December Favorites
Favorite Song: “Pirate” - EVERGLOW
The club banger to end all club bangers, EVERGLOW’s latest title “Pirate” brings the trance vibes of the early 2000s back to the forefront. For those of us, like me, that grew up in that era, the vibe of this song is incredibly nostalgic and its revival for 2021 is a fresh release. While the girls keep their standard bad girl and queen energy, the song has a strong beat from start to finish. EVERGLOW has done a lot of title releases that explore different musical genres, and it’s nice to see “Pirate” bring something new and showcase the versatility of the girls.
Favorite Album: NCT - Universe
As someone who has quickly become overwhelmed with the expansive NCT universe in and of itself, I find it very hard to dive deep into the group itself and really stan. As years go by and new members are constantly being added, it’s just too much for me to keep up with (which we discuss in the latest episode of The Krazecast). Despite that, there’s no denying the quality of album releases from the group time and again. Universe shows a very diverse range of genres from the different sub-units. The album starts off with a hard-hitting rap track, transitions into the NCT U title, and keeps that high energy flowing through until the sound shifts about halfway through the album. The flow of this album is beautiful, kicking off with the hard stuff and ending with the full NCT 2021 lineup in their softer dual title. The composition in the album is no joke, and even for a casual listener there’s no denying the talent in NCT.
Favorite Music Video: “멋(The Real) (흥 : 興 Ver.)” - ATEEZ
We all saw it coming. I’m so deep into the ATEEZ life that any comeback from them is extremely exciting. “멋(The Real) (흥 : 興 Ver.)” as a video is entertaining from start to finish, with the setting focusing on “ATEEZ High School” and placing the boys into separate cliques, presumably trying to recruit new kid Mingi into their group, or simply to intimidate him. Yeosang appears to be the mastermind behind the group's gang wars, with the members’ super strength coming together in a final culmination that brings upon a storm. It has a very different feel from the music videos ATEEZ have released previously, but it brings a fun new twist to the track that is super addicting.
Favorite Music Show Performance: “Intro + Trauma” - SF9 @ KBS Song Festival
Having been a supporter of SF9 for the majority of their time since debut, it’s very exciting to finally see them recognized for the very first time on a year-end special. The intro features a dance performance from Jaeyoon, Youngbin, and everyone’s current obsession, Yoo Taeyang. “Trauma”’s choreography is very unique and eye-catching, with the use of chairs by the backup dancers adding a unique element to the overall performance. This is also the first performance of the track that has Zuho dancing, as he previously sat out that portion due to an injury and only sang in the music show performances. It took five years, but finally seeing SF9 get the recognition they deserve brings a tear to my eye.