Someone, get us the heck out of 2022 without any more casualties! I’d be lying if I didn’t say this was a weird year for fans in many aspects. I’ve written more news stories of members leaving groups this year than I wanted. But hey, this year everything started opening up again and I was able to see a good amount of concerts. This year, I got to start a podcast, which I hope to bring back in some capacity, but I’m thankful that doing that helped tailor this list. If you know me and my taste in music, I like me some funk, r&b, city pop, and electronic. Do most of these songs have a slap bass in it, probably? If I had to describe it in general, I like chill music, and with this list, you’ll get a ton of that. These songs definitely fit that vibe of driving down the freeway at night, possibly in the rain, because I did exactly that prior to publishing. Hope you enjoy the list.
10. Lunch - Never Let’s You Go
Number 10 was a tough one to lock down. There’s a lot of songs I wanted to include in this list, especially ones where I lean heavily towards how much I like the singer/group. Who would have thought that I would include a song from an artist I’ve never heard from before, simply because I checked it out randomly while compiling weekly releases for the podcast. I’m glad I checked out Lunch, because this song fits my favorite vibe, chill, which you’ll get a lot out of the rest of this list.
9. Le Sserafim - Blue Flame
Let the B-side picks begin. You know I had to include one from the group of my current ult bias. Their titles don’t exactly fit my favorite genres, but Blue flame definitely does. That funky bass drives the song, and I love songs that feature it like this. It’s nice to see my IZ*ONEs doing all of these new concepts. Also, that stage though is an attack.
8. NewJeans - Hurt
Yup, I’m the guy that chose Hurt. This album is a no-skip, but if you’re familiar with my taste, this one fits that the most. I love that they have this 90’s vibe with modern skews in their songs. This one sort of gives The Dove Shack with a little bit of motown. Can’t wait to see their future releases, hopefully they don’t make any major concept changes, TXT, I’m looking at you.
7. Taeyeon - INVU
I haven’t followed Taeyeon’s solo career, but it’s great that my SNSD bias made the list. The thing that solidified its place on the list is when that chorus came out of nowhere. That synth and bass line is crazy. I’d be lying if I didn’t put this on repeat in the car to try and think of choreography for the heck of it. Might have to come out of retirement and do my little dancey dance.
6. Seventeen - _World
_World may not be their most popular title this year, but this is a Rob list. This is one of the many songs on the list that has a unique instrumental that I have never heard before. That synth that sounds like they recorded it in an aquarium is a pleasant tone. When you think you think you’ve heard everything after the first two verses, then you get this brass line later on, a nice surprise. It’s also fun to see that they did these oner takes in the music video. It’s hard to be mad when listening to this song, because the vibe will make anyone feel good. It was nice also seeing this live at their concert this year.
5. Red Velvet - Bamboleo
No, reader, I’m not done with B-sides. I don’t even remember how I came across this one, because I did a horrible job keeping up with new releases this year. I think it just came on as a suggested song on my smart speakers. With Yukika and a couple of groups doing city pop recently, I didn’t expect to see Red Velvet join in, but I think they were the best ones for this specific track. I love how well their voices mix together, because I couldn’t tell you who’s singing during most of the song, and they have pretty distinct tones. Not sure what or who a Bamboleo is, but welcome to the list.
4. Jo Yuri - Favorite Part
During my speedrun to review releases this year, this is probably the biggest surprise late entry for the list. I really love Yuri’s slower songs, because being the main vocal that she is, she really gets to shine outside of the more poppy songs. When listening, I immediately thought of this as a spiritual successor of my favorite song from her previous album, Round and Around. After doing a little search, it’s from the same composer. With album titles like Op. 22 Y-Waltz in Major and Minor, these little mini songs fit that concept to a T. The classical sound blended with modern r&b and a little hip-hop beat is a great mixture. I remember seeing people in the comments saying that the previous song should have been a full length track, but maybe if you combine the 2, they make a whole. Is Yuri secretly one of my favorite singers? Maybe.
3. NCT U - Rain Day
This one is another surprise for me. With as many groups that I actively follow, NCT isn’t part of that, because that’s almost a full-time job. This is another one that came up as a weekly release to cover on the podcast and another one that I’m thankful that I checked out. I don’t think I have even read these specific members' names until this song, because you know, there’s a million of them. This is a great song to vibe to because it’s so calming. And what do you know, that bass line in the chorus keeps it pretty active. This might be a good song to show non-k-pop friends, because it’s in english. I’ve added a good chunk of NCT into my playlist review playlist, so hopefully I find more Rob songs like this.
2. StayC - Love
Having a CEO that is regarded as one of the more popular composers in the game is a blessing. They’ve also worked on my ult’s newer stuff. Even without recovering after the no-skip album of Young-Luv.com, they just had to create one of my favorites from the group. Right out of the gates, with that guitar-synth thing, this is a fresh vibe that you don’t hear much. Even that electric ukulele thing in the chorus. Where do they find these sounds? And you’re telling me that I was able to see this live in concert?! This reminds me of my favorite IZ*ONE song, Dreamlike. They both have that, “Driving down the coast of California” vibe to them. With StayC skyrocketing up my favorites list, they deserve this spot.
1. Fromis_9 - DM
I have followed Fromis for a while now and I’m still surprised that not a lot of people are talking about them. As much as like their more poppy songs, when they found this funk vibe in their more recent releases, I was in love. Something about prevalent bass in songs speaks to me. In the current run with this particular producer, this one is my favorite. It’s got this more mature tone to it. It’s a very feel good song, and is great to always come back to. The chorus is so much fun. There are layers upon layers of instruments and vocals that create this unique sound. And you’re telling me that my favorite just straight up whistle notes later in the song? Although we lost a member this year, I’m still excited to see what’s in store for the new year. And shoutouts to being one of the first ones with a big puffy hat.