:sunflower: Playlist swap with Squirrel: Epic Bsides :sunflower:

Edits for both mine and Squirrel's blog made by me :P

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Welcome to this playlist swap I did with Squirrel, aka the LOML!!! For this ed blog, we each chose 7 songs for each other, following a specific theme which is “Epic bsides”, and then we wrote our impressions on the songs the other gave to us in these two blogs!

The songs Squirrel chose for me are:

1. Samsung by DKB

2. K-pop by BLITZERS

3. To The Beat by ATEEZ

4. Dracula by TFN

5. Paradise by 1THE9

6. Shake You Down by THE BOYZ

7. Lift Up by WOODZ

Before I start, here's the link to Squirrel's blog!

So without further ado, here are my thoughts and ratings for each one of these songs!

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Samsung

This song was my obsession for a very long time, and I still love going back to it. It was my introduction to DKB and it definitely lead me to listen to the rest of their discography (which I absolutely ADORED, but Samsung still remains one of my favorite songs by them). It is INCREDIBLY addicting, so unique and catchy that you just keep coming back to it. It is one of those songs that need to play LOUD, because it just hypes you up so much!

It is sung by DKB’s rap line, consisting of E-chan, GK and Heechan. GK’s rap definitely caught my attention from the start, his style, voice and flow are so unique I could recognize them immediately in any song.

The song starts out with a more cheery but still very much hip hop inspired instrumental, even though GK’s rap is deep and he even swears a few times lmao, but then the chorus comes, and the instrumental is replaced by a lowkey creepy instrumental, with a beat I could best describe as “hollow beat”, like the sound something hollow makes when you hit it. It sounds lowkey exotic. It’s a very unique mix that is guaranteed to reel you in, just like it did with me. This song really has something special that makes you want to go back to it every once in a while, it feels as if it puts some sort of spell on you. It’s uniqueness, the high production value and the rappers’ hard work really created an incredible track.

Overall, this song was an absolutely great introduction to DKB and they seriously got some of the best rappers I’ve seen in a group’s debut album. It was one of my most listened songs of 2022, as it should be! It is a hidden gem and I really hope more people can discover it and appreciate it.

Final rating: 10/10

K-pop

I was very excited for this song as I know it is one of Squirrel’s absolute favorites, and I definitely wasn’t disappointed! This is an absolutely great song, with a carefully crafted instrumental and incredible vocals that really leave an impact on you. It is the first song by Blitzers I ever listened too, and it was indeed a great introduction to them! Even though their title tracks have a different vibe as they’re usually more rock-inspired, K-pop is incredible as well!

These guys' voices are amazing. There wasn’t a single one of them who didn’t completely nail their lines. I’m especially intrigued by Go_U, Sya and Wooju’s voices, they’re very recognisable, stable and overall just great. All of Blitzers are very talented and it can be clearly heard. The instrumental is what makes this song stand out even more, it has influences of every genre, and what I loved the most are THE STRINGS!!! I LOVE STRINGS!!! Classical influences in kpop are literally everything I need in life! The chorus of this song is almost theatrical, it has this grandeur to it that’s very hard to describe with words. The unique instrumental paired with the perfectly harmonizing is what makes this chorus incredible, and of course the iconic “Kick & Drum & Bass”!

This whole song is just so enjoyable, I feel like it is not for everyone as it is a pretty complex mix of different things, but it is definitely something is really like. Experimental songs always captivate me and this one is no exception! Blitzers seem like a great group and I definitely want to learn more about them and maybe even stan them!

Final rating: 8.5/10

To The Beat

Just from the first few seconds of this song, I could already tell it was going to be such an addicting song! The “To the beat to the beat move your body to the beat” constantly playing in the background for most of the song’s duration is such an earworm, it’s not hard for me to sometimes find myself randomly g it!

The song starts off with whispering, which is something I always really like in songs, it gives them a very original spin and it definitely fits very well in this song too, as it gives it that sort of mysterious vibe. Then the rappers come in, Hongjoong’s first part in the song has such a good flow, I really love it! And the chorus is so great and powerful. The guys’ voices are amplified, giving such an empowering effect and making this song even more epic, meanwhile the instrumental in this chorus is more minimalistic and deep, and the “to the beat” earworm temporarily stops.

Ateez’s style and voices are so recognizable, which is always a positive thing in kpop. Despite not stanning them yet, it’s very easy to realize this is an Ateez song, if not from the style then definitely from their voices, Mingi’s rap probably being my personal key to recognizing their songs. His lines are always so great!

The song actually ends with an instrumental break, a powerful and noisy part that sounds almost robotic and gives one last spin to the whole song.

I haven’t listened to Ateez’ whole discography, but all of the bsides I heard so far are just incredible, with my favorites probably being Promise, Horizon, Rocky and Take Me Home, but all of them are really solid and To The Beat definitely fulfilled my expectations!

Final rating: 8/10

Dracula

I was already expecting this song to be an absolute bop, as it is from the same single album as Exit, my favorite TFN (previously known as T1419) song. And I definitely wasn’t disappointed! I also just discovered this song has a special Halloween MV, which is just AMAZING! The guys’ horror makeup is INCREDIBLE and I’m all here for it, they all look so insanely cool!

Dracula, as the name suggests, is a pretty spooky song, which contains an interesting instrumental with a lot of high pitched sounds and stunning vocals. It starts off with a siren, which immediately sets an amazing tone, giving us a sense of dread. But even then, this song is a lot more danceable and overall rhythmic than one would expect, especially with the reggaeton-like beat in the second part of the first verse. The instrumental really makes the boys’ voices shine, it is complex and carefully crafted yet not too distracting from the ’ lines. The use of both low and high elements gives the song a unique vibe that is really easy to get lost in and makes you want to play the song again and again to fully dissect what you’re hearing. And then the chorus, it is so great and addictive! Especially the “comin’ comin’ comin’ comin’” is such an earworm! And it is perfectly paired with a lowkey jarring in the best way possible instrumental, as TFN are known to have a pretty “noisy” style, which I absolutely love.

As for vocals, I feel very drawn to Kevin’s ( :sunglasses: ), he can hit those high notes effortlessly, Leo’s rap, his voice is super deep and really fits this song extremely well, and also Gunwoo’s voice, he just seems very confident and his voice is super stable and has a very great color to it!

This song really is awesome, it has that slightly creepy and epic vibe which never hurts in kpop!

Final rating: 8.5/10

Paradise

I had never listened to a 1THE9 song before this one, and I didn’t know much about the group either apart from the fact it is a temporary group created through a survival show, so I was very intrigued about what sound I might expect. I have to it, this song had to grow on me a bit. I found it nice but I didn’t immediately save it to my playlists. I learned to appreciate it more only after a few listens.

This song is actually a track full of personality. It is simply a vibe, something you would dance to, something to enjoy in a simple way. There is no big twist, no overly complex instrumental, and yet it is all so carefully built that it doesn’t feel empty and it is highly enjoyable. The instrumental especially is more “organic” than most kpop songs these days, and by organic I mean it uses mostly instruments such as drums, bass and guitar and isn’t really “tainted” by any electronic sounds and effects. This isn’t to say EDM-inspired instrumentals are bad (I actually enjoy them a lot in kpop) but this song was definitely made to be a more alt/pop-rock inspired one, which honestly gives it a little bit of a nostalgic vibe. The electric guitar in the chorus especially is just great, it is chill, it feels like summer.

As for the vocals, they are all incredible, all of these guys are so talented! The ones that probably caught my attention the most are Yechan (which debuted in Omega X!) and Taekhyeon, I really like their voice tones!

It’s always nice to have this song come up on shuffle, to break a bit from the usual, noisy and loud songs I mostly listen to. It is a song that gives a confidence boost and makes you feel pretty great!

Final rating: 8/10

Shake You Down

Ah yes, The Boyz, I’m so glad I decided to give this group another chance after first listening and not particularly enjoying most of their title tracks. But this song is from the same album as my belovedest Salty, so I was expecting it to be a bop, and I definitely wasn’t disappointed!

When you hear “Moonshine” at the beginning of a song, you know it’s going to be an absolute banger! And this song immediately starts with such an epic intro that it’s impossible not to get reeled in. It is so powerful, so majestic, and love this intro to bits! From the intro alone, we can already tell this song has a darker vibe, and the lyrics definitely confirm that. Every member’s lines in this song feel either sassy, like Sunwoo’s, or straight up ethereal, like New’s (my main contender for a bias for a reason…), as his voice is just so light and pretty, just like him! And the chorus… what an earworm, Q’s “Addicted to you” is just so damn perfect! But my favorite part of the chorus is probably the second one, where it reuses the same incredible “I’ll shake you down down down” from that intro I like so much!

And the second verse! We get lines from our dear Sunwoo and Eric again, and I just have to spend some time talking about Eric’s lines. The rise in tone as he hits those high notes in “time” and “eye” are just so wild, so incredibly well executed and simply super enjoyable to listen to.

And finally, we get a calmer but still ethereal bridge where we get New and Q harmonising?!? Hell yes! And then one final, fantastic chorus.

Not much more to say, this song is absolutely great, and I’m so glad most of The Boyz’ bsides are revealing (ha, get it, revealing, Reveal haha) themselves to be incredible, because if I hadn’t given them a second chance I would have missed out on so many of these!

Final rating: 8/10

Lift Up

So. This song. THIS FREAKING SONG. I literally have NO WORDS to describe this masterpiece. I knew about 3 songs by Woodz before listening to this one, and I like them, but Lift Up was an epiphany, it literally changed my life. When I say I listened to this song about 60 times in one afternoon I am not exaggerating. It even found a spot in my top 5 songs of 2022! Like! This song is just something else!

My words will never be enough to fully express the grandeur of this song. It knocked my socks off. It is something I wasn’t expecting at all. I was planning to listen to Woodz more especially since Squirrel loves him a lot, and this song just… I cannot… I just cannot express this with words ok?! As a metalhead, this is literally THE kpop song for metalheads. Show it to any metalhead and they’ll LOVE IT, I guarantee you. Woodz vocals are absolutely OFF THE CHARTS, his voice is so unique as it is, but when he literally SCREAMS in this song’s chorus?! He isn’t here to play…

The dark and bass boosted intro was enough to make me fall in love with this song, but then that damn chorus… One of the most incredible choruses I’ve ever heard… It would leave EVERYONE speechless. This isn’t a simple song, it is PURE ART and I can say without a doubt that it is one of my favorite kpop songs OF ALL TIME. The prechorus is so incredible too, but I totally wasn’t ready for the absolute explosion of energy of the chorus… And the second verse?! Where his voice gets quieter, lighter and legit ethereal? He really showed his whole incredible voice range and also every single singing style he could in one single song. And it works. It works SO PERFECTLY.

I will legit NEVER be over this song. Even as I’m writing this section, I am listening to this song on a loop and I feel like I could do it for hours on end. And you should too. Absolute masterpiece, no one will ever release something as incredible and epic as this. It should be one of the 8th Wonder of the World. Just do yourself a favor and go listen to it.

Final rating: ∞/10

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That’s all for the playlist swap! I enjoyed doing this sooooo much, it was so much fun! And thanks to Squirrel I found one of my new favorite kpop songs ever hehe :two_hearts: Thank you so much for reading and of course thank you Squirrel for doing this cool ed blog with me :two_hearts: :two_hearts: :two_hearts: