Of the countless rookie groups that debuted last year, very few of them really stood out to me. While many of them churned out the formulaic K-pop sound and image, few groups could be defined ‘unique’. One of those boybands was B1A4, and the other was Block B.
While I really liked B1A4’s debut single “OK Go,” I wasn’t too impressed by Block B’s “Wanna B”. But Block B still got my attention – mainly because of their attitude. Right from the get go, they didn’t seem to (or want to) conform to the cutesy, ‘act all innocent in front of the cameras’ image the other groups were going for. Instead, they were a little zany, and didn’t mind having some fun at red carpet events.
Now Block B are back with their second mini-album – and what an improvement it is!
These guys could do really well on variety shows
Comprised of 5 songs (the 6th track is just an instrumental of “Narnina”), here’s a track-by-track review:
1. “LOL” – Clever title, great song! The album kicks off with an all-rap track, which at 2:25 in length, is all too brief to contain its awesome-ness. It could have been longer, but what’s the point – South Korea’s conservative party-pooper MOGEF and SM Ent.’s slaveKBS has already banned the song for “inappropriate lyrics”. Which sucks, because this song doesn’t deserve it given how good it sounds. I just hope the boys get to perform it on the other channels, because it has to be heard. – 4/5
2. “난리나 (NanrinA)” – The lead single (which I keep misreading as ‘Narnia’):
Who would have thought baby talk “goo-goo, ga-ga” would end up in a pop song! This song is such fun, and yet, manages to pack in the attitude that Block B wants to showcase with the band’s image. With random James Brown screams and a heavy Timbaland musical influence, “Go Crazy” is an uptempo song and one that should do really well for Block B on the charts. I’ll take this song any day over B.A.P’s pretentious “Warrior“.
As for the music video, it’s alright. They show off their swagger, how gang-like they are, and the dance choreography isn’t bad (though I’m not so sure about the gorilla arm wave during the chorus :)) – 4/5
3. “했어 안했어 (Did You or Did You Not)” – For a boy band that claims to be more hip-hop than pop, this track proves that they can still cater to the female audience. And although the rappers get most of the spotlight as far as lyrics go, the vocalists in the group get their chance and prove they have the vocal chops too. But sadly, this was another song that was banned by MOGEF and KBS. They suck, this song doesn’t! – 3.5/5
4. “싱크로율 100% (Synchronization 100%)” – The vocalists get to shine some more on this guitar-tinged track. No electronic hip-hop beat to this one, but instead you get more organic instrumentals. It’s well produced and yet another stellar track on the album. – 4/5
5. “Action” – The last song on the mini-album samples 70’s American funk, but the top-notch production makes it very uplifting and fresh. The chorus is great and the “ooh la la la” just makes you want to sing along! – 3.5/5
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Most of the album was produced by Block B’s leader Zico and I can’t help but draw comparisons to Big Bang’s G-Dragon. Both leaders have proven to be effective songwriters and composers — a talent very few groups in K-pop can claim to have. Block B is lucky to have Zico and he’s surely got a bright future in the Korean music industry.
Last year, Block B were hardly seen much after their debut and were even neglected in the year end shows. Maybe it’s their ‘in your face’ attitude, which for old guard, maybe too much to handle. But you know what? Screw them! K-pop needs a shot in the arm and a change of attitude. Block B should remain the way they are, because they are definitely on my radar now.
‘Welcome to the Block‘ is just Block B’s second mini-album and judging by just how good this album is, they’re are about to get a lot bigger in 2012 — and censorship or not, you can’t hold these boys back!
Here we go, my F1 weekend begins! Oh wait… I had to shift hostels first.
I really enjoyed my stay at WoW hostel, and today I had second thoughts of checking out and moving to the other location I had chosen (to be much closer to the F1 circuit). But since it was too late to cancel the other reservation, I collected my deposit and they wished me well. I told them I would definitely stay at WoW Hostel again, if I were to return to Singapore. (I seriously would, I really liked the place!)
I took the MRT and got off at Clarke Quay station, which is housed under Central MallNew Bridge Road, Clarke Quay is walking distance from hereCrossed over to the other sideCentral Mall is pretty hugeThe hostel I needed to get to was on this streetQuite a few other hostels in the area (The above were all taken on my phone)I arrived at the building which houses River City Inn… and I had been warned it’s a few flight of stairs upYou pass another hostel – Rucksack Inn, which is very popularAbove Rucksack Inn, on the 4th floor, is where River City Inn is located
I was tired! The staff at River City Inn greeted me with a glass of water (I’m sure it’s a common gesture now, with each guest appearing tired upon first arrival). Footwear must be kept outside, which I did, and I then entered the hostel to check in. First impressions? Very nice! Looked new, clean and well maintained. I had reserved a single bed in the 24-bed mixed dorm room, which cost SG$32 (Rs. 1,261/$25/€19) a night.Yes, it cost way more than WoW Hostel, but you’re paying the location.
Other than that, the hostel looked nice and it was the usual facilities. Complimentary breakfast and wi-fi, two desktop machines in the ‘living room,’ a decent kitchen with all the requisite quick-meal facilities, a large screen TV, XBOX 360 — and pretty much all the furniture is IKEA!
I would have shown you photographs of the interiors but the staff told me they didn’t allow anyone to take photos of the hostel. Oh well.
The yellow building on the right is where River City & Rucksack Inn are housedBang opposite is another hostel — City BackpackersAnother oneGiven you have a large shopping mall and an MRT station a short walk away, the location isn’t bad at allWent around the blockRucksack Inn has another branch in another lane
I was on my way to the Gate 4 entrance of the F1 circuitCross the road and you get to Boat Quay, in just 5 minutes from the hostel
Down the river is Clarke QuayOne of the River Cruise boats
Passed by the Singapore parliament
I walked towards the Gate 4 entrance, which was a right turn from up aheadIt was only 2pm, and gates weren’t going to open until 3… so I sat and waitedThere was a reason why the queue was this long an hour before the gates openedI patiently waited
At 3pm, the gates opened and people were slowly allowed in. First a security check. They saw my bag full of camera equipment and the staff asked me whether I was ‘Press’ — I said ‘no’. They still requested that I go up to the Press registration counter and sign a declaration saying I will not sell these photographs, to which I replied “sure”.
Once past the security check, I quickened my pace of walking. So did everybody else. Then as soon as I reached the Padang grounds, I ran — and so did the others!
You see, the reason why so many of us queued up so early is because they were handing out FanZone wristbands, so that we could get inside an enclosed section much closer to the main stageLuckily I managed to get mine, and so did the others who queued early — most of whom were VIPs* (I’ll explain later, they’re not *really* important people)Phew, well worth coming early for — but now I needed to grab something to eatI tried looking for the ‘Press’ tent, but couldn’t find it. Honestly, I wasn’t even too bothered to look for it, I wasn’t going to sell these images. Heck, I’m writing about a September 2011 event in January 2012!It was past 3pm and I hadn’t eaten yetI went in search of foodThe Cenotaph War MemorialAhhh, food!Ahhh, shawarma!
It’s expected food and beverages inside such events were going to be pricey but what to do, I was hungry. So I paid the SG$10 (Rs. 390/$7/€6) for the roll — the most I ever paid for a shawarma in my life, ha ha! (I grew up in the Middle East, so I’m used to having paid only a tenth of that)
Checked out the boothsPlenty of official merchandise on saleSingTel is the title sponsor of the Singapore F1, so they had a massive booth
Make-shift lounge bars
Tan Kim Seng fountain
You can walk under this bridge to get to the Theatres by the BayEsplanade Drive is a part of the F1 track — and thus closed from public use for an entire weekOn display were the classic cars the Formula 1 race drivers were going to be driven around the circuit for the Drivers Parade before Sunday’s raceVery classy line-upThey mention which car is assigned to which driver
Ah, my peopleIt was nearing 4:30pm, the Porsche Cup Asia practice session was about to startI took out my 70-200mm zoom lensThe safety cars were doing the roundsThe cameras were ready as the sound of the car engines grew louderHere they come!
I decided to walk to another viewing pointMind you, I was still behind barricades. You can’t simply walk closer to the circuit.
I had enough of cars zipping past, so I moved on
I exited the circuit areaI was going to meet my friend Aimee now
I waited for Aimee at the UOB buildingRemarkably, I got sunshine today!
After catching up with Aimee, a visit to the ATMWe set off on our walkGreat Eastern buildingAimee was going to take me to Chinatown
Even in Chinatown, there’s an Indian temple and a mosque
Chinatown food streetLike Little India, and Kampong Glam, Chinatown has its share of retro architectureAimee took me to this temple, the most famous in Chinatown it seemsThe name of this temple? Buddha Tooth Relic templeSeemed like a nice place to take photos of Aimee
There is a dress code, so they give shawls at the entrance to cover up
Inside, it was rather impressiveGo read up on the ‘Sacred Relic of the tooth of Buddha’ — it’s quite an interesting storyVery impressive designThis temple is in fact a newly built one, opened only in 2007
We left the temple
Aime and I then walked through the Chinatown bazaar
We had the urge to have some ice cream — bread ice cream in particular
Couldn’t get the kind of ice cream we were looking for, so we just had juice. I chose water chestnut – because it sounded weird, and I never had it before. It tasted okay though.
Aimee and I took the bus back to Central mall, as I wanted to reduce the weight of my camera bag by offloading equipment I didn’t need.
It was very cold inside the busEven though the distance wasn’t much, I experienced Singapore evening traffic today. It took some time to cover around a kilometre distance.
After giving our feet some rest at the hostel, we headed towards Boat Quay.
It was 7:30pm
It was Friday nightThe bankers and officer goers of Marina Bay were all out filling up the bars and eateriesWe sat by boat quayLook, Mithun!And we finally got bread ice cream!I had durian flavoured ice creamYayKids jumping in?Not reallyI still had some time before I needed to get back insideSo we goofed off in front of the camera
One final shot against the backdrop of Singapore’s famous skyline
Aimee and I said our goodbyes as she had to go meet her fiance and I had to head back to the Padang grounds.
I went back to the circuit
The JK Racing practice session was going onNothing exciting, until…… this guy crashed!Didn’t see the others cars race past until this car was lifted off the circuit and all the debris clearedI walked past the many hungry attendeesThe concerts on the main stage were about to begin, and lot of people had already gatheredBut since I already collected my FanZone band, I could walk straight up close to the stage!As the noise from the JK Racing series subsided, a band began to playWho was it for?Philippine songstress Charice!The many Filipinos in attendance surely showed the Glee-star some loveShe belted out her hits “Pyramid” and “One Day,” and even sang her (then) upcoming new single “Louder”
Charice and her band even took a dance break to do the “Dougie”Charice also sang covers of other popular hits like Jessie J’s “Price Tag”She maybe pint-sized, but her voice packs in quite a punch!Amazing singer — and a good show by her!After Charice’s performance, the Friday practice lap took place
Plenty of fangirls (VIPs* mostly) were awaiting the main acts for Friday’s concert. I didn’t go too close to the stage as many had already stuffed themselves as close as possible and I didn’t want to be in the midst of girls screaming their lungs out. Trust me, it’s not fun!The lights were readyThe balloons were readyThe fans… you get the ideaA DJ came on and began spinning some hip-hop jams, and then some 2NE1 — so we knew it was YG** time!
Past 11pm, the lights dimmed and the DJ introduced the first BIG BANG member to hit the stage…
… and VIPs screamed as loud as they could when Seungri hit the stage!Seungri kicked off his performance with “VVIP,” from his debut EP of the same nameSeungri obviously didn’t have too much material as his solo effort had just came out earlier in the yearBut he still performed his best
Seungri ended his brief set with his big solo hit “What Can I Do”Imagine dressed up in a suit and dancing under the stage lights in Singapore humidity!Feel free to caption this. Only thing I could think of was “Pew, pew.”We were well warmed up for the next act!
And when those two other boys from BIG BANG hit the stage — oh man, the screams!
GD & TOP leaped on to the stage and began their set with “Intro,” the first song on their albumFor those who don’t know: G-Dragon (Left) and T.O.P (Right) are two popular members of the hugely successful K-pop boyband BIG BANG, and as the sub-unit GD & TOP, released an impressive album in late 2010.T.O.P, the really good looking member of BIG BANGG-Dragon, the talented song writer and composer of BIG BANG — and one of the richest idols in S. Korea!For all his hip-hop swagger, I couldn’t help but laugh when G-Dragon would speak to the crowd in his limited English by saying something like “… you want to make crazy?!” T.O.P on the other hand wasn’t too hyperactiveThey performed other great songs from their album like “Knock Out” and “Oh Yeah”
The boys spoke to the audience briefly before ending their set with everybody’s favourite “High, High”!Eventually a sweaty G-Dragon took off his overcoat and sunglassesSeungri then joined his group mates to close out the show with (what I believe) was a Big Bang song
Given what a tumultuous year 2011 was for Big Bang – with Daesung’s involvement in the rather unfortunate car accident and G-Dragon’s drug ‘scandal’ – it was still quite a thrill for me that I got to see 3/5th of Big Bang. If only Taeyang could have been there as well, because the K-pop concert only lasted around 45 minutes in length — Seungri and GD&TOP’s performances included.
Oh well, in some ways I was glad it was over — I was completely drenched in sweat! I was so hot, and my arms were aching as I struggled to hold my heavy Canon 7D with the even heavier 70-200mm lens mounted. I took photos the best I could.
I also managed to record some video but if you plan on watching it, I suggest you turn down the volume…
The bass was just too damn loud! I wasn’t even that close to the stage or the speakers, but even from where I was standing, my rib cage was trembling with every thump! I looked up YouTube for other fancams and most of them weren’t any better.
I left the Padang grounds and walked back to the hostelIt was well past midnight
I initially thought about reading a fan account of the K-pop concert but my body was just so damn tired after the long walks today and the heat at the concert. I had dinner, took a nice bath and just laid in bed.
And to think this was just the first day of the F1 weekend!
*VIPs are what BIG BANG fans call themselves
**YG Entertainment is the company BIG BANG is under
Just when you thought I could take a break from writing k-pop reviews at the end of year, my favourite k-pop solo artist decides to push out one half of his new album. Still… I’m not going to complain. New music from Jay Park, yay!
It was only last month that Jay released the digital single “Girlfriend,” but now the burgeoning global star is set to release his first full album. Well, in two halves that is.
Not a great album cover... but whatever
After uptempo singles — “Abandoned,” “Tonight” and “Girlfriend” — Jay Park slows things down with his latest single “Star” (별).
The song is a smooth ballad, but being a Jay Park single, still features some choreographed dancing. “Star” didn’t win me over instantly but the song slowly grew on me after repeated listens. It’s got a nice chorus, and Jay’s vocals are fine… except when he attempts the high notes during the bridge – it felt stressed, and shows his limits as a singer in some ways. Jay Park’s a good singer, no doubt, but he’s just a not a power singer.
The choreography is alright – but I do wish Jay would work with choreographers other than his own friends. The moves often resemble dances from past performances. I know Jay likes to help and support his crew and all, but I would like to see something radically different for a change.
As for the video…
Another video, another chance to kiss the girl in the MV. Hmmm, I wonder who comes up with all the ideas for the videos
The MV for “Star” looks like it was filmed by the same production crew that worked on “Girlfriend,” because both videos have the same polish. I’m not really feeling Jay’s mohawk, it looks too big a cut for his head. Then again, I’m a straight guy who cares little for fashion– why should I nitpick about his appearance right?
“Star” may not be a stand out single like “Abandoned” was, but considering there is surely another single coming early 2012, I’m sure Jay chose this song to showcase his diversity as an artist as supposed to something we know we are used to hearing from Jay Park. My rating: 3/5
Here’s a mini-review of the rest of the tracks on the mini-album:
2. “Enjoy The Show” (Feat. Dok2 & The Quiett) – As “Star” ends and track 2 begins, as soon as you hear the first “mother fucker,” you know Jay doesn’t give a shit about being a mainstream popstar! This song is easily my favourite track on the mini-album! Loved it on first listen, especially when the chorus kicked in: “nyah-nyana-nah-nah”. Ha-ha-ha… who has ever used that in a song properly?! And I know damn sure that’s going to turn into a fan chant when this song is performed live. Imagine how funny it would sound! Of course, aside from the taunt, Jay Park proves he’s such a 2NE1 fanboy with the clever inclusion of the “I Am the Best” line in Dok2’s rap. – 4/5
3. “Up And Down” (Feat. Dok2) – Another track featuring Jay Park’s favourite rap collaborator Dok2, track 3 is an electro-pop dance song. Good track, but as soon as I saw the song title I somehow knew the lyrics to match “up and down” were not going to be the most original. – 3.5/5
4. “I Got Your Back” – A very American-sounding R&B track, so if I were to wager a guess — this was written in English first? (Heck, for all I know, Jay writes all his songs in English first) The vocals are smooth, the chorus is cute, and the tempo is maintained throughout. – 3/5
5. “Can’t Live Without You” – If this song sounds familiar, it’s because this is just an acoustic version of track 3 from Jay Park’s ‘Take A Deeper Look‘. I actually prefer this version and his vocals sound better in this recording – something I felt was amiss when I reviewed that album earlier this year. – 3/5
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If this was Jay Park’s way of teasing us fans with what’s coming in 2012, he’s done a mighty fine job of whetting our appetites. “Star” may not be a favourite of mine, but just like “Girlfriend,” I don’t see Jay promoting it a hell lot. This being the year end and everybody taking a break, Jay’s definitely got a better uptempo single in store to lead the latter half of New Breed‘s full release next year.
‘New Breed’ may be Jay Park’s last Korean release for a while as he did mention that 2012 will see him begin work on an English album (now that he is signed to Universal Music Group). ‘New Breed: Part 1’ is a sign that Jay Park is slowly gearing up for greater success as an international star. The production quality on this album is few notches higher than it was on TADL, and I just can’t wait to hear the tracks on ‘New Breed: Part 2’. Don’t make us wait too long Jay!
My final rating for ‘New Breed: Part 1’ – 3.5 out of 5 (Good)
