February was a good month for Kpop MV lovers with strong releases from the likes of Winner, 4Minute, and Ladies' Code. But this time around, we're doing something never before done in the history of Music Video of the Month: we're giving the award to a performance video! Yes, you heard us right. But Taemin's "Press Your Number Performance Video Ver. 1" is no ordinary performance video. It is, quite literally, the best thing we've seen all month!
Zander: Let's be honest, Kpop fans, some months we struggle to find a worthy candidate for the great honor of Music Video of the Month. And if you haven't yet seen Taemin's performance video, you might think that February was one of those months, and that this is just a desperate attempt to find a worthwhile winner. But you would be mistaken. Tim and I had already identified several strong contenders for the month, and were actually fairly set on Winner's "Sentimental."
That was until I received a late-night email from Tim with a crazy idea: what if we gave the award to Taemin for a performance video? Crazy right? Except I had been planning on sending Tim the exact same email. This is not just a unanimous decision from the editors at Critical Kpop, but it's one that we both came to, independently, fully aware that it more or less breaks the rules of the competition in the first place. I really don't know if I can find higher praise for this video, but we'll try! So, Tim, did you ever think we'd give this out to a performance video? What was it about this video that captivated you so much?
Tim: Did I ever think we'd give this out to a performance video? Absolutely not! Performance videos often give a closer look at the choreography and the outfits that you'll be seeing anyway in the many weekly music shows.
What separates this performance video from the rest, even Taemin's other performance videos (one for "Drip Drop," and the second performance video for this very song) is one word: Abandon. While most performance videos look like a variation of a stage performance that I'll be seeing for weeks, this video takes a life of its own. Whereas I can tell when idols are thinking about their next dance move, this feels strangely unrehearsed, like Taemin has simply been captured by the music, and he can't even control himself. Even the handheld camera gives this a more impromptu feeling for me, which was what really captivated me, since none of this is actually impromptu. Are we on the same page, Zander? Or did something else grab your attention here?
Zander: I think we're at least in the same chapter! I mean, I love the word abandon to describe this performance video, but I'd probably point to a very specific moment when I feel it. To back up a bit, so this makes sense, the video opens with a motionless Taemin standing in the shallow stream of a spillway and set against the backdrop of a concrete bridge (it's beautiful, but in a detached sort of way). The music starts, softly, and Taemin matches it until the line "I'm feeling freaky," when he drops to one knee, firmly planting his leg in the water. It's the first sign of the abandon to come.
Immediately after, he swings his legs around and sweeps the water with his hand, drenching himself but creating a wonderful effect. Even then, though, I don't quite believe it. I don't believe that Taemin will be so bold! But something changes when the chorus begins, and what I see is an idol abandoning all pretense of what a typical idol in a music video should be (perfectly composed, detached and somewhat emo). Taemin just goes for it. He literally drops down into the water and lets go of anything that might be holding him back. He feels with such intensity in his dancing that I feel it too. And, for me, that ability to convey emotion is what allows this performance video to be analyzed as a traditional music video.
Tim: Emotions sure, but can we talk a little about the uninhibited sexuality in this performance as well? Talk about bold! I've said this in the podcast, that there's a distinct Prince and early Michael Jackson vibe I'm getting from this release. Some of the teasers too (including the one where he's about to kiss himself) really have shaped this androgynous image for Taemin that we don't really see in a lot of Kpop releases, where clear-cut masculine and feminine archetypes seem to be preferred.
While Taemin's music videos for this album don't really push any major envelopes (and I agree with Helen that the other video for "Press Your Number" is a mess), the closest video that does push the envelope is this performance video. I'm talking the more obvious crotch grabs (circa Michael Jackson), but also the dramatic twirls and flips, as well as the employment of his long limbs to create moves that many male dancers just can't do. He's like a wet ninja ballerina. Isn't that the definition of SEX in the dictionary (or am I looking at the wrong dictionary)?
Zander: Sure, is that Webster's? I think that both of us are suckers for Kpop idols who bend the rules, especially when it comes to gender norms and stereotypes about sexuality. I guess the reason I love this performance video is that it showed me that something more was possible. It shattered my expectations, and it raised the bar for future releases. That, friends, is worthy of an award! Even YouTube has cottoned on to how much I love this video. Every time I open YouTube, Taemin's "Press Your Number Performance Video Ver. 1" is sitting right there in the "watch again" section.
Last week, Taemin’s MVs for "Drip Drop" and "Press Your Number" were released on the SMTown YouTube channel, and those of us who have been waiting for a follow up to "ACE" fell over ourselves a little bit. As one of my favorite solo artists, Taemin’s tracks are something I have been waiting impatiently to enjoy for months now. You could say I’m biased, and honestly I couldn’t really argue with that.
So, my bias being what it is, my reactions to the music videos are somewhat surprising to me.
The MV for "Press Your Number" is, putting it lightly, a mess. What they were trying to do is easy to see; there are some beautiful shots, the dancing is great, and this song has been stuck in my head for three days so you know I like it. Obviously the aim was to cut some clips together and put them out of order so that we get the sense that Taemin has found himself in some mysterious circumstances that need unravelling. This hasn’t, however, panned out. What we’ve ended up with is a confusing video with some things that make sense on their own but not as a whole. It doesn’t make the statement it clearly wants to make, and it’s a shame.
The plot (if it counts as a linear plot) is thus: Taemin is in a car with some friends, makes his way into a grocery store, and pulls a gun on the cashier. Then he simultaneously finds himself in a crashed car, a hotel room, and the set of Amadeus with some guys who are throwing money at each other (with me so far?). Taemin then receives a phone call, and then the cashier from the store is tied up and lying underneath a table, spliced with flashes of Taemin tied up in her place. Then some dancing on a rooftop, some running, and Taemin’s friends get captured. Taemin himself gets away, although his jacket takes on some magical disappearing-reappearing powers. We then see Taemin drop a blue rose into the Los Angeles River, and trading a roll of cash for a briefcase full of roses, so either Taemin was tricked or he has really specific, really expensive floral tastes. Then we see Taemin in the car with another Taemin, Taemin walking through the desert, and then more dancing in the desert. The final image is of Taemin dousing the car with petrol and flicking a lighter on, followed by credits.
If that seems a little confusing, then it’s because it is. I have no idea what the plot of this music video is, and honestly I’m not completely convinced it even has one. But in case I’m being unfair, I do also have a list of things I like about it. For one, Taemin is wearing a normal outfit instead of looking like SM threw half an H&M store on him and let him loose, which is something they have done to their artists in the past. The shots are gorgeous, and I love those blue roses. So that’s at least three things.
More than anything, I love the dancing in "Press Your Number." So I feel completely spoiled that there are two performance videos to go along with the full MV for "Press Your Number," as well as the performance video for "Drip Drop." I’m very partial to dance videos – I love dance practices, and so to have three performance videos is, to me, a great thing. Taemin is an incredibly dancer, and that’s so clear that I might as well be saying that the sky is blue. But watching him dance is hypnotic in the way that watching anybody who does something incredibly well is. The video for "Drip Drop" is great, and so is the second version of the "Press Your Number" Performance Ver. The first one is very pretty, but I have a couple of issues with it – the first being that I have no idea why Taemin seems to have snuck into his dad’s closet and stolen his clothes from the seventies. The second is that Taemin dancing in water makes his precise movements less easy to follow, and ruins the effect somewhat.
All in all, Taemin’s current MVs are very enjoyable, and both songs are jams that I’m going to be listening to for weeks. They may have missed the mark in some ways, but they fit Taemin and his particular brand of oily-jointed dancing and mature pop songs. Plus, he has that sweet waistcoat.
Helen Edworthy is a Sociology undergrad from England who got lost in the K-Pop machine five years ago. When not talking about K-Pop, she's talking about video games and lipstick. Her biases are VIXX, Royal Pirates, NS YoonG and Taemin, but she loves Epik High most of all.
E opens with Taehyun crooning “Baby baby, I don’t like this night / I don’t wanna be alone.” And that feeling, that intense loneliness that begets an equally intense need, is an accurate description of the entire project. “Baby Baby,” one of two lead-singles written and produced by Taehyun (the other being “Sentimental”) sets the tone for the album as one of pleading. Pleading with the listener, with YG Entertainment, with themselves.
The music video matches the song, reminding the viewer that the life of an idol isn’t fulfilled by fame and fleeting relationships. The members of Winner, just like you and I, need love. And Winner’s seventeen-month exile seems to have affected them immensely. As Mino raps after the first refrain, “I’m curled up in a ball, I’m feeling smaller / The silence is louder than any noise in the world.”
At midnight on February 1 (KMT), Winner dropped E, their first mini album of four anticipated in 2016. (Don’t tell, but we managed to snag the album before its official release!) After a seventeen-month hiatus, a veritable lifetime in the world of Kpop, Winner’s return to the scene guarantees them some much-needed spotlight.
The footage we see at the beginning of the MV (Winner presenting the 2015 MAMA Award for Best New Artist after having produced no music in 2015), then, becomes a subtle critique, maybe, of the extended period they spent out of the spotlight. It’s no wonder they claimed to have written this new batch of songs “to help people release their stress and worries.” It seems obvious they had quite a lot to worry about on their own this past year. But hardship, more often than not, produces amazing art. And for my money, “Baby Baby” is the song that will have me coming back to this album again and again.
As a whole, the album is noticeably Taehyun-focused. That might indicate that future albums will focus on other members (but E + X + I + T does not add up to 5), or it might be a sign that Taehyun is taking over as the group’s lead producer of music. Either way, YG claims to be only releasing songs that were written and composed by members of Winner, and the five guys noted on their live show, “ENTRY NIGHT” that they had written over 100 songs in the last year and a half. Of those songs, we can expect about 20 to be released in 2016 alone. That’s good news for fans who desperately missed Winner in 2015.
The other obvious storyline with E is the release cycle that mimics and builds upon (if that’s even possible) the pioneering 2015 release cycle of fellow labelmates BIGBANG. There’s an easy parallel between each group releasing four mini albums that collectively spell a word. Where Winner goes further than BIGBANG, at least so far, is in the inclusion of even more music videos (three compared to BIGBANG’s two). This appears to be a YG strategy, as indicated on their website: “Unlike other music labels which usually produce one music video for an album title track, YG Entertainment expresses multiple songs in an album through music videos.” Is this YG’s own way of countering SM’s recent news? Potentially. It will be interesting to see who comes out on top at the end of the year.
“I’m Young,” the fourth song on the album, picks up where the MV for “Baby Baby” left off, with Taehyun traveling to visit his French-Canadian boo. It’s an emotionally overwrought music video, and one that completely overshadows the song. More important should be Nam Taehyun’s solo. The song is gorgeous, and Taehyun’s silky-smooth voice pairs easily with the soft keyboards. To the question of whether future X, I, and T albums will feature other members more heavily, Taehyun’s performance here suggests to me that he might be the consistent leader. It’s almost a shame that most of us will be talking about the music video which, aside from a funny line about ridiculous hair, was over-acted. Coupled with his duet with Mino on “I’m Pricked,” the pre-release single, it’s hard to deny that Taehyun has something special to offer. Let’s hope YG continues to explore his talents.
“Sentimental” is obviously the most playful song of the bunch on E. The loneliness is still present of course, in lyrics like “My tiny room is so wide today / For me to lie alone in.” But whereas “Baby Baby” and “I’m Young” were hopelessly bleak, “Sentimental” manages to have some fun. The MV is emo, but kind of hilariously so. There’s an awareness in the ridiculous nature of teen angst, here, which makes it palatable and even enticing. The art direction and cinematography (especially those top-down views) make this the best MV of the album by far.
As for the song, it has a refreshing pop-rock feel. You can tell it was composed with actual instruments in mind, a trait I find all too rarely in Kpop these days. The same can maybe be said for “Baby Baby” and even “Immature” to a slightly lesser extent. Overall, Winner might be the first Kpop group in a long time to understand and utilize the structure and instrumentation of a basic rock song. And I dig it.
Zander Stachniak hails from South Carolina, the Show-Me-Your-Accent-and-I'll-Show-You-Mine State. He currently lives in Chicago where he writes about all things Kpop and dreams in spreadsheets. His bias is f(x).
Hafsa Tameez is a Pakistani-born, nowhere-based interior designer/ professional procrastinator/ self-entertainer. Stumbling onto Kpop as a socially-awkward shy recluse, she was immediately hooked. After making the irrevocable mistake of taking a philosophy course in college, she now loves analyzing the world of Kpop with Gayathri. While she adores far too many Kpop groups, her favorites have always been SHINee, Vixx, Exo, Mamamoo and Spica (though BTS is swiftly reeling her in).
Gayathri Ravindran is an Indian-born, Dubai-based Multimedia Design student currently 4 months away from graduation. She discovered Kpop through the irresistible charms of the one who calls himself Nichkhun, after seeing him on Running Man one too many times. Last year something possessed her to take a philosophy class, then two more and now she spends her free time analyzing Kpop culture with Hafsa. Currently following way more groups than she has time for including 2PM, SHINee, Vixx, BTS and Exo. Not a big fan of girl groups, although she is very excited about Mamamoo and The Ark.
Lyn and LEO - "Blossom Tears"
Hafsa: oh it’s been a while. I think I have forgotten half the lyrics
Gayathri: lol same. “Heart limping to the end of the road”. Wait. That was error right?
H: hahaha yeah
G: that’s literally the only lyric I remember. Hold on, I’ll look for a subbed video. Aha! Found it!
Ok, been a while since I last saw this so Imma watch the entire video before we start talking kay?
-.- TFW wifi is so bad you need to switch to 480p and wait for it to load
H: LOL. Mate, I need to switch it to 144p n wait for it to load
G: ugh. Tough yo.
U f f. Oppa looked so damn fine in this XD
H: hahaha IKR! The struggle is real
G: Haha, look at you and your hip lingo! :P
Ahem might've had to watch it twice cuz I forgot to read the subs first time around. Le-shin-set you know :P
H: Oh my God I get you! But seriously, as a music video I quite like how it plays out a storyline.
G: ok so I just realised this is the same girl as the Boy in Luv MV...you know the one they kept manhandling and then tried to woo with flowers
H: …there was a chick in Boy in Luv?... :/
G: LOL. Yea I wouldn't blame you for being overwhelmed by the abundance of pretty and the general swaginess, but yes...just the one. I remember cuz there was this scene where Jin literally slammed her against the lockers and then just grabbed her and dragged her along. I was pretty pissed at that point.
H: Huh. Interesting.
H: in terms of the music video, it’s pretty straightforward in terms of storyline. Boy likes girl. Girl likes boy. Boy had his heart broken before. Boy is now scarred and has commitment issues.
G: So boy pushes girl away, both emotionally and physically, but for some reason girl stays. You know, when I first saw this MV it took me a while to catch on that the black and white bits are Leo’s flashbacks.
H: I didn’t have trouble with that bit, but it did take me a couple of views to realise that the chick in the flashbacks is different.
G: Wait, what? It’s not the same girl? :0
H: LOL, no. Her face is different. That’s how I came to the conclusion that this must be the girl who broke Leo’s heart in the past.
G: Ah, and essentially led to him becoming a psychopathic serial killer. Like at many points we see pills, meaning he was a bit unstable. Whether he was unstable from the start or whether he became unstable after the first girl left him is not really clear tho.
H: Not sure it matters really. Point is he isn’t the best boyfriend out there. Leo makes no physical contact with her and rejects her love and denies even loving her anymore because he can't deal with the idea of her leaving. To the point that the mere possibility of her leaving and breaking his heart becomes more like inevitability. But the status quo changes when he thinks she's actually left him.
G: Then he has that breakdown and destroys perfectly good upholstery. Without even bothering to check the bathroom smh. Chincha...it’s not that big of an apartment and it was literally 2 steps away. Who does that?
H: IKR! And she ends up popping out of some adjacent room. But instead of being a smart person here and running off screaming for the hills, this one decides to stay.
G: ‘this one’ obviously has no sense of self-preservation. Such a Bella. But still a better love story than twilight xD
Anyway, this is the moment Leo has to face the fact that he does indeed love her. But he also has to own up to his fear.
H: right. And I think his solution is to kill her.
G: Ah, and that’s why he was standing there making intense eye contact with the pills while she was hugging him.
H: In death she becomes perfect to him because she no longer has the power to leave him, and ergo hurt him. Like if he knows she is not going to leave then he has nothing to fear and nothing to lose. That’s why he was comfortable enough to look at his own reflection and initiate physical contact with a corpse. And here I thought Snow White was creepy *shudders*
But there was also this theme of the dress that kept coming up.
G: True. I think the dress represents perfection to Leo. Perfection to him means the ability to not hurt him. Like in the flashbacks we see him making a dress for his ex, and he refuses to let this new girl look at the old dress in the box. But at the same time, she only appears in the dress when she is dead. So building on your idea, she only fits Leo’s idea of perfection in death.
H: Oh, clever. So in the end her identity merged with the idea behind the dress so that to Leo it’s one and the same.
G: Yeah, so he killed her, and took the heart to add to his collection of creepy serial killer memorabilia. And embalmed her and put her in the dress. Wah. Oppa is the bae, but he be cray.
H: I don’t think he embalmed her body and put her in the dress. I think that’s a metaphorical representation of what she comes to mean to him. And the fact that she looks like a corpse symbolically represents that even though he got the peace of mind he wanted, in the end the relationship is dead anyway. Because, well…the girl is dead…don’t see that relationship going anywhere.
But I don’t think Leo killing her is all there is to the story. I think she let herself be killed.
G: huh, intriguing. I’m curious tho, what makes you think she allowed him to kill her? That she had the ability to make that choice? He's pushing her around so he's obviously able to overpower her physically, and we know it was his own pills that killed her.
H: well for one thing, her behaviour so far. She has stayed with him through all his violent outbursts and general weirdness where any sane person would have booked it ASAP. Essentially saying, I don’t think she’s quite right in the head either. But, I got that idea from the lyrics actually. Cuz the chick sings that she will stay bcuz she has so much to do for him. I think she knew this was coming and accepted it. Thereby allowing Leo to kill her.
G: ok, I feel you. That’s a pretty messed up MV.
H: Also I just noticed a detail that I think works with that. The creepy closet he puts the heart in that we thought had various body parts from his previous victims? They aren’t parts from his previous victims. They are mementos. Letters and feathers and a clock and knick knacks.
G: Oh my God do you know what this means?? Oppa’s not a serial killer! Killer sure, but at least not a serial killer. #NextLevelFangirl XD
H: wow…LOL
G: Wait, I see it now. 1080p ftw! They’re mementos of their time together. Her pictures are there and everything.
H: so the cupboard is his mind basically. It represents the things he holds dear.
G: wow, the rest of us can barely keep a scrapbook and here is this guy blowing competition out of the water. Wait, so is the heart a symbol too?
H: Yeah, not sure about that one. There’s like a good five minutes of him making out with the jar. XD
G: Wut?... But it can still be right? Like the heart can still represent the girl’s love and feelings for Leo.
H: I don’t see why not. Makes sense too. Her body was pretty clean so it’s possible he didn’t actually cut out her heart. But then creepy guy just killed his girlfriend so not much hope there.
G: #whodoyouthinkyouare, #collectingyourjarofhearts XD. Ahem, I apologies for that somewhat irrelevant song reference.
What’s interesting really is that the lyrics themselves seem pretty straightforward. Well not straightforward but less layered than the MV anyway. I know it’s a duet but the Korean language doesn't actually use gender pronouns.
H: oh really? I didn’t even think of that. I always just approached the song as a duet. Hang on, I need to see the lyrics without the voices
G: #FactoftheDay
It could very well be possible that the whole song is the thought process of one person. Like what if Leo’s extra cray and ends up talking for her as well. As in makes up her side of the conversation.
H: Oh my God! What have you done!? :o Puts the whole song in another light.
G: Right?!
H: Like it works if it's an argument with yourself. Kinda. But they do use ‘you’ and ‘me’ pronouns. Which is why that interpretation is a bit sketchy. But it is still a cool approach to it
G: hmm true. I noticed in the English translation there are times where it goes ‘HE loves me HE loves me not’
H: And that too.
G: But I know that’s not accurate and in the song both Leo and Lyn sing that line
H: Plot twist: Leo is not real. Lyn is the crazy one and she used the idea of Leo to validate her suicide.
G: :0
D u d e
Wait…
How dare she blame my poor sweet oppa like this?? :''''' #NotCoolBruh
H: LOL. Oppa not real. This oppa is in her head. But I do think it’s really cool that the MV can be interpreted from the POV of either one, depending on if you are following the lyrics or the MV itself.
G: hmm...always did say he was too good to be true :""
But I like where you're going with this
H: Ok. So from Leo’s perspective the mv helps out a lot. We can get his backstory. Hence our conclusion that he kills her or rather she allows him to kill her.
G: yeah, so that’s the traditional interpretation. But let's try from Lyn’s perspective. Reading the lyrics it kinda feels like she might on the outside looking in on her own situation.
H: ok, go on. How so?
G: like going with the idea that despite it being a duet it’s all just her
“The goodbye trickles down your cheeks like blood Your lips asking why is so sad No, don’t come, don’t make that face Just pass me by
The countless words of love that we’re whispered Our promises that are breaking instantly No, this is a dream, your eyes are telling me Just hug me again
I loved you, I cared for you, that’s it I loved you but now I hate you, that’s the one reason
You think I don’t know you? You’re lying right now You still love me, you’re still the same”
Like she knows how this is going to end up but she can’t really stop it. She knows she's depressed and emotionally unbalanced that she might do something like that.
H: Exactly! That’s the idea I got too!
G: #twinning, #UltimateEdition
So the song is her processing her own emotions? Like she knows how she feels and what she'll do but she feels helpless to stop it
H: I think so. It's almost like she desperately wants affection but doesn't really believe she will get it anywhere. Like when life feels so utterly meaningless it's empowering to feel needed. And so we get the idea of Leo, who is essentially the personification of her own unbalanced emotions and nature
G: ah, so she's created someone who needs her so desperately. Like is that her idea of what she will be to him? Like “he loves me so much that he'll need me even after I'm gone”??
She even went through the trouble of creating this tragic (not really but kinda sorta) backstory for him.
H: curious, how would the dress thing fit in with this theory?
G: I think the dress is the same idea of perfection as it was for Leo. Like if for Leo the dress is the perfect version of the girl then it's the same for her. It’s a symbol of the girl she wants to be. Perfect and wanted and loved
H: So essentially. Whether it's from Leos view or the girl’s, the whole MV is about emotional insecurity and mental instability? And the idea that we feel unworthy of love and are drowning in the sorrows of our own sense of meaninglessness that we tend to latch onto anything that gives us the slightest bit of purpose?
Teen Top are perennial producers of quality Kpop, frequently breaking into the top ten charts on Gaon with recent hits like “Ah-Ah,” “Missing,” and “Rocking.” But something has shifted in the musical structure of their latest single, “Warning Sign,” from the new EP, Red Point. If you’re not listening on a quality sound system, you’ve likely already written this release off as not worth your time. But why is that? Let’s break it down in 120 seconds.
First of all, let’s describe the sound that we’re hearing in “Warning Sign.” The song is driven by a very old-school, double bass sound that operates at a lower frequency (way down to the 41 Hz range) than the standard drum kits heard in most pop music, and it comes with a much richer tonal quality to boot. That means a double bass can create a very interesting sound, but it’s also nearly useless on cheap speakers and earbuds. That’s a real risk that Teen Top is taking, because if you’re anything like me, a good 95% of your music listens are on buds. No judgment. But for “Warning Sign” to sound anything like it was intended, you’re going to need to plug Teen Top into your sound system to get access to the right range of frequencies.
If you don’t have a chance to listen in the right audio environment, you’ll likely notice what many fans have already pointed out: that “Warning Sign” sounds muted and altogether unspectacular. On sub-par speakers, the double bass blends into white noise so easily that within a few seconds only the vocals will be registering. All of which makes it seem as though “Warning Sign” is severely lacking in power. Everything feels soft, timid. There’s no danger. It’s not until you listen on decent speakers that “Warning Sign” begins to suggest a darkness that threatens to envelope you if you stand too close. Surely, the fans who have applauded Teen Top’s new direction with this release are plugging into their A/V systems.
But it's a big risk! Pop music succeeds by becoming ubiquitous, and rule number one is to create a low barrier of entry. Forget being the boldest and the brightest, a large number of casual listeners to this single will hear only a muffled bass line with soft vocals over the top. It’s a more mature release, and a change from their previous Brave Sound music, but it’s almost as if Teen Top didn’t want to be noticed.
Zander Stachniak is a southern-born, Chicago-based writer who first discovered Kpop through ShoutCast Radio. His biases are f(x) and Block B.
With the coming of the new year, Kpop fans all over the world rejoice! The previous year (and whatever concept our favorite stars collectively beat into the ground) is over. The new year is a blank slate, a canvas waiting for the right brush stroke. But January is also famously slow and devoid of big releases, and therefore defined mostly by anxiety for the new year. A new single from Anda is sure to heat things up, right? Maybe.
On January 6, Anda released “Taxi,” adding one more voice to the cultural zeitgeist of taxi romance in Asian pop music. However, the song has a darker feel than most taxi-obsessed songs (for whatever reason, taxis need bubblegum pop like flowers need the sun). Anda’s rap segments operate a few octaves below her usual singing, showcasing a new sound for the artist in this, her seventh single. Coupled with a drum beat that makes your knees wobble and drop a few inches, “Taxi” approaches the boundaries of hip-hop. Tonally, the song recalls Anda’s earlier single, “It’s Goin Down,” but “Taxi” feels much more like a new direction for Anda than a rehash of what’s come before. January artists operate in the unique realm where all possibilities are open to them. But while “Taxi” provides a way for Anda to move forward as a music artist, it’s a mess in terms of visuals.
As a music video, “Taxi” begins with Anda being picked up by, you guessed it, a taxi. But really, the video opens, closes, and is everywhere in-between made up of uninspiring clips of Anda hanging out in the back of the limo. She sort-of dances (as much as anyone can dance while reclining on leather seats. She seduces. She changes outfits once or twice. There are even a few shots that are clearly from a modeling shoot (outside the taxi!), but they are so short as to go unnoticed. And that’s it. As a way to start the new year, this is a disappointment, especially considering the dual facts that that there is a fun and fully developed choreography for “Taxi” and that Anda just so happens to be a phenomenal dancer. Waste is the word that comes to mind.
Now, before you get all in a huff, dear reader, and accuse me of ignoring the fact that Anda lacks the budget of the big three, I’d like to point that sentiment out for the nonsense that it is. Anda, who originally debuted as “Andamiro” (literally translated to “so much that the cup runneth over”), joined Emperor Entertainment Group in 2015, and since that time she has released two brilliant music videos in “Touch” and “Mastering.” Neither of those videos betrayed any lack of funding. I’d even go so far as to argue that both were standout videos for Kpop in 2015.
“Touch” was full of clever camera tricks (yes, those cost money) that keep the viewer feeling uncomfortable even in extremely sexual situations. A series of repetitions leave Anda’s lip-syncing unaffected while everything else around her duplicates or multiplies grotesquely. It’s such a fun experience, but most importantly, Anda is fully realized as a pop idol within the MV. Both “Touch” and “Mastering” feature a fun Westernized choreography which Anda performs flawlessly. “Mastering” may not be the most innovative MV ever created, but it gets two things right: Anda is an obvious star, oozing sexuality (there’s even some “Blurred Lines” vibes), and there is always something on screen to watch.
The main issue with “Taxi” is that Anda, with no help from visuals, from choreography, from a story line, is allowed to run out of charisma. That’s not a knock on Anda - anyone would run out of charisma if forced to sit on screen long enough with nothing else to riff on. But this isn’t an issue of money. Compare “Taxi” to her first break-out single from 2012, “Hypnotize,” which was co-produced by two agencies, one which was already struggling and would fold soon after, and another that had to crowdfund just to upgrade their recording studio. But “Hypnotize” contains visuals, choreography, and a story, and it absolutely succeeds. Even without the help of financial backing, Anda has demonstrated that she can create exciting MVs to match her music. Unfortunately, “Taxi” isn’t one of those times. With only Anda and Dal Shabet to judge by so far, 2016 hasn’t started with a bang. In deference to “Taxi” being a fun song, I give this release a B-.
Zander Stachniak is a southern-born, Chicago-based writer who first discovered Kpop through ShoutCast Radio. His biases are f(x) and Block B.
You might have thought December was only for holiday ham and throw-away releases, but there's light to be found even in the depths of Kpop Winter! JYP Entertainment finished 2015 off right with Jun. K's solo release, "Love Letter." Read as Tim and Zander explain why this single deserves the not-so-hotly contested MV of the Month for December!
Zander: First of all, credit to Tim for finding us a winner for our December contest. Most months we spend time debating the merits of one video over the other challengers. In December, though, we usually can't find any challengers. So my thanks to Tim for being willing to take a risk on a December video titled "Love Letter." It paid off this time!
Tim: You’re right, the credit goes to me! It certainly doesn’t go to JYP, who hid this release deep in December. “Love Letter” was released earlier in Japan, yes, I know, but if it had gotten a Korean release before the holiday season, who knows what this song could have done on the charts! This is coming from someone that’s not a big boy band fan, although I do like quite a few of 2PM’s songs (I loved "My House" when no one else would touch it). I don’t even know much about the members. Do you, Zander? Who’s this Jun. K fellow?
Zander: If you don't know Jun. K, he's the lead vocalist for 2PM and a big part of the reason they've stayed relevant over the years. He's produced some great solo material before (see "No Love"), so it's no surprise that "Love Letter" succeeds first as a song. It starts with an instrumental that could open for the Rat Pack, and Jun. K's vocals are no slouch either. But the song turns on its head with a hip-hop section that bridges to the chorus, then melds back into a more traditional pop-ballad. We all know that mash-ups are big right now, but they fail if over- or under-produced. Jun. K gets it spot on with "Love Letter."
Tim: Good point, Zander - the beginning of “Love Letter” kind of reminds myself of what TTS did this holiday season with “Dear Santa,” where it starts off as a somber ballad then explodes into a...sorry to say, rather lame Christmas song. The difference being that “Love Letter” explodes to awesomeness! The greatest part is that the song doesn’t feel disjointed with different styles and genres of music - Jun. K brings it all together into a cohesive pop cacophony. Here’s the thing, this cacophony of discordance goes beyond the music - the music video itself is a mix of modern trappings and but also is a really cool nod to Georges Méliès’ iconic silent film, A Trip to the Moon. Which was released in 1902, friend! I mean, there’s some Charlie Chaplin imagery thrown in because Kpop, but a lot of that grainy black and white footage is a loving and clever nod to the classic film of yore. Did you even notice that, Zander?!
Zander: Georges who??? Of course I didn’t notice that, Tim! I speak for the common man! Here I thought I was clever for noticing that Jun. K has a penchant for old-timey references in his music videos.
Take “Love and Hate,” for example, in which he mimics a turn-of-the-century magician for the first ten seconds of the video (and then promptly forgets about it).
I think it’s important to see this artist’s process developing over the course of time. Jun. K has always had an interest in this kind of imagery, but I think you’ve hit on something by suggesting that now he’s finally connecting the dots in a more meaningful way. It sounds like he’s going past appropriating early films as part of a stylistic conceit and is now providing a more thoughtful homage to something that clearly moves him. Is that how you see it? Can Georges Méliès’ help explain any of the puppetry and associated themes?
Tim: Of course he can, dummy! That puppetry harkens back to this older, idyllic time, just like the silent film, the typewriter, and hanging lights. Even the child in the music video can represent Jun. K reaching to his younger, innocence of childhood. But don’t be fooled! This video has a dark side - which is why it really stood out to me! As you’ll notice, surely, the love interest, about a minute and forty seconds in, is in a grave! He summons her in his remorse and she floats into the heavens as a star.
Now, I don’t think for a second that this video is about grieving over a lover’s death - although it’s certainly grieving over a lost love, confirmed about two minutes and twenty seconds in, where one of his letters is marked: “Return to Sender.”
In the idealized silent film fantasy, he travels to the Moon to reclaim her. In his “real” life he burns all the letters that have been sent back. The song is the same - we cut between the fantasy on the Moon, the brighter choreography scene, and then to Jun. K singing amongst the flames. There’s a strange tension here in the (again, discordant) images that you wouldn’t expect from something that could be characterized as a holiday song. That tension makes the video complex, and so very interesting! Am I reading too much here, Zander? Are my film-school-days getting the best of me?
Zander: No, Tim, you’re right! And when you’re right, you’re right. Maybe the best thing we can say about “Love Letter” is that it rewards multiple watches (and listens)! I’m not sure I can say that about many December releases. But hopefully the bronze bowling statue we just shipped to Jun. K to commemorate his award goes some way toward expressing our gratitude for having woken up a sleepy month. And hopefully Tim’s sharp eye has helped you, reader, find more to love in this great MV!
Hafsa Tameez is a Pakistani-born, nowhere-based interior designer/ professional procrastinator/ self-entertainer. Stumbling onto Kpop as a socially-awkward shy recluse, she was immediately hooked. After making the irrevocable mistake of taking a philosophy course in college, she now loves analyzing the world of Kpop with Gayathri. While she adores far too many Kpop groups, her favorites have always been SHINee, Vixx, Exo, Mamamoo and Spica (though BTS is swiftly reeling her in).
Gayathri Ravindran is an Indian-born, Dubai-based Multimedia Design student currently 4 months away from graduation. She discovered Kpop through the irresistible charms of the one who calls himself Nichkhun, after seeing him on Running Man one too many times. Last year something possessed her to take a philosophy class, then two more and now she spends her free time analyzing Kpop culture with Hafsa. Currently following way more groups than she has time for including 2PM, SHINee, Vixx, BTS and Exo. Not a big fan of girl groups, although she is very excited about Mamamoo and The Ark.
This is what happens when Kpop takes over your life and you decide to take a philosophy class... Hafsa: ‘View’ vs ‘Married To The Music’: The relation that may or may not exist as a result of my madness
Sounds like a title to me XD
Gayathri: So I haven’t actually looked up lyrics to either song. Do you think it’s significant or are we sticking mainly to the visual?
H: I don’t remember the lyrics for "View." But "Married To The Music"?
Very… uh…romantic?
G: Is that the word for it? LOL. yeah all I remember is “neomu areumdaumdaumdaumdaum view”. That’s literally it. I’m guessing they’re not talking about Minho's abs? XD
H: I don’t know, but did you notice that every time the chorus came up it was Minho right there on screen?
Not really minding that view right there. If you know what I mean :3
G: Haha I do ;)
H: I also remember “I won’t let you down”
Mostly cuz it’s always an Onew solo shot there and I want them contacts.
G: Ooh his grapefruit hair
H: And that
G: And that poor soul who tried and failed to get with that :””
Ok anyway Imma look at finding a video with English subs for View
H: if you find a good one, send me the link
G: IDK man, I'm not convinced "sweetly dip it in & eat the fondue of light" is an accurate translation.
:/
But then again, who even knows
H: Fairly certain that fondue ain’t no dessert
Is it just me being pervy or are both songs about getting down
G: Right? I was just about to say it got very explicit after the fondue bit. Omo. What if it’s like the Korean 'netflix and chill’?!
H: The what now?
G: Like Bieber's chillin’ by the fire eatin’ fondue?? XD
Netflix and chill is basically a new slang term for doing the do
You feel? *creepy eyebrow wiggling*
H: Oh God! Hahahahahahahaha
Then wait till you read the lyrics for Married To The Music
G: Whoa whoa whoa! What's this about the “moment you pass your sleeping senses”?
H: Dude. IDEK
You know I’m not great with pop culture references -.-
G: Of course that’s why I’m here.
So basically this areumdaum view is like all the 'normal' coming of age stuff they never got to experience since they’re idols and it would be scandalous?
H: That’s what I thought. Like when I watched the two MVs, the thing that caught my attention immediately was that both of them seemed to reference SHINee’s idol lives, a lot. View almost entirely. Married To The Music kinda more through the title and chorus I guess
G: Hold on I’m still on the lyrics for "View." I’ll look at "Married To The Music" now.
H: Dear Lord. Oh wait, better yet "On this hot groove, I'll take you"
XD. Like even I get that one, ok?
G: LOL
So what I'm getting from this is that the only way they can imagine falling in love with someone and pursuing an actual relationship is if they're also "Married To The Music" as much as SHINee are? IDK man.
Hmm, but what about the video when they keep getting parts cut off? :/
H: Maybe...
I didn’t see it that way actually. When I first saw "View," I’ll be pretty honest, I was confused. I didn’t really get what was happening. It took me a while to understand that the girls had taken them away. And only waaaaay later did it click that their personas in the MV are a reflection of themselves in real life. Essentially SHINee is SHINee; work, performances, blah blah. But then these girls come and "kidnap" them. Correct me if I’m wrong but this is what I thought the MV was about.
G: Yeah, but to me it seemed like SHINee knew they were going to be taken away and just let it happen
H: You raise an interesting point, and honestly I’m not so sure. Basically SHINee end up chilling with their kidnappers. They essentially have a really great time until the wee end when the police find them. That’s when you hear the sirens
G: If you mean ‘netflix and chilling’ *eyebrow wiggles* :3
H: Hahahahaha. Our mind is really in the gutter today isn’t it? XD
Rejected though, in Onew’s case
G: Haha for Onew, yes
IDK about Minho though, dat face
H: That did not feel like chilling. I mean she bonked him over the head with a bottle
G: it seems like such an odd thing to include in there
H: I thought so too at first, but I think it’s left in there on purpose
G: I mean until that point I was pretty sure SHINee wanted to be there.
H: True, so we think they weren’t consenting participants on the kidnapping.
G: You think that’s a reference to saesang fans?
H: I don’t know. Maybe.
G: Like the reason they can’t be completely carefree is because it could be dangerous for them in terms of saesangs?
H: That’s one interpretation certainly.
I thought it was more like a reference to themselves. From the way the scene played out, it felt like a down-to-earth realistic realisation on SHINee’s part regarding who they are. Am I reading too much into this? I thought it was all a big giant metaphor for freedom
G: You're supposed to bruh. It’s called critical analysis.
I also think it’s interesting how first there's Onew who's obviously all NO and then Minho who doesn’t seem like he's sure about what he wants… Wait, did we just acknowledge Minho’s acting skills? O_O
H: LOL!
True. I didn’t really get that before, until I saw the MV with the lyrics.
It felt like they were singing from inside a cage, and the view isn’t necessarily a girl per say, but rather it is the view of the world. In in their case, the world outside the world of being an idol
G: I thought it was mostly about the whole ‘things they could be doing but can’t’
H: That would certainly play into it, I mean sure there are all these things they want to do but can’t
G: Hmm #samesame
H: And the MV shows that they would have fun doing them, but I think they also realise that they don’t particularly know how to
G: I see what you mean. So the MV is also the realisation that the freedom they crave is also dangerous for them. Hence the Minho-bonked-over-the-head-with-a-bottle don’t-know-what-he-wants thing. Makes sense. There are also those moments where the girls try to take photos and Jonghyun’s like “Nah man”
H: Yeah totally. There are numerous mentions of their idol lives. It even flashes on the TV screen in the grocery store at 0:52. Not to mention that huge collage wall.
G: Basically every time they mention ‘you’ in the lyrics, we're saying they don’t mean you literally as a person.
H: I believe so. I think that’s why the lyrics are that vague.
G: #twinning
I’m with you so far, but there is one part I don’t really get. So you know the lyrics at the end?
“It’ll be the first time for anyone, like you (I feel a thousand senses) Smelling and tasting the star light (I’ll never leave you lonely) Feeling the weight of the scent (I won’t let you down) Seeing the colour and shape of sounds”
What if here the person saying 'It’ll be the first time for anyone, like you' is not SHINee but say like a personification of the non-idol life that they dream of? You follow?
H: Uh…no. Sorry
G: Like what if this is the whole thought process in SHINee's head. Like an internal monologue thingy
H: Right, I follow!
G: Good, because I think I just confused myself.
H: Hahaha!
No it makes sense, and it fits right in with what I was saying. Essentially, "View," the lyrics are a monologue inside Shinee's head.
So let’s see. The whole song and mv for "View" is this:
SHINee are idols and they are stuck in the idol life. Cuz the idol life, for all its glamour and glory comes with restrictions that sometimes makes it feel like a cage. They realize that "in the ocean, time is a bottle"
They are basically stuck in a bubble because they are "so used to being bored they have forgotten the feeling of it being special." And SHINee is standing at the window looking outside into the world trying to figure out what lies out there in the world of freedom
G: And they are asking this view, this freedom essentially, to show them what it is that they are missing out there. But according to the MV, they add a slight layer that isn’t in the lyrics. In the MV, these girls fulfill their wish; they take them out, show them a great time. But SHINee also realize that this freedom, this world they see, this view is also dangerous. Maybe the “kiss on the eyes,” is the symbolic way of wanting to be able to look past that danger, to ignore it per say. Does that make any sense?
H: yup J
It’s almost like they want one thing but the world wants something else, or the world IS something else entirely.
G: “View” makes sense!!! Nice. I’m gonna miss the idea that neomu araemdaum view is the Korean Netflix and chill.
Now with that being said, I think "Married To The Music" is a continuation of this concept. Like I feel like if "View" was the problem, the unspoken desires, the longing and all that, then "Married To The Music" is the reconciliation
H: Ooh, I follow you. If "View" is looking out the window through the bars, then "Married To The Music" is turning around and looking inside
G: You mean like introspection?
H: No, as in looking at the interior of the cage of idol life that they are in.
OK, yeah. I’m a bit lost when it comes to "Married To The Music." The first time I saw this I had no context in terms of lyrics. Who is that girl supposed to represent? Is she also a personification of something? Also, is that a wedding veil?
H: She is. She is in full wedding attire. Same here, I had to watch it like 19 hundred million times to make any sense of it. Mostly cuz I was too busy drooling to do much else. #FangirlLyfe
G: I also assumed she was trying to create like a perfect guy with all the SHINee parts they keep losing but I don’t see how that works. Like is it a commentary on how idols are supposed to be perfect? Or more about the dynamics of the group as a whole? Like how each member is supposed to have a specific image or role to play? i.e.: Key being the mom of the group but not really
H: My friend, you ask the relevant questions. Just going through them I think the whole song and MV are an answer to the "if you want freedom so much and THIS is the reality of the idol business, why don’t you just leave" question
G: Ahh! Cuz they're "Married To The Music." They’re “married” to the idol life as a whole, and according to the lyrics they love it, which is why they don’t leave.
H: Exactly! Or if you really want some SM bashing in there, they are bound legally by a marriage-like contract. Whichever "View" floats your boat. See what I did there? ;)
G: Oh my God, yes I see what you did. That’s interesting since in "View" they were pretty vague. They never mentioned the word ‘girl’ specifically but they do here quite a few times.
H: I still think it’s not really a girl but rather their life personified as one
G: Yeah me too. So is the ‘you’ here a reference to the music or to idol life?
H: I think it’s the same thing. Their life IS their music. Hence "Married to the Music."
G: “All of me is you, Like it’ll explode, turn it up”,
Yea makes sense
H: I love that line. It adds a completely different layer of meaning. It’s not that they love the music idol life, but that IS them. How can they leave a part of themselves?
G: “Remember this unforgettable, hot highlight”. Man SHINee has some bomb pickup lines in these.
Still not sure about the parts getting cut off thing though. How does that fit in?
((((((((PIC)))))))))
H: I think I’m getting it. The lyrics here are their reasons for wanting and loving their idol lives and whatnot, and the MV gives all the reasons why they should probably leave. Basically, the MV shows their idol life metaphorically
G: OK...
H: Like watch it with the lenses of "SM does all this to its idols"
G: Ahh, I get it
H: For example, all the eating and drinking bits, I first thought that had to do with the strict idol diets and stuff
G: So like Key’s head getting cut off could be a reference to how he's not what they traditionally think is ‘good looking’. So cut off your face cuz no likey
H: I also thought it was because he is the sassy one. Spills secrets left and right without filter. Sort of like Taemin but less accidental
G: Haha. And Taemin's eyes? IDK, he's always been pretty observant and tactless about dropping truth bombs
H: True. So basically all these parts disappearing are representations of what they have to do as idols, turn their eyes away from issues like that
G: I guess. Jonghyun’s mouth makes sense. He is the main vocal so by default he gets the most lines and adlibs. Also he's pretty outspoken and politically aware. Remember how we were talking about him being funny and not being allowed on a lot of variety shows?
H: Ooh, I didn’t even think of that. In that case, even the throwing up makes sense. Especially since the chick who saw him tossed her cookies too. The throwing up could be their mistakes perhaps? Like people have a tendency to blow their mistakes waaaaay out of proportion or make big deals out of them. So in this case, Jonghyun makes a mistake and the lady follows right along.
LOL that scene though! Jong puking, chick puking, and Onew going "WEEEEE!! Confetti!!!"
G: True! I noticed that. And Minho's whole face. I guess his whole image is his face...like he’s just the pretty visual so no one cares about more than that
H: Right. And yet despite all this, they stay
G: But Onew’s nose? I can’t figure it out and it’s annoying me
H: That I have no explanation for. Ignore the way your band members smell on stage after a concert? I don’t know
G: Hahahahahaha!
H: Maybe it’s a reference to his looks too. Like how he is ranked last in the "Who’s handsomest" rankings. Or is it a reference to his smoking? We know him and Taemin do. But apparently he has this good boy image and fans didn’t like that he smoked. Also the smoking led to a lot of his vocal problems leading up to his surgery. That could be the nose thing…maybe
G: Yeah I remember when people caught him with an electronic cigarette and were disappointed. Maybe, since he is also the only one walking around with a soju bottle
H: Yeah and then we hit the scene where the "bridezilla" is sitting there making her collages. Which is mainly the reason why I think both songs/MVs are related. Cuz this wall collage came up in "View," where the chick gets the rejected by Onew
G: Ahh yea! And now here. Interesting. But if you look at them both, this one in "Married To The Music" is all fragments: this one’s eyes, that one’s mouth, this one’s eyebrow and etc. In "View," the collage is all their jacket shots and promo pics.
H: Huh. I’m getting this idea of deconstruction. "Married To The Music," aka the idol industry, picks and chooses what to promote and all. Hence the deconstruction. Literally with the noses and heads and mouths
G: Right, and the picture collages in "View," it's a whole image but still a false one. I mean those are promotional shots, hardly their real selves. I think this is where we as fans come in. Even the idea of sasaeng fans we touched on earlier. We see these images and think that’s what they are and presume to think we know them and what they want.
H: When it may not be really. In that case, it would actually make Onew's rejection of her right there more significant than just a massive burn. LOL
G: Right! So with "View" it is more to do with how idol culture affects them. And "Married To The Music" is how idol culture influences our perception of them.
H: But the conclusion is that they love it anyway and are willing to put up with it for their music.
G: Ok yeah. Makes sense. Choosing a horror concept then was a rather clever strategy wasn’t it?
H: Indeed it was. Subtle way of getting their point across.
H: So subtle we almost didn’t see it. But I think overall it was a clever way to tell their own story. It still does deal with the idea of identity and deconstruction, but I’m feeling like that might be a whole different topic then.
G: Ugh no stahp. I’d have to dig through my notes on Hume again. X.X
Wait…are we like done?
H: I think so....wow. And to think, first time I saw it all I thought was “ooh, pretty eyeshadow. Wonder if there’s a tutorial” XD
November was full of memorable releases - but it was still incredibly hard to pick our MV of the Month! It's as they say, heavy lies the crown. But in the end, there could only have been one winner: Verbal Jint's (and Taeyeon's) "If the World Was Perfect." Here's Zander Stachniak and Timothy Moore, discussing why Verbal Jint gets the MV of the Month for November!
Zander: I'll be honest, Tim, the month of November was harder than usual to choose a winner. I'm not sure if that means there were more good MVs than usual, or just less that I felt passionate about. But Verbal Jint and Taeyeon's "If the World Was Perfect" has to be the standout. I feel like we say this every time, but for me, the music video perfectly matched the moodiness of the song and the heartbreaking lyrics. Now we've got to talk about this giant head.
Tim: That head tho! Kpop loves these giant heads - and when I first saw this, I have to admit, I rolled my eyes a bit! But then I rolled...my heart. Does that make sense? I mean, my heart was hurt/warmed simultaneously. It took me a bit to realize that the it was always the same guy that was messing with our big headed friend here, and then, if we can skip ahead here, by the end we realize that the big headed character and his antagonist are the same person (at least that's my interpretation!).
In many ways, it's so so appropriate that Taeyeon has collaborated with Verbal Jint here, especially considering that her music video for "I" almost serves as the inverse for this music video. Throughout Taeyeon's video, she pictures her idyllic self and life, away from her (not really that) terrible waitressing job.
While the character in this music video pictures himself as he believes others perceive him - a big headed, slow-witted buffoon. Both releases are about people's perceptions of themselves - for better and for worse - lying just on the opposite ends of that spectrum. It also helps that Taeyeon and Verbal Jint work so beautifully together that we get this cohesive experience with both of their releases, which I really find so cool! But am I interpreting this music video all wrong, Zander? Am I finding connections that aren't really there? Save me from myself!
Zander: You're not wrong, Tim! I think there's a definite connection between "If the World Was Perfect" and Taeyeon's "I." While they're on opposite ends of the spectrum, in some ways, it's also entirely possible for both perspectives to be contained within a single individual. There's nothing inherently contradictory about imagining that others see you as a slow-witted buffoon and at the same time daydreaming of your idyllic self. Even though Taeyeon's MV is much lighter in tone, I find both videos to convey an immense sadness. Because make no mistake, Taeyeon's escape in "I" is only cathartic after first suffering.
But back to the video at hand. The realization that the big-headed character acts as both victim and tormenter is probably the most important thing to notice in this video. It's an apt metaphor for mental health issues. And the way in which the video announces this information (a reflection in still water) is spot on too. Much like you, I was quick to dismiss the papier-mâché head as gimmicky at first, but I learned to stop worrying and love the head! I found that because the tone of the video was overwhelmingly serious, the head never opened itself up to ridicule. The only misstep I would point out is the inclusion of the enormous, papier-mâché tear at two various points in the video. That, certainly, felt gimmicky. It was an unnecessary inclusion that attempted to crassly announce sadness in a video that otherwise finds strength in subtlety. And yes, I include the giant head in the category of subtlety (amazingly)! The moment at 0:48, when the character bumps into a car in the shop, is a good example of how the MV creates a subtle complexity.
Yes, the obviously large head begs to be noticed, but here we're not being clobbered with obvious symbolism. Instead, we're noticing awkwardness and an inability to fit in, emotions that are much harder to get across in a 4 minute video than "sadness." The more I watch this video, the more impressed I am! But tell me, Tim, do you think this video is too sad to be a major hit?
Tim: Good question! No, dummy! This is Verbal Jint and Taeyeon we're talking about - this song is a hit no matter what! Oh - you mean the music video? That I do think could be effected by the sad content. The first few times that I watched this video (and I wrote about this in This Week in Kpop too), I really thought it was a missed opportunity at showing Verbal Jint and Taeyeon in the actual video - maybe with even cameos or cutting to them singing, since Taeyeon is such a superstar. But I'm sure contractually and schedule-wise would be hard to put them together, and maybe it would have cheapened the music video.
I'm always impressed when idols forgo appearing in their videos in such an image-obsessed, idol "idolatry" culture. It's pretty gutsy and allows for the work to stand by itself. While I think the release would have benefited with Taeyeon and Verbal Jint appearing together, I have a lot of respect for Verbal Jint for releasing a song and music video that touches on such a vulnerable subject, and one that isn't addressed enough in a Korean culture that doesn't like acknowledging mental health issues. Any last thoughts, friend?
Zander: Only to say hear, hear! Mental health issues might not make for a "sexy" music video, but they do make for an honest and important one. My greatest hope for this video is that it creates a dialogue that is sorely needed.
