Girls' Generaiton divided into 3 this month for the release of their first sub-unit's mini album - Twinkle! The sub-unit group, comprised of members Taeyeon, Tiffany and Seohyun, were given the odd yet appropriate name Taetiseo. Their group name may not be a word that rolls off the tongue, but what about the music? I review Taetiseo's first mini album Twinkle after the break and see if the album lived up to expectations....

Click "read more" to view my track-by-track review of Taetiseo's Twinkle mini album:

Girls' Generation fans - such as myself - were treated this morning to the first ever video teaser for the upcoming Taetiseo project. Taetiseo? Quite simply, that stands for Taeyeon - Tiffany - and Seohyun. Yes, one third of Girls' Generation have formed a sub-unit group and will be releasing their first single Twinkle before the end of the month. This is really exciting news because Girls' Generation have never produced a sub-unit group before - unlike their brother-band Super Junior, who have graced us with Super Junior-M, Super Junior Happy, Super Junior-T and the recent Donghae/Eunhyuk sub-unit.

The teaser - as glitzy and glamarous as it is - has raised a few questions. Why have Taetiseo gone down this route? Why are Girls' Generation only NOW introducing their first sub-unit group?

As the Queens of K-Pop, I personally don't understand why GG has decided that now is the right time to release a sub-unit. Currently, they're stronger than ever - and not only in Korea, they're doing amazing in Japan and have recently had high-profile TV spots in the U.S. For these 9 lovely ladies, their sun couldn't be shining any more. I am always happy to embrace new GG music - that's a no-brainer - but this has definately come as a surprise to me. I don't think forming a sub-unit is a reaction to After School's successful Orange Caramel sub-unit, nor Rainbow's recent sub-unit Rainbow Pixie. Instead, it just seems to be schedule-filler for Taeyeon, Tiffany and Seohyun.

Aditionally, although the teaser isn't even 20 seconds long, we can already judge what kind of song this will be - fun, glitzy and perhaps somewhat of a throwaway party track. That's fine - I listen to songs like that on a regular basis - but it's not what I expected when Taetiseo was first announced. With Taeyeon, Tiffany and Seohyun being announced as the 3 members of the group, I was expecting either a ballad group or a song which featured each memeber's powerhouse vocals. I have no doubt that this song will show off the 3 ladies' incredible vocals but I think I'd rather have heard their vocals laced on a deep, meaningful and emotional track - rather than this seemingly light and fun song.

I am still very excited to hear what the full song will sound like - and I have no doubt that I'll love it (I'm a big GG fan!) - but this just wasn't what I expected. I'll be writing another review when the full song and mini-album is released - and hopefully, I'll be completely blown away!

Another day, another delivery. This time, from YesAsia, I recieved 4 new CDs. Let's take a look :)

Girls' Generation - Girls' Generation

First up, it's Girls' Generation - Girls' Generation. This is their debut Japanese album. I am so glad I bought this as it was one of the best albums of 2011. It has 4 Japanese remakes of their older Korean hits and 8 brand new Japanese songs. I think their original Japanese songs are awesome - they're really different to their Korean material. It's very modern, electronic and somewhat futuristic - a sound that I absolutely love. This is just a normal CD case as it's from Japan, but I like the artwork nonetheless.

KARA - STEP (Normal Edition)

Secondly, it's KARA's 3rd album STEP. Another AMAZING album from 2011 that I've only just got round the buying. There was a special edition of STEP, but I opted for the normal edition as I much prefer the artwork. It's really funky and bright, and the concept seems to be a Rubik's cube theme, which I love. Artwork is really fun, and the CD disc itself is also really cool!

KARA - STEP (Opened up) 

Dal★Shabet - Hit U

 Thirdly, it's Dal★Shabet's Hit U. This is their 4th mini album and is another amazing release. We get 3 brand new tracks on this mini album (plus remixes of Dream In U and Hit U, plus a Hit U instrumental). I love the artwork! Dal★Shabet wear some really individual and cool clothes. The album has this bright, fiery concept and also lots of black and white photos, showcasing their darker side! The next two images show how the album unfolds (plus, it shows the Viki tradingcard that I got with it).

Dal★Shabet - Hit U (half open)

Dal★Shabet - Hit U (fully open)

IU - Last Fantasy

 And last, but certainyl not least, is Last Fantasy by IU. Oh my goodness! What amazing packaging! I was completely shocked when I opened this up. It's absolutely beautiful and is now one of my favourite CD packages ever! It's really big (see below to see how it compares to a normal CD). The artwork is fantastic, so much effort has gone into it - IU looks absolutely gorgeous. The album is seriously beautiful too, so I'm really pleased to see that the package itself matches the quality of the album.

IU - Last Fantasy (size comparison)

IU - Last Fantasy (Fully opened up)

Thanks for reading!

My next parcel will contain:

- SPICA - 1st Mini Album
- miss A - Touch
and.... (insert drumroll)
- BIG BANG's 5th Mini Album 'ALIVE' (G-Dragon Version) (!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Check out this HILARIOUS video of a group of children (ranging from 7-13 years of age) who discuss K-Pop  music. They've never witnessed anything from K-Pop before and were shown 3 music videos from Girls' Generation, Super Junior and 2NE1, and were asked questions by an interviewer!

It's definately an interesting watch for non-K-Pop fans! Although some of the comments from the kids are highly negative (one even said K-Pop will takeover and cause the end of the world), there are also some really funny and positive opinions about it.

Take a look! 

Super Junior is by far one of my favourite Korean bands. So I was very excited when I heard that they would be releasing a special Christmas song and I eagerly awaited it. The single is part of their record company's - SM Entertainment - special Winter compilation: a festive and joyful CD with songs from SM's artists. Along with this Super Junior track - "Santa U Are The One" - the album also features other SM stars including Girls' Genration, SHINee, TVXQ and my personal favourite, f(x). 


What shocked me most about this compilation is that every single track - 11 in total - are sung entirely in English. This is great for international fans who don't understand Korean, but it's also strange hearing some of our favourite K-Pop artists sing an entire song in English.


Onto the song itself, Super Junior have not dissapointed at all. Their 2011 comeback - which included performances of "Mr. Simple", "Superman" and "A-CHa" - was all about being cool, confident and suave. "Santa U Are The One" may not be cool or suave, but it does tick the box of being FUN. 


This song fits in perfectly with Western classic Christmas songs - including Mariah's "All I Want For Christmas Is You" and Shakin' Stevens "Merry Christmas Everyone". They've done a great job at keeping with this festive tradition. And what they've done with this song, in a playful way, is thank the big, red man himself - Santa Claus! This song is a hommage to Santa and the lyrics are very sweet indeed.


As the song is sung in English, there are a few prononciation mistakes. But that's what makes this song extra special - we, the fans, don't want a perfect, americanised song that will set the charts alight. This song isn't meant to be a worldwide "smash". It's a gift for the fans to enjoy, and this song is too fun to ignore!


As for the video, I really enjoyed it and watched it a few times over. We get to see SuJu singing the song in the recording booths but the best parts are easily seeing the other SM stars in their festive get-ups. 


This song is warm and cosy and just what we need on these cold Winter days - like a lovely mug of hot chocolate by the fire!

K-Pop may have earned it's title because it originates from Korea, but this does not mean that K-Pop music is strictly sung in Korean. In fact, as fans are aware, K-Pop is not restricted to the Korean language.

The vast majority of the songs are of course sung in Korean, but don't be surprised to hear a line or two (or even a whole chorus) in English. It may come as no surprise, but English is heard in almost every K-Pop song. With this knowledge, it is also no surprise that many K-Pop songs have an English equivalent. Songs such as "The Boys" by Girls' Generation have a version in Korean and one in English. The use of English in songs is becoming more and more of a trend in Korea as this way, the songs can garner more international interest.

But to this day, only one major K-Pop act has attempted to debut in the English-language music world. The Wonder Girls are a 5 piece girl group that have had huge success in Korea and now some moderate success in the US - their U.S. single "Nobody" managed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, a feat never before seen by a Korean act (and has not been done since).

Although the U.S. may be the world's largest music market, Korean acts are actually aiming their sights at the second largest music market in the world - Japan. Yes, it is not in the UK, Australia or America that K-Pop acts are wanting success right now, it's their neighbours in Japan.

But how can Korean music fit into the J-Pop scene? Quite easily, it seems. The K-Pop acts do not change their concepts, their look or their individual styles - the only thing they change for debuting in Japan is the language of the song. And the Japanese versions of K-Pop classics are being hugely welcomed by the Japanese.

It's interesting, girl groups KARA and Girls' Generation have by far recieved the most attention and success so far in Japan. They both boast #1 albums in Japan (their albums mostly consist of the Japanese language versions of their Korean hits) and Girls' Generation's first album is nearing the 1 million copies sold mark. This is a huge accomplishment considering the power of the Japanese music market. And this year, T-ARA debuted straight at #1 on the chart with their first single "Bo Peep Bo Peep". And more groups are expected to debut in Japan, including f(x) (see above) who are slated to do a round of Japanese promotions in 2012.

Previously in Japan, only BoA and TVXQ had flown the flag for Korea in Japan, with BoA experiencing more success in Japan than her home country.

The success of K-Pop in Japan makes me wonder. These acts are already hugely talented - they are renowned dancers, live vocalists and actors. And what's more, they are incredible linguists. They have mastered Japanese in order to be successful in Japan - appearing on Japanese TV shows is the best promotion these acts can get, and therefore a high proficiency in Japanese is strongly needed. And they have no doubt mastered English, not just in the hook of their songs either.

Good music is transmitted throughout the world via great vocals, great melodies and great visuals. But what the Koreans have realised is that it is also the language which is the key to success. With this notion, K-Pop music could be transported all over the world - and to startling success.