Okay-Pop’s first technology is commonly referenced as the inspiration for the business we take pleasure in now, however there aren’t sufficient good English-language sources that give its music the main focus it deserves. I’m hoping to alter that with a unbroken flashback sequence, spotlighting private highlights from the period – each iconic and obscure.
The period in query is commonly thought of to run from the debut of Website positioning Taiji & Boys in 1992 to the emergence of TVXQ in late 2003. The music featured on this sequence will largely match inside that time-frame, give or take just a few years on both facet.
It was a time of bonkers track constructions, wild style, slamming techno beats, unhealthy reggae impressions, flagrant use (theft?) of American hip-hop samples, hearty energy ballads, foul language, the growliest rapper tones you’ll be able to think about and an anything-goes scrappiness that’s not possible to pigeonhole. To borrow the title of a preferred second-gen act, these years have been the “huge bang” of an rising musical powerhouse, nonetheless discovering its footing and throwing the whole lot on the wall.
There’s a sure kind of hyper-dramatic, rock opera meets rap meets dance hybrid that we most frequently affiliate with SM Leisure’s SMP model and particularly with producer Yoo Younger-Jin. Whereas Younger-Jin was starting to discover this territory with H.O.T and Shinhwa (who will each be featured prominently on this sequence) within the late 90’s, there have been many contemporaries mining the identical sound and generally doing it even higher.
Boy group NRG went by a number of sonic iterations, from Eurobeat to funk to R&B and again once more. A few of this transition might need been in response to member Kim Hwansung’s sudden dying within the 12 months 2000 at simply 19 years previous. I think about it’s arduous to be bopping alongside to excessive vitality Eurobeat while you’ve suffered such stunning tragedy on the peak of your recognition. Face comes from their third album, and Hwansung’s final with the group. It’s my favourite NRG monitor, although the group will probably be spotlighted right here once more as a result of they’ve a wealth of excellent materials.
So many constructing blocks of recent Okay-pop are current on this relentless banger. We’ve received the ever-changing track construction, heavy steel guitar riffs and rapid-fire rap. As a lot as these early Younger-jin productions, Face looks like a predecessor to international hits like TVXQ’s Rising Solar. Just like that track, Face is anchored by a dramatic refrain that units its sights on being as bombastically excessive as doable. NRG are leaving nothing on the desk right here. You’re getting your cash’s value!
| Hooks | 9 |
| Manufacturing | 10 |
| Longevity | 9 |
| Bias | 10 |
| RATING | 9.5 |
Grade: A
