East Asian pop update Jun - Aug 2018

From: Pristin V - Get It

It has been an unusually good summer for kpop, with some japanese and chinese tracks too.

Apink - I'm so sick. If you know about kpop, you know about how it all goes south during summer with songs that may have fan-service videos of lightly dressed boys and girls, but which musically often fails terribly. Apink proves me fantastically wrong with what may be the video of the year. Pure kpop classic.

SF9 - Now or Never (질렀어). Almost perfect. Those bass rhythms are a killer.

Yubin - Lady (숙녀). Sultry retro from Yubin, of Wonder Girls fame.

ONF - Complete (널 만난 순간). Oh My God, so catchy and charming. That refrain...

Reol - Saisaki (サイサキ). She oozes with that sub-culture electronic style unique for Japan.

Elris - Focus. Good song but it is the dance number that makes the video me come back

Laboum - Between Us (체온) and Love Game proves again that Laboum is a underestimated group. Between Us may be the "real" video, but "Love Game" proves again (like with Elris ' Focus' above) that a good dance video can deliver on all accounts.

Saturday - MMook JJi BBa (묵찌빠). If this is not the new Crayon Pop, I don't know what! Momoland have touched upon the Crayon Pop concept, but Saturday perfects it soundwise and style; nerdy and super catchy. Now just add some vimsical dance act and all is the same.

Jvcki Wai - Anarchy.  This is actually from 2017, but I discovered her just recently and I love her singing, with pronouncation and all.

Twice - BDZ. The song from their Japan debut album with the same name has a lot of "story" in it, the music piece in itself buried in the middle.

Norazo - Cider(사이다). Channeling that PSY craziness...

Rocket Girls(火箭少女101) - Calorie (卡路里). A satiric(?) song about pressing down your calorie intake, that can be heard in the movie "Hello Mr. Billionaire! (西虹市首富)".

Oresama - Hot Hashiru(ホトハシル), an ending song for the anime "Muhyo & Roji's Bureau of Supernatural Investigation".

More interesting videos:
Leo - Touch & Sketch. Leo from VIXX
Varsity - Flower. Good new song from this boy group.
f(x) - Signal. The track is so so, but I do have a soft spot for them, and I like the retro vibes
Pristin V - Get It (네 멋대로). A nice enough debut from a Pristin sub-group in glorious 4K.

Kpop: Top 20 of the 4th quarter of 2016

The last three months of 2016 was quite awesome in kpop, this list list could have been a best of all 2016 and I wouldn't have been disappointed.

20. Girl's Day - Perfect Stage. Yes, this is an ad. 1 minute. But those four girls own it.

19. Hyukoh - Matsitnonsoul. It is in those riffs. This is freaking rock and it is amazing even though it kind of stands still in one place.

18. Sunwoo Junga - Springgirls. Songwriter, now singer, made this cool video that has superb beat and rhythm.

17. Hyolyn ft Jay Park - One Step. Still I am like "Like-Don't like-Like-Don't" like with this song, but it has to be on the list for its refreain and general shimmering of quality.

16. 100% - Better Day. The song may read like a combination of all the cliches of a dramatic boy kpop song, but it is such an unresistable production that I don't care.

15. Risso. Really, really nice electronic indie songs from this girl, and with a higher degree of variation she will really make us swoon. But don't miss any of her songs, the tarck are pure ear-candy with all them sounds and samples.

14. I.O.I - Very Very Very. This song could be very-very-very irritating but because of the perfect timing and production it isn't. It becomes a kind of "Red Velvet on high speed".

13. Uhm Jung Hwa. To make a comeback at 47 in a business that grades 30+ women as being too mature takes curage and style, but oh does this gal got it! Gothic and good melodies.

12. Yoo Jae Yuk & EXO - Dancing King. Oh, that beat!

11. Stellarjet - I don't like you. Borderline not kpop, but at the same time it is. And it IS quality music.

10. We Are The Night - You Are In. They used to be more punkrock but this synth and slow intensive singing is actually much better.

9. VIXX - Closer. There seems to be hard to skip over VIXX in any best-of-list in kpop and it is true this year too. They can really do dramatic pop videos well.

8. Jay Park - Aquaman. Jay Park finally hit the lyrical and musical orgasm button with this song, finally showing off totally the kind of American explicit R&B he must love.

7. CSP ft Kayla - Busan Girls. The cool an uptempo kind of fruity beat together with a great refrain made this memorable.

6. Song Ji Eun - Bobby Doll. She has something in her voice and deliverance, she doesn't seem to have a special voice but she still gives us hit after hit.

5. Joosuc ft Sanchez - I Kno. He's said to have an attitude problem, but nothing of that can be seen or heard here, his delivery is like honey for the ears.

4. Blackpink - Playing with fire. Without doubt they were this years no 1 new-comers. Attitude, singing and styling like a 2016' 2NE1.

3. EXO-CBX - Hey Mama! Oh, the swing of this song, oh the beat. That and dem boys, just delicious.

2. Twice - TT. OK, I will be honest with you guys. Just like the eye-contact videos of AoA added so much to their videos in 2015, Lia Kim's dance choregraphy and dance video for TT has meant the same this year for Twice's TT. Their song was great already but her choregraphy made it even better.

1. SHINee - 1 on 1. Retro that feels fresh by the oppas of SHINee. Pure gold.

Kpop: Twice - TT (티티)

The international emoji for crying eyes, 'TT', is the title of the first single from Twice's third mini album. It gives us a Halloween theme and a sound that is so very much familiar that it borders on confusingly similar to hits like "Ooh Aah" at times. Still, it is a good quality song and a lovely video.

• Twice - TT (티티)