10 of the Most Essential K-Pop Albums of 2015

[theemii.livejournal.com]

The year 2015 has come and gone pretty quickly, but it has left us with some quite outstanding musical releases. So as we get ready to say goodbye to the year that was, there is no better time to look back over some of the most memorable K-pop EP and LP releases the year has had to offer.

Take a look through our list and tell us what your favorite album of the year is in the comments below!


GOT7’s “Mad”



One of the hardest things to do in K-pop is maintain musical consistency. Agencies like to chop and change concepts, something that leads them to seek audio variety for their artists, rather than aim for a coherent “sound.”

In this respect, GOT7 is exceptional. The boys started off life in 2014 with a very clean, quite conventional pop concept noticable on songs like “A. ”

With its lush, super-clean production, smooth vocals, seamless transitions into rap sections, “Mad” fits in with the GOT7 audio theme, a neat continuation from 2014’s output.



But what this album has added is a small, but essential detail — great beats. The percussion sounds and patterns are tighter, richer, and phatter throughout, making “Mad” a nice, fun, and easy listen.

“Good Feeling” and “Good” (above) make use of some disco textures woven in with mainstream RnB sounds. Meanwhile, “If You Do” and “Tic Tic Tok” incorporate electronica styles, the latter using a similar retro keyboard synth sound to A Pink’s “Remember” — to a similar effect.

But you’d be wrong to think of “Mad” as an experimental album. It’s not — it’s pure pop. The boys have pulled off one of the rarest feats in K-pop with “Mad” — significantly upgrading their musical output without making any departure from the sound that made fans fall for them in the first place.

EXO’s “Love Me Right”



EXO has had some great hits over the years, but the repackage of “EXODUS” is easily the group’s most complete work to date. It comprises a total of 14 gorgeously produced, upbeat tracks with some of the best boyband basslines K-pop has ever come up with.

“Tender Love” has a 1980s soul feel to it, with brass textures and funk guitar. “El Dorado” is an electronica epic with a thunderous beat and “What If…?” is a 1990s-style atmospheric RnB slow jam in the vein of Bone Thugs-n-Harmony’s 1995 hit “Crossroads.”

You will not hear better vocal track production anywhere this year than in “Playboy.” But for me “Love Me Right” steals the show — an extravagant, indulgent slice of retro disco-flavored dance.

In terms of boyband albums, nothing has really come close to this all year.

BIGBANG’s “M.A.D.E”



Before the BIGBANG boys made their comeback this year, it really had been a very long time since we had heard from them as a full group. Some of us were starting to get a little worried. So when the boys announced they would be spreading their return over the course of four months, fans knew they were in for something special.

And, being BIGBANG, the boys certainly did not disappoint. An eight-track album delivered in tasty two-song morsels was just what the doctor ordered — especially when nobody can really say with any certainty when the fab five will next be reunited in the studio.



The bass and sampling in “Bae Bae” is incredibly addictive.

“Bang Bang Bang” is also a standout — a breathlessly upbeat dance track in the vein of “Fantastic Baby,” but with a wonderfully disarmingly down-tempo hook.

There was nothing really new here, musically speaking. It was the old BIGBANG, doing their BIGBANG thing. And perhaps after three long years of waiting, that was exactly what we all wanted.

SHINee’s “Married to the Music”



Like labelmates EXO, SHINee really needed this album to be something special. In the case of EXO, turmoil over member departures had fans worrying for the very survival of the act at one point. SHINee, in contrast, looked the very model of stability.

But unlike EXO, SHINee has been around for what seems like ages, making a lot of fun, poppy, often cute songs. But you need to consider that this fivepiece is now a group of men in or approaching their mid-twenties. They are no longer a group of fresh-faced boys. Realistically, they needed a more mature sound.

What they came up with this year, however, was all that and more. There had been glimpses of a more sophisticated side to SHINee in the “Misconceptions” series back in 2013, but “Odd” built on that.

Packed with smooth numbers like “Love Sick,” the kind of song you’d expect from SHINee, the boys also went off into some very unfamiliar territory. “View” was a complex mesh of UK Garage textures, 808 beats and old school house keyboards — it is a track without any musical precedent in K-pop.

But just like EXO’s album this year, SHINee saved the very best for the repackage. Few songs this year have come close to out-grooving “Married to the Music,” a funk-pop masterpiece that openly embraces the fun of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”

BTS’ “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life Parts 1 & 2”



Is there a K-pop boyband out there enjoying a better year than BTS? Already at pretty much the forefront of the scene at the end of 2014, the boys have been utterly relentless this year.

Is it possible to consider the two-part “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life” series as an album in its own right? If so, it makes for over one hour of essential K-pop listening.

“I Need U” is hands-down the song of the year. Nothing on its level has hit the charts in Korea this year. But there is more than that track to the “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life” series.



“Fun Boys” sees the group explore upbeat rap soundscapes, there are some exquisite vocal samples on “Run,” currently storming the charts and music shows. The boys even sail into uncharted ballad waters (with surprisingly decent effect) on “Butterfly.”

And it is all beautifully bookended with some marvellous “intro” and “outro” snippets on both volumes.

miss A’s “Colors”



Despite a plethora of very good songs (“Hush,” anyone?), miss A has always left me a little nonplussed when it comes to album content.

For an act that works so closely with a producer as influential as Park Jin Young, the group’s back catalog is not as impressive as it could be, and the title tracks have always overshadowed the non-promoted album tracks in the quality stakes.

Not so on “Colors.” The lead track, “Only You,” is a decent song, but is arguably the weakest on the album.

In particular “Love Song” and “Melting” are outstanding; the former’s violin refrain will haunt your dreams, while the latter is a delightful mess of super-bad sub bass and synths.

The group needs to lead with a song like “Melting” next time around — with JYP Entertainment choreographers and miss A’s dancing skills, it truly would be something very special indeed.

Wonder Girls’ “Reboot”



Not just the best K-pop album of the year, possibly the best album of the year period.

The Wonder Girls were gone, presumed MIA, and the idea of them making a comeback minus their former main vocalist and leader Sunye and (arguably) their most popular member in Sohee seemed pretty uninspiring.



For one, I have never really been enamored by the Wonder Girls’ musical output. It always seemed so generic. When it was announced ahead of their 2015 comeback that the group would be “playing their own instruments,” I was skeptical. “Here comes a rock concept,” I thought, and so did many others, I’d wager. Boy were we wrong.

It was less Coldplay and more Evelyn “Champagne” King. This aggressive, unprecedented return to 1980s disco-pop was as welcome as it was unexpected.

“Candle,” “John Doe,” “Oppa,” “I Feel You,” “Loved,” there is not a single bum note on this whole album.

Synthwave meets K-pop — with delicious results.

Ga In’s “Hawwah”



An exceptionally ambitious album in many ways, blending a whole range of theological and literary themes, this was another quite unexpected release.

You would suspect that something might be a tad different about an EP named with the classical Hebrew name for Eve (from the book of Genesis), but it actually goes even deeper than you might think. And I am not just talking about lyrics here.

The album begins with “Apple,” a track that I do not have much time for. It sounds like typical Ga In. We have been to this lounge-infused jazzy house territory before with songs like “Bloom.”

But from there it takes a sudden turn. “Free Will” starts off with a familiar, light uptempo blues intro but spins off into much more sinister, and more experimental places, Dok2’s breathless rap adding to the deceptive sensation that the track’s tempo is gradually speeding up.

And then we plunge into the album’s centerpiece, “Paradise Lost,” a chaotic brew of vocal layering, church organs, orchestral textures, and cellos. It is all based on John Milton’s chilling 1667 epic poem of the same name, a fearsome meditation on the tale of Lucifer’s fall from grace.

Dark, brooding religious themes permeate the album, from the fuzz-infested “The First Temptation” to the subtly ironic “Guilty.”

4MINUTE’s “Crazy”



For those of us who prefer our K-pop upbeat and electronica-flavored, the 4MINUTE girls are our unofficial champions. Few K-pop girl groups out there go with a harder dance-driven sound than HyunA and co.

The last few 4MINUTE releases, however, had a few of us worried. “What’s Your Name?” and “Whatcha Doin’ Today?” would have been acceptable pop songs had they been dropped by any other group.

For some, though, they just were not in the same league as previous 4MINUTE releases.

When the group first released “Cold Rain,” its first ever ballad, ahead of the rest of the EP, I for one was worried. It’s a lovely song and all, but well, tears, runny mascara, and slow-paced rap is not really what we came to the 4MINUTE party for.

Fortunately, it turned out to be part of an elaborate smokescreen. The rest of “Crazy” is a relentless dancefest, replete with heavy bass, plentiful Jiyoon-HyunA rap verses, house beats, and mischievous brass riffs. And to top it all off, there is the title track, K-pop’s first foray into the wild world of moombahton music.

A brashly unapologetic and wonderfully loud return to form.

Dal Shabet’s “Joker Is Alive”



Dal Shabet has been around for a while, bumping around rather innocuously in the no-man’s-land of underrated, long-serving Korean girl groups (see also After School and 9MUSES). Such acts seem to almost obstinately continue releasing material in the full knowledge they will probably remain forever at arm’s reach of the K-pop top table.

However, rocked by the departure of members Gaeun and Jiyul earlier this month, it looks like 2016 is going to be key for Dal Shabet — it is now sink or swim time for the act.



The group’s agency, Happy Face Entertainment, has vowed that the four-member Dal Shabet will return “in January next year.” Despite losing what I feel are the groups most personable (and aesthetically pleasing) members, however, there is no reason the member shake-up cannot present an opportunity in disguise.

After all, the four-member edition Girl’s Day has gone on to achieve things the five-member edition would never have dreamed possible. Perhaps Dal Shabet could do the same.

To boot, “Joker Is Alive” is easily the group’s most accomplished album to date. Co-written and co-produced by super-maknae Subin, it is a surprisingly mature and well-made album. Fans will have to hope it is not the group’s swansong, but instead a sign of musical transition as the group moves on.

“Addiction” is the EP’s high point, with its surprising UK Garage-influenced chorus. There are some smoother RnB stylings in “To.Darling.” And there are also flashes of dubstep in “I’m Not” (below).

Variety, polish, and creativity, “Joker Is Alive” is rich in all three — if the girls can build upon this as a fourpiece, there is no reason to give up on Dal Shabet just yet.



Honorable Mentions

Rainbow’s “Innocent”

Pity us poor Rainbow fans — the group’s best album to date and all we get is a meager two weeks’ worth of promotion.



Jonghyun’s “Base”

A strong year for all the SHINee boys, not least of all this young man.




Girls’ Generation’s “Lionheart”

Great to have the girls back. Hitchhiker-composed “Sign” is an infectiously fuzzy highlight.



Sonamoo’s “Cushion”

The most underrated group in K-pop drops some audio fire with its second EP release.



Melody Day’s “Speed Up”

One, two, three delectably different tracks from another slow-burning girl group that deserves a lot more attention.




source: Soompi & rainy leonis, 1theBeatLiveMusic Official A92, BIGBANG, SMTOWN, 5long6boo, Global Kpop 5, LilySUBS, HYUK_MUMBLESTASH20, ⊹ Last Leaf ⊹, 1theBeatLiveMusic Official A92

Comments

[charlotterhys.livejournal.com]

I am honestly surprised that 4 Walls isn't on this list, but whatever. I actually own a good percentage of this albums so I can't help but generally agree. XD

*Albums I own, including from the honorable mentions:
GOT7
EXO
SHINee
Miss A
Wonder Girls
Gain
4Minute
Rainbow
Jonghyun
Girls' Generation

I just don't like BTS' style, I try not to remember that Big Bang exists anymore, I tried to like Dal Shabet's release but I... just didn't, and I've never heard of the last two. XD

Edit to add: 2015 was just a really good year for Korean music. There were so many albums that I love to pieces.

[scionofawhisper.livejournal.com]

"I try not to remember that Big Bang exists anymore"
lmao, same... well, I kinda just want to freeze them in time, and then.. erase everything that happened in the past 2-3 years.. XD

[parkjsun.livejournal.com]

Missing 4 Walls and The Red
#Invalid

I still have a huge backlog of albums I still need to listen to but so far (for me), it'd be:

Jonghyun's The Story Op.1
EXO's Sing For You & EXODUS (didn't really like the LMR repackage)
SHINee's Odd/Married to the Music
f(x)'s 4 Walls
Wonder Girl's Reboot
Red Velvet's The Red
apparently I just love the music SM puts out

For non-"Kpop" so far:
Han Hee Jung's Slow Dance
Gary's 2002
E-Sen's The Anecdote (I can't believe he put out a classic then goes straight to jail smh)
Lim Kim's Simple Mind
Hyukoh's 22
Primary's 2
Taru's The Song of Songs
Lucia's Light & Shade - Chapter 2
Brown Eyed Soul's Soul Cookie

[fabulousdoll.livejournal.com]

I like this list. I personally would have mentioned f(x)'s 4 walls, Red Velvet's ICC and The Red and obviously Fiestar's Black Label too.
Now that I think about it, in both cases for the Red Velvet albums I liked more other songs than the title one.

[hitthoselightz.livejournal.com]

bless this comment!
gorg icon <3

[velveteenkitten.livejournal.com]

Missing The Red, for me but otherwise a pretty perfect list for me (except for Mad... average at best).
This has never happened before.
I'm surprised.

Finally some recognition for Reboot. I live!

[xlovexlessxtyx.livejournal.com]

right! Reboot is SO slept on!

[adenar.livejournal.com]

I love Reboot and Hawwah. for Crazy & Colors i only really like one song/parts of another song, so i wouldn't care about the whole album. MADE can burn in the fires of hell, I only like Sober and GD's whiny shitty voice is all over it destroying the mood

People are probably fed up of hearing about f(x) but 4walls should be on here, there are only two songs I dislike on it and one of them I'm only lukewarm to anyway. Ah Yeah came out this year, right? That album was solid, every single song was great. Bastarz' Zero for Conduct was also amazing, shame about the lyrics on Thief ([stares at esna for a long time]) because the instrumental/melody for that is amazing too. Black Label was pretty great though I only got into it a few months after it's release (Hello is fab). Drama from 9Muses was pretty good, I prefer it to S/S Edition, and I can't remember what Sleepless Night sounds like, I need to relisten to it.

[parkjsun.livejournal.com]

"I can't remember what Sleepless Night sounds like"

Like every other Brave Brothers song. He needs to retire.

[xxhna.livejournal.com]

4 walls & red velvet's album pretty good too. esp 4 walls. i thought day 6 was amazing too ...

[pippopippo.livejournal.com]

Maybe as honorable mentions but I would add EXID's Ah Yeah (what a great mini that was), RV's The Red, and Day6's The Day.

[bmo.livejournal.com]

wrong bc Boys Be isn't on here tbh! anything great that doesnt include 17 is always 100% wrong.

also i cant believe i didnt like shinee's view at first @@

[miuratenshi.livejournal.com]

I totally agree with most of this list, but I haven't listened to miss A, GaIn, 4Minute, or Dal Shabet so I can't make a decision about those lol.

[charlotterhys.livejournal.com]

You should really listen to Hawwah. 8| It's amazing, and Paradise Lost I think will go down on my list of favorite MVs ever. It's just perfect.

[soulsreverie.livejournal.com]

i didn't think mad was that great. i didn't like most songs from made either.
would've put the red somewhere on that list

[gray-fairy.livejournal.com]

Finally a list I really agree with even tho it misses really brilliant albums like The Red.
SHINee has been around for what seems like ages, making a lot of fun, poppy, often cute songs
I kinda disagree with this though. Their music has never really being "cute" (except some japanese singles), not even their debut album had a "cutesy" feeling at all and they're trying some darker sounds since 2010, but I agree that they've grown a lot musically since then.

Finally some appreciation for Reboot too, that album is really good.

[fallendaydreams.livejournal.com]

severe lack of f(x) tbh

[chastainy.livejournal.com]

Yes at this Reboot recognition!
(http://tinypic.com?ref=2n6cd0)

[kjc48.livejournal.com]

irl lol @ the gif
lmao Brandy was NOT playing that day lmao
#accurate

[sayuridoll.livejournal.com]

'Lion Heart' is the best SNSD korean album release. 4 Walls album is cohesive sound, but I don't really like EDM that much. It still does deserve to be on this list tho, IMO. Also, THE RED was a solid first album from RV and I loved every song minus one.


Also, correct me if I'm wrong but MADE hasn't come out yet, right, lol?

[parkjsun.livejournal.com]

I think they're just counting the singles from the M.A.D.E series as one album. That'll be confusing once the actual MADE album comes out (if it ever does).

[abcd123.livejournal.com]

IA with a lot of comments mentioning 4walls - it may not have been my favorite album from fx but I do think it has some amazing songs on it.

Yes at both of the beautiful moment in life albums being there, I still have pt1 on repeat. The got7 fan in me is happy that they're listed - but I honestly liked just right better haha. As for girls - I loved miss a colors - love song was one of my favorite tracks this year. Also loved every song on Crazy (besides cold rain but I'm just not a ballad person).

This was a pretty good year in Korean music honestly

[atopworld.livejournal.com]

I'd add 4Walls and TVXQ's latest, I can play those over right after finishing them. Glad to see Base is on here. Also, Got7. Idk, I've loved every album after Got Love, give or take 2 or 3 songs in total.

Random tangent: MTTM is such a layered track to me. All of it is centered on MJ, but it's the essence of his Thriller album rolled into one, and somehow is a song that is also the essence of Shinee.

But Reboot getting the love and praise it deserves is the winning point here.

[utadaboba.livejournal.com]

Why no RV? Hands down, The Red was my favorite album this year

[ababobaby.livejournal.com]

even my snsd and shinee bias self will still choose The Red. other albums had me skipping but never RV's

[nefertitii.livejournal.com]

finally Mad makes at least one list. its such a good album

[lostnoodle0317.livejournal.com]

+11111

[tsukiokuhime.livejournal.com]

I personally think A-Yeah Mini deserved to be on this list, it's really solid.

[uledy.livejournal.com]

my favorite albums have been:

davichi- hug
sosim boys- remix collection
shinee- mttm
my q- spring/summer 2015 issue no.1 AND fall/winter issue no. 2
gain- hawwah (!!!)
iu- chat-shire
k.will- [re:]
jonghyun- base

listened to 4 walls once and much like f(x)'s other albums, never again.

(also appreciated that shinee's blurb was basically a nonsensical comparison to exo.)

edit: oops realized this was a kpop list, meaning idols. oh well...

[gray-fairy.livejournal.com]

shinee's blurb was basically a nonsensical comparison to exo
lol ikr. My favorite was "unlike exo, they've been around for ages and they're all approaching to mid 20s now" when they're actually in the same age range than exo lmao.

[nrafx.livejournal.com]

I thought this year was actually pretty good for SM - Rise as God, The Red, 4Walls, Odd... even D&E's album had a couple of great songs.

Otherwise, Wonder Girls' Reboot was definitely my favourite album, and I liked Shinhwa's WE and Junsu's Flower (+Yesterday) a lot.

[feel-my-mind.livejournal.com]

SME definitely had a stronger year. I find it strange SNSD is on the (honorable mention) list, becuase they had one of the weakest album. D&E, Taeyeon, Red Velvet, F(x) all really deserve it more. (Though I like Odd over MTTM)

[lysblack.livejournal.com]

miss a, gain and wonder girls ❤❤❤

#justiceformissa

[miwa201.livejournal.com]

yes reboot!

idk what the writer's on tho, the touch mini remains miss a's best release

[setsuna16.livejournal.com]

uh, an album by Queen of K-Pop, BoA, composed and written by her highness, is the definition of K-Pop by default.

Bow down.

[unicornios.livejournal.com]

insert obligatory "what is MADE doing here?? IT SUCKED!" comment here

anyways, I need to check out SHINee, 4Minute and WG's albums.

[xlovexlessxtyx.livejournal.com]

Sis, Get into Reboot. It's SO GOOD.