All posts by Arie Jai

I love all types of music and expressing my love for the one thing that everyone is in tune with: music. Music brings people together and I feel the need to share my thoughts on the music.

[Concert Review] Epik High Dallas Concert 2015

June 5th was the Dallas leg of the Epik High North American Tour and I was able to go!

All of Dallas is here. #EPIKHIGH #EPIKDALLAS #EpikHighTour

A video posted by Tablo of Epik High (@blobyblo) on

I had a press pass but the line was incredibly long; I got to the venue, South Side Music Hall, around 5:30 and the Texas sun was blazing down. We waited in line for about an hour and a half before being let into the venue. (I had general admission tickets to the Meet and greet and the VIP ticket holders got in before me). We waited inside for another 30 minutes for the rest of the people to get inside and then we were graced with the presence of DJ Tukutz, Mithra Jin and Tablo. The first song was ‘Encore’ from their last album ‘Shoebox’. The rest of the concert included a mix of old and new hits like: ‘Burj Khalifa’, ‘Umbrella’, ‘Cold with label mate Lee Hi’ and ‘Rich featuring Big Bang’s Taeyang’.  There was a short Q+A session where the three answered fan questions they were given earlier.

Another SOLD OUT show! Dallas was LOVE!!! #EPIKHIGH #EPIKDALLAS #EpikHighTour A video posted by Tablo of Epik High (@blobyblo) on

 

The concert ended with the trio donned in Texas style hats finishing with the song everyone was waiting for, ‘Born Hater’. They signed t-shirts and hats and threw them into the crowd during the song and even took a picture with the crowd. This was one of the best concerts I went to; the energy was high ( pun intended) the entire night and the love was felt from Epik High to the fans.

*This post was originally posted on our sister site, Asia 24/7
For videos and pictures from the concert read the rest on our sister site, Asia 24/7

f(x)- Red Light

Oh SM, this song could have really been great but once again you have failed.  The demo version of Red Light sounds like a club banger with smooth transitions. How did it go from smooth sailing to a jerky ride that makes me want to get off this plane? First, the transitions in the song or the lack of transitions from verse to bridge to chorus is lacking. f(x)’s version of the song sounds like an incoherent mashup of three different songs a la their label mates, SNSD’s I Got A Boy

01. Red Light
demo version

Video Analysis: XIA- Incredible feat. Quincy

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XIA (준수) Incredible (인크레더블) (Feat. Quincy) M/V

First of all, let me start off this post saying that I did not even know Xia was going to release a solo album ( that’s how out of touch I’ve been with K-pop). Anyway, Xia released this video right before his album showcase (can be viewed here) and I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. Continue reading Video Analysis: XIA- Incredible feat. Quincy

Ailee A’s Doll House

Ailee_Asdollhouse
So Ailee is back with her mini album ‘A’s Doll House’, which is available on iTunes, and it is something else!
U & I is a great opener for the mini album. This track is funky with lots of R&B/Soul influence. I’m really loving the horns in this song; it definitely gives this song a jazzy feel.No No No is a pop synth track that is perfect for the summer.

Rainy Day was an attempt at a sort of pop/rock ballad. I want to like this song, but the overall composition of the song is weird. This track feel like she’s yelling for the majority of the song and she does have a set of pipes on her, but this isn’t pleasant to listen to. If her singing wasn’t so scream-y then maybe I would like this track.

이런 법이 어딨어 really reminds me of old Hwayobi, that sort of classic R&B sound. I much prefer this more calmer sounding Ailee. This song is very simple in composition, just a bit of layering of her voice and guitar and some light percussion and piano; that’s where she shines. 열애설 is ok; JeA of Brown Eyed Girls’ helped on the music for this song and the music sounds nice and I can definitely hear her singing a song like this. This wasn’t a very strong track and honestly a little more pizzaz, maybe a featured singer or rapper would’ve made me appreciate this song. I’ll Be Okay is a cute end to the album. This pop synth track is light and another “I don’t need a man” summer anthem.

This mini album from Ailee wasn’t what I was expecting, but it’s not that bad. I think she was trying to show off her voice, which is beautiful, and also have more pop tracks that fit with the mood of summer. I think some of that logic got lost in a few tracks. Ailee’s singing also gets a 10/10, but this mini gets a 3/5!

Rainy Day Playlist part 1

Hello lovies! I know I haven’t been writing much on here or on ECE twitter. I even missed the second birthday of ECE! I know I’m horrible, BUT I have a good excuse I’ve been busy with university. If it makes you readers feel any better, I haven’t listened to any new kpop in the last three-four months.

So here’s just a post so you know that I haven’t abandoned my music lovers! Since it’s been sort of gloomy weather the last few days I decided to make a rainy day playlist. I feel like rainy day weather is the perfect time to snuggle up with a good book or movie, some hot tea or warm yummy food with a nice playlist in the background. Continue reading Rainy Day Playlist part 1