Reviewing this week's k-pop music releases [ENG/ESP]
Hello Hive and Music Community !
It's been a while since I've sat down to write about music here on Hive, after the comebacks of my favorite bands the waters had "calmed down" to some extent, but this month's releases have been so striking and cool that I didn't want to miss the opportunity to talk about them, from debuts that baffled me to the return of the queens of "Rock" in kpop, let's get started!
5) Kep1er –We Fresh
El tema recurrente que he tenido con la música de Kep1er es que siempre hay cosas buenas en sus lanzamientos principales, elementos con mucho potencial que nunca son explorados por querer agregar más y más a la mezcla, como lo dije en mi review de su comeback pasado, esta ambición de querer agregar tantas cosas juega más en su contra que a su favor. Si bien “We Fresh” no es la excepción siento que hay algo diferente en este lanzamiento, y es que en comparación a “Wa da da” o “Up”, esta canción se siente, hasta cierto punto, más consistente. El punto estrella de “We Fresh” es ese segmento Rock que exploran en su pre-coro y antes de puente de la canción, fácilmente pudieron trabajar la canción exclusivamente alrededor de estas partes y mantener ese estilo Rock más limpio sin la necesidad de agregar eso beats “Estruendosos” del coro. A pesar de ser gran fan de la música “Experimental” y “Caótica” me ha costado conectar con las propuestas de Kep1er para sus canciones principales, aun así me siento curiosa por como seguirán manejando este estilo en el futuro.
Recently groups like NMIXX and this time, Kep1er, have gained diverse opinions due to the musical direction they have opted for, music full of energy, experimental and that could be categorized as "Noisy", in the case of Kep1er (Group I have been talking about since their debut) I have been able to see with each release how the group has been forming their own "Characteristic" style, but... Is it worth having a "Unique" sound?
The recurring theme I've had with Kep1er's music is that there are always good things in their main releases, elements with a lot of potential that are never explored because of wanting to add more and more to the mix, as I said in my review of their last comeback, this ambition of wanting to add so many things plays more against them than in their favor. While "We Fresh" is no exception I feel there is something different about this release, and that is that compared to "Wa da da da" or "Up", this song feels, to a certain extent, more consistent. The highlight of "We Fresh" is that Rock segment that they explore in their pre-chorus and before the bridge of the song, they could have easily worked the song exclusively around these parts and kept that cleaner Rock style without the need to add those "Thunderous" beats from the chorus. Despite being a big fan of "Experimental" and "Chaotic" music I have found it hard to connect with Kep1er's approach to their main songs, yet I am curious how they will continue to handle this style in the future.
4) MAMAMOO –Illella
He tenido la oportunidad de seguir a MAMAMOO a lo largo de los años así como apreciar al grupo formar su propio estilo musical en los últimos años, siendo la inclusión de ritmos más “Latinos” un elemento recurrente entre sus canciones principales. “Illella” vuelve a explorar este ritmo más Tropical, lamentablemente siento que la canción no hace mucho por explorar esos pequeños gancho que nos dan, el coro se siente como si no llegara a ningún lugar, y a pesar de incluir un atractivo dance break la canción vuelve a caer en un ciclo algo repetitivo. No es un mal lanzamiento, puede ver que intentaron jugar con la “fórmula” de sus éxitos pasados, pero siento que la canción carece de la fuerza y dinámica que lograron con canciones como “Hip” o “gogobebe”
MAMAMOO is probably one of the most talented groups that kpop has ever seen, from an attractive stage presence to some of the most amazing voices in the industry, this female group has known how to earn their own place in kpop thanks to their talent and personalities.
I've had the opportunity to follow MAMAMOO over the years as well as appreciate the group forming their own musical style in recent years, with the inclusion of more "Latin" rhythms being a recurring element among their core songs. "Illella" again explores this more Tropical beat, unfortunately I feel the song doesn't do much to explore those little hooks they give us, the chorus feels like it goes nowhere, and despite including an appealing dance break the song falls back into a somewhat repetitive cycle. It's not a bad release, you can see they tried to play with the "formula" of their past hits, but I feel the song lacks the strength and dynamics they achieved with songs like "Hip" or "gogobebe".
3) Kwon Eun Bi –Underwater
Si bien la transición entre el debut elegante y colorido de Eunbi con “Door” al estilo más experimental y “conceptual” de su comeback “Glitch” fue algo drástica, la solista parece haber encontrado finalmente su estilo y “Underwater” es la muestra de ello. Underwater es la típica canción de Tropical House que podrías escuchar de otros cientos o quizás miles de solistas, no hay nada particularmente único o nuevo ocurriendo aquí, ahora, ser algo “Genérico” (Como ya he mencionado en otros post) no implica ser algo malo, hay una razón por la que este estilo de canciones se han lanzado miles de veces antes y sigue funcionando hasta cierto punto en la actualidad, y es que la melodía dinámica y poderosa que trae consigo este género siempre resulta atractiva. Acompañada de una presencia mucho más segura y lista para dominar el escenario por parte de Eunbi, Underwater se siente como una muestra mucho más estable de lo que esta joven puede ofrecer en su faceta como solista.
Eunbi is a soloist I've talked about before, former leader of the group IZ*ONE, Eunbi (as well as Chaeyeon) gained popularity for her commanding presence and high energy on stage, possibly one of the members the public was most looking forward to seeing again after the split of their project.
Although the transition from Eunbi's elegant and colorful debut with "Door" to the more experimental and "conceptual" style of her comeback "Glitch" was somewhat drastic, the soloist seems to have finally found her style and "Underwater" is the proof of it. Underwater is the typical Tropical House song that you might hear from hundreds or maybe thousands of other solo artists, there is nothing particularly unique or new happening here, now, being something "Generic" (As I have mentioned in other posts) does not imply being a bad thing, there is a reason why this style of song has been released thousands of times before and still works to some extent today, and that is because the dynamic and powerful melody that this genre brings with it is always appealing. Accompanied by a much more confident and ready to dominate stage presence from Eunbi, Underwater feels like a much more stable sample of what this young woman has to offer on her solo side.
2) Lee Chaeyeon –HUSH RUSH
Ahora, Chaeyeon siempre fue conocida por sus fans por su poderosa energía en el escenario, y obviamente, sus fenomenales habilidades para el baile, ganándose su posición como una de las mejores bailarinas en la escena actual del kpop, teniendo esto en mente la elección musical para su canción principal me desconcertó un poco, pues fue, realmente, todo lo opuesto a lo que me hubiese podido esperar. Hush Rush es un lanzamiento que me tomo por sorpresa, pues realmente me esperaba la clásica canción de género “House” (como Chungha y su debut “Why Don’t You Know) pero en lugar de optar por este estilo más movido y dinámico, Hush Rush se muestra como una canción más relajada y “amigable.” Con una melodía suave y repetitiva Hush Rush realmente no genera una impresión muy fuerte tras escucharla, diría yo una canción “fácilmente olvidable” solo que, ciertamente me equivoque al pensar eso la primera vez que la escuche, pues tras esa única escuchada me encontré en repentinas ocasiones a lo largo del día tarareando el coro una y otra vez, y al igual que como me paso con “Fearless” del grupo LE SSERAFIM, es una canción que aunque califique como aburrida la primera vez que escuche, se grabó en mi mente sin mucho esfuerzo. Un debut fresco y sencillo, y al igual que el resto de su mini álbum, recomendado!
After a year of the official separation of IZ*ONE and after the debut of many of the members that once formed the project group, many fans wondered when it would be the turn of the group's main dancer Lee Chaeyeon to debut again in the industry, and finally in late September and early October there were the first signs of what would be her debut as a solo artist with the mini album "Hush Rush" and its title track with the same name
Now, Chaeyeon has always been known by her fans for her powerful energy on stage, and obviously, her phenomenal dancing skills, earning her position as one of the best dancers in the current kpop scene, with this in mind the musical choice for her title track puzzled me a bit, as it was, really, quite the opposite of what I could have expected. Hush Rush is a release that took me by surprise, as I was really expecting the classic "House" genre song (like Chungha and their debut "Why Don't You Know) but instead of opting for this more up-tempo and dynamic style, Hush Rush comes across as a more laid back and "friendly" song. With a soft and repetitive melody Hush Rush doesn't really generate a very strong impression after listening to it, I would say an "easily forgettable" song only, I was certainly wrong to think that the first time I listened to it, as after that one listen I found myself on sudden occasions throughout the day humming the chorus over and over again, and just like what happened to me with "Fearless" by LE SSERAFIM group, it's a song that even if I qualified as boring the first time I listened to it, it stuck in my mind without much effort. A fresh and simple debut, and just like the rest of their mini album, recommended!
1) Dreamcatcher –VISION
Para este punto de la reseña no tengo mucho que decir, realmente disfrute de “Vision”, principalmente quizás se deba a esos sonidos sintetizadores que me son casi hipnóticos con los que juegan al principio de la canción (Tengo una debilidad por el uso de estos recursos en las música), fuera de este detalle es precisamente lo que me esperaría del grupo viendo atrás a sus últimos lanzamientos, quizás tengan una formula algo repetitiva, pero lo suficientemente entretenido y que grita Dreamcatcher por todas partes.
With a unique and daring style that has helped them to differentiate themselves from the classic "Cute" or "Girl Crush" concept, and from the first groups to gain popularity thanks to their more rock style, Dreamcatcher have known how to gain the attention of many of the public, and with the passing of time, they have been building one of the best discographies that I have had the opportunity to listen to when it comes to kpop groups.
For this point of the review I don't have much to say, I really enjoyed "Vision", mainly maybe it is due to those synthesizer sounds that are almost hypnotic to me with which they play at the beginning of the song (I have a weakness for the use of these resources in music), out of this detail is precisely what I would expect from the group seeing back to their last releases, maybe they have a somewhat repetitive formula, but entertaining enough and that screams Dreamcatcher everywhere.
Probablemente, de los mejores meses de este año en el k-pop, lleno de lanzamientos que han cumplido mis expectativas y que me he encontrado disfrutando plenamente. Los veo la próxima semana con más lanzamientos y muchas gracias por leer!
Probably one of the best months this year in k-pop, full of releases that have lived up to my expectations and that I have found myself thoroughly enjoying. See you next week with more releases and thanks so much for reading!
Hello friend, these groups look like they are fun in their topics, thanks for bringing them a hug and peace be with you 🤗🎸🎶
En definitiva me quedo con Mamamoo y Kwon Eun Bi, con anterioridad les he escuchado. En el caso de Mamamoo son un grupo mu compactado aparte poseen mucha relevancia en corea y han salido en uno que otro K-drama. Me gusta también la voz de Eun Bi, es demasiado agradable aparte de esa elegancia que trasmite. PD: Me gusta también como canta Suzy, o hay una canción que me llamaba la atención cuando cantaba junto a Miss A.
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