Didn't realize this was a wall of text until I finished throwing it together. No, really. Feel free to ignore the post entirely, or read and ridicule.
So, with that -- random musings, observations, and rhetorical Qs from a non-regular.
- Dangerous Boys: Could possibly put off the more conservative viewership? One wears lip gloss, and two others slept/spent time in the same bed together on the 1st (2nd?) night. Those two have also been extra close on ~2-3 occasions, with one resting his head in the others lap, more than once. I've seen some conservative types go haywire over less, even if the show is supposed to be at least somewhat provocative, in parts. Then again, I guess (???) there isn't too much made of things like hosts, and singers cross-dressing for laughs.
- 2NE1: Bom is secretly 50, right? Why else would one do that to themselves when they actually used to look decent at one point. Seems she's going for something of that doll-like look that someone like Tiffany has naturally, and actually looks good with. Just crazy how popular some of these procedures are becoming with girls, in their teens and twenties, of various nationalities.
- Davichi: Better singers than a number of folks' favorite acts, but they don't seem to get acknowledged much as, apart from visual appeal (and some uptempo hits here and there), they aren't seen as hip by many.
- Orange Caramel: I have about zero interest in After School, but think OC is one of the best things going. Funny how that works sometimes with side projects. For me, the same dynamic applies to Postal Service > Death Cab, for instance. Could be that After School has never connected with me, for whatever reason. Bunch of pretty girls singing music I don't care about... like 4-Minute, or Rania. May need to give AF another chance, but until then: Pass.
- Sistar: Considering Hyorin will sing circles around her, Bora isn't nearly hot enough to be as average of an "MC" as she is. CL, Miyro, Zinger, etc. are far better; rookie/junior, or not. She strikes me as being in that rung or two above Tiffany-level, where Woori and other gimmick "MCs" reside. Would be good if she progresses rhyme wise and vocally. I presume there's a fair amount of ghost-writing going on in some of these cases.
- Secret: I wonder if they'd perform as well as they do if Hyosung weren't in the group, causing the rest to raise their game a few extra percentage points. Replace her with someone like Taeyeon, or, better, Jiyeon and I'm certain they wouldn't be as good. High up on the list of Juniors, although "Madonna" is "Bo Peep" levels of painful.
- T-ara: Should be more popular than they are..? Better, more consistent material would help. "Roly Poly" has its place, but "Bo Peep" just isn't a good song - hit at home and abroad, or not. The primary four (trio+Soyeon) deserve better than that. I'd ask why two of the remaining three are even in the group, but I'm not up for fending off multiple defense forces.
- KARA: Only in recent months did I even bother to notice how tailor made they are for success in Japan. Nearly everything from their name (ease of pronunciation, no translation needed), sound, and looks, to general demeanor/disposition works. Factor in how, as a collective, their Japanese is among the best of any Korean/Chinese/Taiwanese/Sing/Thai/etc. celebs, and that they usually don't resort to offensive "this is how Japanese people talk, and act" hijinks, and they're pretty much golden on that front. If Rainbow were to cut out the weirdness, they could also be in that realm. Although, "A" is so huge, no one seems to care either way.
- Korean Hip-Hop: Apart from Tablo/Epik and a few others, it tends to be hard to listen to, or watch. Often more derivative than some modern K-Pop (no small feat), while regularly veering into caricatures of the root music and cultures it so heavily borrows from. Spare me the mean mugs, mannerisms, ad-libs and subject matter you learned from watching various Viacom networks. If listeners don't have a solid foundation in, or proper understanding of the source music/cultures, I think it'd be hard to be fully forthright about the outside influences.
- Rainbow: Something, something, Ji Sook. That is all... Oh, and I wouldn't mind seeing the sub-group doing folk music, ballads, or something experimental. Just avoid being zany 2NE1, or over-sexed 4-Minute copies, and no loli schoolgirl nonsense.
- BEG: Need to put out more tunes, more frequently, and I hope they don't get discouraged by their advancing ages. Soloists can go on forever, but it's usually different for most groups, especially in youth-obsessed genres. Anyway, the album wasn't that great, but I'm cool with more "Cleansing Cream," and "Sixth Sense"-like tracks, and performances.
- IU: Endearingly offbeat, and self-effacing. Solid across the board, and she's simply more interesting than a lot of solo, or group acts. Strangely enough, while I don't suspect that she smokes weed or does much of anything else, really, it wouldn't completely surprise me to learn that she has tried dust/e/shrooms/acid/salvia, or other. Either as part of the artistic process, or just for the hell of it.
- Hyuna: Good performer, though sexier when she's actually clothed. Either way, looks and sex appeal only go so far, career wise. Not like she's Hyori-tier, so she could certainly stand to improve her craft in other areas, and/or rely less on "sexy" as a default function.
- Wonder Girls: One of the best albums of the year, and they got steam rolled by drivel. Goes to show that talent, and "product" alone aren't good enough in a number of cases. And, no, just like "The Boys," the lead single isn't anywhere near as bad as people make it out to be. Cross between 1980s pop, and 50s/60s music. If it sounds like a holiday track, that would be largely due to a number of Christmas tunes either stemming from that general era, or being partially re-imagined in that era (from older originals). Sohee is under-appreciated, but it's hard to get attention when you're in a group where two of your fellow members are better singers (in two languages, no less) than most of K-Pop.
- SNSD: Speaking of drivel... As bad as the album was, the title track is much better than people give it credit for. Even if some disagree on it being a good song, it's hard to deny that it just works live. Choreo for nine people, where none of them are bg dancers isn't easy either. As for popularity, that is easy. They're extremely high up on that "best" list. It isn't a matter of fans being sheep, and simply following what's most popular. I don't get the hate, some things are undeniable. Yeah, half the group can't sing worth a damn, but the whole is clearly greater than the sum of its parts. There aren't a lot of current K-Pop acts with SNSD's global appeal, and ability to draw in fans, no matter what they're doing, saying, or singing.
If nothing else, think of the above as a momentary change of pace from the standard 80-pics-and-gifs-per-page of Taeyeon, and Yoona.
So, with that -- random musings, observations, and rhetorical Qs from a non-regular.
- Dangerous Boys: Could possibly put off the more conservative viewership? One wears lip gloss, and two others slept/spent time in the same bed together on the 1st (2nd?) night. Those two have also been extra close on ~2-3 occasions, with one resting his head in the others lap, more than once. I've seen some conservative types go haywire over less, even if the show is supposed to be at least somewhat provocative, in parts. Then again, I guess (???) there isn't too much made of things like hosts, and singers cross-dressing for laughs.
- 2NE1: Bom is secretly 50, right? Why else would one do that to themselves when they actually used to look decent at one point. Seems she's going for something of that doll-like look that someone like Tiffany has naturally, and actually looks good with. Just crazy how popular some of these procedures are becoming with girls, in their teens and twenties, of various nationalities.
- Davichi: Better singers than a number of folks' favorite acts, but they don't seem to get acknowledged much as, apart from visual appeal (and some uptempo hits here and there), they aren't seen as hip by many.
- Orange Caramel: I have about zero interest in After School, but think OC is one of the best things going. Funny how that works sometimes with side projects. For me, the same dynamic applies to Postal Service > Death Cab, for instance. Could be that After School has never connected with me, for whatever reason. Bunch of pretty girls singing music I don't care about... like 4-Minute, or Rania. May need to give AF another chance, but until then: Pass.
- Sistar: Considering Hyorin will sing circles around her, Bora isn't nearly hot enough to be as average of an "MC" as she is. CL, Miyro, Zinger, etc. are far better; rookie/junior, or not. She strikes me as being in that rung or two above Tiffany-level, where Woori and other gimmick "MCs" reside. Would be good if she progresses rhyme wise and vocally. I presume there's a fair amount of ghost-writing going on in some of these cases.
- Secret: I wonder if they'd perform as well as they do if Hyosung weren't in the group, causing the rest to raise their game a few extra percentage points. Replace her with someone like Taeyeon, or, better, Jiyeon and I'm certain they wouldn't be as good. High up on the list of Juniors, although "Madonna" is "Bo Peep" levels of painful.
- T-ara: Should be more popular than they are..? Better, more consistent material would help. "Roly Poly" has its place, but "Bo Peep" just isn't a good song - hit at home and abroad, or not. The primary four (trio+Soyeon) deserve better than that. I'd ask why two of the remaining three are even in the group, but I'm not up for fending off multiple defense forces.
- KARA: Only in recent months did I even bother to notice how tailor made they are for success in Japan. Nearly everything from their name (ease of pronunciation, no translation needed), sound, and looks, to general demeanor/disposition works. Factor in how, as a collective, their Japanese is among the best of any Korean/Chinese/Taiwanese/Sing/Thai/etc. celebs, and that they usually don't resort to offensive "this is how Japanese people talk, and act" hijinks, and they're pretty much golden on that front. If Rainbow were to cut out the weirdness, they could also be in that realm. Although, "A" is so huge, no one seems to care either way.
- Korean Hip-Hop: Apart from Tablo/Epik and a few others, it tends to be hard to listen to, or watch. Often more derivative than some modern K-Pop (no small feat), while regularly veering into caricatures of the root music and cultures it so heavily borrows from. Spare me the mean mugs, mannerisms, ad-libs and subject matter you learned from watching various Viacom networks. If listeners don't have a solid foundation in, or proper understanding of the source music/cultures, I think it'd be hard to be fully forthright about the outside influences.
- Rainbow: Something, something, Ji Sook. That is all... Oh, and I wouldn't mind seeing the sub-group doing folk music, ballads, or something experimental. Just avoid being zany 2NE1, or over-sexed 4-Minute copies, and no loli schoolgirl nonsense.
- BEG: Need to put out more tunes, more frequently, and I hope they don't get discouraged by their advancing ages. Soloists can go on forever, but it's usually different for most groups, especially in youth-obsessed genres. Anyway, the album wasn't that great, but I'm cool with more "Cleansing Cream," and "Sixth Sense"-like tracks, and performances.
- IU: Endearingly offbeat, and self-effacing. Solid across the board, and she's simply more interesting than a lot of solo, or group acts. Strangely enough, while I don't suspect that she smokes weed or does much of anything else, really, it wouldn't completely surprise me to learn that she has tried dust/e/shrooms/acid/salvia, or other. Either as part of the artistic process, or just for the hell of it.
- Hyuna: Good performer, though sexier when she's actually clothed. Either way, looks and sex appeal only go so far, career wise. Not like she's Hyori-tier, so she could certainly stand to improve her craft in other areas, and/or rely less on "sexy" as a default function.
- Wonder Girls: One of the best albums of the year, and they got steam rolled by drivel. Goes to show that talent, and "product" alone aren't good enough in a number of cases. And, no, just like "The Boys," the lead single isn't anywhere near as bad as people make it out to be. Cross between 1980s pop, and 50s/60s music. If it sounds like a holiday track, that would be largely due to a number of Christmas tunes either stemming from that general era, or being partially re-imagined in that era (from older originals). Sohee is under-appreciated, but it's hard to get attention when you're in a group where two of your fellow members are better singers (in two languages, no less) than most of K-Pop.
- SNSD: Speaking of drivel... As bad as the album was, the title track is much better than people give it credit for. Even if some disagree on it being a good song, it's hard to deny that it just works live. Choreo for nine people, where none of them are bg dancers isn't easy either. As for popularity, that is easy. They're extremely high up on that "best" list. It isn't a matter of fans being sheep, and simply following what's most popular. I don't get the hate, some things are undeniable. Yeah, half the group can't sing worth a damn, but the whole is clearly greater than the sum of its parts. There aren't a lot of current K-Pop acts with SNSD's global appeal, and ability to draw in fans, no matter what they're doing, saying, or singing.
If nothing else, think of the above as a momentary change of pace from the standard 80-pics-and-gifs-per-page of Taeyeon, and Yoona.
