I would like to contribute to FFF (Fridays for Future) in my own way: by sharing one concrete action per week that YOU can do, and which I have done, for combating climate change.
FFF13: Clean a beach ( #Satakolkyt )
WHY: Cleaning beaches improves the coastal and ocean ecosystem by making sure that none of the trash kills marine life or is toxic enough to disrupt the marine life cycle. The more biodiversity, the better nature can combat climate change (and according to research also more biodiversity goes together with less risk of pandemics)! In Helsinki the initiative “Satakolkyt” (Hundered and thirty) was launched to inspire people to enjoy the beaches of Helsinki while helping nature at the same time.
WHAT CAN I DO: If you live in Helsinki: go to the website www.satakolkyt.fi , check which beach hasn’t been cleaned yet, borrow cleaning equipment from the library and mark the beach you have cleaned on the map. So far 170 km beaches have been cleaned in Helsinki through this initiative! If you live somewhere else, you can still clean a beach, nature will be just as happy and thankful. And I think you will too!
I usually each summer clean the public beach close to my parents’ summer house, because then I enjoy that beach more as well.
PS. You can also make it to a game with friends: the one that collects the most trash wins a *chocolate/beer/ self made up* award! Just remember to be careful and stay safe!
Made whilst deeply wrapped in a psychology essay that took extra time to write, Coconut Shy shows us fondly inside that memorable corvette that sped away rather quickly on Water, Water.
Coconut Shy is a Melbourne, Australia-based indie folk singer-songwriter who projects his vocals so well that all stress seems to float away.
Seeing that chevy pull up with a smile on his face, Coconut Shy has made an all-time timeless gem for us all to fall in love with. There is so much to be enamoured by inside this truly superb song, which is crammed with a genuine energy to grip us tightly with from all corners.
Sweetly sung and filled with an authentic vibe to gravitate toward, there is nothing you can surely dislike about a release with so much tender care and crisp smoothness for the better absorbed inside.
Water, Water from Melbourne, Australia-based indie folk singer-songwriter Coconut Shy must be one of the more soul-healing singles around. Turning our hearts with caring abandon, this is a stirring track that might get you thinking about that special human who changed your entire mood with one wink.
Hear this fine single on Spotify and check out the IG for more.
In 1972 — half a century ago — Stevie Wonder reinvented the sound of pop by embracing all he could accomplish on his own.
He released two albums that year: “Music of My Mind” in March and then, less than eight months later, on Oct. 27, the even more confident and far-reaching “Talking Book.”
“Talking Book” was a breakthrough on multiple fronts. It demonstrated, with the international smash “Superstition,” that Wonder didn’t need Motown’s “hit factory” methods — songwriters and producers providing material that singers would dutifully execute — to have a No. 1 pop blockbuster.
Wonder had given signs on earlier albums, particularly his self-produced “Where I’m Coming From” (1971), that he would not just be writing love songs. “Talking Book” reaffirmed that, and also extended his sonic and technological ambitions, as he used state-of-the-art synthesizers and an arsenal of studio effects to orchestrate his songs with startlingly novel sounds. And its album cover — which showed Wonder wearing African-style robes and braided hair in a quasi-Biblical desert landscape (actually Los Angeles) — made clear that Wonder’s futurism was unmistakably Afrofuturism.
Although Wonder had just reached voting age, he was no novice when he made “Music of My Mind” and “Talking Book.” They were his 14th and 15th albums in a decade-long career that stretched back to his days as Little Stevie Wonder, who was just 13 when he had his first No. 1 song with an irresistibly exuberant live recording: “Fingertips, Pt. 2.”
During his teens, Wonder proved himself onstage and in the studio as a singer, keyboardist, harmonica player, drummer and, with hits like “Uptight (Everything’s Alright)” and “Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours),” as a songwriter. He revealed musicianship that was both richly and widely grounded — in gospel, R&B, jazz, show tunes, folk, pop, country, classical music and more — and playfully but determinedly recombinant. Even when he was a teenager, his music meshed and reconfigured genres.
Wonder’s first Motown Records contract ended as he turned 21 in 1971. Other labels were eager to sign him, and when he returned to the Black-owned Motown, he had won complete creative control for himself. From then on, he would write and produce his own songs, release albums when he decided they were finished and choose his own collaborators. He made an unexpected choice for starters: Malcolm Cecil and Robert Margouleff, a team of musicians, producers and engineers.
In what were still the early days of synthesizers, Cecil and Margouleff had constructed a Frankenstein monster of an instrument they called TONTO (which they retronymed The Original New Timbral Orchestra). It weighed more than a ton. Margouleff and Cecil had connected modules and keyboards from Moog, Arp and other manufacturers and figured out a way for the formerly incompatible devices to control one another. Billing themselves as Tonto’s Expanding Head Band, Margouleff and Cecil made a 1971 album of synthesizer pieces, “Zero Time,” and Wonder heard in it the possibilities for sounds he wanted to summon from his keyboards.
In their test run — a three-day weekend working together in the studio — Wonder wrote 17 songs. From 1972-74, with Wonder writing the songs and Cecil and Margouleff programming the sounds, they would make four landmark albums: “Music of My Mind,” “Talking Book,” “Innervisions” and “Fulfillingness’ First Finale.”
The early 1970s were a wide-open — and in retrospect simply remarkable — era for R&B that melded social consciousness and musical creativity. Groups like Sly and the Family Stone and the late-60s Temptations had shown that psychedelic soul hits could carry strong messages, and in the early ’70s, songwriters like Marvin Gaye (with his album “What’s Going On”) and groups like Earth, Wind & Fire, Parliament-Funkadelic, the O’Jays and Labelle explored utopian dreams and street-level insights in songs that united the sophistication of jazz with the earthiness of funk and rock. These were parallel explorations, often with large stage and studio bands; meanwhile, Wonder found a path of his own, nearly solo.
“Music of My Mind,” the first album under the new Motown contract, started to probe Wonder’s newfound freedom; then “Talking Book” reveled in it. It’s an album mostly of songs about love: euphoric, heartbroken, jealous, regretful, longing, anticipatory. Yet love songs like “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” and “Lookin’ for Another Pure Love” don’t confine themselves to the ups and downs of individual romance; their love can encompass family, friends, community and faith.
Midway through, the album brandishes a pair of hard-nosed reality checks. In “Superstition,” Wonder warns against gullibility and received opinion, with a loose-limbed drumbeat, chattering stereo Clavinets and taunting horns making his advice as danceable as it is vehement. And in “Big Brother,” Wonder sings “I live in the ghetto” and denounces a sanctimonious politician who wants his vote but is “tired of me protesting/children dying every day.”
Wonder influenced generations of singers with his voice on “Talking Book”; he talks, croons, teases, preaches, moans, barks, growls. It’s not exactly gospel, blues, soul, rock or jazz; it’s all of them at once, and it gives every note he sings an unpredictable life of its own. With the keyboards, synthesizers and effects under his control — there’s wah-wah everywhere — Wonder could extrapolate his vocal inflections to the instruments he played.
Unlike some of the more heavily orchestrated or earnest efforts of early ’70s R&B, “Talking Book” doesn’t feel vintage. Its arrangements are lean and contrapuntal, uncushioned, making every note earn its place both as a melodic line and a rhythmic push. Yet their precision doesn’t make them anywhere near mechanical. Wonder had only a handful of additional musicians on “Talking Book,” but he fabricates the sound of a bustling, multifarious neighborhood largely on his own. And the whole production is set in a surreal, elastic, immersive electronic space that’s far more familiar now than it was 50 years ago.
None of that ingenuity would matter if the songs weren’t substantial and touching. Wonder sings about love going right — “In my mind, we can conquer the world,” he declares in “You and I” — and love going very wrong. The singer suddenly realizes he’s being cheated on in “Maybe Your Baby,” with a bass line as viscous as quicksand and backup voices chiming in like know-it-alls. He’s been left lonely in “Blame It on the Sun,” casting about desperately to convince himself it’s not his fault.
And the album ends with “I Believe (When I Fall in Love It Will Be Forever),” a Beatles-tinged three-episode song in which the singer picks himself up from “shattered dreams,” imagines the bliss of endless love with a choir of backup harmonies arriving to uplift him, invokes God, then segues into a bluesy come-on to “the girl that I adore.” The romance is all still hypothetical; the sheer joy is not. And every note comes from Wonder himself.
“Talking Book” was not only a hit album — No. 1 on the R&B chart, No. 3 on the all-genre Billboard 200 — but also a harbinger of R&B and pop that would be increasingly electronic and synthetic, proudly unbound by physical realities. One of Wonder’s many gifts to music was that even as he created the artificial sound-worlds of his songs, he made sure they were brimming with humanity.
Here, 27 of the countless musicians and listeners who created and have been inspired by “Talking Book” discuss the album, song by song. These are edited excerpts from the conversations. — Jon Pareles
Michael Meyers wouldn’t be the same without John Carpenter’s iconic, bone-chilling score.
Earlier this year in the pages of the Inlander, I wrote about how so-called “elevated” horror films had begun to stake their claim in the summer blockbuster landscape. But now that spooky season is in full swing, thrillers, slashers, monster flicks and their ilk have crawled out of their coffins to dominate pop culture for a month. One crucial element for any effective horror movie — quite possibly to a more pronounced degree than with any other cinematic genre — is an impactful score. The best of the best stick to the viewer like so many gallons of Kensington Gore (aka fake blood) long after an initial watch. So it felt like a perfect time to explore some of the most iconic horror soundtracks of all time, along with some underrated gems.
Let’s get the classics out of the way first. Sometimes, the strength of a score lies with the simplicity of its leitmotif — melodies so iconic that they transcend the films themselves and become tattooed on the universal psyche. Take, for example, the brilliant economic two-note pulsing dread of John Williams’ Jaws score or the shrieking violins of Bernard Herrmann’s strings-only score to 1960’s Psycho, which perfectly syncs with the visuals of the overkill stabbing of Janet Leigh during the infamous shower sequence.
When polymath horror legend John Carpenter first sat down at his synthesizer in the late 1970s to compose the haunting, repetitive score for his foundational slasher movie Halloween, the music’s lack of ostentation was borne out of his limited means as a scrappy independent filmmaker as much as it was creative intentionality. What he landed on was a barebones 5/4 melody that his father had taught him as a child, which now will be forever synonymous with late night heebie-jeebies. This month, Carpenter revists the unforgettable score via the recently released Halloween Ends, which supposedly serves as a capper to the long-running franchise (it’s proven to be as unkillable as the bogeyman himself, Michael Myers).
The brilliant horror scores of the ’70s don’t end there, however. At the outset of the decade, famed composer Ennio Morricone made the genius decision to contrast the sexualized violence depicted on screen in Dario Argento’s The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (a hallmark entry in the Italian giallo horror subgenre) with an unexpectedly beautiful, innocent-sounding theme. A Nightmare on Elm Street and every other subsequent horror movie that weaponized childlike sing-song falsettos owes the late maestro a debt.
“When I think of the scores that scare me the most, they’re the ones with creepy kids singing,” says Colleen O’Holleran, who programs the “WTF” series (Weird, Terrifying, Fantastic) for the Seattle International Film Festival.
Later in the ’70s, Argento would recruit the prog rock outfit Goblin (with whom he’d previously collaborated on another celebrated giallo film, Deep Red) for the soundtrack to his lush, witchy Suspiria. It’s a score that’s at times whimsical, at times discordant, and splashed throughout with warbling synths.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre boasts an equally idiosyncratic score composed by its writer/director Tobe Hooper and Wayne Bell. Hardly musical at all, it’s an experimental, macabre collage of sound effects, ambient noise, and grating drones of musique concrète (music composed using the sounds of raw material).
Special mention must also be paid to the spine-tingling “ch ch ch ah ah ah” of the Friday the 13th franchise, which was so indelible that I (and one can only presume many others) were taunted with it on childhood playgrounds. Apparently, the iconic noise resulted from composer Harry Manfredini sublimating the phrase “Kill her mommy” (as uttered by Pamela Vorhees, the killer of the first film in the franchise) into its most rudimentary syllabic form.
Jumping ahead in time and offering a refined contrast, Candyman (1992) exists on the more cosmopolitan side of the horror landscape with a score by wildly influential and adored composer Philip Glass. (Though when asked about the music for Candyman, Glass’ tone is usually dismissive, unbefitting of his masterful amalgamation of elegiac pianos, booming choirs and cascading pipe organs.)
More recent efforts within the genre also deserve their moment to shine under the moonlight. In 2018, director Luca Guadagnino released a controversial remake of Suspiria, one which altered the setting and themes of the original and bleached out all of Argento’s signature vibrancy. To accompany this radical and more muted reinterpretation, Guadagnino’s film required a drastically different sonic palette to accompany it. To take on this challenge, the director roped in Thom Yorke of Radiohead. Yorke’s Suspiria score is subdued instead of splashy, and redolent with the kind of minimalist melancholy that characterizes many of his solo outputs.
On the other end of the aural spectrum lurks Cliff Martinez’s score for 2016’s vicious, opulent fashion industry satire, The Neon Demon. Like his previous collaborations with divisive Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn (Drive‘s soundtrack ranked No. 19 on Pitchfork‘s list of “The 50 Best Film Scores of All Time”), the critically acclaimed score is heavy on atmospheric synth tones, but features an additional injection of throbbing club music rhythms; it wears its electronic musical influences proudly on its haute couture sleeve. Fascinatingly, Refn had cut The Neon Demon to a temp score of compositions by Psycho composer Herrmann, but Martinez wisely disregarded this completely and followed his own impulses to great effect.
There are far too many quality horror scores to give them all proper recognition, to say nothing of the great horror needle-drop soundtracks. You will never hear “Hip to be Square” or “Blue Moon” the same again after watching American Psycho and the lycanthrope transformation scene in An American Werewolf in London.
Clearly, there are a lot of directions a composer can (and should!) take when scoring a horror film. The very best stand out from the rest of the (were)wolf pack because of their innovation, their ability to make the most of the sometimes-limited resources at their disposal and their willingness to take risks. Others help ground the viewer in a character’s perspective, be they the archetypal final girl or the antagonist stalking the film’s frames.
As O’Holleran puts it, “In terms of memorable horror movie scores, they work best when they subconsciously connect you to the character.”
The beautiful thing about the horror genre is how it can be adapted in wildly divergent ways. Don’t be afraid to have your Halloween party playlist reflect this diversity.
Last fall, local composer Emma Kent Wine put pen to paper to begin her next creation, but before there was music, there was an enchanting children’s story.
She dreamed up an adventure through time, writing of an inquisitive young girl named Maria who jumps back to the Baroque era to meet Venetian virtuoso Antonio Vivaldi with a little help from a musical magician.
“Maria’s Magical Music Adventure,” commissioned by Ars Lyrica Houston, is now available for purchase in both English and Spanish, and on the afternoon of Nov. 2, the early music ensemble will celebrate its official launch by hosting a fundraiser luncheon at Tony’s, an iconic Italian eatery in Upper Kirby. While guests savor a gourmet meal, Wine will deliver a reading of the delightful tale, which will be accompanied by a live string quartet and followed by a book signing.
Underwritten by Connie Kwan-Wong and CKW Luxe Magazine, the event will benefit Ars Lyrica’s educational outreach initiatives, namely a series of collaborations involving bilingual presentations of the children’s book, featuring translator Verónica Romero, with Children’s Museum Houston, Rothko Chapel, Express Children’s Theatre, Discovery Green, Miller Outdoor Theatre, Harris County public libraries and more.
“I wanted to inspire kids and adults to think about how history is created and experienced both in the moment and then hundreds of years later,” said Wine, who, as Ars Lyrica’s operations and outreach manager, is eager to share her enthusiasm for classical music and hopefully spark people’s imaginations in the process.
‘Maria’s Magical Music Adventure’
The book is on sale for $25 (plus shipping, if applicable) in both English and Spanish through Ars Lyrica Houston’s website: arslyricahouston.org/shop/maria
Fundraiser Luncheon
When: 11:30 a.m. Nov. 2
Where: Tony’s, 3755 Richmond Ave.
Details: $250 each; arslyricahouston.org
Although she never envisioned herself an author, Wine relished in the opportunity to turn back the clock and consider what might have captivated her younger self. First compiling her thoughts into an essay hundreds of words long, she tightened the narrative to be digestible for children before turning her attention to the music. For the accompaniment, she composed a few original musical interjections and arranged excerpts, notably the recognizable theme of spring, from Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons.”
“The book has a little bit of everything,” she said. “It has adventure. It has music. It encourages thinking about emotions, history and social studies. It also is very Houston centric.”
Guided by a magician named Matthew – in honor of artistic director Matthew Dirst, who founded Ars Lyrica in 1998 – Maria journeys to 18th-century Venice, where the twinkling waterways reflect the star-studded sky. Houston is her home, however, and references to the Bayou City are sprinkled throughout the text as well as in dazzling drawings by Ekaterina Ilchenko, an illustrator based in Europe. Whimsical scenes featuring Texas wildflowers are interspersed with those of an Italian court, where partygoers are dressed in clothing based on authentic Baroque fashion.
Not only does this concept of time travel align with Ars Lyrica’s mission of crafting experiences around ‘ music from the Baroque era performed on period instruments, but the children’s book has also furthered the organization’s impact in making early music fun and accessible for audiences of all ages. The project – the idea for which came at the suggestion of board member Kwan-Wong, a local magazine publisher and philanthropist – quickly grew into a multidisciplinary endeavor that continues to expand the ensemble’s community programming and collaborative partnerships.
In addition to being showcased in an episode of Ars Lyrica’s virtual “Musical Storytime” series, “Maria’s Magical Music Adventure” may be experienced live, accompanied by a string quartet or a solo musician, through family-friendly reading events across the city, one of which will take place during the Menil Collection’s Neighborhood Community Day in April. By spring, the tale will also be brought to life onstage in a world-premiere play, directed by Tim Fried-Fiori and co-produced with Express Children’s Theatre.
“This project checks a lot of boxes for us. It’s an empowering, lovely story for kids, and it’s a continuation of our efforts that we started even before the pandemic,” said Ars Lyrica’s executive director Kinga Ferguson, speaking of the group’s commitment to enhancing social-emotional learning.
“Houston is a cosmopolitan city, and we need to represent, promote and offer programs that focus on different cultures, languages and ethnicities,” she continued. “We’re sponsoring this project to better the lives of Houstonians, and that’s what we are all working towards.”
Lawrence Elizabeth Knox is a Houston-based writer.
The ACM Awards will be livestreamed on Amazon Prime Video in 2022. The 57th annual Academy of Country Music Awards will be the first time a major awards show has livestreamed exclusively.
First held in 1966, the Academy of Country Music Awards has honored and showcased the biggest names and emerging talent in the industry, and is the longest-running country music awards show in history. The 2022 live show will bring together iconic artists for exciting collaborations, surprising moments, and an unprecedented number of world television-premiere performances, all of which will be announced in the coming months. The date and location will be confirmed at a later time.
“We’re excited to continue to expand our content offerings for Prime Video customers by being the exclusive home for the Academy of Country Music Awards in 2022 and honoring the best in country music,” said Vernon Sanders, co-head of television, Amazon Studios. “Reaching this milestone with our partners at the Academy of Country Music and MRC as the first major awards show to be livestreamed speaks to our dedication and commitment to continue to both entertain and innovate for our audience.”
“We are thrilled that the Academy of Country Music Awards are first to take this giant step toward the future of awards shows with Amazon Prime Video. This partnership, which reinforces our position as an innovative, progressive awards show, will deliver the broadest possible audience and, simultaneously, deliver massive value to our artists whose music lives inside this ecosystem, enabling fans to discover and stream music as they watch,” said Damon Whiteside, CEO of the Academy of Country Music.
“We congratulate our partners at the Academy and Amazon for blazing a path for the future of live awards shows,” said MRC co-CEO Modi Wiczyk. “Our team is excited to be part of the creative and entrepreneurial innovations that streaming technology will unleash.”
“This historic partnership with ACM, MRC, and Amazon Prime Video meets the industry’s need to bring awards shows to the forefront of the streaming world—exactly where fans are consuming and demanding content. It will also deliver invaluable new opportunities for country artists, enabling them to reach larger audiences and presenting them the Academy’s exceptionally entertaining and compelling show,” said outgoing ACM Board of Directors Chair Ed Warm.
The 76th Concours de Genève Composition Competition wrapped up on Wednesday 26 October, with First Prize awarded to Shin Kim (27, from South Korea) for his work The Song of Oneiroi, for six voices and microphones.
Yuki Nakahashi (26, Japan) took Second Prize for Settings, for vocal ensemble. Third Prize was awarded to Ármin Cservenák (26, Hungary) for his work Madrigali, for six voices.
Candidates for the 2022 Composition competition were required to submit a work for vocal ensemble, composed for six singers: bass, baritone, tenor, mezzo-soprano, soprano and coloratura soprano. The finalist works were performed as a world premiere by the Neue Vocalsolisten Stuttgart.
Finalists (L-R) Shin Kim, Yuki Nakahashi and Ármin Cservenák. Pic: Anne-Laure Lechat
Since its creation in 1939, the Concours de Genève’s mission has been to discover, promote and support the best young artists of the moment. As well as the official prizes, the Geneva International Music Competition offers a Prizewinners’ Career Development Programme, providing the support and guidance needed to launch a career. The programme includes two years of management by the Sartory Artists agency, as well as recordings, international tours and a professional training workshop.
Shin Kim is a student at Korea University of the Arts in Seoul, where he is completing a master’s degree: he has also studied with the Austrian composer and sound artist Karlheinz Essl. In his work he distinguishes three major themes: religion, narrative and psychological phenomena.
In The Song of Oneiroi, Shin Kim tells the story of the dream world, drawing on pronunciation systems from various languages and using microphones to amplify and diversify his music.
After sharing some Food For Thought at the top of 2022, Buffalo’s Che Noir returns with her second release of the year The Last Remnants.
“Food For Thought was a huge breakout for me. I wanted to give my fans something to branch off of the “Food” motif I started the year with,” Che Noir says. “I have been working diligently on my next album as well, The Lotus Child, which I will produce in its entirety. Consider The Last Remnants as a well-prepared appetizer.”
Anchored by the focus track “Wash The Dishes,” Che collaborates with the likes of Benny The Butcher, 38 Spesh, Ransom, and Elcamino throughout the nine-song release. Production is handled by 38 Spesh, LT Beats, Trox, Swizz Beatz, Fruition, Tricky Trippz, Chup, and Streezy.
Stream The Last Remnants below.
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Che Noir Drops Second Project Of 2022, ‘The Last Remnants’ was last modified: October 26th, 2022 by Meka
K-pop is full of fantastic tunes, feel-good bops, and certified bangers that anyone can enjoy, regardless of their proficiency with the Korean language. Even so, diving into the world of South Korean pop music can be intimidating to English speakers who are accustomed to understanding all of a song’s lyrics.
Fortunately, you don’t have to jump straight to songs with Korean lyrics in order to start exploring K-pop. Many K-pop artists have released English-language tunes that allow you to familiarise yourself with the performers and their sound before plunging into their wider discography. This has become increasingly common in recent years, as K-pop’s global reach expands and idols seek to attract and cater to new audiences.
A lot of these releases are also just fantastic songs by themselves, regardless of whether you’re interested in investigating K-pop any further.
In no particular order, here are some of the best English-language songs from K-pop idols.
1. “Love Talk” by WayV
This list is strictly limited to songs by K-pop idols that aren’t just English-language versions of previous Korean releases. “Love Talk” by WayV was initially in Mandarin, so it doesn’t count.
Released one week after the original Mandarin song, 2019’s “Love Talk” is a smooth jam about an attraction between people who don’t speak the same language. The alluring melody satisfyingly recalls ’90s R&B and offers an appealing contrast between the seductive chorus and steady rap. This has won its music video almost 75 million views in under three years and over 107 million streams on Spotify.
You could justifiably argue that “Love Talk” isn’t a K-pop song, as Mandarin is obviously not Korean. However, WayV is the Chinese subunit of K-pop group NCT, making the artists themselves K-pop idols. This means they clearly satisfy the arbitrary requirements for inclusion on this list that I made up. Besides, I wasn’t about to leave “Love Talk” out. It’s just too good to not recommend.
2. “LMLY” by Jackson Wang
“LMLY” by Jackson Wang is severely underrated, and I will continue to speak my truth until this retro ’80s tune gets the attention it deserves.
Jackson has kept himself busy since he and his K-pop group GOT7 left JYP Entertainment, collaborating with artists such as RAIN, continuing to run his label Team Wang, and forming hip-hop group PANTHEPACK. While he is still working with GOT7, Jackson has also gone in hard on English-language solo work, experimenting with an entire spectrum of musical genres across songs such as “Blow” and “Cruel.”
Yet out of all of this, it was the idol’s 2021’s nostalgic synth-pop tune “LMLY” that had me setting its Hong Kong cinema-inspired music video on loop. An acronym of “Leave Me Loving You,” “LMLY” is a wistful song about the singer’s fear that their lover is losing interest in them. “You don’t call me baby / You call me my name,” Jackson mourns. “But I keep on hoping / Nothing has changed.” Like, ouch.
3. “The Feels” by TWICE
Do you love feel-good bops? Energetic, colourful performances? Addictive, appealing dances that are fun to learn yourself? Well then, please allow me to introduce you to your next nine girlfriends.
“The Feels” is the first original English-language single from hugely popular girl group TWICE, who have enjoyed massive success in South Korea and Japan for years. This solid, sweet 2021 love song about having “the feels” is a great introduction to TWICE for Western ears, offering a taste of the bright, catchy, optimistic tunes these seasoned performers excel at. Their sound certainly has an audience as well, with the music video racking up over 320 million views in just over a year.
If you’re after more of TWICE’s cute yet mature sound, the group has also released English versions of their Korean songs “More and More” and “I Can’t Stop Me.” You can’t go too wrong wherever you start though — their entire discography is filled with tunes that will stick in your head and steal your heart.
4. “Dream of You” by CHUNG HA (with R3HAB)
“Dream of You” was a mandatory addition to this list, and I regret nothing. CHUNG HA’s 2020 collaboration with R3HAB delivers a satisfyingly unapologetic banger, dripping with confidence and a highly danceable beat. CHUNG HA demands attention, irresistibly drawing all eyes and ears to her, and she knows it. This is one I’ve had on repeat, and I need you all to join me.
A sexually charged club song about enticing a lover into bed, “Dream of You” is also much more forward than the casual K-pop listener might expect. CHUNG HA paints a vivid picture of inviting their paramour back to her place, and isn’t shy about what’s likely to happen once they’re alone.
“What can I say? Park the car and come on in / I got whisky, I got gin, and lingerie,” sings CHUNG HA.
5. “Kiss of fire” by WOODZ
Technically “Kiss of fire” isn’t entirely in English. Soloist WOODZ does throw in the tiniest pinch of Korean during the second verse, brief enough that you might miss it unless you know it’s there. Still, 99 percent of the song’s lyrics are in English, which feels like enough to let it sneak onto this list. I will make whatever excuses I need to for this excellent jam.
The Korean lyrics in “Kiss of fire” also won’t prevent listeners who don’t understand the language from understanding the song. Released in 2021, “Kiss of fire” is a contemporary R&B track about hot, burning love, with WOODZ flexing his falsetto to deliver a charismatic vocal performance over a rhythmic bassline.
If you’re more interested in rock, WOODZ’s “Dirt on my leather” is also worth checking out for an incredibly different vibe.
6. “Sweet Night” by V
BTS cemented their place in the Western music scene with English-language singles “Dynamite,” “Butter,” and “Permission to Dance,” all of which are upbeat tunes that primarily endeavour to spread good vibes. (Don’t pretend you haven’t heard them. Ignorance and lies have never won anyone respect.) In contrast, “Sweet Night” by V strikes such a different tone that you’d have no idea he was a member of BTS unless you were told.
Recorded for the original soundtrack of 2020 Korean drama Itaewon Class, “Sweet Night” is a comforting, gentle acoustic song that’s just as sweet as its title implies. V’s soothing voice is complimented by Matilda Mann’s pure backup vocals, and the whistled refrain leading out “Sweet Night” emphasises its simple, clean melody. It isn’t difficult to understand how the music video has earned over 86 million views at time of writing. Pair this song with a quiet night and a warm cup of tea.
7. “Oh my god” by (G)I-DLE
(G)I-DLE’s dark, ambiguously sapphic 2020 single “Oh my god” was released simultaneously in Korean and English — though only the former got the benefit of its visually striking music video, which accumulated 184 million views in a year and a half. Fortunately, fans took it upon themselves to edit the English audio on top of the Korean clip, so you can still get the full experience.
Though (G)I-DLE’s trap-pop song is officially about love in all its forms, gay K-pop fans have embraced “Oh my god” as a “lesbian anthem,” citing its liberal use of female pronouns as well as its religious imagery.
Also, just all of the lyrics. Listen to songwriter Soyeon sing “can’t stop, girl, you make me sick” and try telling me “Oh my god” isn’t queer coded with a straight face.
SEE ALSO:
Bias, comeback, and aegyo: What all those K-pop words actually mean
8. “Life’s Too Short” by aespa
This 2022 song threw me right back to the pastel-coloured early ’00s, strongly reminding me of the girl groups that used to populate my beloved Barbie-branded compilation CDs. Offering a laid back, nostalgic pop sound, “Life’s Too Short” is an unbothered message to aespa’s detractors — or anyone who sets out to put others down.
“I’m doin’ me regardless,” aespa declare. “And I don’t care what you say about it / And it don’t matter if you like it or not / I’m having all this fun, so why would I ever stop?”
Earning almost 50 million views in just under four months, “Life’s Too Short” is a self-affirming song with sweet harmonies that hearken back to the simpler times of butterfly clips and gel pens.
9. “2 MINUS 1” by SEVENTEEN
Though credited to SEVENTEEN as a whole, “2 MINUS 1” only features the 13-member boy group’s two most fluent English speakers: Joshua and Vernon. These members were also on the writing team for “2 MINUS 1,” which became the first completely English-language song in SEVENTEEN’s discography upon its release in 2021.
Inspired by early-2000s’ pop-punk acts such as Avril Lavigne, “2 MINUS 1” is an exercise in post-breakup denial, with Joshua and Vernon declaring they’re definitely doing great, and they’re not lonely at all, and they absolutely don’t need their former lover anymore. The lyrics cleverly weave such statements with bitter accusations and more honest hints at their true feelings, all wrapped up in a clean track that could easily slip into any early ’00s pop-punk playlist.
It’s a sound many of us know and love, and SEVENTEEN pull it off beautifully.
10. “Another Life” by KEY
It’s an undisputed fact that SHINee are K-pop royalty. Debuting in 2008, the phenomenally popular boy group has accumulated a deluge of achievements and accolades over their storied career, both together and as solo artists.
“Another Life” by SHINee’s KEY demonstrates how almost 15 years in the industry has sharpened the performer’s skill to a razor’s edge. A synthwave dance bop, “Another Life” is a love song that invokes images of travelling to Atlantis or blasting into outer space, tying into the retro creature feature inspiration of KEY’s 2022 album Gasoline.
It’s a dynamic tune with a catchy chorus, energetic beat, and tempting replay button.
11. “WHO DO YOU LOVE?” by Monsta X (feat. French Montana)
Not content with just one or two offerings, boy group Monsta X treated Western fans to an entire album completely filled with English-language songs in 2020. ALL ABOUT LUV is packed with pleasing tunes on the themes of romance, love, and lust, ranging from the longing to be longed for in “SOMEONE’S SOMEONE,” to the bitterness of seeing an ex “HAPPY WITHOUT ME,” to staying up thinking about a lover in “MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT.”
It’s difficult to pick a standout when you’re so spoiled for choice, but lead single “WHO DO YOU LOVE? (feat. French Montana)” is a good place to start as one of the catchiest songs on the album. Just skip over the part where French Montana raps. We’re not claiming that.
ALL ABOUT LUV also has a few slightly more risque songs such as booty call bid “GOT MY NUMBER” and the deceptively innocent-sounding “LOVE U,” whose suggestive lyrics I was absolutely not prepared for (“I really, really wanna love you / But I can’t say the word I want to / ‘Cause they won’t play it on the radio”).
12. “Can’t get you out of my mind” by Dreamcatcher
Good news for anyone who desperately missed the early 2010’s club scene: Dreamcatcher’s EDM track “Can’t get you out of my mind” will effortlessly pull you right back there, complete with sick bass drop.
A B-side quietly nestled in Dreamcatcher’s 2020 mini-album Dystopia: Lose Myself, “Can’t get you out of my mind” may have been easy to miss upon its initial release. The fact that it came out during the COVID-19 pandemic likely didn’t help either, with lockdowns impacting both dance venues and promotion opportunities.
This is unfortunate, because the girl group’s first English-language song is a banger that wouldn’t feel out of place on any good club playlist. This is a great tune for when you don’t want to think, just dance.
13. “Zombie” by DAY6
DAY6 are a bit different from the other K-pop artists on this list, as they’re a band rather than a group. This means that rather than spectacular, highly choreographed group dances, the members play instruments on stage — so not quite what you’d usually picture when someone says “K-pop.” But that just means you won’t have as much to distract you from their songs’ lyrics.
“Zombie” isn’t quite as uptempo as DAY6’s previous single “Sweet Chaos,” which would definitely have been on this list if it were in English. Rather, the downbeat 2020 pop-rock song focuses on depression, likening the unfortunately relatable feeling of numbness to being a zombie. I hope it doesn’t hit a chord with you, but it probably will.
14. “Pity Party” by Jamie
Jamie’s “Pity Party” is an attitude-filled anthem for self-destruction, bringing out the After School Club host’s sultry, “toxic” side. This is one for those nights you know you’ll probably regret, but just can’t bring yourself to care.
“Pity Party” does acknowledge that once you’ve hit rock bottom “the only way is up,” threading Jamie’s repetitive yet appealing 2022 groove with savage determination. However, that’s largely a problem for Future Jamie. In the meantime, the primary focus of “Pity Party” is taking the moment to revel in the dark freedom and dramatic spectacle of being so low.
“Thriving off the drama” may not technically be the healthiest or most constructive stance to take in most situations. But you can’t deny it is deliciously fun.
15. “Somebody” by Wonho
The lyrics of Wonho’s 2022 song “Somebody” are all about loneliness, with the singer crying out for “a shoulder to lean on” when alone at night. Yet despite the desolate subject matter, the song itself is a groovy bop with a steady, catchy rhythm that belies its topic. Being desperately lonely shouldn’t sound so good.
Wonho’s clear vocals and attractive falsetto are underscored by an enjoyably strong bass line running throughout “Somebody,” mirroring his adorably soft personality and famously jacked build.
I have never met Wonho and probably never will. That being said, he seems like a very sweet man and I hope he finds somebody soon.
SEE ALSO:
The 16 best K-pop songs of 2022 (so far)
16. “Borderline” by SUNMI
“Borderline” hits you as soon as SUNMI opens her mouth, crooning “I’m trying to be a good girl / Didn’t mean to fake it.” Co-written by SUNMI herself, this dark 2020 tune is about the former Wonder Girls member’s experiences with borderline personality disorder, having been diagnosed with the condition in the mid-2010s.
“It’s my story that I’ve hidden for a long time,” SUNMI said in English-translated comments. Though she previously kept her borderline personality disorder a secret, SUNMI shared that she now wanted to tell others who are struggling that they aren’t alone.
As such, the languid, personal song seems almost disinterested in popular appeal. Rather, it’s more concerned with conveying SUNMI’s personal struggles in an almost ambient manner, her hypnotic voice effectively luring listeners in to form a connection.
17. “neon” by Amber Liu (feat. PENIEL)
While Amber began her career as the main rapper for K-pop girl group f(x), she’s now arguably more known for her solo work, having shown off her vocal skills in multiple Korean, English, and Mandarin songs since 2015. As such, Amber now has an extensive English-language discography to choose from, with various songs such as “Other People,” “On My Own (feat. Gen Neo),” and “complicated” falling across a wide spectrum of melancholy.
Light 2021 bop “neon” gives Amber the opportunity to show off her vocal skills in a decidedly more optimistic setting, with Peniel from boy group BTOB taking the reins for the English version’s rap (Blow Fever takes on this role in the Mandarin version). Resting comfortably in its chill pop disco vibe, “neon” is a smooth, enjoyable jam with a music video that was definitely a ton of fun to film.
18. “No Problem” by Nayeon (feat. Felix from Stray Kids)
TWICE’s lead vocalist Nayeon made her solo debut in 2022, filling her album Im Nayeon with love songs to compliment her bubbly lead single “POP!” Among these was “No Problem,” an entirely English-language song featuring her labelmate Felix from Stray Kids.
An uncomplicated song about bolstering your partner when they’re feeling down, “No Problem” is a characteristically cute little bop that embraces its simple and straightforward nature. It isn’t necessarily groundbreaking, but sits comfortably as a bright palate cleanser between “POP!” and the rest of Nayeon’s album.
Though Nayeon’s group member Tzuyu released a playful cover of Taylor Swift’s “ME!” with Stray Kids’ Bang Chan in 2021, “No Problem” is the first time members from both groups have collaborated on an original English-language performance.
19. “Bonnie & Clyde” by YUQI
I told myself I’d stop, but just let me just squeeze in one more song.
(G)I-DLE member YUQI only had two songs on her 2021 solo debut album A Page, which may indicate just how confident she was in them. “Giant” and “Bonnie & Clyde” were also English-language releases, with YUQI’s album eschewing both Korean and her native Mandarin entirely.
The lyrics of “Bonnie & Clyde” tread familiar territory, focusing on a passionate couple who are completely wrapped up in each other to the exclusion of all else — much like the titular criminal couple. Even so, YUQI’s low, steady vocal performance and the song’s relentless, trance-like melody make “Bonnie & Clyde” an appealing tune that deftly showcases the singer’s skill.
It’s worth keeping in mind that this is just a small selection of songs from K-pop idols that were released in English first as opposed to Korean. There’s an even wider catalogue of English versions of Korean songs, such as ITZY’s “LOCO” and Pentagon’s “DO or NOT.”
Yet even this is minuscule when compared to the entire universe of tunes you can enjoy once you relax and embrace Korean lyrics. Don’t worry if you don’t understand what they’re singing 100 percent of the time — you can always look up translations. Besides, sometimes all you need to know is the vibe.
I love music. In fact, it’s a rare occasion that I’m not listening to something as I work, exercise, and just generally always have some form of music playing. The thing is, phones never really have the best sound. It doesn’t matter how much a company brags about its onboard sound processors and speakers, phones all sound like phones.
Sure, there are variations on that theme and some devices do sound better than others. But these are small devices with small speakers and cannot match the fidelity of a dedicated stereo.
This is especially true when your favorite listening method is vinyl and you consider yourself an audiophile.
Of course, Android 13 does have a little trick up its sleeve to give the audio a bit of a boost. That trick is called Adaptive Sound.
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Adaptive sound uses the mics and sensors on your device to learn the type of environment you’re in, so it can then adjust the sound accordingly. The adjustments are made via automatic EQ and do make a considerable difference in the sound you hear.
At this point, you’re probably thinking, “Hold up. My phone will use its mics to listen in on the ambient sound of a room. Isn’t that a privacy issue?” Given the state of the world and how everything seems to be vying to gather as much information about you as possible, that’s an understandable concern. However, Google has made it clear that all Adaptive Sound processing is done locally, so there’s no need to worry that Google is listening in on you. Android, on the other hand, is listening but doing so to help improve your experience.
One thing to keep in mind is that the changes made by Adaptive Sound may be less noticeable at higher decibel levels. This is all about equalization and how subtle changes can make a big difference in the sound you hear.
With that said, how do you enable Adaptive Sound? It’s quite easy. Let me show you.
How to dramatically improve the sound from your Pixel 7 for even better musical enjoyment
Pull down your Notification Shade twice and tap the gear icon to access the Android Settings app. You can also access this app from within the App Drawer by swiping up from the bottom of the display.
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From within the Settings app, locate Sound & Vibration. Tap that entry. On the resulting page, locate Adaptive Sound and tap it.
Accessing the Adaptive Sound setting in Android.
Image: Jack Wallen
Tap the ON/OFF slider until it’s in the ON position and Adaptive Sound is enabled. You can close the Settings app.
Enabling Adaptive Sound in Android 13.
Image: Jack Wallen
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Now, all you have to do is experience music from your Android device in a way that will automatically adapt to your environment to dramatically improve the sound you hear. Give this feature a try.
Start playing some music and move from environment to environment to see how the change affects the sound you hear. If music is as important to you as it is to me, you’ll be happy you enabled the feature.
