Visiting the local Barnes and Nobles the other day, and came across a K-pop related book called “Stars Of K-Pop”, one version featuring guys (showing Gangnam Style sensation PSY on the cover) and another with the Girls (with, naturally, 4Minute’s HyunA on that cover). I immediately grabbed it up and WOW, was it just FILLED with gorgeous photos and information, and all in English, to boot! Flipping through its pages and seeing all the beautiful photos inside, it occurred to me that though I had folders full of pictures of my favorite idols on my computer desktop, I actually didn’t have much when it came to physical books to hold!
Girls Generation
The book (well, the Girls’ Version, anyway, I’m sorry to say I didn’t even bother to pick up the guy version) focused on what are generally regarded as the top K-pop acts, and I was happy to note that for the most part, every single one of my favorite K-artists were listed there! From Girls Generation to 2NE1 all the way down through to Crayon Pop, it showed colorful pictures accompanied by information regarding group stats and album releases:
...as well as individual member bios-
WOW! This was JUST what an English speaking K-pop Fan NEEDS!
My first thought was how amazing it was that a domestic publisher in Hawaii got everything so right, but looking at the credits on the inside, I think this might have originally been a Korean Released book that got translated into English, or complied from Korean sources. In fact, they credit Kpop Stars News, but I'm really not sure. Whoever it is. they sure researched their subjects well! Look at all of these awesome groups this book covered- and what incredible pics, too!
2NE1
4Minute
Kara
f(x)
f(x) 2
Secret
Sistar
Afterschool
Afterschool2
Apink
Apink2
Brown Eyed Girls
Girl's Day
T-ara
MissA
Rainbow
Crayon Pop
Just about the only K-pop Group I love that DIDN’T get covered in this fine, fine book is Dal Shabet, happily, that is the ONE group that I actually DO have physical photo books from (the incredible “For Darling” picture book that came with the Have, Don’t Have album) so at least I won’t be lacking for pics in THAT department! Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com
Yatta! Today my K-pop shipment containing the latest f(x) release “Pink Tape”, the New Brown-Eyed Girls Album Black Box and the first physical (at least that I could commercially buy) release from those zany Crayon Pop girls with their single “Bar Bar Bar”!!!
I'd already downloaded Crayon pop's Bar Bar Bar single when it first came out, but as this was the first physical album I ever saw for sale on the K-POP sites, I just HAD to purchase it ,if only to let the folks at Chrome Entertainment know WE WANT MORE! Even though the single only came with that one song and an instrumental version, it was still beautifully packaged with a hard case cover and a glossy photobook inside, well worth the $10!
Brown Eyed Girls, the Mighty BEG are back! Though I've got and totally LOVE the girls prior two albums SOUNDG and SIXTH SENSE, this is the first album the girls have released since I've been into K-pop, so this purchase is pretty special to me, and this album is as swinging with tuff-girl bravado as the other albums, heavy on the grooves and percussion, and perfect for shaking thy booty!
Both the Crayon Pop single and the Brown Eyed Girls album are great, but the one I was most excited for was the new album from the cutting edge electro pop goddesses f(x), and holy CRAP, I wasn’t disappointed! Where so many other k-pop acts are releasing what sounds like very typical fare, f(x) continue to astound with new sounds and styles, and it’s like every track here is a new experiment with moving the band musically forward!
And the packaging….if you take a look, they’ took the album’s name “Pink Tape”, and made a CD album box that looks JUST like an old VHS tape, complete with labels and slipcase! So cool! And for an added bonus, the random trading card I got was of Victoria, the senior member who’s been turning me on like HELL this promotion!!!! Man, Gots me some listenin' to do!!!! Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com
They've been so, so many comebacks these last few months, but I have to say that for the most part, I've been buying these new releases more because I like the ARTIST than that I like the song, but when I heard Crayon Pop was making their comeback, I hoped THEY would bring something interesting to the table...and HOLY CRAP, DID THEY EVER!!
The Girls latest offering is the soon-to-be released comeback song "Bar Bar + Bar" (or Ba Ba Ba, depending on where you see it listed) and OMG, is it CATCHY!!!! Although not officially promoted yet, the girls did a highly energetic performance the other day at the Migliore Festival Live event, and it was a sight to BEHOLD!
Along with the regular catchy refrains, the song is accompanied by their always irresistible dance moves which, while always fun and snappy, have been upgraded to almost MOMOIRO CLOVER-Z eccentricities! Seriously, when they came out in helmets, I was all like WTH???! But then the song started and from the first beats in, I was hooked, and watching them jump around (and up and down) onstage, I was BLOWN AWAY!!! SO MUCH FUN!!!! Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.com
Aw Man, out of ALL the comebacks going on, this is ONE that I'm sooo excited for! I first fell in love with the girls when they released "Bing Bing" last year, but was DENIED a real CD release (they releaased a remixed and remade version, both of which weren't as good as the original) I'm praying this is the album that really makes them, though so far, no lsiting for them at YesAsia, which isn't good news when you want to pre-order the album!!! C'mon, you guys, get with the program!!!
So the other week my friend Shanomac sent me the link to this new k-pop girl group called “Crayon Pop” that he thought I should check out. He’s always been a supporter of the newer “rookie” groups, and every few weeks he’ll send me a new artist or group that he thinks I’ll find interesting… The link he’d sent was for their latest song called “Saturday Night”, and checking it out I liked it enough, but then I clicked on the sidebar link to another one of their songs called “Bing Bing”, and it was THIS song that HIT me- My GOSH was this a CATCHY tune!!! Whenever I watch a video from a new artist, I always try to watch a couple of videos from them so I can get a better “feel” of what the group is like; more often than not, I end up liking the other song even more than the one Shanomac recommended! This happened with T-ara when he sent me “Roly Poly” and I ended up liking “I’m Really Hurt”, GangKiz when he sent me “Mama” and I ended up liking “Honey Honey” and now the same thing happened with Crayon Pop!
Unlike the Saturday Night video where Crayon Pop look a bit more mature and glammed up, in Bing Bing the girls are childishly bright-eyed and rosy-cheeked, with the most playfullyly adorable outfits! Everything about them seems so sweetly J-Pop, with driving beats and cool horns and an awesome bass-line that makes you wanna shake your booty! Just watching how much fun they’re having dancing around put a big smile on my face, it’s not often you see such unabashed playfulness! The song was so, soooo catchy I had to replay it over and over again, and the dance moves looked pretty awesome too- I wanted to find a dance practice video or something where I could see the choreography better! Well, at the time I couldn’t locate a dance practice version, but I DID come across a live concert performance with a stationary center camera that did just as well, and upon watching THAT, I was completely smitten… the dance moves are so groovy and frantic, and these girls are so cute and look like they're having so much FUN, (love Soyul with her teddy-bear stuffed backpack, which I would later find she wore throughout the entire Bing Bing promotions!! ) watching them go through the performance all the while beaming their happy smiles, it added up to a perfect feel-good masterpiece, and from then, I was hooked! Check it Out!!
