Let me just start off by saying that I really apologize this rotation took so long, and for not really updating in between other than to change the layout. I guess I've just been having a bit of rough time with school/"friends", and for a period of time I just couldn't find the energy to update the site and finish off this rotation (it's been sitting around nearly-done for a while).
Hope you guys enjoy the songs, and sorry again about the wait! I promise to try and update more often in the future, although for now I think they'll mostly be smaller posts rather than full-scale rotations.
Thanks to the other contributors for keeping the site alive during my absence. =)
- Haruhi
This week’s rotation is themed around songs that changed my opinion of a singer or band - whether for better or worse. Most of the songs are fairly well-known, so those of you looking to try out new artists might be a little disappointed, but hopefully you'll find something that you haven't heard before.
No. 5 - J.ae
Korean | Pop
You may know her simply as J, although she has recently changed her stage name to J.ae. While I have long disliked her soft, whispery vocals, this started to change when she released Say I Love You, a duet with Alex of Clazziquai that really impressed me. I decided it would be worthwhile to at least give her new mini-album (Sentimental) a try, and so far I’m quite impressed. In this opening track, titled No.5, which features Eun Ji Won. It’s a sophisticated, velveteen pop song with a base of muted, harp-like synths, and a light percussion backbeat. My only problem with the drums is that they sound a bit tinny and thin. J’s vocals are still very light and delicate, but they no longer sound weak as they sometimes did to me in her previous releases. Really, it was the elegant arrangement of this song that caught my attention - it’s still engaging and catchy, but has a level of maturity that you won’t hear in less-seasoned artists.
사르르 (I Wanna Be Your Love) (feat. 정엽) - J.ae
Korean | Pop/Ballad
While No. 5 caught my attention, 사르르 was really the highlight of Sentimental. It’s a mid-tempo song with a great jazz/lounge feel. I have no idea who the male singer featured on this is, but his warm, chocolaty voice is a perfect fit with J’s feathery, high vocals.
차라리 때려 (Hit Me) - SHINee
Korean | R&B/Pop
I was kind of on-the-fence about SHINee. I had mixed feelings (but for the most part disliked) their debut song (누난 너무 예뻐(Replay)), but a few other songs on their first mini-album were decent. It was a similar story with Romeo - there were some songs I didn’t like, some I did, and overall my opinions changed from my initial impressions after a few more listens. However, one song that I was really taken with on the first listen - and continued to like - is 차라리 때려. It’s melting smoothness and modern R&B interface really appealed to me. The softness and blend of their voices is lovely paired with the lush synths in the accompaniment. To me, it feels like it’s at another level of refinement compared to their other songs.
Love Story - Jewelry
Korean | Pop/Ballad
After giving Jewelry’s songs a cursory listen, I generally just deleted them. One day I saw their final performance on TV, and it was of this song. Seeing how emotional they were really struck me, and since then Love Story has really grown on me. It’s a powerful mid-tempo pop ballad that showcases their strong voices.
친구의 고백 (Friend’s Confession) - 2AM
Korean | Ballad
While their first “Single album” (이노래/This Song) was quite good, it lacked the power and conviction that is so apparent in Friend’s Confession. Although I probably prefer 죽어도 못 보내 to this song, this was the song that really made me start to look forward to their releases. Friend’s Confession is a heartfelt mid-tempo ballad with gorgeous, warm harmonies. It’s very powerful and emotional without being melodramatic. Their voices, while distinctive and individual, come together perfectly. It’s hopeful and strong. Although their first release left me apprehensive about them, their following songs have all been very impressive and they've become one of my favourite groups.
마비 - Nadia ft. Jace
Korean | Pop/Electronica
I started trying out Nadia’s singles after hearing recommendations and good reviews of them, but many of her songs I found to be average. However, 마비 is one song that I did enjoy. I really like the bubbly bass line paired with echo-y synths, and surprisingly, I think the rap segments really suit this song, setting a more aggressive tone compared with the softer sung verses.
向日葵盛開的夏天 - F.I.R.
Mandarin | Pop
I never had much interest in F.I.R., although they’re a fairly popular group. I thought I would give their latest album, Let’s Smile! a cursory listen. While on a whole the album didn’t really impress me, this is one song that did stand out to me. It’s a simple, acoustic-style ballad with only light guitar, piano, and the occasional bout of strings accompanying Faye’s high-ranged, airy voice. The hope and soothing tone of this song, as well as its graceful simplicity, really stood out to me.
나쁜 여자야 - F.T. Island
Korean | Pop-rock
This is the first song in this rotation where it goes the other way - where a song changed my opinion of an artist negatively, rather than positively. While I was never a real F.T. Island fan and definitely never considered them a “rock” band, I did admire them for taking a different route than most boybands - and being quite successful in doing so. While a few songs on the Jump Up EP had a glimmer of hope, the title track, 나쁜 여자야, was the beginning of their decline in my opinion. Whether this had anything to do with Oh Won Bin being replaced with Song Seung Hyun, I can’t say. 나쁜 여자야 is just incredibly redundant. It’s repetitive, overly-dramatic, and overall just far too heavy. Hong Ki’s voice, which I actually quite like, just sounds incredibly dull and flat-lined in this song. But let me emphasize repetitive, because that’s really what kills this song. There’s absolutely no direction to it, it simply establishes a melody/pattern and follows it over. And over. And over. It doesn’t help that their Japanese releases after this were also completely disposable.
牛仔很忙 - Jay Chou
Mandarin | Pop/Country
Oh god ... it all went downhill from here. While there are some decent songs on this album, this song still completely baffles me. A “country-themed” album is one thing, a country-themed album with only one song that ties into that theme at all is another. I really don’t get how Jay Chou even made such a cheesy, ridiculously stereotypical (yee-haw!) song - if he really had to go country, why not do it with a nice acoustic-guitar ballad or something of the sort? To be fair, I can see why some people would find this song cute or catchy, but after this my opinion of him really started going down. His follow-up album, Capricorn, wasn’t wildly impressive either, although in both albums, there’s always a few gems - oddly enough, they just aren’t the title tracks.
Diamond - alan
Japanese | Pop
A more recent song, and another that left me kind of disappointed in the artist. When Tibetan singer alan debuted, I had mixed feelings about her, although I really liked her distinct style and powerful vocals. I kind of prefer her Mandarin songs to her Japanese ones, but despite seeing some good reviews of Diamond, I didn’t really like it. Her voice sounds uncharacteristically strained and slightly nasal. The dull backdrop of synths sounds very anime-ending-esque, which I suppose is fitting since it’s the theme song for an Inuyasha PSP game or something like that. The song just seemed out of character for her, and overall bland and forgettable.
남자는 그래요 - SeeYa
Korean | Pop
Those of you who’ve been here for a while probably know that I’m quite discerning about girl groups, but I loved SeeYa. After seeing the blindingly colorful retro-inspired photoshoot/album cover accompanying their third album, Brilliant Change, I was already suspecting that I wouldn’t find this change all too brilliant. Now, things get a little strange here, because I don’t actually dislike this song. In fact, there are times where I appreciate it’s soft tone and their still-impressive vocals. However, like every other song on this album (I supposed you could say the whole album changed my opinion of them), this song completely failed to move me. While I always found their ballads to be very powerful emotionally - from their singing as well as the arrangement - this is the first that struck me as simply a very pretty song rather than one that was very touching and heartfelt. There was just something missing in this song that was echoed throughout the whole album, and since then I’ve never really kept up with their releases.
Labels: 2AM, Alan, F.I.R., F.T. Island, J.ae, Jay Chou, Jewelry, Nadia, SeeYa, Shinee
Sorry the rotation is so late! This was originally going to be an artist feature for Han Hee Jung or BRIGHT, but I figured that since I’m quite picky about girl groups and female artists in general, I’d theme the whole rotation on female singers. I tried to choose a variety of artists & genres, so hopefully you’ll find something you like. By the way, the group pictured above is Black Pearl.
Please remember to comment or leave a rating, thanks.
잃어버린 날들 - Han Hee Jung (Lost Days)
Korean | Soft rock
This is my favourite Han Hee Jung song, hands down. It’s soothing but melancholy and emotional at the same time, and suits its title perfectly. Han Hee Jung’s smooth voice is steady yet delicate, set against a mid-tempo accompaniment of percussion and strings.
Kotoba ni Dekinakute - BRIGHT (Can’t Put It Into Words)
Japanese | Pop/Ballad
If I had to pick a favourite girl group, it’d probably be these guys. I’ve uploaded a couple songs from them before. Kotoba ni Dekinakute is a poppy R&B ballad that’s compositionally familiar, yet mature and fresh. Their vocals are just fantastic - clear-cut and melodic, not to mention their gorgeous harmonizing that gives even more upbeat songs a unique twist.
좋은날 - Brown Eyed Girls
Korean | Pop
A relaxing, sweet pop song by the Brown Eyed Girls. I’m not a huge fan of them, but I do like a couple of their songs. Accompanied by acoustic guitars and light percussion, the only thing I didn’t really like about this song was the rap verses. It’s not a song that I’d put on repeat, but it’s worth a listen.
Crazy Love Song - SeeYa
Korean | Ballad
I’m really not a fan of their new album but I loved their older material. They’re often referred to as the “female SG Wannabe”, which can definitely be felt in this song. It clearly follows the paths of SG Wannabe’s distinct, signature ballads. Personally, I find that they followed SG Wannabe’s style a little too closely, and would have liked to see them have a more unique style. Powerful and dramatic, these girls definitely have the vocal strength to back this song up.
everyhome - Chihiro Onitsuka
Japanese | Folk Pop/Ballad
I love Chihiro Onitsuka’s older material, but her newer songs have really disappointed me. everyhome was actually released a while ago as a single, but was also included on her newer album “LAS VEGAS”. Her voice is absolutely beautiful - powerful and emotional, set against a strong piano accompaniment. The amount of emotion Onitsuka puts into every word and every note is really what makes her so unique.
결국... 너잖아 - Black Pearl
Korean | Ballad
I was really impressed with this group, and was disappointed to find that after a couple singles they’ve kind of dropped out of the scene other than a few appearances in OSTs and such, mostly in collaboration with other artists - namely SeeYa and Davichi, but IMO they outshine those groups vocally. A very classic Korean ballad that is a tad too predictable for my taste, but their strong, rich voices really bring the song together.
Te wo Tsunaide - Younha
Japanese | Pop-Rock
I’m a huge fan of Younha, even though I didn’t really like her newest Korean album (Peace Love & Ice Cream). This is probably my favourite song by her - it’s an optimistic, midtempo pop-rock track with a soaring chorus, completed by Younha’s powerful yet feminine voice. I absolutely love the part at 2:10 when the accompaniment suddenly cuts off, leaving only her voice for the rest of the line - it has an incredibly powerful impact.
Love Today - Taru
Korean | Pop/Electronica
A sugary track complete with warm, childish vocals and a heavily synthesized accompaniment. It’s a cute song with a sweet, poppy atmosphere that’s not too overpowering.
Mia - IU
Korean | Ballad
I was skeptical upon seeing that the singer is only 15 years old, expecting something poppy and sugary, but Mia was certainly a pleasant surprise - it’s a rich, emotional ballad. While utilizing strings in its accompaniment, the percussion and arrangement is fairly modernized. IU’s voice is powerful and surprisingly mature. I’m looking forward to hearing her future releases and seeing how her voice develops even furthur.
Jewelry day - ayaka
Japanese | Ballad
A pretty acoustic guitar ballad by another of my favourite female singers, ayaka. It’s melancholic but relaxing and soothing at the same time. ayaka’s voice is melodic and crisp. A refreshingly straightforward song.
Summer Song - YUI
Japanese | Pop/Rock
Despite loving acoustic guitars, I never really got into YUI’s music. Summer Song is a pleasing, mid-tempo track - IMO, it doesn’t have a lot of replay value, but it’s a nice song.
Unprecedented - Zhang Yun Jing
Mandarin | Pop-Rock
An upbeat track. Yun Jing’s voice is almost boyish, and suits the playful atmosphere of the song well. I think she was the winner of either Super Idol or One Million Star (singing competitions).
Can’t Sleep, Can’t Eat, I’m Sick - Amuro Namie
Japanese | Pop
Synthy trumpet riffs, a slick R&B atmosphere - really, it’s nothing but a cheap club number. Bubbly, fun, confident, and light-hearted.
Freaky - Koda Kumi
Japanese | Pop
A grungy, aggressive song - it’s uptempo and in-your-face. Koda Kumi’s powerful, slightly abrasive voice compliments the song well.
Labels: Amuro Namie, Ayaka, Black Pearl, BRIGHT, Brown Eyed Girls, Chihiro Onitsuka, Han Hee Jung, IU, Koda Kumi, SeeYa, Taru, Younha, YUI, Zhang Yun Jing
