BIBI – DERRE. We like BIBI. Her Lowlife Princess a few years back was one of the most fully-realised solo K-pop albums ever. Her output since has been eclectic, never making safe choices, and with DERRE we are enchanted by what has to be the gayest K-pop video of the year. Just full-on gaying from beginning to end. Gay gay gay. Gay BIBI is the best BIBI.
Yves – Viola. From Gay BIBI we segue effortlessly to the gayest ex-LOONA. Yves’ LOOP earlier this year set out her return to music as a solo artist, but Viola really seals the deal. The whole album is filled with rubberband dancefloor drum machine workouts, and Viola is a good candidate for the cream. Also an incredible Mid-Century Weird video, as we might expect from Paix Per Mil.
TAEYEON – Letter to Myself. After all of that bear slaying and dessert nightmare back in July, here in November TAEYEON finds herself in damp London, trying to navigate multiple relationship and having trouble with a late night bus. Fortunately, the guy in the bear suit is back (prequel?) and rallies all of those difficult Londoners to help. Sounds incoherent? Maybe, but still one of the top voices in K-pop after all these years.
MEOVV – TOXIC. This five-piece girl group debuted earlier this year with a single, MEOW, that was critically panned. Unfairly? Maybe, but this strong return late in 2024 looks like it could set the record straight, and perhaps prompt re-evaluation of their first release. Don’t be a dick to rookies!
WayV – FREQUENCY. It’s strange how a Chinese-market offshoot of SM Entertainment’s NCT boy group franchise became at least as popular in Korea as the original group, and here the latest album leads with a Korean-language version of the title track. Oh yes, and TEN is being a cheeky dreamboat again. Hi, TEN!
IRENE – Like a Flower. Second Red Velvet solo release of the year. It’s all of that glossy Red Velvet production that we have come to expect. Sophisticated pop for sophisticated pop people. “Unlocking superpowers; I’m singing in the shower” Yeah, this number will do that for you.
G-DRAGON (feat TAEYANG and DAESUNG) – HOME SWEET HOME. Okay, in the last episode G-DRAGON had just ripped up the rulebook, the reality studio, and possibly our minds. Was that enough? Not for GD. Once again, no rules. HOME SWEET HOME, saw the first reunion since Still Life of the three remaining active members of BIGBANG. And you know what? This is a vintage BIGBANG banger! It bangs hard. It’s got that original YG Entertainment sound. But there’s no video, so that’s an odd marketing strategy, right? Yeah, but a couple of days after its surprise release the trio appeared at the MAMA awards ceremony for the first time in seven years to perform FANTASTIC BABY and the definitive banger, BANG BANG BANG, before delivering HOME SWEET HOME to a vast audience. Unprecedented and huge. Apologies to anyone suffering from PTSD.
Cultgazer – mido. Finally from huge to tiny. K-pop doesn’t even register in its infrastructure unless it has views and streams up there in the millions. Cultgazer have only clocked up a few thousand views, which might not even be bad for K-indie, but the reason this is even here is that this is an example of Korean shoegaze which is actually fucking good. Not just well-produced Korean-language dreampop, but full-on, majestic, nose to the floor gazing. Didn’t expect that!
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