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U-KISS – ‘DoraDora’ album review: Weak comeback

I feel obligated to write this review. When I wrote the review for U-KISS’ last Korean album ‘Neverland,’ I never imagined it would become my blog’s ~~most popular post~~ (Edit: SuJu’s back on top :-/)! ‘Neverland’ made me stand up and take U-KISS seriously as a group. Last year saw the emergence of the current member line-up and all seemed well for the group. I loved “Neverland” and even their Japanese single “Tick Tack,” so I looked forward to hearing more such music from the boys.

Here’s a track-by-track review:

1. “DoraDora” (도라도라) – The lead single…

First of all, I was kinda hoping U-KISS would continue their collaboration with Ryan Jhun and JD Relic, who worked on most of the good songs on ‘Neverland’ and even their debut Japanese album. But this time around, NH Media chose a song by Kim Hyung Suk, Brian Kim and Hur In Chang for U-KISS’ comeback instead. I’ll be honest, even when I heard a snippet of “DoraDora” in their teaser, I wasn’t expecting a great single. The chorus somehow reminded me of “S(h)uper Girl” by SuJu.

When I heard “DoraDora” in full, my opinion didn’t vary by much. It still sounds like a song you’d hear from Super Junior. An okay track, but nowhere near as good as “Neverland” was. I’m all for trying out new sounds, but “DoraDora” doesn’t sound fresh by 2012 standards – and no, the dubstep during the bridge doesn’t help much either. I wish U-KISS had comeback with a better song to keep their rise to greater fame on track. – 3/5

As for the music video, it’s actually one of their better ones. The dance choreography is pretty good (especially when they begin) and I like the whole flipped out room concept. Watching the MV does make “DoraDora” sound a little bit better.

U-Kiss DoraDora members jumping — They seem to enjoy this jump move (Did it in "Tick Tack" also)

2. “4U” (For You) – Another reason why I awaited this album’s release was to hear the song Jay Park penned for U-KISS. If you snoop around my website a bit, you’ll know that I’m huge fan of Jay! But truth be told (again), my expectations weren’t too high for this as well. There are two reasons why Jay would have given his song to some other artist: either it’s not good enough to be included in his own album – or – it’s a musical style that’s not what Jay is about these days. “4U” is a bit of both. It’s an ‘okay’ upbeat pop song, but definitely more suited for a k-pop boyband. – 2.5/5

3. “When Love Stops” (사랑이 멈출 때) – Generic power ballad that sounds like countless OST ballads out there. There is little else I can say about this track. – 2/5

4. “Amazing” – The first song off the album the group unveiled prior to releasing ‘DoraDora’. Although it’s of album-filler quality, I have to give credit to AJ, the U-KISS member who wrote the song. It’s not a bad effort, and encouraging to know the members are taking up songwriting. A sign that one day could produce a song good enough to be a lead single. – 2.5/5

5. “Tick Tock (Out Of Time)” (Korean version) – One of the rare occasions when a Japanese version sounds so much better than the Korean version. I don’t know, maybe it’s because I’ve heard “Tick Tack” so many times, that every bit of the song is in memory. So when I hear “Tonight we gonna party” instead of “Tonight I shall be here” at the start, it just feels like something’s off. The English, although perfectly accentuated, seems a bit excessive for a K-pop song. Musically it sounds the same, but the entire message of the song feels a little different. I’m definitely going to continue listening to the Japanese version more. – 3/5

6. “DoraDora” (Instrumental) – Not going to rate this track.

I know U-KISS is a K-pop boyband that seems to have a bigger fanbase outside of Korea, but that shouldn’t mean they don’t deserve the praise and wins back in South Korea. U-KISS promoted the hell out of “Neverland,” performing it on just about every music show week-after-week for months. It won nothing. They tried with another single, “Someday,” but that effort failed too. I felt really bad for them. I hate it when good quality music gets ignored and instead drivel like “Mr. Simple” steamrolls over everybody because a group like SuJu have a militant fanbase to back them.

Anyway, my hope was that U-KISS – who debuted in 2008 but have never won an award on a music show – would hopefully win one with their comeback single. “DoraDora” isn’t winning any praise from me, but I hope the boys get something out of it this time around. I loved Teen Top’s “No More Perfume On You” – which didn’t win that boyband anything. Instead it was the lousy Brave Brothers-produced “Crazy” that netted Teen Top their first music show win. And as much as I want quality to thrive, clearly the way these awards are given out, I hope KissMes do their best in helping U-KISS experience that winning feeling.

I really wanted to like this comeback, I mean it. Sadly, I don’t. Everything about ‘DoraDora’ is just ‘okay’ and it’s definitely not an album I’ll be listening to over and over again.

My final rating for U-KISS’ sixth mini-album is…

U-Kiss DoraDora review rating — Here's hoping for a better comeback later in the year

K-pop Round-up-Review: U-KISS, A-Pink and Trouble Maker

By Mithun Divakaran
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Dec 01, 2011
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Korean Pop, Music/Videos, Round-up-Review

I didn’t want to dedicate one post to each one of these songs, and thus, one post for all. First up, a boyband that made me shut up and take them seriously this year.

U-KISS – “Tick Tack”

U-Kiss Japan single Tick Tack mv members screencap — U-Kiss deliver another smashing single to appease their fans

I know, this is their Japanese single. So technically it’s J-pop, and not K-pop. But aside from the Japanese lyrics, everything else about this song and video just reeks ‘K-pop’. From the standard ‘wiping lips with finger’ actions to the song itself. Produced by the same geniuses behind much of U-KISS’s stellar Korean album ‘Neverland,’ this song could have easily began as a Korean track that was then changed to Japanese. But for once, Japanese really works for this song — it sounds natural.

It’s a heavy dance track, yes, but the vocals are still given a chance to shine (although the ‘non-singers’ in the group, Eli and Dong Ho just mouth their allotted lines). The choreography isn’t bad and I particularly love the part at 1:40, how they spread apart with that leg dance.

U-kiss Japan pv Tick Tack screencap — Finger swiping lips. Yup, this is still K-pop alright.

I felt sorry for U-KISS after they failed to win a single award despite appearing on just about every Korean music show for nearly two months promoting “Neverland” and then “Someday”. Here’s hoping the boys do really well in Japan with “Tick Tack”.

Rating: 4 out of 5 (Very Good)

Update: U-KISS’s Kevin tweeted this:

U-kiss Kevin Woo tweet — Thanks Kevin, this clarifies both my doubts!

A-Pink – “My My”

One of the more hyped girl groups of 2011… but yet another that I cared a damp squib about with their first single. A-Pink, from Cube Entertainment’s sister company, were just another one of those cutesy angelic young idol groups that found a fanbase among the tween crowd and the older “oppa” crowd. I wasn’t either of them.

Their comeback song though…

… is pretty good! Sure, they still haven’t strayed away from their formula and the girls look innocent as ever. My only gripe is — man, they all look alike! Usually for such reviews, I would make a screen cap photo of each member but after figuring out four of the members, I just couldn’t figured out who the other three individuals were!

Anyway, the song. A lot of people have said it’s a throwback to the first generation of K-pop girls groups, like Fin.K.L and S.E.S. But since I never grew up listening to them, the reason this song still resonated with me is because of it’s very 90s vibe. I was instantly taken back to the days of Mariah Carey’s “Dreamlover” and Shanice’s “I Love Your Smile,” and “My My” has the same retro pop vibe many such pop hits had in the 1990s. Even the dance choreography in “My My” is very 90s-inspired.

A-Pink have really good vocals, so in many ways, I feel this group will eventually grow the SNSD-way and shed their cutesy image in a year or two (and turn ‘sexy’ eventually). If not that, I hope the girls at least get different hair cuts!

A-pink My My mv screencap mithunonthenet — Yes…erm, whichever one you are… I’ll anticipate A-Pink’s next release

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 (Good)

Trouble Maker – “Trouble Maker”

Another Cube Entertainment offering and a rather surprising project. 4Minute’s HyunA and B2ST’s Jang Hyunseung form the duo Trouble Maker, something quite different and not an expected idol pairing. HyunA’s hot off her “Bubble Pop” viral hit and B2ST has had a great year with “Fiction“.

After a steamy performance at MAMA 2011, expectations were sky high and with the song officially out, Trouble Maker doesn’t disappoint!

The instant I heard the whistle, I wondered if the people behind this track were influenced by Maroon 5’s “Moves Like Jagger”. The other song that came to my mind upon hearing the whistle part was the hook from Perfume’s “Love Beam”. Influences aside, “Trouble Maker” still stands on its own as a funky pop song with a catchy chorus.

Troublemaker JS Hyuna video sexy screencap k-pop — What HyunaA gets in ‘sexy’ screen time, Hyunseung makes up for with more lines to sing

Cube gets a lot of criticism for promoting HyunA way too much. For good reason. I mean she already had her solo success with “Bubble Pop” and became a sex symbol overnight. From cute to sexy, Hyuna is surely one of the prettiest k-pop idols out there and Cube really have a ‘star’ on their roster. Her sexy demeanor works for Trouble Maker, but it does seem a bit unfair when an artist whose singing capabilities are lacking gets way too much attention than say, her fellow 4Minute members. Oh well, if Britney Spears can last 10 years…

Even though the song is essentially ‘Hyunseung featuring HyunA,’ for the sake of the visuals, the pairing makes sense. The MV is alright: sassy, sexy and… erm, actually I don’t know what the video was about. Two spies/agents spying on each other? Get caught, make out? Somebody gets shot in the end? Who knows, maybe there will be a continuation.

Which I hope there is. Judging by the song alone, “Trouble Maker” will be a hit and should do very well on the charts. I’m sure 2011 is not the last we have seen of these two ‘trouble makers’.

Rating: 4 out of 5 (Very Good)

U-KISS – ‘Neverland’ Album Review: I’m going to stop laughing at these guys

I never thought I would be writing about this group. I mean, U-KISS/유키스! The boy band whose first two hits were catchy, but extremely repetitive hook songs like “Man Man Ha Ni” and “Bingeul Bingeul“. They followed it up with “Shut Up,” which featured one of the lamest dance choreography I’ve seen in K-pop. U-KISS, a band that’s has been poked fun at so many times for being “gay“. That U-KISS!

But you know what, I’m reviewing their music, not the members. And the music in their new album “Neverland” (their second full album)… well, call me impressed!

U-Kiss Neverland album review members kpop boyband — Don't know who is who... but I really don't care

U-KISS has seen line-up changes around three times since inception, with the most recent one being in February this year when members Alexander and Kibum were ~~kicked out~~replaced by AJ and Hoon. NH Media, U-KISS’s corporate overlords, didn’t waste anytime in pushing the new line-up in front of fans with the release of “0330” a month later. The ‘updated’ U-KISS seemed to showcase a different direction the boys would be heading. No more formulaic, repetitive monotone songs with lazy choreography, or so it seems.

U-Kiss Neverland new album covers K-pop boyband — So does the new album 'NEVERLAND' keep the new direction on the right path?

In January, when NH Media announced that U-KISS were going to prepare for an American debut, I scoffed at the thought. No way was a Korean boy band, least of all U-KISS, going to succeed with their style and their kind of music!

But listening to the songs on ‘Neverland,’ you know NH Media were serious about their US ambitions (though I hope they have come to their senses now). Many of the songs don’t sound like your average K-pop record. Here’s a track-by-track review:

01. “Intro” – 0:58 of nothing special

02. “Neverland” – The title track and main single:

If there’s a finer example of how one incorporates pure dance music and boy band pop, “Neverland” is it! It’s a fantastic single with great choreography, even though it is a bit heavy on the auto tune. (I’m not going to comment on the fashion or the wiping-fingers-down-face act, because it’s getting stale). Surely they must be some DJ out there already working on a remix of this song for the clubs!

The true test of how good this song is for U-KISS is when they perform it live. The video may not be anything special but I couldn’t help but hit replay as soon as the MV ended. It’s definitely one of my top K-pop songs of the year! – 5/5

03. “Baby Don’t Cry” – Upbeat, synthesized chorus driven pop bliss! Makes me wonder if this was produced by a foreign producer. Edit: Produced by Ryan Jhun, who produced most of the album. – 4/5

04. “Someday” – Listening to this, I couldn’t help but assume this is a kind of song one would find on a Westlife album! 🙂 Produced by Denzil Remedios, I wonder if this was one of the songs considered for U-KISS’s English debut. – 4/5

05. “Take Me Away” – The first ballad on the album and again, not the usual K-pop fare. Just when you think the instruments would keep piling on from the second verse onwards, they don’t. Instead, it’s just the boys and their vocals that carry this song all through the end. A very good track, and I hope they get a chance to sing it live on the music shows. – 4/5

06. “On The Floor” – With a track title like that, it’s fairly obvious what to expect. This one is from the K-pop electronic dance pop music factory. Not bad, but nothing noteworthy. If you listen to K-pop regularly, you have heard this kind of music before. – 3/5

07. “A Friend’s Love” (친구의 사랑) – Officially in familiar K-pop territory now. The first ‘standard’ ballad on the album, but still a very a listenable track. KissMe*s are surely going to sing along to this chorus! – 3.5/5

08. “April Story” (4월 이야기) – When the song first starts, I wondered if they dropped another artist’s song in here by mistake! But no, the woman voice belongs to Brave Girls’ Eun Young and this ballad is a duet with Shin Soohyun. Standard OST fare, but a well sung track none the less. – 3.5/5

09. “Obsession” – Half the song’s lyrics are “You are my obsession…” and “Love equals obsession, obsession equals love” 😀 Erm, no thanks. I don’t think I’ll be listening to this song often. – 2/5

10. “Top That” – This song has traces of Timbaland’s “Carry Out” (featuring Justin Timberlake), so, one of those “inspired” tracks. – 2.5/5

11. “Tell Me Y” – While MBLAQ sang “Give it to my Yyyyy….” (which made little sense), U-KISS presents a brighter, piano-tinged, rap-filled track. Simple and one of the better album fillers. – 3/5

12. “We’ll Meet Again/다시 만나요” (U-KISS with Paran) – The first two & half minutes of the track are the boys of U-KISS and their labelmates (another boy band, but one that unfortunately never saw much success) Paran chattering and having fun. But as the laughter gives way, the final song on the album is an epic ballad, and a good one at that. A fitting end to the album. – 3.5/5

13. “Someday” (Instrumental)

—-

Until last year, U-KISS and B2ST to me were in the same lower tier of K-pop boybands. Silly, lyrically bland songs with lame choreography, and always inferior compared to the likes of SHINee, BIG BANG and DBSK. Yes, I know the latter are from two of the most famous entertainment companies, but SM and YG didn’t get to where they are today if they hadn’t gotten their formula right. They knew where to invest their money to produce the best, in every regard — from appearance to the music, they know quality!

That is not to say the smaller entertainment companies haven’t stepped up their game. B2ST matured in 2011 and won me over with “Fiction“. And now, U-KISS has made me take them seriously as well. NH Media seems to have figured out the ‘right formula’ with this album and given the boys the best they have released to date.

‘Neverland’ is easily one of the best K-pop studio albums an idol group has put out in 2011. Far better than the last album I reviewed — and that came from SM Entertainment. U-KISS’s ‘Neverland’ is an album that manages to draw the listener in from the start and you won’t find yourself skipping past many of the songs. A testament to how well paced the album is with good songs.

So in conclusion, hats off to U-KISS (with its current line-up)! You guys (along with B2ST) have move up several notches in the Korean boy band world and can proudly claim to be one of the best the Hallyu wave has to offer today. I won’t call myself a KissMe because being an adult male, that would be, erm, ~~gay~~awkward — but consider this: I will buy ‘Neverland’ legally and (if I ever get the chance) I would be excited to see you guys perform live in concert!

My final rating: 4 out of 5 (Very Good)

*KissMe is the official fan club of U-KISS

Edit: Just saw this posted on U-KISS’s official website:

U-Kiss Neverland website description — LOL! What, they couldn't just ask Eli or Kevin to come up with a less cringe-worthy description?