#the chameleon of kpop | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

gaywatch · 6 months

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I need more music to listen, so unleash your reccomendations

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh dear I never get to talk about music enough so pardon me if I explode all over you

(Links are to songs that are both faves and good places for a newcomer to start.)

Taylor Swift - Yeah yeah she's a household name but no kidding, she has 10 albums spanning several genres and I can guarantee you that she has at least some songs that you will permanently add to your rotation. Google around for a good place to start and dive in (...or just ask me because I will gladly help you out).

Taemin - He's been known as 'the Michael Jackson of kpop' for years now, but what's wild is that he started at Michael and has since grown into a dancer and performer all his own. The only kpop artist I fully stan. His singles never. ever. miss.

Delta Rae - Incredible folk/country/Americana band from the state I live in with male and female vocalists. They are criminally underrated because they were liberal country artists before that was even remotely possible. Seen them live twice, met them twice, they are the most genuine people and outstanding artists.

Amanda Palmer - Originated as The Dresden Dolls, a duo that invented the 'punk cabaret' indie subgenre, and has been a solo artist for like 15 years at this point? Intense piano, intense lyrics, intense everything (the linked song is the anthem for girls with daddy issues). Objectively the most personal lyrics I've ever heard. Voice may take a second to adjust to. Not made for mainstream and doesn't want to be. One of the most important artists to me, personally.

Marianas Trench - Pop/punk perfection (but also simply genre chameleons) with a musical mastermind at its core. One of the best vocalists. Most albums end with an opus arrangement of the songs that came before and it's life changing.

Pink - People don't realize how powerful her vocals are and how incredible her lyricism can be. A pop icon. This bitch raised me, forever grateful.

Halsey - If all you know is Without Me and Closer, you haven't heard Halsey. Every album is outstanding but hopeless fountain kingdom doesn't have a single misplaced sound. It's pretty freakish actually.

Chvrches - Sheer and utter synthpop perfection, every single song. The one I linked is one of my favorite songs of all time, period.

MUNA - Queer girls making queer indie pop. Great lyrics, immaculate vibes. Recently opened for Taylor Swift on the Eras Tour, and well deserved.

The Midnight - 80s/90s synth like you can't even believe. Saxophone for days.

Imogen Heap - A genius and pop legend. Her greatest song was sampled in something god awful and got meme-d to death, I don't wanna talk about it. If a pop artist does breathy vocals, 95% chance they're doing it because of Imogen. She sang me happy birthday. Haven't been alive since.

Rina Sawayama - THIS BITCH. Falls under pop but never met a genre she couldn't master. Stayed in the game into her late twenties (which is geriatric by pop standards), when she finally blew up a bit. A variety of sounds, some of them strange, but all of them brilliant in one way or another (even if you don't personally vibe with it).

Troye Sivan - Twink icon whose first two albums were as gay as they were pop brilliance. I don't care much for his newest work, but you might.

Alice Merton - She's the girl with that Roots song from a few years back. Two albums now, both genius. Unique voice, varied sound but with a distinct Florence oomph to it.

Ava Max - UN. DER. RATE. D. Classic, anthemic pop. Vocals for DAYS. Music so infectious you have it on loop for days. So much more than Sweet but Psycho.

Kesha - I prefer recent Kesha to her classic dance pop madness, personally. She grew into an amazing artist who can blend her weird ass dance flavor with her more mature sounds in a way that doesn't really seem possible.

Bishop Briggs - Nobody has a voice like this. A sort pop/alternative vibe that can be anthemic as easily as it can be dark.

The Chicks - Icons for a reason. Their most recent album, written by the main lyricist after leaving her husband of 20 years for cheating on her left right and sideways, is one of the best break up albums of all time. Period.

The Civil Wars - They only lasted long enough to make two albums, but both are flawless. Nobody will ever harmonize quite like them. Folk/country in the most *beautiful* way possible.

Evanescence - 2000s rock with with a stunning female writer and vocalist whose melodies are simply beyond compare when we're talking about their stuff from 2003-2006. Goth, dramatic, hard hitting, cathartic.

Freya Ridings - Adele but make it a touch more contemporary. Gorgeous deep voice, lots of ballads but her up tempo stuff is just as good.

Billie Eilish - If you haven't heard her first album yet or her early EPs, you need to. Nobody that young should have that much of a grasp of music and her place in it.

Foxes - Underrated pop queen! I have yet to hear a bad song from her, but her latest album is quintessential synthpop mastery.

Jukebox the Ghost - Piano pop/rock. It's actually too much fun to listen to them, tbh.

Kelly Clarkson - Listen, her latest album follows directly after The Chicks' on the string of ultimate divorce albums we've gotten from pop icons lately. I've loved Kelly forever, but in bits and pieces. Her latest album is her strongest project to date, easily.

Labrinth - I do not comprehend what this genius does with music. Electronic, experimental, metaphorical, personal, just something else. Did the music for Euphoria, but his first solo album was an experience and a half.

Lorde - Everybody tells you to listen to Melodrama because you should.

Maisie Peters - Everybody calls everybody else 'the next Taylor Swift,' and they're wrong. It's this girl.

Marina and the Diamonds - SUCH a unique voice, lyrics that are way too smart for mainstream pop.

Patrick Wolfe - A deep-voiced violinist who released a pop album in 2011 that I still listen to because I'm a sucker for pop laced with classical instruments and it's just that good.

Owen Pallett - A higher-toned violinist with more of an indie approach, coming up with concepts and melodies that would go well with an A24 film.

Emilie Autumn - Violin-fueled industrial/pop/metal, often with Victorian leanings. Visceral lyrics on mental illness, depression, bipolar, suicidal ideation, sexual assault, sometimes with a satirical bent or through a historical lens. Voice might take a second to get used to, it's unique and she does unique things with it (including "ugly" sounds on purpose) but once it clicks it clicks hard. Opheliac and Fight Like A Girl are good starting places.

The Veronicas - Underrated (yet oddly influential?) pop icon twins from the early 2000s to now. Killer voices, KILLER pop.

#GW Asks #Music Recs #...for starters lol

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writerblock-sucks · 1 year

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[ ☕️ ] fan video … faith dancer’s analysis

faith’s masterlist

note | thumbnail made by me

warning(s) / includes | n/a

a/n | posted based on this youtube series, i do not claim to have a dance history or degree (or whatever) so everything here is either a rephrased version of what the youtuber said in other videos or my way of showing a more in-depth detail on how i see faiths’ dancing

taglist | @lovely-sanie @skzfairies @skz-angel @still-astray @felixsbrat @smh-anon @alyszaen @alixnsuperstxr

intro

known for being the nation’s hidden gem, the member is consistently complimented on her dancing abilities

the second longest training period in stray kids, of 4 years thought to be put in to the next jyp girl group, accommodated quickly to the hardcore and intense chores that only boy groups were know for at the time [clips of her on sixteen and stray kids survival show]

faith is part of vocalracha, but on many occasions has been given the chance to show her extensive dancing capabilities

stray kids faith [faiths’ scars + case 143 fancam starts play on screen]

tutting

tutting is a style of dance that requires incredible body control, a skill i believe faith has mastered to the point i would put her in the top best body control in 4th maybe even kpop overall

isolations and body locks are also a buy product of faiths’ tutting skills, making for readable, accurate, and clear dance moves

and depending on the music, her body movements and dancing can come off as feminine and dainty or powerful and masculine

her understanding of isolation and body locks makes her appear taller and more masculine, making for cohesive performances with stray kids and any other male idols

fluidity

smooth and seamless execution of dance moves are again thanks to her extensive body control

[faiths’ easy + domino fancams start play on screen]

but also her completion of isolations, and body rolls are a good example

watch how both seungmin and faith execute the body roll in silent cry

[shows both seungmin and faith silent cry fancam side by side]

watch how the seungmin’s body roll stops at his stomach, making the movement look “broken” and choppy

while faith finished her body roll, hit all key points (chest, stomach, pelvis, and tailbone), and her hand glides along her body down to her thigh

putting her understanding of lines and fluidity to work, creating a fluid yet big movement

imploding

imploding is a form of explosive style, meaning the energy one has is compressed and contained inside the body, making a popping effect

imploding dance style means one needs muscles, so it’s not surprising to see this [shows a collage of faiths’ muscles]

however, faith’s imploding skills can be accounted to where she comes from

south africa, which as a rich history in many things, one known being the dance history

faith's most used dance style from south africa culture is pantsula, bhenga, and bujwa

[faiths’ charmer, wolfgang, double knot fancams start playing]

fast footwork, body control, fluidity, etc, and everything that is used in all forms of dance that faith uses in her dances and freestyle is used in these south african dances

outro

to end of where we began, how her home country affects her

not only as a dancer but also as a producer, being raised in a country in riched with extensive musical history

helped lay the groundwork for body control and fluidity, that many would train years for

combined with her physique and quick learning, proves why she should be known as the nation’s hidden gem

[…]

however her dancing is not only skill, her stage presence is eye-catching

even if she isn’t in the center stage still draws viewers' eyes cause of her aura alone

stray kids being noted as concept chameleons, faith is not exempted from the skill, pulling off covers like fancy by twice or bang, bang, bang by big bang

her rapping and singing skills help transition in many songs, meshing well with the other members

shows she is not just ‘the female member of stray kids’ and that stray kids are a well-oiled machine that works together, and each member is an important part that makes the group what it is

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boysplanetrecaps · 2 months

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Build Up Episode 2: Decalcomanie

Welcome back to another recap in my Build Up recap series! In the previous one, I covered Sum (Breath). In this one, I’ll cover Decalcomanie, a song originally performed by Mamamoo. This will be an interesting one, so let’s go!

Ok, before we dive in, I thought I might tell you a bit about the song itself! It was released by Mamamoo in October of 2016. It was a huge hit, kind of part of their launch from lesser known girl group to big time. It was part of the 1-2-3-4 hit string of Um Oh Ah Yeh, You’re the Best, Decalcomanie, and Yes I Am.

So decalcomanie (French term, decalcomania in English) is a technique by which engravings and prints may be transferred to pottery or other materials. What does that mean? Well, would it help if I pointed out that a shortened version of the word is “decal”? Basically, it’s kind of like screen printing, or stencils, or iron on transfers -- in that vein. You might be wondering, “Ok, so… wut?” Especially if you’ve noticed that there are lots of other kpop songs with the word in it. What’s that all about?

Well, basically, in Korea, the word decalcomanie has come to mean the idea of a mirror image or doppleganger. The song by Mamamoo is about this idea of two people who are coming together like two faces on either side of a mirror -- finding a connection that’s impossible to break. In other words, it’s about sex. Ok, great, that’s solved.

And, fun fact, apparently Mamamoo avoid singing this song when they can because it’s so hard to sing.

Fun Korean word of the day: 위험한, wiheomhan (sound like “wee-oh-may” when they say it fast), which means dangerous. You hear it many, many times in Decalcomanie, but you’ll also hear it in a million other kpop songs. Heartburn by Sunmi, Venom by Stray Kids, Wee-oo wee-ooh by Pristin, Overdose by EXO, and a lot more. Plus there’s some EXO song where Chanyeol goes “Danger, wiheomhan” and I can’t remember which one it is. Brain is broken. Ok! That’s enough of that.

Let’s get back to the episode.

We see that the guys are super nervous, because they have to sing the song in front of the original singer.

Dahee says that this is her personal favorite song. When the song is revealed, the other judges applaud for Solar, I guess for being part of this song in the first place.

She’s excited that her song is being used.

Solar tries to put on a serious face, but I think she’s just happy about it.

The guys approach!

LTR: Bitsaeon from M.O.N.T., Ji Yeon Woo, Sunyoul from Up10tion, and Choi Su Hwan

Bitsaeon introduces himself as a chameleon who can do any genre.

Yeonwoo seems pretty nervous, then introduces himself as a trainee from RBW, which is Solar’s agency. Solar says she didn’t know he was going to be on the show, but she has actually evaluated him before because she does the evaluations at her agency. They aks him how it went, and he says she was scary, telling him he wasn’t good enough.

Suhwan says he wants to be remembered as an outstanding singer. Vocal Coach Guy (VCG) says that he remembers Suhwan from Produce 101, and that he’s very good. Suhwan is so happy.

Then Sunyoul says “I want to be a beautiful melody on stage. I’m the main vocal of Up10tion, Sunyoul.” You’re already a beautiful melody, Sunyoul. The judges know his voice and approve of it.

We flash back to the first episode and see 8th place Sunyoul running immediately to Decalcomanie. He says he feels confident with his high notes. This is as good a time as any to remind you that Sunyoul sang multiple songs on King of Masked Singer dressed as a woman, and convinced his listeners that he was female. That’s the kind of voice he has!

So Sunyoul joined first, then 14th placed Bitsaeon and 19th placed Ji Yeonwoo (in the suspenders) joined while all options were still open. Bitseaon said he wanted a song with ryhtm and groove, and like, same. When Yeonwoo joins, they ask him, “wait, aren’t you at RBW?” and he’s like, yeah, but it wasn’t so much that he wanted to sing a song by his sunbaes as that he wanted a faster, less depressing song.

Suhwan was in 33rd place, and when he joined, four of the songs (Ditto, Tomboy, Shall I Love You Again, and Beautiful) were all closed. But Decalcomanie was his top choice, so he could show his high notes, even though he wasn’t sure he wanted to be compared to Sunyoul.

Suhwan tries to laugh about it with Sunyoul, but kind of can’t.

They do the part distribution, and there’s a part no one wants. Sunyoul thinks that Yeonwoo, the trainee, might do well with that part, and then says “but you can be honest about what you want.”

Yeonwoo voice-overs, “There were a lot of cameras….”

. … and they show us this amazing shot. There are in fact a LOT of cameras and people watching and listening. “It was my first time on TV,” Yeonwoo explains, so I was extremely nervous. People I’m working with have years of experience. I was discouraged.” (Side note: My spy network had told me that Yeonwoo had gone on another show called Wild Idol, so I wonder what’s going on with that.)

Sunyoul seems cognizant of all this, and the age gap between the rest of them and Yeonwoo. I’m not sure how old Yeonwoo is, but Bitseon is 28, Sunyoul is 27, and Suhwan is 22. “This is his first survival show,” Sunyoul says. “I was worried that he might be hesitating to speak up.” Aww! Sunyoul! Sweet Sunyoul!!

We see a brief montage of the others helping Yeonwoo a bit, showing him how the in-ear monitors work, and offering him shoulder squeezes. He interviews that he’s feeling a lot better from all the support from the others.

And the performance begins!

Here’s the link to the version without all the reactions.

The guys approach!

LTR: Bitsaeon from M.O.N.T., Ji Yeon Woo, Sunyoul from Up10tion, and Choi Su Hwan

My thoughts:

First off, this is a cool arrangement. It’s really fun to listen to. And who doesn’t like this song? It’s just so catchy. As for the performances, well, mostly pretty great -- good enough to end up on my playlist. But no one here made me go “ahhhh” the way I did when Taehwan, or Neon, or any member of Breath sang. It was all really really good, just not extraordinary for me. I hope you understand what I mean.

Next thing I have to note is that my opinion of the performance seems to be very different from the judges’, so in editing this write up, I’ve had to think about things I’ve missed, opinions I might change, and in the end I have to stick to my guns and disagree with the judges. You’ve been warned!

Poor Yeonwoo forgot the words right at the beginning. Oh noooooo. He sounded sooo nervous, but pretty nice, and I was cheering for him, and then I heard a “nanana” where there should have been other sounds. Oh nooooooooooooooooooooo. Thank dog, he did a lot better later, but he never seemed to totally relax and get back into the song, except for the part where he was trading “I feel good!”s with Bitsaeon. I think the guys really didn’t know who the judges would be, so when Yeonwoo found out it would be Solar, he panicked a little. Poor guy. I bet he did it perfectly in practice dozens of times. I really liked his teaser performance, and I think he has a ton of talent, so I hope he can figure out how to get over his nerves. Even nervous and unsure, I could see glimmers of his talent and technique, and I overall enjoyed his performance.

Man, I love Bitsaeon. I love his fuzzy sweaters, I love his energy and swag, I loved his “Whoo!!” at the beginning and his “yeah yeah yeahs” at the end, and I love his voice in general. He has impeccable pitch and a big open sound that manages to be both clean and textured at the same time. I was surprised that the rap part was included, but he did a good job with that too.

On the negative end, he was a tiny bit ahead of the beat in his first chorus, but I didn’t notice that problem later in the song. Also, his highest harmonies were a little thin and nasal, and he had to go into his falsetto and I’m not quite sure if that was his plan.

Choi Suhwan sounded so great for the first section he sang. He has just the right amount of vibrato to give texture to his voice, and a nice natural color. If I judged his whole performance by those four lines, I’d give him the win. Also, he carried a lot of the rapping and he did really great with that, bringing a Moonbyul-esque tone to it.

Then partway through he started to sound more and more strained, almost like he had to swallow or clear his throat or something, or like he was getting a bit hoarse. It made my throat hurt listening to how strained he was. He still hit that great high note in the “wiheomhan, wiheomhan , WEEheomhan” part, perfectly on pitch. He wasn’t as nasal sounding as he was in some other performances of his, but the problems I noticed with his upper mix were still there. He still sounded good, though, overall. All four of them did, for the most part.

Sunyoul’s voice is really lovely, with varied dynamics and little growls for texture, and I loved the energy he brought. He even did a little of the choreo, almost like it was reflexive. Sunyoul himself is so cute and loveable that I wish I loved his voice a little bit more than I do. It’s just a tiny bit too high pitched naturally to tickle my ears. But I adore Sunyoul. I don’t understand how their agency fucked Up10tion over so badly, when it seems like they have so many talented and lovable members who only seem to get noticed when they go on reality shows.

In terms of what the four of them brought to the arrangement, I think other teams did a bit more to arrange their songs, but what these guys did was good. Something I liked about their harmony is that they sort of took turns taking the lead with it, so when they were in harmony sometimes Bitsaeon’s voice would come through strongest, or sometimes Yeonwoo, etc. That’s a subtle thing to work through and they did it! But the harmonies weren’t quite as complex or interesting as some done by the other teams. They were still good, just not anything that made me say, “oh, hmm, that was cool.”

Also, I liked that they did the rap as rap. I think not enough people view rapping as a vocal skill, and of course it is. There’s a musicality to rap, where you find the right tone to rap on. It’s almost like you’re using your voice as a drum instead of a piano, but drums and pianos are both instruments, if you feel me. Oh, and I was wondering if they rewrote the rap at all, but no, they didn’t, it’s the original rap. The only change was instead of “Mamamoo is coming back for you” it’s “Build up is coming back for you.” (That’s perfectly fine, it’s not a rap competition, but I was curious.)

If I had to pick a top tier member, I think it’d be Sunyoul. I’d almost say Bitsaeon, but I think his problems with the tempo might disqualify him. Sunyoul sang well, performed well, and led the group, and I think he deserved top tier.

The MNET edit starts with Dahee reacting to the “whoo, let’s go!”

When Yeonwoo forgets the words…

… of course it deserves an instant replay. In the MNET edit, we can clearly see Sunyoul looking over to Yeonwoo to nod at him after the mistake, as if to say it’s ok, keep going. Sweet Sunyoul!

Raise your hand if you love Sunyoul! Ok you can lower it again, you need it to scroll.

Link to the judging.

The judges applaud, but they also say “Aigoo!” Backstage, the guys are still sad on Yeonwoo’s behalf. He has a nice voice, so it’s a real bummer that he forgot the words.

Solar leads off the critique, saying the song isn’t easy to sing. As an expert on this song, she was a bit disappointed with their version. And Yeonwoo forgot the words.

“Here it doesn’t matter how experienced you are,” Solar says. “You need to do well now in this moment. What you do affects other people. You should take this opportunity to improve yourself.”

Eunkwang jumps onto the dogpile saying, “You shouldn’t have given up. It sounds like you gave up. From now on you should train yourself to get your act together even after making a mistake.”

Just to pour a little salt on the wound, Solar mentions that the words he forgot were in the section of the song that Solar usually sings!

“Oh god, it wasn’t just Solar’s song, it was Solar’s part, I am actually in hell, what if I could just implode into a puff of smoke and blow away to another galaxy?” -- Yeonwoo, probably

“OMG, he messed up Solar’s part? Oh god, the pain, the pain, the cringe, the cringe, I am so so so glad I am not Yeonwoo.” -- Everyone, probably

Some of the guys backstage are like, “He’s not going to be able to sleep tonight,” and truer words were never spoken.

Then Eunkwang tells Bitsaeon about his rhythm/tempo issue, which is fair.

Solar praises Suhwan for starting off the song so well, which is fair. Those first few lines were really great.

Baekho praises Sunyoul, which is also fair and accurate. Thank you, Baekho, for staying my unproblematic fave! Others join in praising Sunyoul.

The judges reveal their votes:

Baekho, my darling, chooses Sunyoul, but everyone else chooses Choi Suhwan. VCG says his voice would suit all genres and he thanks them. But then..

… then Eunkwang has to make Suhwan feel awful by saying that his jacket is too short. I think it’s meant to be cropped, but he’s got a short torso, so instead of looking cropped, it looks just a bit too short. So now even though Suhwan won, he gets to feel terrible. Thanks, Eunkwang. Thunkwang.

I stand by what I said -- I still think that Suhwan’s later singing in this song wasn’t as fabulous as those first four lines. But I don’t hate that he won. Like everyone on the show, he is a really good singer.

As the boys walk off stage together, they try to comfort Yeonwoo, and you can hear Sunyoul promising to buy Yeonwoo some chicken.

Protect Sunyoul at all costs, fam.

Ok, one more song to go! I’ll see you in the next one, my loves, and thanks as always for reading!

#bpr recaps build up #build up mnet #mnet build up #up10tion #m.o.n.t.#mamamoo #solar #choi suhwan #ji yeonwoo #bitsaeon #sunyoul

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ansbobcar · 3 months

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I had an epiphany crazy thought moment while waiting for my frozen mantou to steam.

I should do Mashle character theme songs (which I don't think make sense but my taste in music is literally either jpop, kpop, or some really old stuff. No inbetween so you gotta deal with it lolol.)

Will probably be like a part series or something because I can't think anymore.

_ _ _

Finn Ames

youtube

Karma Chameleon by Culture Club

It's the... pre-chorus? Where he goes:

"I'm a man without conviction I'm a man who doesn't know How to sell a contradiction"

Literal chills. That's it. That's the post. This has been bugging me since yesterday HAAHAHAH.

Mash Burnedead

youtube

PLEASE UNDERSTAND THIS LITERALLY SOUNDS LIKE MASH EVERY TIME HE FIGHTS SOMEONE AND FORGIVES THEM-

Lemon Irvine

youtube

Honestly, this and Excuse Me work pretty well for her. Both videos and their lyrics play into the delusional and the reality of the situation.

I'm so brain dead of thinking of more songs. I will continue it one day.

#mashle #lemon irvine #mash burnedead #do people know badanamu??#finn ames #hopefully i'll continue this #Youtube

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nctzenkane · 1 year

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Nctzen Kane presents... the top 10 Kpop Songs of 2022!!!

This year was insanely good musically, so it was really difficult to narrow it down to just ten fantastic songs. If your fave didn’t end up here... then make your own list, what do you think this is?

Anyway, without further dudes...

NUMBER TEN: FOREVER 1- GIRL’S GENERATION

This song feels like a wish come true. It’s not the most complex or interesting song out there, but it deserves its spot on this list just for the fact that we got a full group comeback from the one and only SNSD in the year of the goddess Hylia 2022. I love the vibes of it, it puts me in a great mood, and that’s enough for it to be on here

NUMBER NINE: VENOM- STRAY KIDS

All I need to say to justify this one is… pewpewpew

But seriously, this song’s beat is so SKZ that it’s INSANE. Like disgustingly addictive, springy sound that perfectly encapsulates the feel of a spider’s legs. It’s so fucking *chef’s kiss*. Of all the songs on the Oddinary album, this one really tickles my brain just the right way. However, there is one other song on the album that works just a tiny bit better…

NUMBER EIGHT: MANIAC- STRAY KIDS

And that’s Maniac. All the disparate pieces of this song coalesce in a way that is just so perfect. I’ve always loved the way SKZ utilizes Felix’s unique voice, and the chorus of Maniac is the perfect example of that. It’s an absolute bop, and the superior track on an album with no skips

NUMBER SEVEN: OPENING SEQUENCE- TXT

I love TXT. I love everything about them so much. But what I didn’t love, was Good Boy Gone Bad. It pained me to admit that when the track dropped, so imagine my delight when I started listening to the album and I heard this absolute gem. I love the atmosphere of this song so much, and TXT is incredibly skilled at capturing feelings of discomfort and desolation in their music, and those feelings fit the lyrical content perfectly

NUMBER SIX: I HATE YOU- WOODZ

The pop punk trend in kpop is one of the best things to happen to the genre in years, and in my opinion, there’s no one better suited to capture it than Woodz. In the past I’ve described Woodz as something of a musical chameleon; able to tackle any genre and absolutely kill it. He captures the carefree “fuck you” vibes of early 2000s pop punk effortlessly, and I’d love to hear more of this sound from him in the future

NUMBER FIVE: 28 REASONS- SEULGI

Seulgi as a dark, sensual, domineering badass? Yes. Very yes.

Jokes aside, Seulgi absolutely murdered this concept both visually and musically. I’m not sure if it was meant to be a throwback, but it definitely reminds me of something Aaliyah would’ve released in the late 90s. This was a strong solo debut for one of kpop’s most high profile aces, and I really can’t wait to see what she’ll do next

NUMBER FOUR: CYBERPUNK- ATEEZ

This song is why I love ATEEZ as much as I do. This shit hits you like a wall of unstoppable sound the moment the chorus kicks off, and it’s the type of sonic euphoria that I’ve been desperately missing with 4th gen groups. It’s no secret that this generation has pivoted more towards choreography and elaborate concepts, and away from killer vocals like 2nd and 3rd gen. That’s not necessarily a bad thing mind you, but ATEEZ proves why having killer vocals is such an asset. I love every second of this one start to finish, and uh… let’s just say those concert stages were iconic *wink wink*

NUMBER THREE: TIME LAPSE- NCT 127

I mean it when I say that the 2 Baddies album might be NCT 127’s best one yet. Almost every song is phenomenal, but none more so than Time Lapse. I love the attention to detail; the computerized/digitized sounds at the beginning, and the old Hollywood style music sting at the end really tie in well with the concept of ‘time’, and the fucking CHORUS. Every czennie has been bumping “can we fix it?!” for MONTHS. It was hard for me to pick a single song from this album, but after some thought, I knew it just had to be this one

NUMBER TWO: BEGIN- ONLYONEOF’S YOOJUNG

OnlyOneOf’s “UndergrOund IdOl” project has been one of the best things to ever happen in the history of kpop. What really endears me to it is not just its unflinching depictions of explicit queerness (no teasing or implication here) but also the fact that the music is ACTUALLY GOOD. Not gonna say any names (not looking to insult people here) but we shouldn’t have to sacrifice musical quality just to have some queer rep in the industry. Of all the releases so far though, I think the one that kicked it off is still the best. There’s just something magical about Begin; I’m not sure if its his delivery of the lyrics, the mellow energy of the track that builds to a satisfying climax, or just the relatability of the single line “hate this city” as a queer person. Whatever it is makes Begin such a perfect song, and so far its yet to be topped by the rest of the series in my opinion

HONORABLE MENTIONS (IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER)

-The rest of the UndergrOund IdOl series (Be Mine, Be Free, Because, and Beat)- OnlyOneOf

-Gold Rush- NCT 127

-Birthday- Ten

-Limbo- Jun

-Pose- Kino

-Gasoline- Key

-Hair Cut- Xdinary Heroes

-Taste- Stray Kids Danceracha

-3racha- Stray Kids 3racha

NUMBER ONE: STRAWBERRY CAKE- XDINARY HEROES

Yeah, if you know me, this is no surprise. I’ve been a Villain since Happy Death Day, and this band just keeps getting better and better with every release. I love their unique sound and their insane vocals are truly showcased on this track. The moment I heard this one, I knew it was gonna be my number one song of the year and as the months passed, nothing quite managed to dethrone it. I can not fucking wait to see how the guys evolve as time goes on

#xdinary heroes #onlyoneof #NCT 127 #girl's generation #seulgi #red velvet #ateez #TXT #stray kids #Woodz

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tenelkadjowrites · 1 year

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(my signal is acting up, so i'm not sure if you recieved my message, if you got it twice ignore one of them 😅)

thanks for your long answer!

first of all, i got into atz thanks to hongjoong, then had a brief san moment, but hwa was the one who truly captured my heart eventually and he won't let me go lolol, so i relate! i saw atz on their first tour and didn't pay much attention to seonghwa (even tho he was killing it so wtf what was on 🤡), but then wonderland happened and i was gooooooone. he's a fascinating specimen and very very inspiring too

second of all, despite everything i really liked we ransacked the city and re-read it a few times, so you clearly did something right! i do understand you may feel unsatisfied it didn't turn out the way you wanted. for me it's a good one tho!

relatable on the attraction part, i'm ace and probably aro as well, i generally find people visually pleasing, but it's mostly non-men 😅 there are many attractive male idols, but no one hits as hard as hwa, he's really my ideal gender presentation too 😭 a real chameleon and it's insanely appealing to me

i hope people aren't too rude to you or send stupid shit, cause i know it happened to one person who was strictly writing for one svt member. people complained because they wanted her to write about their biases as well, called her a solo stan and whatnot - just overall bullshit.

i agree, i also enjoy your seonghwas a lot! there's something special about the way you write him

hi hi! it isn't your signal, i got the message - i was just traveling all day yesterday and didn't get home until close to midnight so i didn't have any time to sit down and answer anything especially in the manner i prefer to!

atz is the only group where i switched my bias...and i've switched three times. i got into the group the week of debut cuz i saw a gifset of wooyoung, then hongjoong became my bias from say my name era and onward (idk if newer atiny are aware of how much hate and negativity hj originally got for his mullet but it was nonstop almost the entire time he had it on instagram comments etc. i loved how he stuck with the hairstyle for so long because he loved having it and that really leapt out at me and made me appreciate him more.) and then i switched to hwa during fireworks...but hwa has really hit me HARD on a way the only other idol i feel so unhinged over is probably taemin. (most likely because he plays with gender like a toy and i love that so much, both hwa and taemin are probably the most "ideal type" of idol to me. as you said, so many idols are gorgeous and i can appreciate how stunning they are but hwa and taemin are...just beyond for me.)

it's so cool that you got to see them at their first tour. i was unable to because 1. money to travel since they didn't visit my state and 2. personal reasons involving my dipshit now ex boyfriend. i'm always envious of anyone who got to see them so early lol.

i'm glad that you enjoyed we ransacked the city, another person said it was their favourite story of mine. i know a lot of ppl who love it. as the writer, of course you notice things about your own work that no one else will, and i just didn't think i nailed the gossip girl vibe i was trying to obtain there. i also wanted the city to feel like its own character which i believe i failed at. (and i attempted this again with arrow in the dark which i think i achieved more successfully this time around.) but i can look at any of my stories and note things i believe i "failed" at.

i do feel a mild pressure at times to write for other members of ateez but i like to believe that anyone who has messaged me, or read my asks, or even ppl i've befriended thru running this blog knows what ateez means to me. when it comes to groups, they are my ults. i am into a lot of kpop groups but they are my main loves.

i've never gotten any outright hate messages about it. i love every single member of ateez and believe every single one of the members are crucial to the dynamic of the group that makes it so successful. when mingi was on hiatus it was like smiling with a missing front tooth - you could feel the absence without him there. i love each member for different reasons, i just write about hwa 99 percent of the time because he's like...my writing muse and i'm as smitten with him as one can be when it comes to an idol. but nothing gives me greater joy than the group as a whole and i like to believe? hope? that anyone who follows this blog and reads my stuff knows that.

#asks

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