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. “Details” by frou frou

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…

o. “Super D” by Ben Folds

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.

This is their long awaited third album. Their dreamy folk/pop style hasn’t changed, and it seems Lee, SeokWon (vocal, guitars) was able to maintain his musical vision. Lee, NeungRyong (lead guitar), Jeong, MuJin (bass, programming), and Jeon, DaeJeong (drums) complete this version. Also, Daytripper is featured.

o. “Another One” by Gazaebal

Gazaebal is one of few electronic musicians (“techno”) in Korea that seem to be doing fairly well. I think his bigger break was from his project with Lee BakSa, a very well-known “Tour Bus Disco” singer. I think his work is pretty good, but I am not familiar with the genre.

o. “GoMulRaDiO” by Crying Nut

This is their fourth album. For some reasons, I’ve always preferred No Brain, who had a similar style (punk). I didn’t care much for their previous albums, but this one is pretty “attractive” and fun. They are Park, YunShik (vocal), Lee, SangIn (guitars, vocal), Han, KyeongRok (bass, vocal), Lee, SangHyeok (drums, vocal), and Kim, InSu (accordion, organ).

o. “Espresso” by Deli Spice

This is their 5th album. I thought their 4th was a bit weak and not too interesting, but this one is a very nice pop/rock album. I think they tried to be a bit “rougher” on the sonic sense, and I think it’s made it better. They are Kim, MinGyu (a.k.a. Sweetpea) (guitars, vocal, keyboards), Yun, Junho (bass, vocal, keyboards), and Choi Jaehyuk (drums, percussion, vocal, keyboards).

o. “Alchemist” by Riaa

This was a surprise. Riaa (yes, that’s her name, all right, which happens to be the same as that certain notorious organization) has been in hiding for such a long time that I almost thought her career was over. She had some contract dispute if I remember correctly. That’s probably why she hasn’t released anything for several years till this 5th album. I didn’t think the album wasn’t too bad, but somehow it didn’t ring too much with me this time (actually, only her first couple of albums did it for me), as if her style hasn’t developed during the break.

o. “Live is Life” by YunDoHyeon Band

This is from their live concert. One is an audio CD and another is a video CD (which I haven’t seen yet). I think they carry such an energy on stage, just like BomYeoReumGaEulGyeoWul did. I normally don’t care much for their studio recording albums, but I thought this one was good. The Yun Band are Yun, DoHyeon (vocal, e. guitars, harmonica), Park, TaeHeui (bass, melodion), Kim, JinWon (drums), and Heo, Jun (e. guitars, a. guitars).

o. “ByeongARi GamByeolSa GimSsiEui JobSsal RoMaenSeu” by Hwang Sin Hae Band

Isn’t it amazing that they are still making more albums? It seems for this album, Gim, Hyung Tae went solo, more or less. So, it seems this album has lost the “band” feel, and has taken a more of EoEoBu Band-like feel (not surprising since Jang, Young Gyu has participated). I don’t know if I like it though.

o. “Transfixion” by Transfixion

I should have known, it being from Rock Records. It seems their collection of artists always emphasize more on the image than the music. I mean, they do have some talent, but it seems they always leave quite a bit to be desired. Anyway, they are HaeRang (vocal), Jeon, HoJin (e. guitars, a. guitars, programming, chorus), Son, DongWuk (bass, e. guitars, a. guitars, programming, chorus), and Oh, CheonGi (drums).

o. “Have you ever had heart broken?” by Lyn

I don’t know… I thought the cover design was cool. However, the music was quite a bit far from the image that I got from the cover. It’s a bit of R&B-ish… Not my cup of tea at the moment. A surprising thing was that the session was pretty cool. I guess she participated in a lot of other people session or something…

o. “the beginning” by So, ChanHwi

Why… why do I keep buying hers? I don’t know. She can sing, but her voice is not really my kind, but I still “hope” that she can become a real “rocker”, but alas… she just won’t (or her management won’t let her). Oh, someday I will learn.