The video starts off with beautifully dramatic shots and eerie music heard from afar. And then the beat kicks in and your realize this is pretty much the same melodic line as Ally & AJ's Potential Break Up Song with maybe just a bit of synth-heavy generic-kpop-girl-group mixed in. The song's fun but it's not unique and the vocals aren't mixed very evenly within it; some float way above the instrumental and some are drowning in it.

The choreography is okay, but nothing jumps out as spectacular or truly unique. I do love the settings though, both that big beautiful ballroom and the set in front of the LED light-wall thing. I enjoy LED light wall things, I just do. I also like the individual settings, the rooms and hallways, as well as the spots in front of the light tubes. Again, I enjoy light-tubes like I enjoy LED-light-wall-things. I just do.

The styling is gorgeous, but very typical for this year. Between Girls' Day, DalShabet, and a dash of Sistar, I'm pretty sure that every single one of Tahiti's outfits have a direct precedent.

All in all it's just okay.

Now, I don't speak Thai, not at all. I know like six words in Bengali and that is, quite laughably, as close as I've gotten to studying Thai. So if they aren't actually called Lion Mascot, I'd love to know that, since I've been calling them that for about a year and a half now since I first found them, and I'm still only like 30% sure I've got the name right.

Anyway, I love this release. The song is coffee shop chill and fabulously fun. It moves well melodically and is very well balanced and spatialized. There's a building harmonic interest as it progresses and the instruments each have their own unique line to follow in the melody.

The MV if fantastic. It's a story that almost everyone can relate to, with anxieties that affect anyone sane. I love how the band is following him around with their instruments. They're like the mess of thoughts (the encouraging half at least) that runs loudly through a person's head and goes entirely unnoticed by the rest of the world. I enjoy it tremendously.

Also, Thai pop is overlooked by a lot of people and I think that's quite a shame.

First off: starting with FT Island's I Wish was a fabulous idea, it's one of FT Island's best songs ever (and therefore and unexpected treat) and it plays thematically with the events of the MVs story. The bright, high-contrast colors in contrast to the warm-blend palate of the FTI section works very well, and the styling of the girls is top-notch, simple and clean but bright and spunky and keyed to their personalities. Each scene is very unique and memorable, and very well coordinated, both internally and with the rest of the MVs locations. Also, it shows the girls as musicians in positions of both band-type and Idol-type groups, showing each as a respectable position to be in as honest to goodness music makers, a thing that AoA has always done fairly well. Also, I like seeing their concept flexibility as it evolves. They've done very well going from Elvis to Get Out and now to Moya, in very marked steps of transition that are noticeable but still aren't too dramatic. Especially since this is AoA Black, the girls with the aggressive attitude. They've successfully pulled off both cutesy and agressive in the same MV and I like that they never acknowledged that it would be a tricky thing to do.

The song is very nice, much better than the other songs I've seen from them. It's a bit simple and syllabic, but honestly I think it works well with the story. It blends anxiety and repetition as the melody moves nicely over a unique beat that keeps everything pressing onward through the piece. The song is well spatialized and balanced. It builds well and grows in scale and complexity as it runs it's course. I would have liked to see a melodic bridge crash into place at about the 3min mark, because the build up really sets up for something nice. Instead you slide rather unexcitingly into a rap . . . A crashingly melodic bridge would have made the song feel more like an anthem and I guess that's not what they were going for, but the set up leads to disappointment when the tension just sort of fizzles away instead of being released in a bright drop. Ah well, still a pretty good song.

The finish with C.N.Blue's Loner is fabulous as well, another sound-bite treat, a thematic link to the story, and of course and establishment of precedent. AoA might be the first girl band/idol-group, but they're not the first in the genre to meet with success, and acknowledging that, pushing that idea, is a great thing to them to do.

First of all, with my recent concert-going weekend extravaganza (read about it HERE), I've fallen behind with the kpop world. Now I'm playing catch-up on on seriously epic releases, which includes AA's comeback!

Midnight Taxi has a very nice, underplayed energy and it's hella catchy. The video is odd, in some ways and argument for 'artsy' could be made, but to me it feels much more like the studio manager stepped out for a weekend and the video techs acquired new software and were just button-mashing with excitement. Honestly, every single filter known to man was used, and every possible transitional technique, and various forms of effects layering and . . . it's really all over the place and has no apparent reason to validate being so.

It really feels quite chintzy to me.

        Okay, I'll admit that I wasn't too keen on watching this, which is why I actually forgot about it entirely until it came up on my tumblr this morning because of the Growl teasers. Wolf is an okay song and the dance version of the MV has some cool choreography, but it really wasn't anything worth the hype it won.
        The drama version is actually quite fabulous, first and foremost because Heart Attack and Don't Go are both much better songs than Wolf. Of course, any drama version is better than a dance version, by default. The drama version really should have been released first, two weeks or so before the comeback as a full album preview (with part two being released one full week before the comeback to make the anguish of not knowing hit a peak, but not be absurd), and the dance version should have been used to maintain the thrill, previewing the choreography on like the Monday before the Music Show performances. SM should have known that. Besides, SM dropped the drama version out of nowhere, there was next to no warning for it and poof there it is, all the hype that came was post-release which is honestly tragic, because videos are supposed to promote appeal not garner attention because of other promotions.
        Anyway, this MV should be like three minutes longer than it is, the plot progression needed to slow down and the characters develop a bit more, give the fluff scenes a fuller feel. Right now they feel rushed and like they're just there to establish a love line. If there were a few more scenes in school, a little more initial distrust, some shots around the town, out shopping, showing them having more and more fun, and then a private smile or two, walk her to the bus and then pause have both reflect on each other . . . give the story just a bit more STORY . . . it could actually be really good. And the first scene, there should be more to that as well, background on why he's getting this assignment, why that girl is key for some reason, the magic blue-glowiness . . . it that a pack thing? IS there even a pack? or what? if there was just a little bit more . . . it would be epic. Also, Wolf actually works really well with the fight scene. On its own, it's not a good song, but it makes for great dramatic BGM. They didn't use it well, the songs pauses were not exploited and the dramatic swirls of melody were entirely ignored, which is practically criminal, but still, it's a better use of the song than in the previous music video.
        The drama version has SO much potential to be incredible. But they really didn't do it right, especially towards the end: The trigger that makes her get off the bus confuses me, I mean there is a sightline shot of her seeing the bad guys, but she waits so long after seeing them, there's no way she couldn't have caught up to them before they made it to the warehouse. They should have shown her antsy as she was, but watching them walk away from her, THEN have her get up and off the bus to run after them, but only once they've disappeared from sight. And why everyone abandons him bothers me, there's not a long enough pause between "yay I beat the baddies" and "opps I accidentally hurt a good guy". And how on earth did she not get involved with the fighting? Come on, a terrified girl standing at the door, making everyone pause as the bridge comes up? That would have been perfect, and it would have made the perfect catalyst for his little psychotic-super-fighter-kill-everyone-fit in a way that makes more sense than "oh know my friends". If he was protecting her, than anyone near her would have been a threat, including his friends. Since he wasn't protecting her, and was protecting his friends, seeing them as enemies makes next to no sense, even in the haziness of battle. And that they just left... instead of turning on him, roughing him up at least a little . . . but no, a disgusted look and a bump of a shoulder is all they throw at him. Not even a single punch of hurt or outrage? I don't buy it for a second. Sure one wants too, grabs his jacket and all, and the others hold him back, but someone should have been able to get at least one good swing in. And that she has to approach him, instead of say confront him from being pinned underneath him as he 'protects' her . . . and we don't even see her see him go all bad-ass, whats to say she really did see him, where's the drama in having her just go up to him and talk?  We should have had a shot of her watching, horrified from the sidelines at the very least! And also that she has no back up is ridiculous, not one of the other guys stayed behind? Come on, they HAD to have seen her go inside, and not one thought, "this could be a bad thing, maybe I should stick around", seriously? I just really don't buy it.
        And where is part two? With teasers for Growl floating around . . . is it going to be Growl's MV? From the teasers, it looks like the same set up as Wolf: mediocre dance MV first, then a drama version. If that's the case, SM has truly fallen, but still I'm hopeful.
        On it's own this MV is incomplete and therefore cannot earn anything over a 9, and as I have so much I would like to change about what the MV does have . . . as much as I think it's a great video and I do truly like it, it is not, technically speaking, very good.

        I'm an English major. I cannot apologize for puns. Besides the statement is true. This video met the expectations I held for it, for f(x) as a whole in recent years. That's not necessarily to be taken as a good thing. F(x) is SM's last big risk and first great failure, in my opinion, they've never been able to push into their own unique and successful niche. This is their same old out-there styling, generic techno-pop, visually interesting, but not spectacular thing.
        The choreography is fun, I like the patty-cake parts especially, and it plays well with the song and its transitions.
        The Styling is odd, as expected. Amber's sparkly eyebrow is . . . interesting. I think I kind of like it, but I'd like it better if they were even. I'm not a huge fan of the plaid sections, especially with Krystal's hat. It looks like they're trying to push a Scottish thing and the sound feels Hindi . . . is just doesn't work. And is Victoria wearing a CollegeHumor dress?
        I really like the glass floor thing, that is actually really cool. Especially with the upside down and out of proper perspective elements, they really play well off the pitch-bend of the song. The rest of the sets are very generic electro-pop backdrops. Visually interesting, but nothing out of the ordinary.
        Song-wise, it's interesting. The sound feels almost Hindi-pop in the intro, and a bit in the chorus. Like most recent f(x) songs it never really takes off. I like it much better than Pinnochio but a little bit less than Electric Shock. Amber's rap works really well, but it feels like the climax of the song and leaves the rest to hang. Melodically, I like the bridge and the ending, but they don't contrast with  the verses well enough to make them pop.

        I don't have too much to say about this one. It's very pretty with great scenery shots and the girls all look absolutely beautiful, but . . . that's really it. Nothing actually happens. The song isn't the sort of thing to demand choreography, but it would have been nice for them to be doing something. I understand the standing still on-stage part, but for the MV there really should have been a story or something to watch unfold with the song. It really felt to me like I was watching a very pretty screen-saver, flashing up pictures of someone's vacation.
        The song is really pretty, but it doesn't demand a visual.
        Rather than calling this a real music video I think it should have been a special-release sort of thing, like Xiah's 11 o'clock thing. A one-take thing could have been really cool for this.

        In many ways, I love that this is not a Halloween release. Creepy is too awesome to only be done in October. However this does play out, especially in the beginning, exactly like a 10-31 horror night movie . . . it's funny, but it feels more 'halloween fun time' than 'something here is creepy and legit terrifying', especially with the hotel-guest-costume party. *shrugs* I still like the fact that it's coming out sometime other than October.
        The song is passable, but it's not a very strong release. With such a long and lauded career under her belt, I would have hoped for something better. The vocals are tight and supported with a lot of compression. The aegyo-ish sound of them is excusable for younger performers, and even in follow-up or gag-releases. For a comeback made after around three years after her last release, this is not really an acceptable display, especially considering the fact that she really can sing well. The songs construction is simplistic, but it does have good harmonic elements and it is catchy as hell.
        The MV is hilarious and she is absolutely adorable and creeptastic in all the right ways. It does feel a bit long to me though, some of the scenes dragged on for just a bit more than I'd have liked, and the time lost to them added up progressively. I think about a minute could have been shaved off no problem and it would have made the whole video feel more poignant and more aggressively creepy. I did enjoy the song in the credits though, sounds like a harpsichord or something to me and that made me smile (despite the fact that it again harkens to the 10-31 sort of movie night trope).

        I had two thoughts the first time I watched this: that I like it, and that I don't like it as much as I hoped I would.
        It's a solid release, but I'm not as in love with it as I am with some Beast songs. To me, Shadow looks too much like Soom but doesn't have the sharp-lined contrasts or the visual richness of the 2010 release. It also reminds me of Midnight, but I wasn't a huge fan of that release either. Shadow's set is much nicer than Soom's (or Midnight's for that matter), but there are definitely similarities, which makes me long for the spark that Soom has and Shadow does not. Especially in terms of choreography, where Soom's choreography was dramatic and eye-catching, instantly recognizable, Shadow's choreography is just kind of there. It's not the spectacle that it usually is in Beast releases and it definitely does have the attention grabbing impact it should, especially in a release without an active narrative. I mean really, Beast had epic choreography even in the Beautiful / I Like You Best promotions, and those MVs have a massively complicated, active plotline. Even Beautiful Night  had some slick moves. Now I haven't seen Shadow Live yet, but there's not much in the video to indicate that the live-choreography is going to be epic. There's a few snippets of interesting choreography, but nothing with the sort of show-stopping appeal or memorable pizzazz of most of Beast's past releases.
        Now, that's not to say Shadow isn't still cool. I love the tattoo/body-paint guy and the mirror-image split screens, particularly how they don't quite match up in certain places. Conceptually it's very cool and in a lot of ways, it pulls it off very well. There's drama in the set, the scale of things feels very grand and enveloping. The only visual aspect I have a problem with (aside from the choreography) is the lack of color. Shadow's desaturation is thematic, but it really drains away a lot of the visual interest when the desaturation is spread so evenly. I'd have liked it better it there was a balance, some scenes in the story being dark and drained of color, and some scenes being bright enough to give the darkened scenes some punch.
        Song-wise, Shadow is a very solid release. There's an impressive use of harmony, elegant counterpoint. The melody sits high in the listener's awareness but the smoothe synth and piano fill supports it well and the gritty beat keeps everything grounded. Rhythmically it slides along with a sort of smoothe regularity that's broken up by decorations that compound and lead the song to develop well. Over all, I really like the song, the MV too even.

        SS501 was one of my very first kpop loves, so Leader has a special place in my heart. And Jay, as an American, a nice guy, and an acquaintance of my ex-room-mate, also has a special spot. So clearly, I am biased when going at this one, but even so, I can review it objectively (after all, I'm a firm believer in the idea that liking something and thinking that it's genuinely good have absolutely nothing to do with one another). So with that said, this is a great release.
        The song is just more than mediocre, technically speaking. It's catchy as hell and I love it, great work out material and great to just listen to, it makes you feel strong and powerful and truly unbreakable. The beat is strong and fabulous, and the melody moves over it very well, giving a great illusion of space. Any song a SS501 member touches always has a great sense of scale and grandeur, so it's no surprise. But the song's construction is pretty simple, three sections that repeat, minimal growth and build, very little panning. It does play in thematically, being that the song's pretty much about being beat on over and over again and yet being entirely unbreakable. The melody moves along beautifully, but there's very little evolution. However there is tremendous harmonic interest and counterpoint contrast to make it swing out in grand sweeping gestures of sound. I enjoy it greatly.
        Jay's vocals play well with HyunJoong's and all is well with the world.
        The music video is fabulous. I LOVE the way in which tradition is shown right alongside the cutting edge. It's all the idea of the warrior and strength from past to present and on, how Awesome doesn't have a time frame or a life expectancy. Awesome just IS. The Arts are all integrated and wonderfully so, the painting, the drumming, the martial arts, the dancing, the singing, the rapping, it's all woven together in a beautiful stitch of EPIC. I'm not a fan of the almost military haircut on Leader, it looks really odd to me. The choreography works pretty well with the nature of the MV, there's nothing particularly special about it on it's own, but the fight-style of it makes it link up fantastically with the sword-play and whatnot. Besides, Leader looks awesome doing it. The sets are are really cool, and the props and stylings. The red-black-white color-scheme makes me happy because it's awesome on a lot of different levels, a trinity of colors that goes back centuries and has permeated through almost every culture on earth at least once in the course of history. Besides, it just looks cool. Like the red-light rain scene, that just looks awesome. It could also be an allusion to the red light district, being that there's a general assumption that a-rate unbreakable bad-asses hang out there. The use of time scales (the slow-mo and sped-up parts in contrast to the real-time portions) is fantastic, every transition is well timed and thematically linked to both the visual and the audio presented.
        I highly approve!

        Ailee is a spectacular singer, she really has some of the best pipes in the industry at the moment. And her vocals are strong and smoothe and sassy. In this MV she shows her stuff, the song suits her well. The brass section makes a great addition, brass does not work with everyone's voice but it works great with Ailee's. It's great song overall too, the beat moves it forward, the lyrics hold the melody up and the vocals wash over the listener with the sassy roll. Great use is made of harmonic spatialization, and the harmony's inclusion and placement (as in opposition to the sections that use reverb or delays)  well delineates the sections in an interesting way.
        The MV is pretty good. There's a lot of old-world Hollywood glamour and lounger-singer sass in it. I love the backdrops and stages, and the styling is great. I especially love this hair color on her for some reason (I also just really like this hair color, period, but I do think it works especially well for her). I'm not a huge fan of the choreography, most of the MV doesn't have any at all and the parts that do make me really want to see more. There is something to be said for saving the show for the Lives, but without a plotline to watch, the cuts of Ailee just standing about looking gorgeous don't feel entirely warranted. The choreo is worked into the plotline of the song, not overwhelmingly so but it definitely is, and that makes me feel that the choreo is the more interesting thing to watch.
        Finally, a lot of people have been comparing her to Beyonce, calling her Korea's version. I can see some of the reasoning behind it, she is definitely a Queen in her own right and she's done great covers of Beyonce's songs. At the same time, I see much more of Christina Aguilera in her. There's a certain bright and brassy tone in her voice that I feel matches Ailee's better than Beyonce's and Christina's predisposition to old-school Holly-Glam seems much more akin to Ailee than Beyonce's showstopping diva thing. Listening to this in close conjunction with the Moulin Rouge OST (particularly Lady Marmalade) might have something to do with my thoughts.
        Anywho, solid release, great vocals on a great track with a great MV. ^_^

        Jrock usually gets the short end of the creative stick when it comes to MVs and this is no real exception, but even so it's beautifully done. The effects were very genre-typical so I'm excusing them almost entirely. The setting plays thematically into the whole concept, especially the couch that's too big for one person but not quite large enough to fully fit two. Lily is quite the tragic song.
        The MVs silent opening bothered me, but it is the industry standard. The camera angle was lovely. And the first notes filter in fabulously. The synth and the warped guitar . . . *shivers* so great. The cuts as the song picks up are are well done. And the visual transitions are very elegant. The styling is all gorgeous, they ALL look fantastic. The looks are edgy and elegant and the distressed lighting keys up on it even more. The lighting also plays into the lyrics. (Also, in case you don't know, Lillies are the quintessential flower to represent Death. They're not fun-spring-day allusions. In at least a dozen cultures around the world, Lillies are foreboding and tragic, either giving solace in Death or forewarning of it . . .).
        Lyrically, it's gorgeous and truly tragic (I mean really: 'worse than the feeling lonely is the morning I'll forget you'). The vocals move well through the melody and the melodic structure evolves with the sort of elegance that can only be reasonably expected when Jrock is concerned. The panning of the different instruments give the song a great feeling of space-filled and the keening melodies each instrument independently follows create a beautiful sense of discordant longing and emptiness. Truly fantastic.
        DIAURA is still pretty new to the jrock scene, but they clearly deserve to be here.