Asian Junkie Asian pop. Without discretion.
Hello and welcome to the first Rundown of 2023.
Surprisingly, it’s a rather solid start, with a lot of stuff I could see people being really into. Not necessarily me, but you know … people.
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YUGYEOM (GOT7) (Feat. Sik-K) – “Ponytail”
Pleasantly generic until that fucking whistle during the chorus and then the perfunctory, terrible, effects-laden rap.
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Boys Planet – “Here I Am”
An appropriately generic bit of hybrid house. Like there’s nothing wrong with it, I just will likely never care or remember this after today.
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Moonbin & Sanha (Astro) – “Madness”
I’m sure this is a nice song to use for a performance at a concert or whatever, but it would have to be only for that purpose given how stale the instrumental-heavy chorus is.
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Nine (OnlyOneOf) – “Beyond”
As a whole, this series of solo releases by OnlyOneOf has been a success. It has generated a couple of gems, nothing bad, and conveyed a cohesive sound and an important concept.
“Beyond” is pleasant enough, but it’s also among their safer efforts and I’m not sure why they did that to the production to make it sound like we were listening through a wall.
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ILY:1 – “Twinkle Twinkle”
Easily their best single so far, partially because they split the difference between Oh My Girl‘s “Secret Garden” and the trademark dreamy soundscapes associated with Lovelyz. It’s missing that one killer bit that makes you want to hum along to it randomly or that sticks in your brain, but I could definitely see people loving this and I wouldn’t hit the ‘Next’ button if it came up, so hopefully they continue in this direction.
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SF9 – “Puzzle”
A repetitive, addictive hook that’s backed by slick, upbeat production, yet there’s something that doesn’t quite get it over the top for me. I think it’s that despite its peppy nature, it almost seems disinterested in itself most of the time, like they’re just trying to get it over with or something. That said, if somebody told me they loved this, I’d get why.
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MONSTA X – “Beautiful Liar”
This is one explosive rock chorus away from greatness, and I’m not sure why they opted for what they did instead.
