Playlist 13. Pretty

Theme: Beauty

Songs with a [♥] are my preference/a personal favorite

Self-confidence songs about beauty (and inner beauty)!

1. Ladies' Code - Pretty Pretty
Korean

There's a fine line between self-confidence and over-confidence. This funky song by Ladies' Code is arguably a bit of both. Basically, they know that they're attractive and don't hesitate to say so! Don't worry though, these girls know that appearances aren't everything, and mention "And my personality is cool too!"

Review: Song - 3/5 MV - 2.5/5

2. F(x) - Pretty Girl
Korean ♥

'Pretty Girl' by f(x) is a bubblegum pop/soft rock hybrid from the group's 2nd album 'Pink Tape'. On the surface, if you don't understand Korean, you may think that this song is just praising a girl's physical appearance. However, it's really an anthem for those who are overshadowed by other's beauty. 'Pretty Girl' bites at the beauty standards for women and points out that prettiness isn't everything. 

Review: Song - 4/5 

3. Brave Girls - High Heels
Korean

Brave Girls strut around in high heels that make them feel confident. This song is upbeat and fun, like many songs produced by Brave Brothers. Though it's not the best outlet for the member's vocals (they can sing very well!), it's empowering! "I'm a sassy girl! I'm a tough girl! I'm a pretty girl! I'm a foxy girl."

Review: Song - 2.5/5 MV - 2/5

4. Girls' Generation - Check
Korean

SNSD are sultry and sing smoothly about getting stylish for their man. Listening to this, I get strong 2000's r&b vibes. What's more, I can almost imagine Britney Spears singing this because it sounds like her style! 'Check' isn't a title track, but in my opinion, it's one of Girls' Generation's strongest releases and is a nice contrast to their usually bubbly concept.

Review: Song - 4/5 

5. Orange Caramel - Lipstick
Korean ♥

This comical trio introduces a new shade of lipstick- orange caramel flavored! The song's sound is a mix of saxophone beats and Korean trot, and it's lyrics describe a flirty girl swooning over a man. Like always, the girls of Orange Caramel are coy and cutesy. In the MV they completely fall for a handsome tennis player.

Review: Song - 4/5 MV - 3.5/5

6. Happiness - Sexy, Young, Beautiful
Japanese

'Happiness celebrates young women in this Japanese pop track over-run with English.It's different from any J-pop that I have listened to, but not unfamiliar. To give you an idea, the visuals are similar to SNSD's 'I Got A Boy' and the sound is like the style of British Girl Group 'Little Mix'. The dancing and fashion aren't my taste, but I must admit this isn't half bad.

Review: Song - 3.5/5 MV - 3/5

7. CLC - High Heels
Korean

Similar to Brave Girl's track of the same title, it's about putting on shoes that make you feel good. The cute concept is all too familiar to me, but this is the group's first release with new members Elkie and Eunbin.

Review: Song - 2/5 MV - 3/5

8. Breeze - Pretty
Mandarin ♥

Breeze is a girl-group from Taiwan that mixes fashion with music. There's not much information on them but from their debut song 'pretty', I can tell they have an attractive image. This K-pop style music video is colorful and the members are clad in fashionable outfits.

Review: Song - 4/5 MV - 4/5

Top K-pop Albums {Pink Tape by f(x)}

Released: July 2013

Tracklist: 1. Rum Pum Pum Pum 2. Shadow 3. Pretty Girl 4. Kick 5. Signal 6. Step 7. Goodbye Summer 8. Airplane 9. Toy 10. No More 11. Snapshot 12. Ending Page

F(x) are known to take big musical risks. So much so, that they've pulled away from 'typical' K-pop and developed their own style. Their discography has a wide range of genres and 'Pink Tape', the group's 2nd full album, is no different. 'Pink Tape' is like lollipops and high heels- in other words, it has a balance of frivolousness and maturity. Any listener of f(x)'s music should keep an open mind! Their strange sound makes them barely mainstream or radio-friendly. However, someway,somehow these girls pull it off. My five favorites of this album are:

1. Rum Pum Pum Pum

The title track 'Rum Pum Pum Pum' reflects the noise of a beating heart. It's chaotic - layered with many hand drums and synths, but surprisingly, it doesn't leave your head spinning. The song builds up tension and breaks nicely into vocal harmonies. Normally, the lyrics of a love song portray falling in love as a pleasant experience. But f(x), just being f(x), make falling in love (painful?) and sudden. 'Ouch! Your head will hurt, you won't be able to sleep, you won't forget me easily, your true first love has appeared.'

If the song isn't quirky enough, the music video surely is. The girls keep an asymmetrical concept: different colored eyes, items and ideas with no correlation (floating flowers?) and even Amber's mismatching eyebrows. Genius.

2. Ending Page

'Ending Page' is the final track, and rightfully so, because it closes the album wonderfully. Somehow it surpassed some of the crazy, fun songs and became my second favorite. It's mid-tempo soft rock/electronic and is a tame contrast to the majority of 'Pink Tape'. There's no gimmicks or crazy synths, so the member's vocals are what make it shine.  

3. Pretty Girl

I love how catchy 'Pretty Girl' is. But the highlight for me, is the meaning of the song. It takes a jab at beauty standards and also gives the perspective of "that jealous girl in the corner." The lyrics seem to express some resentment towards the pretty girl. She rely's on her face, and has no real character. F(x) point out that if she was plain-looking, then she wouldn't be so special.

4. Shadow

'Shadow' opens with notes from an xylophone that reminds me of a music box. The girls sing with a little more force that a whisper. At first, I wished that f(x)'s vocals were better in this, but the lacking vocals were probably intended. Anything too strong would overpower the delicate instrumental.

As sweet and lovely as it sounds, the lyrics are creepy. The title 'Shadow' refers to a person who closely follows another. Shadow's lyrics are from the point of view of a girl stalking a boy that she likes and she deludes herself into thinking that they are dating. The fact that the song is sung in such a calm and innocent way makes it even more creepy. Once again, f(x) give us an atypical love song.

5. Toy

'Toy' is a high-energy song with child-like verses. The musical path is unexpected and makes no sense, but it comes together! In the song, f(x) bust out of his 'toy-box' per say. They break up with a controlling boyfriend and show him that they can live their life by themselves.

Sources

Images: 1,2,3,4