4Minute Pumps the 'Volume Up'

4Minute is back with their latest album Volume Up! With the ladies glamming up as female vampires this round, things are looking a tad boring if not sexy. Their faces say it all on the cover, right?

Volume Up is the title track for the album, and while it's a pretty decent track, I probably expected more since I loved more of their older stuff such as Hot Issue, I My Me Mine and Mirror Mirror.

In Volume Up, the 2 most prominent things I noticed is the saxophone sounds in the background and the use of Hyuna's 'Oh oh oh oh' from Bubble Pop included in the track. While the song sounds sexy and all, their voices are a bit too high-pitched to be sexy, and a bit annoying when it comes to the 'Oh oh oh oh' part.

Here's the music video to Volume Up, which sees the members playing bored female vampires!

I personally preferred I'm OK and Dream Racer to the title track. The former is a ballad that showcases the members' vocal range, and does away with the annoying high-pitch sound that 4Minute tend to have on fast-paced songs. Dream Racer reminds me of a cheerleading song. It's cheery and fun, perfect as a mood-lifter.

Other songs on the album include Get On The Floor, Say My Name, Femme Fatale and Black Cat.

Overall, 4Minute's recent release isn't too bad, it's just a waste they promoted a song that isn't too great, in my standards. Hopefully they will pick a better title track next round!

The author is a huge fan of 4Minute's Mirror Mirror dance. Doesn't it represents most girls' favourite actions in the powder room? 

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Urban Zakapa Releases New Album 'Beautiful Day'

For someone who constantly awaits K-pop releases, I somehow found that the Korean indie scene actually churns out more decent songs than mainstream K-pop. Lately, indie bands have also started to release new music, partly since all the big names have already released theirs or are busy promoting their material overseas.

Korean indie bands have a more folk, pop rock sound, as well as acoustic. I must say that although sometimes their material sounds so raw and unplugged that you feel as though you are hearing them live.

My latest Korean indie fetish happens to be Urban Zakapa, a band unknown to me till last year when I happen to chance upon their album 01. Though they sang mostly in Korean, with English phrases peppered all over their songs, they could very well pass off as English natives.

Their latest album Beautiful Day takes off from where they let down their previous album. Their unique style and sound is still the same as ever in this new release, and I fell in love again with this band as soon as I listened to it.

Their title track Beautiful Day is an easy listening piece, somehow I feel like I am running on a beach with the wind beating against my face whenever I hear this track.

Check out the music video for Beautiful Day below. Enjoy!

Something Special is a mellow R&B track while 그댈 안은 목소리 is a slow dancing number full of high notes. Let It Rain is a slow and relaxing number, perfect for winding down on a rainy day, just as the title suggests.

Meanwhile, Just The Two Of Us is a wonderful acoustic version of the famous jazz number. Just A Feeling is a previously released single, which is a song which is a tell-tale Urban Zakapa track, as it just has that particular feel that only they can produce with their smooth vocals and acoustic instruments.

The author is currently listening to Standing Egg and Busker Busker, two more indie bands which recently released new albums.

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'Mirror Mirror' Gives A New Twist To Fairy Tale

Tarsem Singh’s latest take on the Snow White fairy tale is one of the most hilarious versions I have ever seen. By chance, I decided to go to the cinemas and one of the available movies was Mirror Mirror. Now, I have watched Snow White for more times than I can count with my ten fingers, but yet somehow, I still wanted to watch this updated version of the fairy tale.

I admit that I am a huge fan of Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, although there were many other newer versions of the fairy tale. Mirror Mirror however, is one of the gems that has given a new breath of life to the age-old tale.

Told from the perspective of the Evil Queen, the story starts with Julia Roberts’s narration of how the story is all about the Queen, instead of Snow White.

Lily Collins, daughter of Genesis’s Phil Collins, plays Snow White. She’s exactly how I picture Snow White, jet black hair with skin as fair as snow. And not to mention, her really red lips!

In Mirror Mirror, the King mysteriously disappears, leaving the Queen to govern the kingdom with lots of help from the King’s loyal servant Brighton (who is a real funny character!). Her spendthrift ways plunged the kingdom into debt, but the arrival of the wealthy Prince Andrew Alcott (Armie Hammer) gives her an idea. If she throws a ball in his honour and convince him to marry her, all her debts would be gone and she can have more parties!

At the ball, the Prince can’t tear himself away from Snow – perhaps it’s that smile, or those eyebrows, or the fact she’s wearing a swan-shaped gown, complete with wings and a beak. Not to mention, every outfit in Mirror Mirror is a masterpiece. The vivid colours all give more visual eye candy to the viewers, enhancing the storyline.

The Queen discovered that Snow White had been crashing party and ordered her killed out into the wilderness. Brighton falters and compassionately (well, more like cowardly) let her go and she is taken in by the seven dwarfs, a troupe of bandits-slash-acrobats who chase down stagecoaches on spring-loaded stilts. Together, they plot to save the Prince from the Queen’s spell and their impending royal marriage.

Mirror Mirror is a film where bee-stung lips are achieved with real bees’ stings and puppy love can make a man behave like an actual puppy. Definitely a wonderful twist to the well-loved tale.

The author has loved Snow White since young, and fairy tales are the stuff of her dreams. The next re-adaptation of the fairy tale will be released later this year, starring Twilight star Kristen Stewart. Looking forward to catch it when it is released!

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SHINee Turns Into 'Sherlock' For Latest Album

After a hiatus of 2 years, the boys of SHINee are back! (Even the opening line for their title track says so!) Fangirls and fanboys alike have been clamouring for another addictive dance track after Ring Ding Dong and Lucifer, and they have finally come around to release a new album after a stint promoting in Japan.

Titled Sherlock, the album contains 7 songs which are in typical SHINee style. The title track Sherlock is a mash up of the second and third track on the album, Clue and Note. According to SM Entertainment, Sherlock was supposedly a ‘hybrid remix’, thus two songs being combined into one.

Ironically, Sherlock sounds better than Clue or Note on its own. The flow of the combined songs is as if it is one, and the person behind this hybrid remix deserves the credit for doing this.

Sherlock, as the title suggests, is all about investigation and mystery. Even the opening sounds of the track seems like it is taken off a mystery movie’s soundtrack.

Their music video for Sherlock, like all SM productions, are flawless and beautifully shot. The only part I didn’t really fancy was Taemin’s effeminate look in the music video (what’s up with the long hair?). Jessica from Girls’ Generation guest stars in this music video as... wait for it... a beautiful ghost! Be sure to check out the music video below and judge for yourself. Enjoy!

Alarm Clock and The Reason are some of the album fillers which are more R&B in style. Meanwhile, Stranger is more upbeat track and is reminiscent of Ring Ding Dong and Lucifer with its heavy bass.

Honestly ends the album on a rather mellow tone, compared to the hype and energy that starts the beat of the album. This track is an acoustic ballad that brings out the vocals of the members, as well as showing that they are capable of handling songs that are out of the K-pop track.

Overall, the album is worth the wait for the fans as SHINee managed to show their improvement over the years. But I think their concept for this album is a tad too hippy looking. Maybe they should come back as suave gentlemen in their next release and sweep me (and many other girls out there) off my feet. And probably sell more records along the way. Don’t you agree?

P/S: Click on the song title for Sherlock above in bold for the English translation. Credits go to www.popgasa.com

The author was introduced to SHINee when Jeon Mu, the host to Star Golden Bell Challenge (which series has since ended) did a really funny parody of Lucifer on the show.

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