Welcome to Best of Weekly Music Shows! EXID picked up their first and second wins for “Ah Yeah” on SBS The Show and Inkigayo. Exo won on MBC Show Champion, Show! Music Core, and KBS Music Bank. Mnet aired a special M! Countdown KCON 2015 in Japan. There were a bunch of comebacks with Uniq, Park Boram, Hotshot, Mr.Mr, A.cian, Fromm, Rubber Soul, Gavy NJ and So Yumi all making returns to the stage. Oh My Girl made their debut this week with “Cupid.” Here are my picks for the week, but please feel free to include yours in the comments below!
[youtube www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wzRkJ8E3KU]
Rion Five‘s “TukTukTuk” on SBS The Show, April 21, 2015
I honestly don’t know much about Rion Five, but their performance of “TukTukTuk” on The Show caught my ear this week. “TukTukTuk” gives me a K-pop circa 2009 vibe. Their live performance is solid and quite different from the actual track, which contains far more autotune. They don’t need the autotune though, and their energetic performance brings me back to a different era.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeErp8Scbr0]Gavy NJ’s “Ju Ju Ju” on MBC Show Champion, April 22, 2015
“Ju Ju Ju” has a simplistic melody, but it is really the ability of these ladies to execute the live singing that makes this stand out. The trio put forth a decent execution at harmonizing during the choruses. Ultimately, it is the emotional vocals from member Gunji, who is giving it everything, that won me over.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXLMMxYguZo]Mr.Mr’s “Out” on MBC Show Champion, April 22, 2015
The suits play a big part in this dance. The red color made this particular rendition on Show Champion stand out amongst the other music shows. They actually utilize their blazers in the dance a bit as well, pulling them off their shoulders briefly before snapping them back on. “Out” has this funky groove going on underneath a slinky synth that makes it an intriguing listen.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoNOhGJbAdQ]Dal Shabet‘s “Joker” on KBS Music Bank, April 24, 2015
I love the little details in Dal Shabet’s “Joker” stages. From the playing card prints on their outfits to the eye masks that their backup dancers sport, there’s a playful quality to it all. The song is accented with brass instruments, and the hook stays in your ear after listening to it a few times. The production is quite heavy with ad libs and vocal layering, adding another tier of depth to an already popping song.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yk3pnGXfTdo]Uniq’s “EOEO” on MBC Show! Music Core, April 25, 2015
The boys of Uniq have a strong energy here. The staging — complete with a great group of backup dancers — all come together to elevate the quintet. The song includes a horns section behind the big bass beat. The “EOEO” part in the chorus, which sounds like a siren, is also ridiculously addictive. The package is very well put together, and hopefully they will continue to gain more fans through this release.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xa6FHnXo1QM]EXID’s “Ah Yeah” on MBC Show! Music Core, April 25, 2015
I love EXID’s performance on Show! Music Core this week. The editing was well done, and the inclusion of fans recording during the live performance mimics a sort of live art installation indicative of their music video. Of course, their actual performance is strong. I can say that “Ah Yeah” works for me because of the contrasting rhythm in the verses between Hani and LE. They play off each other to give this song something special. The editing, which frames the performance in a YouTube display format, also adds focus to individual fancams in a separate pip (picture-in-picture) box and is a cool additional effect executed by the MBC team.
