I have to leave in a few minutes so I'll just drop these two, might do more later today, along with replies
7. Wonder Girls - Why So Lonely
Maybe a bit of a predictable choice but when it's right, it's right - this is my k-pop SOTY, nothing else really came close. And whew, Wonder Girls in general have been slaying so hard, haven't they? The k-AOTY last year and now this. It's incredible how they so smoothly came from heavily 80-influenced synthpop to these reggae vibes and managed to excel at doing both. Anyway, for a new listener, Why So Lonely was such an amazing start, it's instant and accessible but at the same time has lots of replay value and there's just something so uniquely addictive about it, I can never get enough. Also, as opposed to many other k-pop tracks which may potentially sound awfully dated in just a few years, the laid-back melody here has a certain timeless feeling to it, it will always be current and charming.
Oh, and for all those who think k-pop stars are all untalented and manufactured, Wonder Girls actually write all their material and play the instruments, legends!
6. Anohni - Drone Bomb Me
OK, so recording these ~politically aware, environmentally-friendly or whatever else Anohni would like to sing about is a bit risky. Of course, these are all important topics which need to be talked about but even with the artist's good intentions, they might easily come off pretty cringeworthy and infantile. And this, unfortunately, was the case with a lot of Hopelessness tracks for me and the production/melodies, while almost always on point, weren't always enough to balance it out... but Drone Bomb Me is a completely different story.
The dark, haunting theme of the song (as the title would suggest, literally getting bombed) is presented in a simple way which on the one hand may be pretty straightforward, and that's not exactly a good thing in a composition meant to be touching and sensitive, but on the other, it completes Anohni's cold, thrilling vocal performance and the absolutely top-notch production in the best possible way. It all comes together as not even a song anymore. It's a yell which perfectly embodies the concept of hopelessness.