Drowning in K-pop: Aug. 15th - 21st

Credit: kpopscene.com

A new week has started meaning that I get to look back at another week's worth of K-pop releases. However, since there are so many of them, maybe I should just whittle them down to the few that I deem to be particularly noteworthy...CL's Lifted not included. I'm sorry, but I just wasn't that into it. I like CL as part of the group 2NE1, but she just doesn't do it for me as a solo artist. Most of her solo releases have been more miss than hit for me. However, if you want to listen to a K-pop song that's completely in English or if you like the songs that are about getting one's drink or swag on, then you should absolutely look it up. And if you don't like that I'm not Team CL or that I don't want to suddenly get lifted with my shorties downing 40s, then go ahead and hate. It's like a wise woman once said: Ain't nobody got time for that!

Credit: starpolar.wikia.com

Anyway...if I'm not going to talk about possibly one of the most beloved comebacks of the past week, which I technically still did, then what songs made the cut?

1. BU - Heotdari



I'm actually not entirely sure how to transcribe the title, so I just went with what made the most sense to me, at least based off of what I've seen and what little I know of Korean. It's a very decent song and she does have a good voice. She kind of reminds me of Lee Hi, vocally speaking. Since she doesn't belong to one of the bigger companies, one can't really expect a super high quality or elaborate video. However, I still think they did a good job and it looks like they actually had fun, so that's always a plus. Besides, I appreciate the use of background dancers sporting some serious mermaid thighs. And yes, that was meant to be positive.

2. EXO - Lotto



Okay...yes...I do like this song. One moment you think you've outgrown boy bands and then they just manage to reel you in again...and again...and again... Granted, it's very heavy handed with the autotune, but that's intentional. Or at least I hope it is. I don't like this as much as Lucky One or Monster though because both of those were pretty great and catchy. That being said, I'm kind of amused by the baby baller/swag lite image that the group went for this time around.

3. BTS' Suga - Agust D/Give It To Me


Agust D (BTS) - Agust D [MV] von svaensk


Agust D (SUGA from BTS) - give it to me [MV] von svaensk

It's rare for me to immediately be swept off my feet when I listen to a song for the first time. However, Suga did do quite a good job with his mixtape. And yes, I did actually listen to all of it, and because I'm such an awesome person, I will also share the rest of the songs with you. To be completely honest, Agust D and Give It To Me aren't even really my favorite tracks off of the mixtape (mine are 724148, The Last and Tony Montana...my brother would be so proud...), but they're both still worth listening to. Especially if you're into rap or hip hop, which aren't usually my go-to genres, but oh well.




4. Beatburger - Vagabond



This is probably a bit more up my alley or at least closer to what I listen to when I'm out and about or working out. It's also not really what comes to mind initially, when one thinks about K-pop. I would say that the sound is in the same vein as music from The Prodigy.

5. IMGL - My World/Hey You





Again, not really the most representative song of K-pop, but oddly enough this is closer to what I listen to when I'm out amongst the people. As for a Euroamerican equivalent, I would say that these two songs are fairly reminiscent of someone like Adam Lambert...albeit with a slightly more narrow vocal range and less power.

And now you can all resume hating me for not liking CL's Lifted. Either that, or you can go back to feeling mostly indifferent about K-pop.