o. “non-linear” by MOT
They are Lee Eon (vocals, etc.) and Z.EE. (guitars, etc.). This seems to their first album.
Their slow-paced (well, a couple of them were faster) music carries somewhat somber, dreamy ambiance. Musically, I like what they are doing although I am not sure if they did too much with the gritty feel using electronica techniques.
It’s just that often I got annoyed by the singer’s voice which I felt was trying too much (?) a la Rainy Sun (maybe not that much).
o. “First Aid Kit” by Sidérique
Seems to be the first solo project album by Sidérique with AK. Another heavily electronica-inspired pop album, I think.
Some parts of the first track reminded me a bit of Seotaiji in his vocalizing and melodies initially, but the rest seems different. Not that memorable, I thought. The style is so light that even his “heavier” effort (track #5) sounds quite light.
I guess this type of MIDI/drum-machine based solo projects are bound to appear more.
o. “OLaengPiOEui Byeol” by Huckleberry Finn
They are Lee GiYong (guitars, vocals), Lee SoYeong (vocals, guitars), Kim YunTae (drums), and Jang HyeokJo (bass). This is their third album.
I think they are continuing with the direction they went with the previous album with the new lead vocal. Less grunge, grunt. More like folk-rock.
I can’t say I really like their music. It’s not bad and the band seems to be quite solid, but I really couldn’t get excited about it.
On a side note, I thought Ms. Lee sounded sometimes amazingly like the former lead vocal, Ms. Nam.
o. “The Beginning of Fortune” by Fortune Cookie
They are Hong Boram (vocals) and Yoo Heejong (instruments). It seems to be their first album.
Another electronica-inspired pop album (well, mostly) that reminded somewhat of one of Lee YunJeong‘s old efforts, but much “cuter” (?). :p
Anyway, some of the tracks have pretty catchy tunes (e.g., Moonwalker almost like Roller Coaster). But the rest, I thought, was combination of sound fragments from other familiar sources.
Personally, I liked this one better than that of Sidérique. I guess I like female vocals. :p
o. “instant pig” by Clazziquai Project
This is a solo work by Kim Sunghoon with guests (main singers are Horan, Christina and Alex, no last names, whatever :p). It seems to be his first solo album.
I’d say electronica-inspired R&B (probably that’s where “-quai” derives from :p)…
Anyway, I thought it’s a pretty good compilation. I have not seen much, if any, good R&B efforts from Korea, so I was a bit cautious approaching this album. But some of more groove/funk/electronica-oriented tracks (e.g., “Stepping Out”) sound pretty good. But still, the rest, I am not too comfortable. :p
o. “Am I Blue?” by Nam Ye Ji.
This seems to be a rare attempt at producing a solo album for who wants to pass as a blues vocalist. I am not sure it worked that well. I am not saying that Ms. Nam can’t sing, but neither her vocal quality nor the arrangements inspired me in any way about the blues.
o. “SunGanEul MiDeoYo” by EonNiNe IBalGwan
They are Lee SeokWon (vocals, guitars), Lee NeungRyong (guitars), Jeong MuJin (bass, programming) and Jeon DaeSeong (drums). This is their fourth album.
I consider Lee SeokWon‘s voice the fingerprint of the band. That’s why although the music seems to have leaned more toward rock, the album belongs to the band.
And I think that’s the great thing. I thought the last couple of albums were a bit disappointing, but this one has enough of acoustic/sonic (not much of musical) changes that made it dynamic and interesting.
This is one of the bands that lead the Korean indie band movement. I hope this is the album that they can reborn.
o. “Just Pop” by My Aunt Mary
They are Jung Soon Yong (a.k.a. Thomas Cook) (guitars, vocals), Han Jin Young (bass, vocals) and Park Jung Jun (drums, vocals). This is their second album.
I actually was looking forward to their amazing first album. As the title suggest, this is more “pop”, which was a bit disappointing. They are pretty good, but almost all the tracks remind me of some other U.S. pop/rock band in one phrasing or another.
This is definitely good, but maybe, they will try more “Just My Aunt Mary” next time…
o. “Salon de Música” by Bulldog Mansion
They are Cho Jung-Bum (drums), Lee Han-Ju (bass), Seo Chang-Seok (guitars) and Lee Han-Choul (vocals).
I guess they are trying a bit of Latin American flavors in this second album, as the album title suggests. However, as with many of this type of “themed” efforts, I can’t help but feel how superficial their end results come out to be as far as the “theme” goes. For non-themed tracks, they are pretty good.
Anyway, it is a well-produced album as expected from Lee Han-Choul, but, to me, this type of artificial “lightness” is what prevents him from going to the next level. But what do I know…
o. They are Imogen Heap (vocals, instruments) and Guy Sigsworth (instruments).
I’ve first heard their first title song, “Let Go”, from the previews for the movie, “Garden State”. It was so catchy that I had to buy the album.
Well, the rest was not exactly what I expected, but they are still catchy ambient electronica pop…
This is the last of the trio SPs. Then he went on to work on the album below with William Shatner and, probably, his next album.
I thought this one sounded sonically heavier and maybe a bit rougher than before. I think he might be going back to the roots of his garage/college band years. Not bad, I thought.
o. “Has Been” by William Shatner with Ben Folds
Previously, Mr. Shatner did some tracks for Mr. Folds on “Fear of Pop: Vol. 1″. I guess they liked it so much that they would try a whole album.
Mr. Shatner does not sing that much (maybe in one track). He wrote most of the words and recites them dramatically with the musical accompaniments.
Some of my friends look at me funny when they see “Captain Kirk” on the cover, but it is actually a pretty good collaboration work.
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