Open the Kpop - K-Pop

Hyo - Sober: music video review

4/18/2018

I’m doing something a little bit different. I have a list of songs I need to review and I check them off, usually in order. If I have similar artists then I’ll review those artists together, but I have been dying to check out Hyoyeon’s solo debut as a DJ. I’ve heard only good things about it and I’m ready to be impressed. I’ll just do a review of the Korean version. I’ll check out the English version on my own, but considering this site is for international music, I think reviewing a song in Korean is more crucial than reviewing the same song in English.

I don’t know what to say about this video. It was impressive. We see a bunch of girls who are hung up about their body image and decide to throw flares into the night sky. I’m not sure why they were tossing flares, but maybe it’s a symbolism for them not caring anymore what people have to say about them. I understand why the video rating was 19+ but it could have been lowered a little because it’s honestly just a couple flashes of girls in underwear. Public TV shows that all the time. It’s called Victoria’s Secret. I will say, I’ve always loved Hyo’s dance style. She has an aggressive street style but here we saw her dancing a little bit of Salsa, it looked like. One thing I’m happy about is Hyo moving from Hip Hop to EDM.

It’s not that I don’t like Hyo’s rapping, but I like her singing voice much better than her rapping voice. Her rapping got a little annoying for me, to be completely honest. I liked the song she produced. It has great potential. I see people in the comments saying this is the best song ever, and while it’s a great song, I sadly disagree. It’s not the best song and I know Hyo could do even better, but it is a good song for first production. I will give her that much. I enjoyed the distorted guitar sounds she used for the build up of the song and the synth effects and sounds were perfect. I think the build up after the verse and into the chorus was a bit choppy but besides that point, I liked the song.

What did you think? Did you love Hyo’s first single as a DJ? What are your thoughts about Hyo promoting as a DJ instead of a rapper? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section. Thank you for supporting me. I noticed the views are low for the videos, so please go support Hyo in her new endeavors. Thank you and I’ll see you in my next review.

Drunken Tiger - Yet: music video review

4/17/2018

Are you serious? Drunken Tiger is back? I haven’t heard anything from Drunken Tiger for maybe about ten years. Drunken Tiger is one of those artists I listened to back in my days of getting into Girls’ Generation but I was listening to old Drunken Tiger at the time. If I’m not mistaken Drunken Tiger features Tiger JK and another artist. And I think after Tiger JK married Yoon Mi Rae, they restarted Drunken Tiger as MFBTY. Either way, it is really cool to see Drunken Tiger do some new stuff.

What a comeback! Drunken Tiger shows that he (Tiger JK) still has it. The music video takes place mostly on a rooftop which eventually shows the destruction of the city or the end of the world. There were some reference points back to old Drunken Tiger and Tiger JK was sporting an MFBTY hoodie. Is this a call for reinvention? Is he recreating his brand?

The song went right in. There was no hesitation at all. What was kind of interesting was the instrumentals sounded like a Lindsey Stirling song but the beat sounded like the build up for a dubstep song. It had so much energy and Tiger JK’s flow is unbelievable. I forgot about how good of a rapper he is. More people should be hailing his name before the rap gods because honestly that was some of the hardest, but seemingly meaningful rapping I’ve seen come out of music in a long time, not just Kpop.

What did you think? Did you enjoy Drunken Tiger’s comeback? Had you heard of Drunken Tiger separate from MFBTY? Thank you for supporting me. Please support Drunken Tiger, Tiger JK, Yoon Mi Rae, and whoever else is associated with this amazing artist name. Let me know your thoughts in the comment section. Thank you again and I’ll see you in my next review.

Twice - What is Love: music video review

4/9/2018

The moment many Onces were looking forward to is finally here. Twice is back with their 5th mini album and a title song accompanying it. The song “What is Love” should be a banger because, let’s face it, JYP doesn’t mess around, especially with his star group.

“What is Love” centers around a television where each of the members play important roles. There are several characters portrayed but the only one I know for sure is Mia from Princess Diaries. It is similar to “Cheer Up” in the fashion that each girl represents a different famous character in cinema but I still don’t know all of them. The way the scenes for the choreography were set up were similar to “Heart Shaker” and the song actually was very similar as well to “Heart Shaker”.

The song had that upbeat tune that gets everyone up and dancing. Like I mentioned, it sounds an awful like “Heart Shaker” but that’s okay because like the saying goes: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” meaning that Twice and JYP have something very powerful going, why change it up too much. That’s how Pop music becomes so popular, is through this repetitive style that gets stuck in people’s heads.

What did you think of the song? I personally loved it as Twice’s Merry & Happy is my favorite Twice album so far. If this song sounds similar, then it’s a good thing. Thanks for your support. Be sure to give Twice your love as well. Thank you so much for everything and I’ll see you in my next review.

Winner - Everyday: music video review

4/1/2018

Winner is finally back. I’m hoping this time with a full length album. YG has a good ear for artists but is really poor at giving them opportunities. It’s too bad because everyone at YG is so talented to the point it is unbelievable. So, when I say Winner is finally back, I mean that they’ve had like four songs in the past couple of years. So I’m hoping they have a full release this time.

Winner is showing off their dance moves and their moves with the ladies. The video had them dancing (and yes, I mean the girls as well) on the beach at sunset, just having a good time. And it honestly looked like a good time. They were sharing their spoils with us, presenting a huge mansion and luxurious pool right next to the beach. They are surrounded by beautiful women the entire video. One part I didn’t quite understand was when they were dancing on the beach and there were lines across them as if there’s a shade structure nearby.

The song was tropical, chill trap sound. The beat wasn’t super upbeat, but it gave off the sound like a vacation to the beach. When you’re at the beach, you want time to slow down and things to remain like that forever. One gripe I had about this song was the overuse of autotune. I admit, autotune has its benefits in certain places, but this song derived off the sound that autotune gives and I’m not for that. It makes the song sound like a rip off of a T-Pain song and I don’t want that.

What did you think? What are your thoughts about this video and song? Thank you for all your support. Please be sure to support Winner as well because they deserve all your love. I don’t even deserve any of your love. Thank you again and I’ll see you in my next review.

Goodbye for Now

4/1/2018

To my fans, my viewers, my subscribers, and anyone else I forgot to mention, I have made the regretful decision this morning to halt my efforts on this website and any other affiliations with Open the Kpop. This was not an easy decision but a decision that had to come to fruition. Finances are tight and I had to obtain another job to keep the food on the table. That being said, I cannot go forward with creating content for you anymore.

Don't be sad because this isn't goodbye. This is just until next time. The difference is, I'm not sure when next time will be, so I'm so very sorry it had to end this way. Godspeed to you and all your doings. I hope you all find peace and hopefully I will make my comeback sooner than later.

-Matthew, "Open the Kpop"

Olivia Hye - Egoist: music video review

3/29/2018

The time has finally come for our twelfth member of LOOΠΔ to debut. Olivia Hye just debuted with “Egoist” featuring JinSoul and all I can think is how JinSoul is going to drag Olivia to Hell. Anyway, no more delaying, let’s get into it!

I’m not sure if I understand everything in this video but I’ll take a shot considering what I understand from a concept theory. Jin Soul and the other OEC members reside in Hell and Olivia Hye is the last member in Eden. She is tempted by Jin Soul and bites of the apple but rather than taking her to Hell, she ends up in the Real world (LOOΠΔ 1/3). There are some Creation references in the video as well as references to several other videos. I won’t go into detail but at the end we see Hee Jin welcoming Olivia Hye into the Real world and bringing full circle the concept of LOOΠΔ.

The song has a lot going on and it’s beautiful. I might even like this more than “New”. The song starts off and continually hears a throbbing piano sound throughout. The drop in this song is really subtle which makes sense but still took me by surprise. Olivia’s voice is sultry but her style reminds me of Chuu and Kim Lip. There’s an innocence in her voice like Chuu, but a smooth, sexy sound as well similar to Kim Lip. I wasn’t quite paying attention as well as I should have but I believe her animal is a wolf. I believe her color is a shade of red as well. I’m embarrassed at how much I didn’t pay attention to finer details. The breakdown had a sort of EDM/Dubstep feeling to it which was unique and nice.

What did you think of Olivia Hye? What are your theories for the overall concept? Are you excited for the group to finally debut? Who is your bias? Mine is still Jin Soul, but everyone else is coming really close. Thank you for your support. Please support LOOΠΔ and share this and the video as much as possible. We need LOOΠΔ to not flop. We need LOOΠΔ to be successful. Thank you so much. I’ll see you in my next review.

Stray Kids - District 9: music video review

3/29/2018

I’ve been so bad at following up with Stray Kids. They just recently debuted and I’m just now checking out the music video. I need some sort of punishment for this sort of behavior. Anyway, Stray Kids officially debuted with “District 9” and from what I’m seen on social media, the rap is the highlight of the song. Well, duh Matt, of course it’s the highlight. Stray Kids is a rap group. Anyway, I’m ready for this.

Basically the music video was Stray Kids as a group breaking from a sort of imprisonment. They come to realize that the world they know is limited and set up by some sort of agency. Eventually, they break from the place and find refuge, I’m assuming, outside of the institution.

I don’t know if I can find the words to describe how amazing that song was. It wasn’t at all the instrumentals, but their rapping and singing ability. There were some interesting rap flows towards the end of the song that blew me away. The hook of the song was really good. It definitely had an EDM vibe to it, but my favorite parts were when the rap went off.

What did you think of Stray Kids’ debut? Let me know in the comment section. Thank you so much for your support. Don’t forget to support Stray Kids. They are an amazing group and definitely deserve the love. Thank you again and I’ll see you in my next review.

Kisum - It's Okay: music video review

3/28/2018

Two of my favorite female solo artists got together and decided to make a song. Kisum and Heize collaborated to give us “It’s Okay”. Kisum is one of my favorite rappers because of her cool composure when she raps. Her flow is something she makes appear easy. Then Heize is similar but she has such a unique voice and her flow has a groove to it. Honestly, these two artists together make perfect sense and I’m sad they’ve never collaborated before this, but I’m glad they have now.

What a pleasant music video. The video just followed the girls around the room as they danced interpretively. They were in what appeared to be an old apartment and a guy was sitting in the corner playing guitar for the song. It had a natural light so it didn’t seem filtered or anything like that.

Heize’s beautiful voice with Kisum’s incredible rapping as well as her gorgeous voice is such a good pairing. The backing track was a smooth guitar fill with some reverb and light synthesized drum beats that created such a soothing and laidback atmosphere. My one complaint is that the chorus seemed a bit long which didn’t allow Kisum to rap as much as she has the potential for. In fact, she did a song with Se-A called “Liar” where that song was almost pure rap but still had that featured chorus. I love Kisum and I hope she releases an album soon.

What did you think? Did you enjoy the song? Thank you for the support. I appreciate it so much. Let me hear your thoughts in the comment section. Please don’t forget to support Kisum and Heize with her recent album release Wish & Wind as well. These are two incredibly talented artists that honestly deserve better recognition. Thank you again. I’ll see you in my next review.

Monsta X - Jealousy: music video review

3/26/2018

Being a recently discovered Monbebe, I’m super stoked for my next review. “Jealousy” by Monsta X dropped earlier this morning, I believe and I’m more than ready for it. Just in case you were wondering, Minhyuk is my bias and “Beautiful” is my favorite song.

I’m really hoping this music video connects to “Dramarama” but I’m not sure. There was no references to the past video. However, the video was pretty incredible because of the edgy vibe with the beautiful hook. The hook was dirty but beautiful similar to how “Beautiful” was, in my eyes. I believe the story has something to do with two worlds colliding because of the two video images being flipped. Also, there is The Creation, I believe in the background suggesting a new beginning. Maybe the world of The Clan and the world of “Dramarama” are coming together.

Can I just talk forever about how perfect Jooheon and I.M’s raps were? They were incredible not just because they were quick and smooth, but they were smooth and flowed from one to the other with no hiccup or hesitation. The song had a dirty vibe like I mentioned while still remaining beautiful. I don’t think I paid any attention to any other members because I was so focused on Jooheon and I.M.

What did you think of the song? Did you like it better than “Dramarama”? What do you think the meaning or concept behind this video is? Let me know in the comment section. Thank you for your support. Please make sure to give Monsta X even more love. I truly appreciate every one of you and hope you are all doing well. I’ll see you in my next review.

Seventeen - Just Do It: music video review

3/23/2018

I am losing track of who’s coming back when and what album these comebacks are a part of but I’m excited for Seventeen’s comeback “Just Do It” like the Nike sign. Anyway, Seventeen is one of those groups that initially I didn’t like, but have slowly grown on me since then. I don’t know their names except for Woozi because he kind of looks like Suga. Who’s ready for some Seventeen?

That wasn't really a music video. It was more of a live performance with the original audio dubbed over the live music. However, the performance was incredible and the dancing was on point. I always wondered how they got all the light sticks to sync up. Maybe it’s something you do when you go in, you buy a light stick and get it synced up or maybe it’s synced up already for that show. But even the light sticks were amazing.

The song was funky and groovy and felt perfect for Seventeen. There was an incredible amount of change-ups and differences throughout the song to make it excited and not dull one bit. There was a good balance of rap to vocals as well which is crucial in these huge groups. It kind of felt like a Super Junior song but so much better. For those of you who know, I’m not the biggest Super Junior fan so I don’t really like comparing to them. However, as far as the legendary status that SuJu holds, this performance and song was just about at that level.

What did you think? Were you bummed out that it wasn’t an actual music video? Did you enjoy the song? Be sure to support Seventeen. Thank you so much for the love. You are all awesome. I love and appreciate every one of you. Thank you so much and I’ll see you in my next review.