for everyone), Nanami (an overly effeminate, school nurse who is also the adoptive parent to Sora), Minato (the attitude filled, protective, math teacher, partnered to Nanami and adoptive father to Sora), and of course, there is the antagonist of the anime, named Aizawa who is the reason behind the whole issue of the anime.

Together, this group of characters lets you explore in a world of love, friendship and heart ache as well as anger and much more. I'll let you ride the story waves yourself if you so choose to watch this anime (and I strongly recommend you do). There is just the right amount of suspense and comedy and fluffy romance to satisfy all those shonen-ai lovers. 

The art is very nice, there was nothing I disliked about it except for maybe the hair styles of the characters (especially Nao's) as I'm not a fan of rat tails on anyone, but other than that it was exceptional. The voice actors were superb and the creators of the anime took care with details. This anime kept me captivated throughout the whole series.

In all, I would rate this anime 8/10. 

Though it was a great story and I enjoyed it immensely, the ending was lacking. I was highly disappointed with how the whole story wrapped up. There was an unfinished business to the story that I am not particularly fond of. 

It is still great, however, and I strongly recommend it to anyone with a taste for drama and shonen-ai. 

Link to episodes can be found here: Sukysho Episodes (English Dubbed) Full Series

Heaven - Ailee (에일리) [MUSIC REVIEW]

Before reading this review please watch the video: Heaven - Ailee (Official MV)

Ailee

Ailee debuted earlier this year (2012) with YMC Entertainment after releasing a teaser that caught the attention of many either from her powerful vocals, B2ST's KiKwang or the guy who, ironically, resembled Jesus. 

I hadn't really been following the new K-pop releases because it was really all just slurring together and becoming the same sound, the same dance and the same story lines. It was becoming so useless to follow up on which new groups were debuting because I felt like I already knew what the product was going to be. Especially when it came to the female groups and solo artists. So it wasn't a big shocker that I didn't discover Ailee until weeks after her debut when a friend of a mine pointed out how much he enjoyed her music.

I listened to the audio before I watched the music video and my initial reaction was just goosebumps all over. There was not one part of my body that did not have those pesky little bumps riddling it. I kid you not, I was in utter shock over the power this girl held in her voice. There was so much emotion packed into one song that I almost felt like I was living in the shoes of the person in the story. While listening to this song I found myself inspired and moved along with six hundred other things that I'm not able to decipher even in this moment.

I was very disappointed in myself for not having followed Ailee because she really was this fresh, new talent brought into the lulling Hallyu wave. She in herself is an amazing talent that strays from the original K-pop style by adding in a R&B edge while still maintaining the pop quality that creates the genre. 

My theory of why she's attracted so many fans in such a short amount of time involves her voice. When she sings Ailee has this husky, rugged edge to her voice and yet she still manages to keep this cute edge to her voice that female singers in Korea seem to be so renound for. These qualities in her voice (as well as just pure, raw talent) are what I believe has drawn such a large audience to her.

But not everything is based on the song. Especially not with K-pop (even though I would probably just leave it at this being a great song, but unfortunately I can't do that). 

The music video was a fresh new taste to accompany this brilliant song. Unlike so many other videos clogging up the business these days the video wasn't packed with flashy backgrounds, close-ups to the face interrupted with random fits of dancing and a story line about either chasing after a girl/boy or shooting someone for betraying you in one way or another. 

The first thing that catches your eye with the video is the way the producers set the lighting to make it foggy and very bright almost as if you were in heaven. Following the curious lighting, the next thing that caught my eye was the odd (maybe a bit disconcerting?) looking man hogging up the screen. My first impression of him was that he gave off a very fatherly air about him and I thought he might have been related to Ailee in the scheme of the video plot line, but the more the video progressed I realized he might not be her father after all but a deceased ex-boyfriend. 

The intricate plot line to the song and video is only one of the unique things pertaining to this video. I love how there are different plays on the camera angle. The way it zooms up close to Ailee's face then zooms back out to the bigger picture leaves my head reeling a bit but in a good way. When it's combined with that foggy lighting it kind of makes you dizzy but you're so over powered by the song anyways that you barely notice it.

What I particularly enjoyed about this video - other than the bouncing angles - was that the plot line was a different play on matters of the heart. Instead of the song talking straight up about losing a loved one and mourning over it, it worked differently by focusing on the after math of losing a loved one. The video (from what I can grasp from it anyways) is a story being told in the perspective of two people: Ailee and the guy with the unreasonably long hair. When we're in the guy's perspective we can clearly see him reminiscing over old times as he smiles adoringly at Ailee and goes about their daily activities with her. He always seems to be focused one hundred percent on her but not in that K-pop creepy way where we sometimes see the actors/actresses going out of their way dramatic to make their point get across. I find that his caring comes across subtly. Not by his actions but just by the persona he managed to hold throughout the duration of the video. When we're in the point of view of Ailee we almost always see her laughing and smiling (and gosh, doesn't she look beautiful with that squinty smile of hers? I adore it) no matter what she's doing. Watching TV or eating she comes off as a generally happy person. 

We don't realize that the long haired man is actually just an angel type being/memory until near the end of the music video when KiKwang makes his entrance. That's when we realize that this man is not actually enjoying those times with Ailee but watching over her in a way that makes it look like he's protecting her. 

It's bittersweet. On one hand you see Ailee has come to terms with this loss of hers (probably after going down a long hard road of tears and heart ache) and has started moving on and gaining back her life. But on the other hand we see her looking at videos and pictures of her lost lover and we see said lover watching over her with an impossible longing. It's almost as if he wishes he could be with her again which is where the bittersweetness to the story comes in because we know he can't have her because he's up in heaven - or we assume he is. 

I mentioned before how I found the inspirational and moving and the video played in with that. The inspiration comes from the fact that Ailee has this guardian angel watching over her as she moves on and discovers new areas of life. The moved part is negative and positive as I'm moved by the fact that they both still hold a deep and unforgettable love for each other but that they can't have each other.

Now that I've done a thorough probably unnecessary ananlysis of the music video I'll move on to the dance which I was surprised to see because the video didn't specify a dance at all. It wasn't until I watched a live performance that I realized there was a dance accompanying this song.

To be honest, I couldn't care for the dance. It does add character to the song in a live performance but with the stunning voice Ailee has I think she could have blown our minds by just standing in the middle of the stage with a microphone and her voice. 

Nonetheless, here are a few live performances for you to judge this by yourself:

Heaven - Ailee (Live: M!Countdown)

Heaven - Ailee (Live - Wave K)

Heaven - Ailee (Live - Music On Top)

As you can see, though, there really isn't much point to the dance as it's very simple and Ailee only jumps in every now and then. I believe the dance was there just to add a better stage presence to the song.

All in all, I absolutely adore this girl. Her song is brilliant, the video is brilliant, she's brilliant. Everything about this song and girl is amazing and I'm happy she debuted and brought something new and likeable to the expanding K-pop industry. Even though she's still just a rookie I think she'll go far in the music industry as long as she keeps getting powerful songs like these to promote. We can do nothing now but enjoy her talent and cross our fingers so that her company promotes her the right way.

Rating: 9.5/10

And  of course, we'll finish off with my favourite YouTube coverists. Watch and support them following the links down below:

Vocal Covers:

christineeykimmy - Heaven - Vocal Cover

Gae1370 - Heaven - Vocal Cover

Joyce - Heaven - Vocal Cover

Korea - Heaven - Vocal Cover

Dance Covers (Solo):

jysdvenny255 - Heaven - Dance Cover

Michelle - Heaven - Dance Cover

Minzyful - Heaven - Dance Cover

Dance Covers (Group):

Dance School of Korea (Mother's Class) - Heaven - Dance Cover

One More Day (하루만 더) - Chocolat (쇼콜라) [MUSIC REVIEW]

Before reading this review please watch the music video here: One More Day (하루만 더) - Chocolat (쇼콜라)

(Left to Right: Melanie, Tia, Soa, Julianne)

Chocolat debuted on August 17, 2011 and gained a lot of attention for being one of South Korea's first biracial K-pop groups. The girls were introduced as being an American-Korean girl group that would wow our ears and eyes with their singing and dancing abilities. Melanie (maknae: 05/05/97), Tia (second maknae: 15/03/97) and Julianne are all American-Korean girls while Soa is Korean. They originally debuted with five members, but for this single one member (JaeYoon) had to leave due to dealing with colon cancer.

The group debuted with their catchy single Syndrome which received much negative and positive feed back. The music video was critiqued for showcasing maknae Tia too much while the song was critiqued for being catchy to the point of annoyance and they were pushed off to the back of the shelf where all the bland, cute K-pop groups get pushed to when they debut with a song that sticks to the standard.

The girls came back again with their next single I Like It (which they did not promote with a music video) before finally coming back with the ever catchy song being reviewed in this post.

The transition from Syndrome to One More Day was a drastic but well needed change in their management. The group had me more annoyed than interested when they first started out because of the way Tia was hogging the spot light but in One More Day we see even Julianne getting a fair share of the song. The music video was still a bit biased towards the maknae but it was still an improvement.

When I first heard the song I couldn't help but think that it sounded like a fusion of the old Britney Spears and Korean. It had that old school edge that made me drown in my own nostalgia. Nonetheless, I found myself humming the tune over and over again as it was always stuck in my head. The powerful vocals combined with the catchy tune made an all kill in my mind. Melanie baffled Chocolat fans with the way she was able to belt out those high notes - and at such a young age too (15). 

Comparing this song to their debut and second single, we can see that they took a turn away from the pop, techno music to the more sultry ballad like K-pop that I find leaves a stronger impact on people. Their company did well in choosing a song that could showcase their vocals and still be upbeat enough for them to dance to it and to leave the audience constantly singing it unconsciously.

As far as the song goes, it's fantastic. Taking a look at the dance, however... That leaves much to be desired. Watching their live performances (One More Day - Chocolat (Live) K-pop Con Concert) we see them dancing on their chairs like in the video whilst singing. The use of chairs works well in this dance, in my opinion, though it is not unique to K-pop as we have seen it in other music videos such as SHINee's Love Like Oxygen. I realize that the song is not much of a dance tune but the choreography was disappointing. I expected to see some intricacy and uniqueness in the moves but instead I was forced to watch Tia, a fourteen year old girl, grind up against a men well beyond her age and then forced again to watch her group mates throw themselves onto the floor and do moves on the chair that looked a bit like the actions a man would do when pleasuring himself.

It's not that it was a horrible dance, it's better then a couple dances I've seen, but them doing such awkward moves at such a young age is not a pleasant thing to watch. The chair move especially reminded me of Miss A's Goodbye Baby in which they do a similar movement during their chorus. 

That being said, I didn't find the dance original or very difficult and the moves were a bit too odd to watch with the fact that they are young girls nagging at the back of my mind which is why I give it such a low opinion.

Though the dance was disappointing, I did thoroughly enjoy the fresh new look their company gave them. They went from looking like little girls to sophisticated women (even though that's stretching it a bit). They matured into young women in this video instead of the baby doll, donut girl look that they had going for them with their debut. Below, you can see just how much they transformed from the bubbly, less than average look they came out with, to the classy, matured look they acquired promoting this song.

(Left: Syndrome; Right: One More Day)

Name: Soa 

Position: Leader

Name: Julianne

Position: Vocalist

Name: Tia

Position: Vocalist/Second maknae

Name: Melanie

Position: Main vocalist/maknae

Some might argue that the drastic change in appearance is a negative thing. They believe that Paramount Music should have waited a couple years before giving the girls such major changes in style. Especially, some say, being that the two youngest members are not even of age yet. In the defense of the girls, though, I enjoy this new look and find it fresh and, for lack of a better word, cool that they are being promoted outside the box of standard K-pop. Plus, was Minzy (2NE1) not fifteen when she debuted with the band? Was Boa (SM Entertainment) not thirteen when she debuted? And Lee TaeMin (SHINee) was fourteen when he debuted in the group. 

The transformation may seem rushed to certain people but I find it was a necessary change they needed to undergo in order to make it in this ever growing business.

Controversy has not only risen with regards to the girls' looks, but rumours of plagiarism have also been surfacing as the song sounds very familiar to a Romanian song (Dragostea ramane -Andra), but since the girls did not produce the song themselves I'm holding this against their producers and not them. Just like with the dance, they didn't choreograph it themselves which is why I don't accuse them of trying to act beyong their age.

All in all, this song is very catchy and will have you singing along in no time - even if you can't speak or understand Korean. The dance was mediocre but paired of with their dazzling transformation I find that Paramount Music achieved something quite amazing with this single. 

Rating: 8/10

Now enjoy some YouTube coverists versions of this song:

Coming soon...

Hit U (힛 유) - Dal Shabet (달 샤벳) [MUSIC REVIEW]

Before reading this review, watch the music video here: Hit U - Dal Shabet

(Left to Right: SuBin, Serri, AhYoung, JiYeul, Vikki, GaEun/ 수빈, 술이, 아영, 지율, 비기, 가은)

After Dal Shabet's debut song Supa Dupa Diva and their following songs (Pink Rocket and Bling Bling) I was  thoroughly shocked to see this strong, fierce and even sexy concept. From the beginning Dal Shabet has come out with a cute concept and the public has begun to see them as a cute group. 

Hit U was released on January 26, 2012 with an astonishing video starring Dal Shabet's member JiYeul who acted as the lover to an irresponsible man who played with her heart and then tried to foolishly get her back. His actions ended up with JiYeul responding in the most dramatic of ways by storming down the hallways to his home and shooting him multiple times in the chest (source: allkpop: Dal Shabet reveals MV for "Hit U"). 

The music video was a bit laughable considering that the men that JiYeul shot were bleeding Pepto Bismol coloured blood, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The girls came back with fierce new looks that left more than a few netizens with bulging eyes. 

We had Vikki (Dal Shabet's strong leader) came back with a dazzling new hair style that flowed beautifully past her shoulders and framed her flawless face in an endearing manner. Serri shocked me to the full with her daring short hair that I found didn't really suit her all that well. Considering she already had a squirrel-like face, the new cut just accentuated the odd formation of her face. AhYoung's new hairdo made her already large eyes really pop out which was odd when I first watched through the video but because she didn't get all that much screen time I didn't notice her much. JiYeul was dazzling with her classy look while GaEun totally gave me goosebumps with her short hair cut. Her petite frame was accented with the tight outfit she wore and her almond eyes were perfectly balanced with her high cheek bones and perfect make-up. And finally SuBin moved away from her innocent image and came with this bold look that left her blending with the group while still standing out (because it's hard not to stand out when the maknae is taller than all her group mates).

Take a look at their new looks below:

Name: Viki

Position: Leader/rapper

Birthday: March 3, 1988

Name: Serri

Position: Vocals

Birthday: September 16, 1990

Name: AhYoung

Position: Vocals

Birthday: May 26, 1991

Name: JiYeul

Position: Vocals

Birthday: July 30, 1991

Name: GaEun

Position: Vocals/sub-rapper

Birthday: July 28, 1992

Name: SuBin

Position: Maknae/vocals

Birthday: February 12, 1984

The music started off strong and not like the cute bells and chimes of Supa Dupa Diva or Bling Bling. As soon as the set came into view we were surprised with a dark, sexy look that left people salivating at the screen.

The dance was powerful and very energetic and the vocals were just as superb. Although the music video was very endearing to me personally, I found that their live performances were not as powerful as the actual video.

Take a look at a few of their debut showcases here:

Fire It Up + Hit U - M! Countdown - Debut Showcase

Fire It Up + Hit U - Music Bank Debut Showcase

The first song they performed (Fire It Up) wasn't all that powerful and I actually found myself snoozing through it and fast forwarding to their performance of Hit U. The original audio isn't all that creative either which only makes it more of a bore in my eyes. The live performance for Hit U however, I found it to be decent compared to other performances they did. I personally favour Dal Shabet's Supa Dupa Diva live performance because of its vibrant outfits and catchy chorus.

Don't get me wrong, though, I find Hit U has a terribly catchy chorus and I find myself singing it all the time, I just wish the dance and performance was as catchy as the song. I guess it just proves that media can make anything look good.

In total, I would give this song and music video a rating of 8/10 because although Dal Shabet and their entertainment company took a daring leap away from the cutesy image they'd built up for themselves, they still lacked a bit of originality with regards to the video and what not. I just feel like the Korean industry has been repeating the same drama type things for their kpop music videos and they should start creating something that doesn't involve killing one's partner.

It deserves the eight, though, because it does bring about a new flavour to the girls that most fans weren't anticipating and as much as the performances aren't as enticing as I hoped them to be, the song does get stuck in my head and I'm sure everyone enjoys the new look that the girls are now adorning.

As usual, check out some renditions of this song by some of my favourite YouTube artists:

Vocal Covers (Solo):

Kee - Hit U - Vocal Cover

alldayidreamofkpop - Hit U - Vocal Cover

Ren - Hit U - English Vocal Cover

Vocal Covers (Group):

ASEntertainment - Hit U - Collab

Dance Covers (Solo):

Kristy - Hit U - Dance Cover

Dance Covers (Group):

GNB Dance Studio - Hit U - Dance Cover

Total Dance Academy - Hit U - Dance Cover

Dance Plus School - Hit U (Mother's Class) - Dance Class

Remixes:

Trance Blossom - Hit U - Remix

(More to come...)

The Grasshopper Song (베짱이 창가) - Sunny Hill (서니힐) [MUSIC REVIEW]

Before reading this review, watch the music video here: The Grasshopper Song - Sunny Hill [MV]

(Left to Right: JangHyun, SeungAh, MiSeung, Jubi, Kota)

Yes, I realize I have a certain affinity for Sunny Hill, but that's just because their music is so amazing they always have an amazing video that stuns me with its artistic qualities every time.

Sunny Hill's new music video and mini album was released January 12, 2012. Their comeback was long awaited by me since from the time I heard Midnight Circus I was hooked on them. I think it's safe to say that Sunny Hill has evolved from their debut days into a kooky (in the good way), boundary pushing, and talented group. 

When I first discovered Sunny Hill back in 2011 I was attracted by the Midnight Circus teaser which unlike all the other stuff that was coming out seemed very odd, interesting and different from the pulsating seizure lights and repetitive style of the other K-pop songs coming out. Interested in the group I did some research on them and learned that they had originally been a three member co-ed group consisting of JangHyun, Jubi and SeungAh I believe it was? I'm not too sure. Anyways, they were a three member co-ed group that had debuted with a cutesy type song that was pretty catchy and really showcased their vocals. (Check the song out here: Love Is All I Know - Sunny Hill [MV]). If you watched the video and then compared it to Sunny Hill's more recent stuff, like Pray or the very song I'm reviewing you would find that their is a major difference.

I supposed LOEN Entertainment wanted to give Sunny Hill a different image than one they debuted in. I don't care what their reason was for drastically changing Sunny Hill's image I can just say that I love it. 

I've always been interested in things that are weird and abnormal. Sunny Hill has always been able to satiate my odd cravings for awkward things.

With their newest song and music video 'The Grasshopper Song' we find that Sunny Hill's kookiness has not left them. LOEN did a great job in producing this video and song and even gave a drastic image change to Kota (the blonde one) and MiSeung (the red-head). We also see that JangHyun has actually gotten a part in the song. Although it lasts only a mere eleven seconds (around) I am glad that they at least gave him four lines instead of zero (i.e. Like in Pray). 

The story was very cute, even if the teaser made me think that it would be something different (you can view the teaser here: The Grasshopper Song - Sunny Hill Teaser ft. Narsha (BEG)). In the teaser we see a Queen Bee Narsha (of another well known K-pop girl group, Brown Eyed Girls) looking beneath at MiSeung, SeungAh and Kota and then yelling at Jubi about something or another in a clearly edited chipmunk voice. The classic 'Look at me! Look at me!' part attracted many people's attention and left us craving to see the actual video.

The story of the actual music video didn't involve Narsha, though, and instead led into the acutal story of the video which was a story between Jubi (who seemed to be the grashopper/ruler/princess thing) and JangHyun who I really can't figure out what his part in the story was. Looking at the English translations of the lyrics I managed to get a bit of the story clearer. Take a look at them here: 

If you push back and push back, 

You won't find happiness
Today won't come again
At some point, the time has already...
Come on and wake you up

Put away the fake hope of being like this or that,
If you just fight and argue all the time, it's tiring,

People go crazy over the habitual competition
They are trapped in the same restrictions
They get buried without anyone knowing
Come on and wake you up

Put away all the fake theories that are difficultly packaged
If you just kiss up and line things up all the time, you go crazy

ring ring ring-a-ring-a
ring ring ring-a-ring-a
Just singing a song and clapping my hands
I want to laugh as I live

ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's an echo of wanting to live peacefully
ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's a melody of you and I wanting to laugh
ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's a mirage of an untouchable happiness
ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's a dizzy world that goes round and round

Lift up your head, no one is there
No one is above you
There's no need to look around in caution
Come on and wake you up

All those who became sinners and danced and played
Here, here, come here and gather together

No matter what anyone says, you are cooler
You're cool for enjoying it
In my eyes, you're cooler
Come on and let me in

Chattering about this or that, making it seem like it will happen
It's just for people who are tiring

ring ring ring-a-ring-a
ring ring ring-a-ring-a
Just singing a song and clapping my hands
I want to enjoy as I live

ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's an echo of wanting to live peacefully
ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's a melody of you and I wanting to laugh
ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's a mirage of an untouchable happiness
ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's a dizzy world that goes round and round

Where are you busily busily going, time is busily passing
Take a rest and let's go together, let's go peacefully
Everything's so busily busily passing, busily passing
Let's just sing a song, let's just play

Where are you busily busily going, time is busily passing
Take a rest and let's go together, let's go peacefully
Everything's so busily busily passing, busily passing
Let's just sing a song please refill the battery

I lived like such a fool
I was living in a rat race
It all passes passes passes, the lost time

ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's an echo of wanting to live peacefully
ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's a melody of you and i wanting to laugh
ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's a mirage of an untouchable happiness
ring-a-ring-a-ring ring-a-ring-a-ring
It's a dizzy world that goes round and round

The lyrics I find are quite interesting and not just talking about all that stuff I've been hearing in the recent songs about love and getting the girl/boy or breaking up, or something about love. It does have an underlying love message in it but it's also got a deeper meaning which is what I love about Sunny Hill. In 'Pray' especially I was amazed at how good their song was.

Not just the lyrics to the song are amazing but did you see the video. Well, of course you did because if you scroll back to the top of the page I demanded that you go see it before reading this in big, bold letters, too. So there should be no reason you shouldn't have already watched the music video.

The sets are not just the light up ones that we see Super Junior or SNSD (for example; don't get me wrong, I love them both). It's not just zooming in on one person's face and then zooming out to a shot of the whole group dancing. And even when they were doing that in this MV the sets that they were dancing on were lavish and extravagant ones and not just some cheap green screens or flashy floors. There were walls, rooms, scenes to look at and follow along with the story. Just like 'Pray' LOEN delivered an intriguing story line and managed to turn a simple song into one that blue my mind.

It's also got a very catchy chorus. I had listened to this song once and I was already singing 'ring a ling a ling' under my breath as I walked to school. Everywhere I went I was dancing subtley to it or humming it while I cleaned.

There are a few things that DID bother me about this video, though, and that was the lack of JangHyun. In my opinion, since he's an original member of Sunny Hill he deserves to have more than eleven seconds in the song. I find it's only fair, especially after he was completely exiled from 'Pray' and left with only some harmonies in the song. In the live performance of 'Pray', too, he was cast off to the side playing guitar while the four girls took center stage.

In live performances of 'The Grasshopper Song' JangHyun appears (seemingly out of nowhere. I still can't figure out where he's popping up from), sings his part and then leaves. He's not part of the choreography and I don't even hear him in the chorus. I just wish we could see more of JangHyun since he's so extremely talented.

You can check out some of the live performances here:

 The Grasshopper Song - Sunny Hill [MBC] (I believe it's that performance where Kota makes a little mistake during one of MiSeung's solo parts).

The Grasshopper Song - Sunny Hill [KBS]

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this music video. It was original, catchy and even with all of the autotune, it was a great way for Sunny Hill to make their comeback.

In total, I would give it a 9/10 for its creative genius and deep lyrics. Though I still wish JangHyun would have made more of a presence in the song instead of just being one of the actors in the music video.

As always, I will leave you some of my favourite YouTube artist's covers of Sunny Hill's amazing song.

Here are my favourites:

Vocal Covers (Solo):

HyeWon - The Grasshopper Song - Vocal Cover

shakyshakeeeee - The Grasshopper Song - Vocal Cover

Jacq - The Grasshopper Song - Vocal Cover

Vocal Covers (Group):

There are no good collabs as of yet that I enjoy, so please stay tuned for them when I do put them up.

Dance Covers:

Binboo - The Grasshopper Song - Dance Cover

Diamapril - The Grasshopper Song - Dance Cover

Yeom - The Grasshopper Song - Dance Cover (I absolutely love this guy; he puts so much effort into his dances)

Instrument (piano, drum etc) Covers:

Kevin Choi - The Grasshopper Song - Piano Cover

Shen - The Grasshopper Song - Guitar Cover

JGMB - The Grasshopper Song - Piano Cover

Reviews of the Song:

Eat Your Kimchi - The Grasshopper Song - Review

SIDE NOTE: For some reason, when I save the blog, the '베' (be) part of the title turns into this squiggly line thing of sorts, and I can't fix it... The title of the song in hangul is: 베짱이 창가