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Jimin n J.Don - GOD (MV Review)

5/12/2015

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A HotShot Duo with a Hella Hoppin' Track!

           So this came out a while ago, and I meant to make a review of it, but things got out of hand and I was suddenly required to be in NYC... I didn't completely forget about it though, because it's an absolutely incredible release. One benefit to being more than a bit late on the doling out of commentary is that someone's already made a fantastic analysis of the track and it's impressive MV. As you may known, Seoulbeats has a few writers that I steadfastly disagree with, but in regards to this epic release I fully agree with the analysis presented HERE. Aesthetically, the sets and stylings are gorgeous and the over-all vibe of the track suits the HipHop elegance-with-attitude notion of 4 Minute's Crazy without being so close so as to cause confusion. It makes the perfect addition to a clubhit hiphop playlist. The Choreo is sexy smooth and it seems like it'll be a TON of fun to learn and cover.
           In addition to being ripe with awesomeness and attitude, the track is well balanced, hella catchy, and delightfully energetic. It moves over the beat with vibrancy and it evolves well over time. It's perfectly spatialized to make the duo's declaration of omnipotence include a sense of omnipresence. It's easily one of my favorite rap-based releases from so far this season! With the focus being on personal prowess, individual determination, and generalized self-confidence, it takes gender out of the equation is the best way. At the same time, the verses beautifully detail the intimate personal struggles of both N.Flying and AOA to make names for themselves in the wild world that is modern music in Korea. I'm a huge fan of how this stands as a departure from Jimin's usual work with AOA and I'm terribly hyped up for N.Flying's upcoming Debut!

I Give It A 9/10: Blissful!

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AOA (Ace of Angels) - Confused (MV Review)

11/3/2013

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Fanservice Anyone?

        We've got the super-innocent angel-image and the super-sexy sleek image, bright red high heels, and hot damn that choreography. In all honesty, I'm not a huge fan of it I like it for this one release, it works really well here, but I'd hate for this to be a trend for them (on an artistic level at least, they are absolutely gorgeous and the eye-contact version is simply sinfully fantastic). For this track all of it works perfectly: it's sexy as hell, catchy and hell, smoothe and full an sweet as hell. The track is intricate and well balanced, but simple enough to learn after a single listen and fun to hum along to (I do not recommend dancing along though, and I'm very glad our radio booth is now almost entirely private. Out of all the weird choreo-motions one could copy while walking down the street I think the finger biting here might attract the most attention...). Anywho, this is easily one of my fave Femme-tracks of the recent batch (though this fall there have been some pretty fantastic female releases). The styling is gorgeous and it's fantastic to watch, though nothing at all really happens. Still it's some great eyecandy and that has to count for something, right?

I  Give it A 6/10: Good Job.

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AoA (Ace of Angels) - Moya (MV Review)

7/31/2013

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Very Nice, Ladies, Very Nice Indeed.

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.

I Give it a 7/10: Me Gusta.

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