Tag: <span>dalmatian</span>

SNSD kicked off 2013 in K-pop with quite a comeback. But many other acts too have decided to make this January an action-packed release calendar. With comebacks by rookies and some familiar names, here I highlight the three that really caught my attention this month.

Nine Muses – “Dolls”

A girl group who debuted in 2010 and was marketed as a “model” group by their label. They put together a nine-member group (*gee, I wonder why 9*), all of whom were really tall and looked really good! Sadly, like many other rookie groups from the smaller companies, their debut single sucked, and was soon forgotten.

Member shake-ups later, the group saw a resurgence thanks to songs produced by Sweetune (my favourite K-pop producers). Beginning in 2011 with “Figaro,” “News” and “One Way Ticket” — all of which were funky good! So when news broke the now back-to-nine member girl group was making a comeback in 2013 with another Sweetune track, it piqued my interest!

“Dolls” is a song that has all the hallmarks of a Sweetune production. Thumping disco-inspired beats, guitar hooks and the song structure where the chorus after the bridge goes up a notch vocally. But as much as it is a decent song, I can’t help but wonder if Sweetune are now running out of ideas when it comes to new music. They are the producers behind all the big hits by KARA and Infinite. Which means, a lot more music companies are approaching Sweetune hoping to replicate their success.

SPICA and Boyfriend have both worked with Sweetune on their recent comebacks, and because of that, the songs are starting to feel way too familiar. “Dolls” could have easily been sung by SPICA, leaving Nine Muses with no real identity or unique “concept” of their own.

That said, “Dolls” is still a very-listenable track and I can’t help but visualize the dance the girls do during the chorus even when I’m not watching the music video. It’s a very simple move that totally works for the song whereas the rest of the choreography is just plain.

Nine Muses have another hit on their hands to help expand their growing fanbase, but given they are still at an early stage of their career, it would be nice if the girls carved a niche out for themselves — image-wise or music-wise. – 3 out of 5

DMTN – “Safety Zone”

The boyband formerly known as Dalmatian was just another rookie group I couldn’t take seriously at debut. Why? Because they were called Dalmatian! And corny-enough, they wore spotted-white jackets and sang silly songs. But their first album, had a few album tracks I liked and by then I realized this was yet another burgeoning group trapped under a concept ill-conceived by their management.

Last year, they broke free. Member changes followed and from a six-member group they were down to five. Fortunately proper English-speakers made it into the group and Dalmatian made a very strong comeback with “E.R.”. With a much more mature image – both musically and physically – Dalmatian really won me over. And now, the transformation is complete. Dalmatian is no more; DMTN is in!

“Desire, Motivation, Timing, Now,” according to Korean-American member Daniel, is what the group’s name stands for. Whatever. All I care about is how good their new music is.

“Safety Zone” is another song produced by Duble Sidekick, the same production team behind “E.R.”. The song is a mid-tempo piano-tinged track that, fortunately in DMTN’s favour, doesn’t sound like any other song from a boyband currently promoting. It’s a heartfelt song about a man who wishes the girl he loves would stay near him so he can protect her from all harm — thus the man being the “safety zone”. The MV sees Daniel getting beat up when she doesn’t oblige. Or at least that’s what I understood 😛

The instrumentation and the guitar-wailing in this song could have very well made this song a power ballad had it not been for the thumping beats. It’s still a very good song that I had on replay over and over. And because the music video didn’t feature any choreographed dancing, I enjoyed the song even without feeling the need watch the MV. Something I couldn’t do really do with songs like SNSD’s “I Got a Boy”.

So in other words, another great comeback from DMTN who seem to be on the right track in carving out a niche for themselves. That said, did that guy really have to sing “I’m in a SAF-tey zone, I’m in a SAF-tey zone…“? 🙂 – 3.5 out of 5

Crayon Pop

This might not sound like much like of a review, but ever since I stumbled upon rookie group Crayon Pop last month, I can’t help but not write about these girls!

The video that made me fall in love with Crayon Pop was this:

“Dancing Queen” isn’t their first single. “Saturday Night” and “Bing Bing” preceded it, but Crayon Pop are back promoting “Bing Bing” and have managed to secure appearances on some of the music programs.

It’s been a struggle for them really. Coming from a small agency – Chrome Entertainment – they don’t have the resources (read: money) to produce expensive music videos or even get TV show appearances.

Which is a damn shame! Because if you want something different and fun in this formulaic world of Korean pop, Crayon Pop is your answer! It was love at first sight when I watched the many versions of “Dancing Queen” the girls performed on the busy streets of Seoul; in the hopes passerby would record them, upload the videos online and achieve viral success. It’s a clever marketing strategy when the mainstream options are harder to crack in today’s cut-throat K-pop market.

Crayon Pop anime members — Support Crayon Pop!

I love the unique style the girls have going for them. Cute, funky songs with a retro-vibe, equally matched by fun choreography. I mean, check out the Korean LMFAO and aerobics-like dance moves in the “Saturday Night” MV!

I love the sense of humour Crayon Pop’s image has. From their wacky concepts, trainer outfits, to their dances — they just make you smile while watching them perform! It’s so refreshing to see these girls do their adorable dances. Sure there’s a lot of English that needs improving but I see a bright future for Crayon Pop — if not in Korea, surely in Japan! It’s a market prime for their brand of zany humour. Makes sense to focus on Japan, which is also where “Bing Bing” was filmed:

Their choreography being what it is, it’s no surprise more and more dance covers are being uploaded on to YouTube. I’d say, go for it! Whatever helps Crayon Pop get more attention. For now, “Dancing Queen” remains my favourite Crayon Pop single to date and it will be interesting to see how the girl’s concept evolves as the years go by.

“Dancing Queen” – 4 out of 5

“Saturday Night” – 2.5 out of 5

“Bing Bing” – 3 out of 5

Support Crayon Pop and check out their videos on their official YouTube channel. There have uploaded so many!

Another group I never thought I’d write about. When Dalmatian debuted, it was hard to take a boyband named after a cute breed of dogs seriously. Their songs didn’t do it for me either. “Round 1,” “Lover Cop” and “That Man Opposed” were not to my liking at all. In fact the only song I ever liked by them was the album track “Lost in Love“. But the one thing I did appreciate about the group was the members worked on many of the songs themselves, a rarity in K-pop.

But now, like a lot of their rookie peers, Dalmatian have gone though some changes. From an original line-up of six members, they’re now down to five. Member Day-Day left, new member Simon comes in, and brings with him perfect English skills. (Something which shines on this album)

Dalmatian State of Emergency members new lineup — Dalmatian, the current line-up

So why am I writing about a group I never cared for before? Because their comeback song is probably their best song to date!

Dalmatian State of Emergency album cover — In fact I gave the whole album a listen and felt the need to give the album some attention

Here’s a track-by-track review:

1. “E.R” – The lead single:

As soon as I heard this song, I couldn’t help but compare it to B2ST’s “Fiction”. The pacing, song structure and the melody all seemed similar, albeit with a few keys off. Still, I won’t call “E.R” a carbon copy of “Fiction” – because this song manages to sound so good on its own. It was only a few days back INFINITE came out with out with “The Chaser” and as an Inspirit, I find myself listening to “E.R” a lot more! – 4.5/5

The MV does everything to re-introduce Dalmatian to the world. Gone are the silly themes, aegyo-filled actions – this ‘new’ Dalmatian look serious and hard edged. They look pretty cool in fact, enough to separate them from the standard look of every other K-pop boy band. And although the choreography isn’t great, the MV still serves its purpose well.

2. “차 안에서 (Drive)” – The second track keeps the pace on a high, but with a smoother jam. The beats are really nice, vocals even nicer and its yet another good track. There are lot of lines sung in English, and with Simon on board, it just sounds so much better when the accent and pronunciation is done right. – 4/5

3. “Hurt Me” – It was by this point I realized this was a good mini-album. The third track sounds like a boyband song from the late ’90s. The beats and the keyboard hook are reminiscent of teen-pop music of that era. Not really a ballad, but the tempo is a notch lower on this one. – 3/5

4. “Still By Ur Side” – Rounding up the songs on ‘State of Emergency,’ this is tookeeps the ‘feel’ consistent. Consider me impressed, I never expected a consistent tracklist like this. – 3/5

5. “E.R” (Instrumental) – I know it’s an instrumental, but I really enjoy listening to this a lot (but I’m not going to give it a rating though)

Dalmatian E.R MV screencap members — Good job guys

When your album only consists of 5 tracks (4 proper songs) and each one is good, if not great, then you know you have a good release in hand. Sure it’s only their second mini-album, but ‘State of Emergency’ is in my opinion Dalmatian’s best release to date. “E.R” is great single and I hope the boys get a taste of success this time around.

With INFINITE promoting “The Chaser,” I doubt Dalmatian have a shot at winning an award. But even if they don’t, I hope Dalmatian at least get taken seriously as a musical act. I’m sure it wouldn’t mean a lot more to the members given its been over one-and-half years since they debuted, and despite three singles, the group have yet to make much of an impact on the K-pop charts.

With a whole new image, a great new song, Dalmation shows it’s never too late to go in for a makeover. U-KISS did it last year and look at where they are now. I consider these changes as a sign of maturity in K-pop. When the ‘big 3’ entertainment companies went with a certain formula, every other idol wannabe went with the tried-and-tested to emulate the initial success K-pop saw. But the newbie agencies seem to have woken up to the fact the market is saturated with the same image and sound, and that if you want to set yourself apart from the rest, you best do something different. The fact that the album cover only shows ‘DMTN,’ you know whoever in charge at Monkey Funch Entertainment wanted people to forget the white suits with black spots. It’s a move I can commend.

My final rating for Dalmatian’s 2nd mini-album ‘State of Emergency’: 3.5 out of 5 (Pretty Good)

dalmatian

K-pop Round-up-Review: Nine Muses, DMTN and Crayon Pop

Dalmatian – ‘State of Emergency’ album review: A makeover in every sense

mithunonthenet