Asian Junkie Asian pop. Without discretion.
Hello and welcome back to the music part of the site as I’ve recently caught up on a bunch of stuff, so stay tuned for that.
Otherwise, there’s bunch of stuff I sorta enjoyed here, honestly. But mostly I wanted to talk/vent a bit about the EDM trend in K-pop and where some of the weaknesses in that might currently lie and why it’s not hitting with people like it did before.
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Ifeye – “Hazy (Daisy)”
The lesson that too many learned from NewJeans skyrocketing to popularity is that people like songs with “boring” vibes and a touch of breakbeat fusion, missing that the foundation of the group’s best stuff was (shockingly) a collection of catchy melodies and hooks. It’s still just pop music.
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=LOVE – “Moratorium”
For K-pop fans (probably all of you), it’s sorta like early GFRIEND but without the vocals (and some songwriting beats), which as we’ve learned from K-pop girl groups trying to the same, makes it better than most but also a lot more forgettable.
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m-flo LOVES Diggy-MO & Shinoda Ryosuke – “GateWay”
Another unfortunate pairing of elite music video with bad and/or annoying song, and I love m-flo.
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BE:FIRST – “BE:FIRST ALL DAY”
This is pretty decent, but in a weird twist the part that was supposed to be anthemic weighed it down (literally a downer) and the rapping carries it. Mostly though, I wanted to post this because a pop group doing Sons Of Anarchy biker cosplay is kinda funny.
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TAEYONG (Feat. Anderson .Paak) – “Rock Solid”
Repeating “rock solid” over and over throughout the song became more grating than addictive, and the rest of the song relying primarily on Taeyong’s rapping ability to control the listener’s attention works about as well as most any other idol trying that would.
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22/7 – “Futatsu No Michi”
Amaki Sally is basically the star of this, even if not the center, which automatically makes it great.
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CORTIS – “REDRED”
Unlike the some of the circlejerk reaction to BTS‘s return (both ways), I think the social media backlash against most of their discography to this point has been valid. That doesn’t really apply here, though, as production here provides a foundation that’s appealing, but it’s too distorted, repetitive, and flat to really sink in for me. Still, promising in a way.
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LE SSERAFIM – “CELEBRATION”
While I didn’t have a problem with BLACKPINK‘s “JUMP“, K-pop producers taking that as the template for the revival of EDM instead of much better melodic/chorus-centered releases of years past is really unfortunate.
Have some guts. https://t.co/zDl2dr9u5B
— Asian Junkie (@asianjunkiecom) April 24, 2026
Like you can do it! pic.twitter.com/MIUied1w4S https://t.co/50gztTYj4z
— Asian Junkie (@asianjunkiecom) April 27, 2026
The same sentiments as above mostly apply here, and it unfortunately seems like the same will apply to ILLIT‘s upcoming release as well. Again, the circlejerk shit on social media that it’s all noise is annoying and reeks of dumbfuck kids who don’t listen to enough music, but that also doesn’t mean these make for good pop songs either. I do like the underlying variations of pumping EDM beats far more than the “chill” trend, but they are basically also all missing my favorite part of the best K-pop tracks in that mold.
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UNCHILD – “UNCHILD”
The debut of STAYC‘s sister group, and it’s a solid if not unspectacular one. The most promising thing to me is their concept really does seem to attempt to set them apart with a ton of color, and the rock tinge that really emerges towards the end also holds appeal to me. The “we are UNCHILD” repetition does kinda give me “I’m gonna be a star” vibes (pejorative), but I have hopes for them after this.
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After a slow start to the year, I honestly do feel like things are picking up now.
