Almost two weeks ago now, I reported on the impending comebacks of both 4minute and SISTAR. And last week, both girl groups released their long awaited mini albums and returned to the Korean music shows to promote their latest tracks. Admittedly, I couldn't come to a conclusion on which group would reign victorious - and, a week after the release of the albums, I'm still torn.
For me - musically - the winner was 4minute. Their mini album - especially their current single Volume Up - was truly a triumph and I've been listening to it non-stop for the past week. (For my full review of their mini album, click here!) SISTAR, on the other hand, released a mini album that was sub-standard for me. For the reasons why I was a little dissapointed in their comeback, you can read my full review of their Alone mini album here.
So 4minute triumphed on the music front - but which group saw the most success after their first week on sale? Well, although it wasn't a runaway victory, it seems that SISTAR's Alone proved to be the most popular track according to the Korean public. Instiz - which compiles various Korean charts - revealed the following data:
SISTAR - ALONE - 21,707 POINTS
4MINUTE - VOLUME UP - 15,680 POINTS
Even though only 1 week has passed, can we declare SISTAR the winner ?!
4minute are officially back! After a year long break and a series of delays and push backs, their newest mini album Volume Up was unleashed to the public this week. But, was it worth the wait?
Check out my track-by-track review of Volume Up after the break:
It's recently been confirmed that both 4minute and SISTAR will be making their 2012 comebacks in the second week of April. As today is April 1st and we'll no doubt be hearing their comeback singles within the next 2 weeks, I wanted to write about who I think will be victorious in this epic girl group showdown.
4minute - The + Points
4minute could end up having the most successful comeback because of the anticipation factor. They've been in the game longer than SISTAR and have arguably built up a bigger fanbase throughout the years. It's been a year since their last output (2011's 4minutes Left album) and their comeback has been pushed back from January, then February, to March and now it's already April. Their comeback is definately highly anticipated but have they waited too long to come back?
Secondly, since their last album, HyunA has become this massive star. She always was the focal point of 4minute, but with her viral hit Bubble Pop!, her Trouble Maker smash hit from last December and her fashion label, she's never not been mentioned on the K-Pop blogs and has promoted throughout the whole year. Because she's such a big star now, 4minute will no doubt garner even more attention - putting their comeback directly in the spotlight.
SISTAR - The + Points
SISTAR could easily win the April comeback showdown, too. Their 2011 was so successful for them - their song SO COOL was one of the biggest tracks of last year. In fact, SO COOL sold more digital copies than 4minute's Mirror Mirror track, according to the Gaon charts. But, it seems like SISTAR doesn't have as much of a following like 4minute. They only really brokethrough with their SO COOL promotions and their record label isn't as successful as 4minute's Cube Entertainment, which could mean less promotion for SISTAR.
But, their profile has been raised recently with Hyorin's role in Dream High 2. Hyorin is known for being one of the best singers in K-Pop and having weekly exposure on TV has definately boosted SISTAR's profile.
And the winner is...?
Truthfully, I couldn't reach a clear cut decision. Both groups have enough plus points to warrant a successful comeback - yet, there are certain reasons why one group could win over the other. 4minute may have been around longer and they do have superstar HyunA in their group, but because they've been on hiatus for so long - have people forgotten about them? Are they just HyunA and the other 4 girls now? SISTAR may seem like the underdogs having had their breakthrough in 2011, but they had two hits last year - SO COOL and Ma Boy - so they could easily take the top spot.
Personally, I think it quite simply depends on the song. Both groups seem to be on an equal footing as of April 1st, but when the music video, album teasers and the the eventual single is released - I think we'll truly be able to crown the champion of this battle.
I'm going to start a new feaure on my blog where I post pictures of my latest CD purchases. As you've seen already, Korean CDs are not like those you would find on the shelves in the Western world. They come in different shapes and sizes and lots of effort goes into the concept and design. So, from now on, whenever I get a new parcel - I shall post what I've recieved!
So first up are two mini albums from 4minute. I already own their first full-length album (4 Minutes Left), but never bought their first mini albums until now! The packaging for Hit Your Heart is awesome! It features two photo booklets with awesome photos and overall, it's a large, heavy and solid pacakge. Next up is For Muzik, which came in this very odd plastic covering. The CD inside is very standard, and after cutting the silver outside off, I guess I just have to throw it away. Perhaps a pointless addition? If you want to look inside the CDs, write a comment and I'll review the entire packaging.
4minute - Hit Your Heart (2nd Mini Album)
4minute - For Muzik (1st Mini Album)
Next up is Super Junior-M's Perfection. This has awesome packaging. Although it's not very large, it's very thick and opens up on both sides. The photo book is really big too and has some awesome photos of the 8 members. This is the reapackage edition and comes with a DVD. Haven't watched the DVD yet, but I think it comes with the music video for Perfection.
Super Junior-M - Perfection (Repackage Album)
Now it's Brave Girl's first single The Difference. I bought this because it was on sale, and I'm really glad I did. Although it only features 2 full-length songs (which are great by the way), the packaging makes it worth it. It's a regular CD size but the photos and design are really cool and colourful.
Brave Girls - The Difference
Now the final CD I recieved is Koda Kumi's JAPONESQUE album. She's not a Korean singer -she's Japanese. This means that the album is just in a standard plastic case. But that's OK because Koda Kumi is one of my favourite ever singers, and with 19 tracks - JAPONESQUE is totally worth the money. Artwork is absolutely fantastic. A must have!
Koda Kumi - JAPONESQUE
OK! There you have it! I've already had another package shipped (whoops... I'm definately supposed to stop spending money and save for my Korea trip...), so I'll review that when it arrives!
I was lucky enough this week to attend the "United Cube" concert in London (Monday, December 5th). To many, the term "United Cube" may mean nothing at all - but to K-Pop fans, it's a great oppurtunity to see three Korean pop acts perform live.
"United Cube" involves 3 of Cube Entertainment's (a high profile Korean music agency) acts:
4minute 5 member girl group. They boast an individual style - they are confident, sexy and strong vocalists, and their main style of music is electronic-pop with elements of R&B and rap.
G.Na is a Canadian-Korean pop/R&B singer. Vocally, she is one of Korea's finest and her songs range from ballads to uptempo dance numbers.
BEAST 6 member boy band. They are known for their diverse talents - rap, dancing, singing. They've tackled club tracks, heart-wrenching ballads and midtempo R&B songs.
These 3 acts graced the Brixton Acadamy on December 5th 2011. Fans queued over night to see their 'bias' band - camping in just blankets in the bitter December weather.
For those fans, this is a once in a lifetime oppurtunity which is simply unmissable. K-Pop, whilst not an 'underground' music scene, is still pretty unknown to the masses. And whilst 4minute, G.Na and BEAST may not be household names to the average British family - they are quite simply royalty to K-Pop fans. So when Cube Entertainment announced that there would be a "United Cube" concert in London - fans jumped at the chance to see their Idols.
The follow video is filmed by myself, just to show the extent of the love for K-Pop in the UK! This was hours before the show was due to begin, and there is already hundreads of fans waiting to get in to see their favourite acts!
In fact, this is the first major Korean concert to be held in the UK - and just one of few to be held in Europe, for that matter. This is a big step for the K-Pop scene in London. Germany boasted a JYJ concert (a popular boy band) and Paris hosted the first ever SM Town in Europe (a similar event to "United Cube" with 5 acts under the SM Entertainment agency - the acts were Girls' Genration, Super Junior, SHINee, f(x) and TVXQ). And "United Cube" had it's first step into Europe this week - in my wonderful London town.
REVIEW
I managed to have a fantastic spot at the concert where I could fully enjoy the show!
4minute were the first act to grace the stage - performing their hits Hot Issue, HUH, Mirror Mirror and Heart to Heart and much MORE to the delight of the fans! 2 members of 4minute (the main vocalists GaYoon and JiYoon) proved the proficiency in English-language songs by singing Ke$ha's big hit "Blow". This reinforced how Korean acts are not only sucessful singing in their own language - but also fantastically performing an entire song in English.
G.Na then performed her big hits for the crowd - including Black and White and Top Girl. As a native English speaker, she of course had no problems conversing with the audience and expressing her delight to be in London. Her special performance of Rihanna's Take a Bow and Rude Boy really got the crowd going, too!
Finally, it was BEAST's turn. These 6 men are a huge hit with the ladies, but impressed everyone in the audience with their flawless dance moves, skilled rapping and magnificent live vocals. Their performed an array of their hits - including Shock and Fiction - and gave an energetic performance which proved why they're one of the top boy bands in Korea.
As an encore, the three acts "united" to sing their family song - "Fly So High". The joyous and celebratory dance number was the perfect end to the 2 and a half hour show. The three acts were clearly overwhelmed and touched by the support of their European fans and the fans themselves were overwhelmed to have finally been given the chance to see their Idols perform live outside of Asia.
All in all, I think this was one of the best live shows I've personally ever been to. I was vibrant, colourful and non-stop fun. It sets a good precedent for the other K-Pop bands to visit Europe to perform such shows.
Check out this sadly blurry video that I took of the 4minute girls performing their hit I My Me Mine:
