Review: AFTER SCHOOL - First Love

Aha! I should not calling this a review...

I should call this obsessively stating how awesome After School is!!

The moment this video was released, I quietly opened the Youtube, and let the video buffered and waited for my lunchtime (sobsss!!) to actually view the   video.

First impression the minute the video started?? I AM LOVING EVERY SINGLE SECOND OF IT!!! Both video and song!!! Way much better than Flashback comeback (where I loving the MV so much but not the song. I have to play the song several times to actually liking it).

I am sooo majorly impress with my girls. They never failed to impress me. From drums, to tap dance and now...pole dance..while singing ok! It is hard. Look at their bruised from 6 month of training. I feels like crying!!

You can view the full stories here and here.

Favourite Parts of The Video

First is the the sexy hip-swaying choreographies. I'm seriously could not get my eyes off the girls, let alone the Playboyz out there. They must have 'suffer' a lot! Hihi.

Second part is towards the ending where my main bias (JungAh unnie) and my second bias, Kaeun performed solo pole dances (ok, I really don't know how to describe this, sorry!). 

Jung Ah

My main bias is beautiful and angelic looking as usual... Ok well, not that angelic when she appeared semi-nude/topless. I have no qualms about it. In fact, I'm enjoying it (in a non-sexual way, I must stress it) and kinda shock my JungAngel is brave enough to do that.

Looking angelic...

Gawk!!! There she goes! O_O ..I just don't understand how she can look angelic anddddd sexy at the same time. That's it, she must be an X-Men.. With power of seduction..

Kaeun

My second bias. I'm loving how her part is growing. She getting more lines and she in the main star (obviously) of the pole dancing in this clip. Can you see how many scenes she gets for pole dancing? Let alone she's having the pole to herself. Without sharing?? I love her sweet sugary voice. 

E-Young

I am super impress with her! No wonder she is my fellow Playgirlz main bias. She truly looks like a living doll here!! And the way she plays with the pole. Enough said. Full stop. She is just amazing.

The rest

I'm sorry. I just can't comment on every members. If I did, it will ended up like I'm sitting for SPM essay exam here (and I don't mind if the question asked me to explain the history of After School) They're just as awesome as they always be. Too beautiful that it can be considered a sin. Never fail to make other girls brimming with jealously. Loving and hating them at the same time.

And I am seriously missing Lizzy here. Please take care of yourself and please get well soon so that I can see all 8 of my girls perform together.

Oh! I'm sooo loving Jooyeon's outfit in this clip. And no, a dwarf like myself can never pull this look.

As a conclusion, I AM THOROUGHLY AMAZE with my girls. They managed to strip off 'dirty' from pole dancing and turn it into something artistic. (Yes my dear, I use to think pole dancing is dirty). The anticipation of waiting for the comeback worth every minute of it. It was like starving for months and suddenly somebody come put a plate of hot rice with soy sauce, fried fish and scrambled egg mixed together (sorry for sounding like I'm describing cat food, but this is my comfort food).

As compare to SISTAR - Give It To Me??

Here, I'm being honest and fair. Not because I'm a Playgirlz. First, I respect Sistar (and I'm in love with Bora) and their recent comebacks (Alone, Loving You and Gone, Not Around Any Longer) did have place in my heart (and my player). I'm loving those songs the moment I hear them. 2nd point, I'm kinda disappointed with After School Flashback comeback. 3rd point is, they're swapping producers for recent comeback. And honestly, Sistar teaser MV looks more appealing that After School's. 

So when Sistar released their official MV, which is 2 days earlier, I've restraint myself from listening to it as I want to compare them with After School comeback song. I wanted to know, which songs I will have the indescribable feeling for (it could be for both) and the need to obsessively repeating the song over and over and over again.

And my feeling and obsessiveness go to After School's First Love. Even though tempo sounds a bit like Sistar's Gone, Not Around Any Longer, but I'm dare saying First Love is much more better. I'm not saying Sistar's Give It To Me is a flop. The song and choreography is nice, really (and Bora looking awesome as ever), but the feeling is just not there. 

I'm seriously hoping After School gets the recognition they deserved.

How to help them? You can follow the steps here and here.

All hail After School.





                        

Review: SKARF Oh! Dance

I was watching Inkigayo when this group made their debut with Oh! Dance... The first thing I noticed are their awkwardness and lack of strong vocal. But the song is so light and fresh, I can't get them out of my head. I keep humming the "oh oh ooooh oh" part. And I'm kinda hooked with their simple choreography. And I googled their MV! Haha.. Not a strong debut but the song is catchy enough to catch my attention. And both Singaporeans catched my eyes too..Oh, I don't like their cutesy image. :(

Review: Nu'est Action Album Review

This is not my opinions or reviews.

This is an honest review that worth sharing..

NU’EST’s name is created from the phrase “Nu Established Style and Tempo.” They proved to be a popular group upon their debut with five handsome members and a forward-thinking concept based around dubstep sounds and complicated choreography. The group pushes these same ideals of their namesake, but tries to be bigger and better with their new ‘Action‘ EP.

Not Over You

The release begins with “Not Over You” which has a great summer feel to it; similar to fellow labelmates Hello Venus’ “Like A Wave”. The dreamy, thumping dance production kicks off the EP on a great note. The electronic guitar strums have a similar sound to the pre-chorus sung by Colby O’Donis on the Akon track he’s featured on, “Beautiful”. (You might also remember BoA jumping on a remix of this track for Akon’s Japanese release of this album). Though it’s not the most striking piece of music, “Not Over You” is definitely a gem with the boys jumping from singing to rapping, as well as layering electronic elements that push the song forward and keep the pace nicely.

Action

Next we have the comeback track “Action” which has a ton of great ideas, but ultimately comes off as disconnected. Pledis Entertainment sometimes nails it with certain forward-thinking music and concepts (After School Red and Blue come to mind). They are clearly trying to do something different with NU’EST too. While debut track “Face” was a breezy, catchy track with an amazingly subtle dubstep breakdown, “Action” goes the opposite route making everything bigger and more aggressive. Unfortunately, the ambitious moves are just simply disconnected and detract from the music.

The intro begins with seven seconds of cinematic horns and strings before abruptly transitioning into the electronic production. The same is done on the bridge going into one of the heaviest dubstep breakdowns (or perhaps the term “brostep” is a better description) in idol K-pop. Once the breakdown is over, the track changes completely by slowing down as lead singer Baekho shows off his belting skills (and we get some glamour poses from Ren). While going into Skrillex territory is a fresh move, the track gave no indication it was going there and only incorporates it for that small section. “Face” introduced its unique dubstep section and then the boys sang the bridge section over it. The breakdown in “Action” feels more like a random way to shock listeners or gain some type of dubstep credibility. Both cinematic and “brostep” elements are found in the opening track “NU, Establish, Style, Tempo” of their debut maxi-single ‘Face’. But those elements were blended better than those in “Action”. This is somewhat concerning especially when “NU, Establish, Style, Tempo” is just supposed to be an attention-grabbing intro.

Sandy

Third track “Sandy” is a cool idea and another remarkable album track. Mostly, it’s a smart move, especially for a rookie group, to dedicate a new song to their fans which will encourage future support. Both of Pledis’ newest groups seem keen on securing and pleasing their fanbases with both Hello Venus and NU’EST launching official fan clubs. “Sandy” is a bouncy, electro-pop track about a proposal that is sure to set the hearts of those fans aflutter. Another nice addition to this EP.

Happy Birthday

“Happy Birthday” finishes things off as a ballad written, produced, and arranged by Jung Yun Seung. The track ultimately doesn’t do much other than offer a change to the electronic elements of the EP. If NU’EST is really all about establishing new tempo and style, I would have expected something other than the usual K-pop ballad. T-ara’s “Don’t Leave” is an excellent atypical ballad and something that I think would have fit better on this EP than “Happy Birthday”. However, this track is better and more memorable than most ballads with the long notes held out at the end of the chorus as the melody changes as highlights. Plus, you can hear it’s a real piano accompanying which is a nice, refreshing touch to the electro-based EP.

Its proving harder and harder for rookie groups to break out, especially this summer when so many established acts are making their comebacks. For NU’EST the ‘Action’ EP should further solidify the boys’ place in K-pop. My advice to NU’EST: Keep doing what you’re doing, but tidy things up a bit before the next comeback.

"Jeff Benjamin is a singer, songwriter, DJ, photographer and freelance writer who has written works for Billboard, Rolling Stone and now allkpop. He is passionate about making international music accessible for English readers. Follow/chat/send him music suggestions on Twitter @Jeff__Benjamin."

Reviewer's Rating: (2.89 / 5)  

________________________________________________________________________________

As much as I love Nu'est, I have to agree with the reviewer regarding the

dubsteps being disconnected to the song. It was kinda shocking as we're listening to the song and suddenly a weird dupsteps coming in. It was kind a turn off. But being a fan, I forced myself to accept it. But for others, this will gains more critics. And I'm sorry, I'm not really good in describing a music. :)



As for the rest of the songs, they're great for me! :)

For fulll article, please visit allkpop here