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Topp Dogg’s ‘The Beat’ Album Review

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Eve's Topp Dogg

Following the recent shock departure of Gohn and Kidoh, Hunus Entertainment’s ten member rap group Topp Dogg staged a comeback on October 19 with their fourth mini album, The Beat. It is the group’s first release in a year and shows a marked maturity, not only in terms of vocal accomplishment, but also the choice of material. The songs incorporate influences from around the world and Topp Dogg inject life and energy into all of them.

“Runaway”

The album bursts into life with this up-tempo song, which effortlessly fuses hip hop and retro rock with several brief interludes of dubstep. The aggressive guitar playing and strong beat drive the track along at a furious pace and are guaranteed to get listeners dancing in no time, making “Runaway” a fantastic opener for the EP.

“The Beat”

This totally addictive title song is one of Topp Dogg’s most interesting musical experiments to date. It combines their signature rap sound with elements of both Bollywood and bellydance music. The vocal harmonies here are superb, but the highlight of the track has to be the rap verse from Yano and Jenissi.

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“O.A.S.I.S”

Topp Dogg get into funky disco mode in this catchy and upbeat song. A prominent brass section, synthesizers and electric guitars inject a sense of fun into this lively composition, which brings to mind the music of the 70s. Although the members slightly mispronounce the title, “O.A.S.I.S” is hugely enjoyable.

“All Eyez On Me”

Jimi Hendrix style guitar playing opens this edgy song, which inventively mixes gangster rap, jazz and funk genres to great effect. Composed by former member Kidoh, with current member Yano, this is a truly standout track which really showcases Topp Dogg’s unique talents to perfection.

“Emotion”

This 90’s style ballad marks a massive departure from Topp Dogg’s usual street sound and subsequently feels slightly incongruous on “The Beat”. The brief rap breaks up the flow of the song unnecessarily, so the whole thing doesn’t gel successfully. Top marks to them for attempting something different, though.

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“Sweetheart”

Sangdo’s solo track, composed by fellow member, Yano, takes an unexpected turn down the sophisticated jazz ballad route, yet it works surprisingly well and has a sound that is reminiscent of Zion.T’s output. Sangdo’s vocals here are smooth and heartfelt and the piano solo towards the end really sends the EP out on a high.

Overall Thoughts

In spite of the recent upheaval in the group, “The Beat” proves that Topp Dogg are still on top form. This is a must listen to cd for fans of Korean hip hop music, which should allay any fears that Topp Klass (the group’s fan club name) may have about their ability to carry on with reduced numbers. May Topp Dogg continue to go from strength to strength.

Did you agree with my sentiments about Topp Dogg’s album? What are your thoughts on this release? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.

Stellar’s ”Vibrato” Music Video and Song Review

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Stellar 'Vibrato'
The summer moment we’ve (or maybe just me) been waiting for has finally arrived. The queens of meta sexiness Stellar have returned with their most brazenly sexual single yet. ‘‘Vibrato(r)’’ is their seventh single since 2011, and the fourth in their sexy catalogue. What’s interesting about this catalogue is the connectivity of each of the songs and how aware Stellar are of the negativity they face when it comes to sexy concepts. With their latest single, they show no signs of stopping.

Song

Taking a Stellar song out of context by removing the music video is an interesting and essential thing to do when considering its qualities. Their music videos are so loaded with suggestive imagery that the song can sometimes get lost in the mix. That would be a total shame as each of their four most recent songs, including ‘‘Vibrato’’, have been incredible. For ‘‘Vibrato’’ they have gone for a lot more energy and dance pop elements than earlier songs, which seem to convey a celebration of the themes their songs contain.

‘‘Vibrato’’ contains a huge amount of different sounds pulled into one funky, disco pop anthem. Synths pop, strings whirl, pianos sing, and horns blare. Each instrument comes and goes in fleeting moments holding the song on its edge at all times. These are held together by a super smooth rhythm section of guitar, bass, and drums. The song has a great mix of electronic and acoustic sounds that combined help it keep from straying too far into retro territory. At the same time, they rhythm section grounds “Vibrato” well so that it can still capture a fun, disco feel.

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Structurally, the opening two minutes follow a familiar formula of verses and choruses. Stellar, due to their small size, can do this in an interesting way though. For most of their singles they effectively split verses into two parts assigning two members to each part. In the first verse of ‘‘Vibrato,’’ Hyoeun and Minhee sing the first half and Gayoung and Jeonyul rap the second part. It’s a simple way of keeping things interesting.

Those opening two minutes are great, but would have been generic by themselves. So we are lucky that the song explodes into life just moments after the two minute mark. First the song takes some downtime with a slow, suggestive build up over an image of a handbag opening. It doesn’t quite take off yet right after this but keeps the tempo down with a piano led bridge. Cue some more vaginal imagery and the song finally reaches its climax. It is literally and figuratively orgasmic. The song turns euphoric with Hyoeun’s high pitched wail which signals the return of the synths. Its an incredible moment that matches form and theme to perfection. A commitment to sex like no other K-pop group could do.

Music Video

This is where the music video also comes into play. It adds the final layer that makes ‘‘Vibrato’’ a 2015 classic already. The self-awareness on show is paramount to Stellar’s success when it comes to sexy concepts. Like EXID before them, Stellar were hurt by comments made about them from previous singles.

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Each of the members are put in compromising positions that allow them to be looked at, objectified. They are trapped within glass boxes as camera flashes go off all around them. Images of Barbie dolls come up on televisions. Stellar were made to feel uncomfortable by the press and general public, based on their previous concepts and lack of hits. Their bodies are under intense scrutiny within mirrored halls where they wear their outfits from the ‘‘Marionette’’ video. This may seem like Stellar were angry with their company and ready to apologize to the public.

But this is not an apology.

This is a celebration of female sexuality. Halfway through the video, the dolls are thrown away, the boxes the members are in get bigger. The choreography gives them space to dance as they wish. Eventually they begin to thrive on the sexiness. They are mature women who are aware that they are being shamed for expressing themselves and have had enough of the negativity. This is who they are and they love it. When the video arrives at the two minute turn it returns the sexy concept to where it belongs: sex. We are reminded of what this is really about. Vaginal imagery is suddenly everywhere. From here on in there are no images of the girls looking uncomfortable. They love their bodies and their sexuality.

Overall

Stellar have done it again. No other K-pop group is releasing music with such a subtextual edge while still being incredibly confrontational. Stellar are so necessary to today’s K-pop climate where girl groups are constantly shamed for being sexy yet it is at the same time all the public wants. It’s okay that they want it they just need to come to terms with the reality of it and allow a balance between how boy groups and girl groups are received. Stellar are fighting for this and yet I know they probably won’t change a thing. People won’t respond to the intricacies of what they are doing.

Apart from the thematic level, Stellar also delivered a stunning song. The dance pop sound fits them like a g-string. It allows them to move into celebratory territory and slams home their theme. This is what really makes them stand out, matching a song’s sound and structure to theme allows it to have a bigger impact and shows that what they are saying is no accident. If we take all that into the account the climax of ‘‘Vibrato’’ will be one of the great musical moments of K-pop in 2015.

Stellar 'Vibrato'
4.5

What do you think about Stellar’s comeback and their sexual controversies? Share your thoughts in the comment section below and be sure to subscribe to the site and follow us on Facebook, Twitter,Instagram, and Tumblr to keep up with all of our posts.