Just a shuffle of songs. Mostly lesser-known artists, although I didn't really intend for that to happen.
- Haruhi
안보이나요 - Holladang
Korean | Pop/Hip-Hop
I can't say I know much about this mixed group, except that it seems to be composed of one female singer and two male rappers. The acoustic guitar in the arrangement is a pleasant surprise, but other than that the song seems a bit lacklustre. It's a little slow in tempo, and aims for a dramatic sound that it can't quite find. However, vocally their singer is quite good. Their rappers aren't bad either. If you're a fan of hip-hop influenced music, try them out.
Du Bai (Monologue) - Renee Chan
Mandarin | Ballad
The simplicity of this piano ballad really caught my attention. Renee Chan's high, clear voice is light and airy, and although I wouldn't describe her as having a lot of power, her voice isn't weak, either. Strings are added later in the song. Upon first listen, it seemed a bit bland to me, but the song and especially the chorus is starting to grow on me.
Hello Hollow - Ibadi
Korean | Folk rock
Ibadi is mostly known for its main vocalist, who is Clazziquai's Horan. A really nice, mellow song with lots of acoustic guitar and some really nice, subtle piano melodies as well. Horan's smooth, rich voice is gorgeous as usual.
帰りたくなったよ (kaeritakunatta yo) - Ikimono Gakari
Japanese | Pop-rock
I love this band, although their latest releases have started to disappoint me. A fairly typical representation of their songs: a pretty mid-tempo ballad with a minimal acoustic guitar/piano/backbeat accompaniment. Strings are incorporated as the song builds.
It's Alright - Min Kyung Hoon
Korean | Rock/Ballad
Some of you may recognize him as the vocalist for the rock band Buzz. I love the guitar in this song, and Kyung Hoon's voice has a lot of texture and depth.
Labels: Holladang, Ibadi, Ikimono Gakari, Min Kyung Hoon, Renee Chan
It's kind of fun uploading songs at random.
Comment/leave rating, please.
You & I - Ilac (duet. Zia)
Korean | Pop/Ballad
A very recent release, You & I is a sweet mid-tempo acoustic pop track. I love Ilac and Zia's voice is pretty good too, so it was pretty much a given that I'd like this song. It's relaxing, warm, and simple.
Soprano - Ikimono Gakari
Japanese | Alt Rock
I love this band. Soprano is a pretty piano ballad. It's pretty formulaic, but well-executed with smooth, rich vocals and an uplifting chorus.
Flare - Irokui
Instrumental | Rock
So apparently this is actually just an interlude-type track. But Irokui is a Japanese visual kei band, and Flare is a nice guitar solo. Later in the song light percussion and some synthesized instruments are added. On its own it doesn't make for a very entertaining listen, but it's a good track in the context of the album it was in.
BUSTER - BUCK-TICK
Japanese | Rock
An upbeat, driven rock track. Catchy and energetic - what more could you ask for? Recommended.
Labels: BUCK-TICK, Ikimono Gakari, Ilac, Irokui
S.I.N - -OZ-
Quality kinda sucks, sorry. T_T Really screamy at first, then really melodic. Pretty typical fare, nothing that blew me away. Still, it was solid and I really like the verses that are actually sung.
Voyage - Shinhwa
A nice ballad, but for the first few verses until the chorus, the accompaniment completely overlaps. Probably one of my favourite songs from Shinhwa's 9th album though, which I wasn't too impressed with. Worth a listen.
One - Epik High ft. Jisun of Loveholic
GO EPIK HIGH. This is from their new album, Pieces, Part 1. Featuring the soft vocals of Jisun, this is one of my favourite tracks. The beginning of the song reminded me of HSM for some strange reason. Buut, the rest of the song is great. Kind of different from the darker style of Epik High's 4th album, this song manages to be upbeat and catchy yet sad at the same time. Highly recommended.
Ignition - Epik High ft. Na Yoon Kwon
More Epik High for you. =) This song starts out with Na Yoon Kwon's vocals. I can't say I've heard of him, but he's got a pretty decent voice. This song didn't catch me as much as "One" did, but still a decent track. It's mostly rapped except for Na Yoon Kwon's verses, which works out to be a pretty nice balance.
Eight by Eight - Epik High ft. Dynamic Duo, Double K, TBNY
A more solidly hip-hop track, Eight by Eight is very much American influenced. The English lyrics sound a bit random (I swear I heard "skinny jean" in there) and it's not really my kind of song, but worth a listen.
Usan - Epik High ft. Younha
Okay, last Epik High song. Another of my favourites, especially since Younha is such an awesome vocalist and one of my favourite female vocalists. Nice piano accompaniment but the drums keep a solid, steady tempo. Younha's vocals are really what make this song for me. Recommended.
ワールド ワールド - Asian Kung-Fu Generation
Okay, this isn't as recent of a release, but I love this song and I don't think I ever got around to uploading it. It's from Ajikan's latest album, World World World. There's a ticking metronome in the background and it's a really mellow song, accompanied by just a guitar. It's only a minute or so long. Recommended.
Natsu・Koi - Ikimono Gakari
A band that I recently discovered and am really impressed by. Their male and female vocalists are both great, and this is probably one of my favourite songs by them. Try them out!
Echo - Loveholic
From their Dramatic & Cinematic album, a great song from a great band. I'm disappointed that Ji Sun's leaving them to go solo, but I support her. Her voice really shines through in this song, which is slow but for some reason calling it a ballad doesn't seem quite right to me. Highly recommended.
Mirage - Loveholic
My favourite song from this album. Lovely piano accompaniment, Ji Sun's vocals are lovely. It's a really calm but sad song with a great chorus. Highly recommended.
honey drop - Matenrou Opera
One of my favourite VK bands. I was so happy when I finally found this single, and it didn't disappoint. Great vocals although they're a bit whiny at times, random growling stuck into a very melodic song, and overall just a great song. There are some gothic influences; it's super catchy. &&& there's a random jazzy piano lick. Highly highly recommended for any VK fans.
Anydream - Rain
Rain's submission for the Beijing Olympics. Below you'll find the contributions from Wang Lee Hom, and Jay Chou. It's not fabulous and definitely not one of my favourite songs by him, but it's decent. Maybe it's because this is a low-quality rip, but his voice kind of disappears below the accompaniment for the whole song. It's upbeat and relatively catchy.
千山萬水 (Quan Shan Wan Shui) - Jay Chou
Radio rip, sorry. But it's all I could find, and I thought some of you would probably want to hear this. A nice, slow-tempoed song that shows Jay Chou's vocals well, but it didn't really blow me away or anything. Plus the verse that's super-high pitched kind of annoys me.
Dream of the World - Wang Lee Hom
This song starts off in English and then switches to Mandarin. It's also a ballad, but I liked it better than Jay Chou's song. There's a prominent bass accompaniment and Wang Lee Hom's voice is lovely.
사랑 하는 일 - Sung Shi Kyung
Latest Sung Shi Kyung single. As expected, a ballad. Pretty standard fare, but a decent listen. It starts to grow on you the more you listen to it. He does have a great voice, which I think is shown quite well in this song.
Welcome to my misery - FLOW
If the song title made you think the song was sad, think again. A great upbeat track from FLOW's latest album, Isle. Very danceable and catchy with a great guitar part and a piano accompaniment that has varying prominence. A reminder of how much I love this band. Recommended.
Carry on - FLOW
Rock | Japanese
Another upbeat track from ISLE, this song is wonderfully executed. The way the vocals are arranged are just wonderful, with a great accompaniment. The song goes from a darker sound to the bright chorus. Great bass accompaniment, too.
Lovers Again - EXILE
I haven't liked EXILE's recent singles much, but I love this song. It's one of my favourites by them and is a gorgeous ballad that shows their vocals perfectly. Harmonizing is well done and the song has faint R&B influences.
Mannequin - Hwanhee (Fly to the Sky)
A solo track from Fly to the Sky member Hwanhee. Mannequin is a nice ballad that stages Hwanhee's deep vocals beautifully. I love Brian, but honestly I think that Hwanhee sounds a lot better singing solo. The song itself can get a little boring, but I'm highly recommending this just for Hwanhee's voice.
Electron Mailman - Kra
I love how this song kicks off. It's a pretty laid back song and one of my favourite from Kra.
Eraser - SAT ft. Lee Min Woo
I honestly don't know where I got this song from. XP I just found it on my computer and thought I'd upload it. It's a duet that doesn't offer much, but it's catchy and the female vocalist is pretty decent. Lee Min Woo underachieves in this song - he's a much better vocalist than this song shows, but I think it's a pretty old song, so he's probably improved since then. Worth a listen, but nothing spectacular.
Carving the Rock - YMCK
A very cute track from a very interesting band, YMCK. I can understand why it might not be everyone's kind of thing, but I really liked it even though generally I wouldn't listen to 8bit. It's a nice blend of sounds with soft, cute vocals.
Labels: Asian Kung-Fu Generation, Epik High, EXILE, FLOW, Fly to the Sky, Ikimono Gakari, Jay Chou, Kra, Lee Min Woo, Loveholic, Matenrou Opera, OZ, Rain, SAT, Shinhwa, Sung Shi Kyung, Wang Lee Hom, YMCK
