Rain and Hyori Have Gone Insane

Photo Credit: sixtofive1982; omonatheydidnt

Yeeeeaaaahhh...I really want to say something about it...but I've got nothing. I will say I found it incredibly hilarious when Rain's pictures came out, the first thing I heard from most people:

'They better not screw up MBLAQ's comeback!'

*Sighs* I love you both...but WTF were you thinking?

The ROL

Potential Alert #2: Jeremy Liu

This is why I'm fickle. How does anyone expect me to stick with one or a few artists when they keep churning out outrageously talented newbies like...Jeremy Liu.


Jeremy comes from a distinguished background, having both parents being reputed musical and thespian artists in Taiwan. As a child, influence in the liberal arts was strong, and his parents nurtured his interest and natural talent in music. Schooled in the United States, Jeremy has much western influence in his musical creations, especially that of Funk and Jazz. The most intriguing aspect of Jeremy's music is the diversity and uniqueness of his melodies. It's not your usual mainstream fare, of R&B or pop, but rather un-catchy themes in a surprisingly acceptable style.


Released 12.31.2009
Track List

1. 佔據 (Occupy)
2. Mr. Why
3. 呼叫機器人 (Calling, Robot)
4. 玫瑰 (Rose)
5. 想 (Ponder)
6. 狐狸是誰 (Who is Fox)
7. 住在動物園 (Living at the Zoo)
8. 空傷 (Empty Injury)
9. 連結 (Link)
10. 延長線 (Extension)

Jeremy Liu - Mr. Why

Jeremy Liu's voice, unfortunately, reminds me of many ABC (American-Born Chinese) singers, such as Wang Lee Hom, in that particular way of pronouncing Mandarin Chinese. Therefore, it does not strike me as being ultimately unique. However, that does not reflect his singing ability, which showcases great range and expressive technique, nor his amazing composition talent, which I find completely enthralling and diverse.

Jeremy Liu - Ponder
Song: Jeremy Liu

Credit: supernicemusic

Jeremy Liu - Mr. Why
Song: Jeremy Liu

Credit: blump3music

Of my favorite picks for Best New Artist at this year's Golden Melody Awards in Taiwan, Jeremy, so far poses the most threat to my other favorite, Million Dollar Star 3rd season winner, songstress Lala Xu. As I'm a huge fan of talented, self-composing female singing artists, and because of the dominance of male winners in this category, I would prefer Lala win this year. Unfortunately, Lala has some stiff competition.

Jeremy Liu - Rose (Movie Barbed Hills Theme Song)
Song: Jeremy Liu

Credit: warnertaiwan

As I don't speak any of the other 55 Chinese ethnic dialects, I can not confirm the meanings of the ethnic singing in the background of Rose. However, I really do admire and appreciate the creative fusion of "folk" or "minority" music integrated into contemporary styles. With the rising popularity of minority ethnic stars, or those of mixed Chinese ethnicities, it is no wonder that more and more entertainment arenas are exploring the cultural wonders of these ethnic nationalities.

The GM

ROL Recommends #3: Epik High ft. Infinite-Run

Video Credit: AsianMusicVideoHD

ROL's Rants: Hottests

"Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned / Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned." - 'The Mourning Bride'(1697) by William Congreve.

...or Coldests...or whatever you're deciding to call yourselves now.

I REALLY didn't want to say anything about this situation, but the more I thought about it, the more I needed to say something.

Look, I know you're mad. I know you feel betrayed. I know you want to write some strongly worded post-its and stick them all over JYPE. But before you get all psycho like the girl in the horror film "Carrie", let me see if I can't shed some light on the damage you're REALLY causing.

I've been a fangirl for as long as I can remember. New Kids On The Block was the first group I ever listen to at the tender age of seven. I can remember when there were all these rumors going around that the 80's pop singer Tiffany was dating one of the members. I was so devastated that I cried and all I could think about doing was finding her and scratching her eyes out with a VERY sharp object (mind you I was only seven at the time).

Obviously that didn't pan out since I'm here writing this post and not in a maximum security prison doing 25 to life for attempted murder. After a few days and realizing that not everything you read is true, I got over it and continued on with my life happily knowing I didn't do anything impulsive. Years later my obsession with NKOTB died down and I went onto my next obsession, forgetting all about NKOTB.

You may not realize this now because you're still upset over the whole situation and you're not thinking with a clear head, but what you're doing by protesting is not only hurting JYPE but many others involved with them. You don't think so? Well let me show you.

Jaebeom: He's human, young and he did something stupid. We're all like that at some point in our lives! It's not making him feel any better to know you're mad at the rest of the group for something he did.

The rest of 2PM: They're in the process of recording a new album (which in itself is stressful enough) on top of the already hectic and stressful appearance schedule they have, AND they have to deal with you guys whining and crying over a situation that they had absolutely no control over? How do you think that makes them feel? And you wonder why they're not entirely ecstatic to see you following them 24/7.

2AM: If blaming the rest of 2PM for this situation isn't idiotic enough, think of how utterly ridiculous it is to blame someone else for a situation they're not even apart of just because they're from the same company! That would be like blaming SNSD for something Super Junior did. How stupid does that sound? 2AM IS NOT 2PM, okay? They are a completely different group with completely different members with completely different songs. Just because they're in the same company doesn't mean they're the same.

The Families: How would you feel if someone you love was going through a very rough period in their life and there was absolutely nothing you could do to help them through it? That's probably what the families of these boys are feeling right now.

The Industry: I don't think all the advertisers, producers, investors, etc. are feeling safe and happy knowing at the drop of a hat the fans are boycotting everything 2PM is involved in.

The Production Crews: You may not know this but in everything an artist does there are hundreds of people behind the scenes that go through every little tiny detail many times to make sure they look and sound perfect. When shows are canceled or albums are not made, it's not just the artist that's affected but every person involved with that artist.

Other Artists: They must feel some pressure wondering if their fans could one day drop them just like that.

The Fans That Still Support: Yes there are still sane fans that support them because when you support a group, you support the WHOLE group. I understand you want to support Jaebeom, but just remember it's not the other member's fault he left.

I've been a fan of Kpop for almost six years and one of the things I love about Kpop is the fans. The way you come together to protect and take care of the artists you admire is incredibly amazing.

Unfortunately, one of the things I don't like about Kpop is...the fans. Some of the things you say and do to "protect" your favorite artist are incredibly rude and disgraceful. It not only makes you look bad but the artist you admire too. Think about that the next time you decide to "support" them.

Don't turn on your artists when they make a mistake. We are all human - flawed by nature. We're not perfect and will make many mistakes. Artists are no different.

The ROL

You May Not Know Of...#6: Casker

Information
Name: Casker
Label: Lupin Records
Debuted: February 8, 2003

Members
Lee Juno (이준오)-programming, synths, samples, dsp
Lee Yung Jin (이융진)-vocals
Lee Jin Wook (이진욱) -acoustic and electric pianos

Facts
-Similar style as Clazziquai.
-Electro-modern rock style
-Recorded the song “Double Shot” for the highly successful drama “The 1st Shop Of Coffee Prince” starring Yoon Eun Hye and Gong Yoo.
-Participated in the album “Story of Cats” that was released to spread the word about their feelings towards man's best friends. The album also featured such artists as Humming Urban Stereo and Toy.
-Yoong Jin was featured in Epik High’s “Love Love Love”.

Discography
First album: The Planet Built With Steel-Released: February 8, 2003
Second album: Skylab-Released: May 17, 2005
Third album: Between-Released: December 4, 2006
Fourth album: Polyester Heart-Released: December 22, 2008
First mini album: Your Songs-Released: November 26, 2009

Links
Soompi Thread: Click Here

Videos
Casker-정전기 (Live)



Video Credit: orienkorean

Casker-Nobody Knows



Video Credit: riano

Casker-Nabi Buin



Video Credit: orienkorean

The ROL

ROL Recommends #2: Let's give it up for the rappers!

I could go on and on with videos featuring my favorite rappers (even though I kinda did *lol*). There are so many more rappers I can recommend, but I don't have the space to put them all here. I'll try to feature more in the future through this section and the "You May Not Know Of..." section, so keep an eye out for it in the future!

If you have any more sugestions, feel free to comment or send me suggestions through the ways on the sidebar!

Outsider-Aquaintence (Live):



Video Credit: TheAMFSandy2

Epik High-Rocksteady (Eng. ver.)



Video Credit: choi911z

Drunken Tiger-Monster (Live)



Video Credit:KoreanTommy2

DJ Doc-I Wanna (Live)



Video Credit:deuxmv

Jinusean-Phone Number (Live)



Video Credit: chiunev

And now...the girls

Lexy ft. Taeyang-Get Up (Live)



Video Credit: MsRosj

Tasha-Black Happiness MV



Video Credit: rainieyang09

2NE1's CL Rap Practice



Video Credit: lanladay

WG's Yoobin Rap



Video Credit: jypentertainment

The ROL

J-D Squared and...SHINee?

As the readers of this blog know, GM is notoriously critical and frank. She credits herself for being practical, realistic and above most of my “superficiality”.

So you can guess my reaction when out of the blue one day, she said: “I like SHINee.”

“What?! You.. like SHINee?” Mind you, her comment may seem un-obssessive to you, but knowing GM, that self-prompted admission alone signals how much she has latched onto this group.

“Yea, I like them…I mean, I like their music…and they can dance and sing well at the same time. They’re adorable.” Adorable? When did you ever like skinny, effeminate K-pop groups?

***

In order to protect my integrity, and defend myself against the implications stated above, I, GM, will first describe how I feel about Kpop. Unlike ROL, who thinks Kpop is similar to chocolate, the more the better, until you hit a threshold and it becomes sickening; I think chocolate is too kind a word to describe the world of Kpop. To me, it has been more of a plague. It spreads through multiple mediums, is highly contagious and dangerously detrimental to a person's health. Just look at all those symptoms – incessant screaming, foolish chanting (albeit, very organized and rhythmic), lack of cohesive thought when spending funds, strange tactics to win the affections of their idols, and the worst part is, these infectious victims don’t feel satisfied with just themselves being infected, they also want to drag everyone else down with them.

Therefore, I've treated this tumultuous and infectious disease with a sort of detached aloofness. I listen to Kpop...but never too much. I like Kpop idols...but never get close. To me, it's something that's inevitably there and if I'm in the mood, I enjoy it for what it is. Note: This does not include the indie, lesser mainstream and less popular K music/artists that I like.

In order to explain my "sudden" proclamation of liking for SHINee, I must go back to 9 years prior when I started watching K varieties. Shinhwa was the first Kpop group that I liked, not for their music, but for their member appearances in K varieties, and it was more of a positive opinion than true fandom. As the years passed, I moved from Shinhwa to Super Junior to 2AM, and inevitably to SHINee. But unlike before where it was personalities in varieties that appealed to me, or a few notably talented members that got my attention, I found myself impressed with the overall quality of this "boy" group; in terms of music selection, dance talent, singing capabilities, distinct individualism of each member, and group cohesiveness on live performances. It's the first time I'm attached and impressed by all members of a group, almost equally.

SHINee members, like their predecessors, DBSK, are each well-rounded in musical talent and dancing. Usually in a Kpop group, members are designated certain roles, often resulting in some being good singers but not great dancers, while others are rappers but can not sing, etc. An imbalance of skill, essentially. Therefore, I've been impressed with the range of talents of each member in SHINee - in comparison to the current crop of boy groups. SME may be known as a ruthless and perfidious company that imbibes upon and exhausts its artists, but one thing I must say is the training on all essentials of being an artist, and emphasis on differentiating and diversifying their artists' talents/images are exemplary.

So what makes SHINee different for me? Firstly, I did not discover SHINee through variety programs. I discovered them through a live Music Core performance, a random video sent to me by one of my many Kpop addicts. For once, I was more than slightly amused, I was actually impressed. I've seen many live performances of Kpop groups (hard to avoid when my Kpop-addicted net buddies are constantly trying to pull me under), but they mostly ranged from moderately interesting to distasteful. Only DBSK and BEG ever got more than "positive opinion" ratings for their live performances.

I'm still averse to immersing myself into the world of Kpop, but gradual influence from those around me have made me seen more of the silver linings. And if my ROL has any say, I'm sure to be converted one of these days.

***

Seriously, SHINee?! I mean, I can see GM liking a particular idol like Brian, Heechul, and Jo Kwon, through watching variety programs, but a whole idol group? Especially one she considers “baby-ish” and "girly"? But hey, whatever floats her boat. As long as I get her "infected," I don't care which group does it.

We may be quite polar opposites and bicker often, but there are several things that unite us.... SHINee!

J-D Squared

P.S. OK, this was such a random post, but it at least proves what big dorks we are.