My Top 50 Albums of 2013: 10-01

Finally, we are finishing the countdown of 2013! I'll save my thoughts until it's actually over (the end of the post), so let's get started with the final ten albums! And as always, here is the link to my Youtube playlist!

| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | 

10. U-Kiss - Inside of Me [257 Points] Released: July 24, 2013 

In 2013 Kiss Me's (U-Kiss' fanclub name) were graced with U-Kiss' second full Japanese album. Beside adding several of their previously released single songs, the album used it's namesake song for promotions. The way I feel about Inside of Me is that it's a good, but interesting mix of pop and ballad styles. Just listening to the instrumental track, it could be a superb pop song, especially if we kick the bpm up a little. However the music is paired with U-Kiss singing more in a ballad style that gives it a nice song that can fit in both of my slow and pop playlists. Even the rap is a little more slowed down to match the overall feel that just the lyrics give. The music video is fairly straight forward, with U-Kiss belting it out in various dimly lit rooms and giving sad yet hopeful faces. Plus we get AJ since he was on a break from Columbia University! I love the black and white clothing choices, especially in the apocalypse room. Except for Hoon. Poor Hoon looks like he got attacked by zombies, so they used someone's pants to make a giant chest bandage for him. (Oh, and side note, U-Kiss, you're doing it wrong. If you are going to board up the windows, don't use such flimsy boards and leave more than enough holes for the zombies to come through. Just saying.) Back to the album, it generally has a more ballad feel to it, besides the singles that were compiled into the album that I love (Alone anyone?), I also really like Play Back (more pop-rock) and The Only One. Also, I just want to point out that the Intro and Interlude songs that U-Kiss usually have are really good and sometimes I find myself listening to them more than the actually songs. Don't know why, but I guess they do them right! (Especially in their latest Japanese Album!) Alright, I think that's enough ranting for now, because I could go on more, but I don't want to bore you! If you made it this far (I know it's just the first one), thank you! Without further ado, here is the PV for Inside of Me (yes it's the short version; Why Japan, WHY?). 

09. Kerli - Utopia [264 Points] Released: March 19, 2013 

I was super excited before 2013 even rolled around knowing that Kerli was planning on releasing a full album in early 2013. I stumbled across Kerli when her first album came out in 2008. I stumbled across one of the songs on YouTube while at work in the basement of Candelaria. After that I was hooked. I googled her and looked up everything she had done before that point. I was such a fan of Kerli because her first few singles and album were super unique and so original compared to anything I had heard before. So this led to my excitement for her next album. I will say however that my first impression of Utopia was fairly bad. Most of the songs fit into the European Electronica genre and felt like it was missing the certain uniqueness I was expecting based off of her previous songs. After not listening to it after a week or so and sitting down to listen to it with a fresh mind, I liked it a lot more knowing what to expect musically. I once again enjoy 90% of the album, with two songs not necessarily fitting my tastes. And a few of her songs actually have some uniqueness, just not of the same variety from before. Since I love almost all of the songs, I could post links to all of them, but I think I'll just post a select few. Okay, this will be tough, I should try to do this objectively. So the songs I am going to share with you are Sugar (not as electronica and more similar to her previous unique songs), Last Breath (my favorite song off the album and my most played), and Chemical (a more acoustic feeling ballad). Also on the album is Zero Gravity, one of my favorite Kerli songs of all time and one that was previously released as a single. If you haven't listened to any of Kerli's stuff before and you are interested in more Indie, feel-good, pop/folk, weirdness, please click here and at least check out her Music Videos (there are four more that have been shared in this post, one from the Tim Burton's remake of Alice in Wonderland!). Side note, she also have really fun and quirky fashion!

08. Super Junior-M - Breakdown [288 Points] Released: January 7, 2013 

The first week into 2013, started one of my favorite Kpop boy bands' sub-unit released a new album! This is their second album and was a comeback for the unit, after not released anything since Perfection in 2011. I was super excited (as one can expect) and totally love Breakdown (the promotion single). It is one of those songs that just gets me nodding my head and singing along (in nowhere near correct Chinese). They released two version, one in Korean and one in Chinese. For those that do not know, Super Junior-M is a sub-unit of Super Junior that mainly promotes in China; the M standing for Mandarin. Besides Breakdown, my favorite song is It's You and has the same amount of plays as Breakdown (+/-1). As for the MV, I have embedded the Chinese version below, but if you would rather watch the Korean one, here is the link! Both versions are pretty much the same, just with different audio. It's also a classic Super Junior music video, with the group just dancing in oddly lit rooms interspersed with singing close-ups and the members getting attacked by feathers. Also, I just want to point out that Siwon is wearing a fuzzy hat, and that is odd, and that is all. 

07. Gackt - Best of the Best: Mild & Wild [309 Points] Released: July 3, 2013 

In the summer of 2013, Japanese star Gackt released a compilation album split into two CDs. Mild contains more of his pop and ballad songs, while Wild tends to have more of his rock songs. I love this compilation album. It's always been on my list to go through and see what I'm missing from Gackt's discography that I love, but now I don't necessarily have to anymore! Also each version has one new song, Mild's being Sakura, Chiru... and Wild's being Claymore. My favorite of the two is definitely Claymore. This album just has A LOT of good songs, and all of my favorite Gackt songs. Looking at the Mild version, my favorite is definitely Ghost and has been my favorite Gackt song of all time since it's release in 2010. Seriously click the link to watch the PV, it has really cool choreography and is an awesome song (and has clips from The Sarah Connor Chronicles since it was used as a promo song for the show in Japan)! As for the rest of the Mild version, I also really like Missing, Vanilla, and Dispar. Even though I tend to choose rock over pop most of the time, I definitely listen to the Mild version more than the Wild. Wild still has some great songs on it. We have the new song Claymore (the PV below), Jesus (one of my favorite Gack PVs after Ghost), and Ever.  To try to keep this short (we aren't even half way done), here is the PV for Claymore. Definitely check out the other links above, at the very least Ghost. Trust me, you won't regret it! 

06. Lunafly - Fly to Love [330 Points] Released: April 3, 2013 

Oh my goodness. Lunafly is so awesome. They are a very talented trio that debuted in September of 2012. Fly to Love is their first full album and chalked full of feel good music. Lunafly has an acoustic type feel to their music that I absolutely love and cannot get enough of. Plus, the leader Sam is from England, so a good chunk of their songs are also released with English versions. If you look at their YouTube, they also have a lot of really good covers. I particularly like the more acoustic versions of their own songs. Maybe one day they'll release an acoustic album. One can hope. Anyways, back to the album at hand. The album was split into two discs, pretty much an English and Korean version each. This may be weird, but there are some songs I prefer in Korean, and some in English. Don't know why, but some of them just sound weird in a different language. The promotion song for the album, is once again its namesake, Fly to Love. This is actually a weird one for me, because I prefer both versions equally. Fly to Love is just a great, feel good song with a fun upbeat melody. I'll have the English version below, so if you would like to view the Korean version, just click here! Here is the link to a live version as well (the singing starts around 1:10)! A good chunk of the songs we actually previously released, just not with an English version as well. Here is the rundown of my favorite songs. I prefer the Korean version of Super Hero, the English versions of One More Step and What's Your Name?, and both versions of You Got That Something I Need. Trying to cut back, if you enjoy acoustic, feel good music without a lot of bells and whistles, definitely check out Lunafly! 

05. Fall Out Boy - Save Rock & Roll [397 Points] Released: April 12, 2013 

Number Five! And look at that point jump! So it is all thanks to my little sister Ariel that this album is on this countdown. During our road trip back from Arizona (after picking her up from college for the summer), she had us listen to Fall Out Boy's new album. My Mom and I completely latched on this was one of the albums that all three of us listened to a bunch that summer and fall. As for MVs, they are doing an entire series, where each song off of the album has its own music video and they all are telling one story. WARNING: Before you watch them, they are very graphic in a violent, bloody, gross way, but extremely interesting and I can't wait for them to finish releasing them. Currently 9 out of 11 have been released, with the latest just coming out March 6th. So back to this album, it is freaking AMAZING. I love or really like all of the songs. There is only one song that I don't listen to as much and it still has 16 plays. My favorite song actually has over 60! Since they are doing something for their videos, all videos that are in this rant block are not going to be the actual music videos so nobody watches them out of order or gets really confused. However you could just watch the entire series so far! So the favorites of my favorites are Where Did the Party Go?, Death Valley, Young Volcanoes, and Rat a Tat. Actually, I just love all of the songs, and my least favorite is the last, Save Rock and Roll. It's just a slow finish to a superb album. Seriously, if you enjoy Rock, or Alternative, or Punk, or whatever, just listen to the songs. IT'S SOOOOO GOOD! Trust me! Without anything further, I bring you the first video of The Young Blood Chronicles. 

04. Shinee - Misconceptions of You [408 Points] Released: February 19, April 26, & August 8, 2013 

So I did a little weird thing here with Shinee's album Misconceptions of You. The way that Misconceptions was released is Chapter 1: Dream Girl was released in February, Chapter 2: Why So Serious? was released in April, and then they were combined into one album and released with two tracks. So to make to easier, I just combined the plays and points from all three releases into one! We'll start with Chapter 1 first. Chapter 1 is Dream Girl and the music video I'm placing below because I like it a little more than Why So Serious? and it was released first. Dream Girl was a fun, quirky, Shinee-esque song with a really fun microphone stand dance. I also really enjoyed Hitchhiking, Beautiful, and Dynamite. Chapter 2 had the promotion song of Why So Serious?. I really enjoyed Why So Serious? and it has probably my favorite lyrics of any Shinee song. I just love how fun it is, and I love the zombie dance. From Chapter 2 I also really like SHINe (Medusa I) and Evil (EVIL!(my Mom's nickname...and she's a shawol...just saying! XD). As for the two new songs from the combined version, they are two pretty ballads (and Shinee does good ballads as some don't know from their dance pop promotions), but I wasn't as excited for them as other songs. So in trying to keep things short, here are the Dance Version MV of Dream Girl, and a live version of Why So Serious? with English subtitles (so you can see the dance and see the lyrics)! 

03. VIXX - Hyde and Jekyll (Repackage) [410 Points] Released: May 20, 2013 

WARNING: I will try to keep from fangirling too much, but seriously, it's Vixx's Hyde & Repackage Jekyll. Rounding out at number three we have Vixx's first mini-album Hyde and the repackaged version called Jekyll. Now if I didn't have a point system here, this album would be tied for first with the album that is first on this list. That is how much I love this album. A good chunk of the songs are still on my everyday playlist, and it has almost been a year. On & On really put VIXX on the map for me, but Hyde really nailed it in place. VIXX is now number three on my list of favorite Kpop boy bands and probably won't be going anywhere anytime soon. As I stated before, I love that they do things a little bit darker and Hyde is currently (as of this moment) the most listened to song in my iTunes (over 150 plays), that was released in 2013, plus it's just my favorite song of 2013. I just can't even properly express how much I love this song. So I'll just pepper you with a live video, a dance practice video, and the music video below! As for the rest of the album, I also really enjoyed Light Me Up and CHAOS. As for the repackage song G.R.8.U., VIXX went with the more cutesy style, as most Kpop groups do. However, there was something different about the way they did it. It wasn't over the top with aegyo (the cutesy stuff) and the music video had a really cool start with everything in reverse followed my newspaper stop-motion and a fun dance (that has a Hyde flashback). As for the repackage songs there were only two more besides G.R.8.U., and one of them is my favorite VIXX non-promotional song, and definitely in the top 5 of my favorite VIXX songs. It's called What To Do. It's just a fun feel good song, and you just have to listen to it yourself. So once again, I leave you with a few more links; G.R.8.U dance practice video and a live version with English subtitles! 

02. Kim Jaejoong - WWW [506 Points] Released: October 29, 2013 

Another big point jump! October brought many wonderful things, my favorite holiday and Kim Jaejoong's (of JYJ) first full solo album. After his solo debut earlier in the year, I super excited to see what he was bringing us again, especially since he was continuing his foray into the Rock genre. The title song is Just Another Girl, and good rock song to kick off the album's tone. Before the album was officially released, two songs were pre-released; Sunny Day a ballad featuring Lee Sang Gon of ballad group Noel, and the rock hit Butterfly. Side note, Butterfly is still my ringtone. I was pleased with both, and even more pleased with the entire album. The night it was released (night for me here in America) I immediately got it and listened to it. I was so impressed with all of the songs and that most of them were rocks songs. There are a couple ballads and more mainstream pop songs, but overall the album was very well rounded and one of my favorite albums of the year. (And will pop up in future ratings as well since the repackage came out in 2014.) As for other songs, I have to narrow it down (and not include the ones already linked above XD). Okay, I am going to go with my favorite of all of Jaejoong's ballads (and the song I was listening to when I got in my big accident - but it didn't ruin the song for me) Paradise, Rotten Love, and Don't Walk Away featuring Young Junhyung the rapper of B2ST. As a last note, I also would like to add that Jaejoong did lyrics for 10 of the 13 songs, as well as composed four of them! I love it when artists take part in writing their own songs! 

01. Kim Jaejoong - I and Y [773 Points] Released: January 17, 2013 

The final album, and my top ranked album of 2013. I bring you another large point jump and Kim Jaejoong's solo debut Mini-album I and the repackage, Y. For I I was super duper excited when Jaejoong released not only that he was doing a solo album, but it would be rock. Mine is the promotion song, a fun rock song with a lot of meaning and wonderful cinematography. It totally blew me away, and I immediately latched onto the song. When the rest of the album came out, I was a little disappointed the rest were more ballad and pop songs, but boy are they still some of my favorite songs. Of the seven songs of both the normal and repackage versions, Jaejoong wrote the lyrics for six and composed four again. My favorite song off of the album is definitely Mine (with over 120 plays), but I loved them all, including the two repackage songs. And since there are only seven songs and this is the number one album of 2013, I'll list them all! :) We have One Kiss, Healing For Myself, You Fill Me Up, and my favorite of the ballads All Alone. The repackage has two songs featuring Flowsik (who I am a big fan of, especially when paired with JYJ), Kiss B (my favorite of the two) and Only Love. And without further ado, I bring you the last music video of my 2013 countdown, Kim Jaejoong's Mine. 

Well that wraps up my countdown of the top 50 albums of 2013. Stay tuned for the first few posts of 2014! I hope you enjoyed going through some of last years best music with me! If you have any comments or thoughts please actually comment! I look forward to seeing you all in the 2014 rankings! Keep on rocking! 

Stasi ♫

My Top 50 Albums of 2013: 30-21

Okay, well now that things have calmed down a little bit, I'll finally be posting the rest of my countdown. I also have the stats for January and February all ready, so expect the both of those to be posted by the 15th! (That's my goal!) Anyways, sorry for the delay! Let's get right back into it! YouTube Playlist!

| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 |

30. All About My Romance OST - Various Artists [189 Points] Released: April 24, 2013

Once again we have the cute and fun Akdong Musicians gracing the list! Now I enjoyed All About My Romance as a drama. It was fun a quirky with a political setting (which I was hestitant on at first). But honestly, with Dal Shabat, Tiffany, and various other artists contributing to the soundtrack, Akdong Musicians really grabbed me. I loved the Music Video released (which didn't really have anything to do with the drama) and was as cute and sugary as the song is itself. If you like K-Drama soundtracks definitely check out the All About My Romance OST, and if you like K-Drama, All About My Romance is definitely lolz worthy at times. If you enjoyed the previous Akdong Musician song (Kkong Ddeok Bing Soo) I think you'll like this one too! 

29. Eraser - ALi [192 Points] Released: January 30, 2013

So ALi has got to be one of my favorite South Korean solo female singers. Scratch that, just one of my favorite solo female singers. PERIOD. I love the uniqueness of her voice. Her first full album was released in the end of 2011 and I was immediately hooked. The tone and power of her voice just grabbed me, as well as the accompanying music video. Anyway, she came back with a mini album here (YAY!) and I was super happy. The main song is Eraser, a pretty ballad (and the music video down below). However, my favorite song of the album is Selfish, which has more of a pop-rock vibe and completely became my anthem for the first half of 2013. Unfortunately, there isn't a music video for Selfish, but HERE is a live video for one of her comeback stages. She sings Selfish and Eraser, but Selfish is first. I really implore to click HERE and be sucked into vocals made of amazing. She has released other songs since this album, but most of them have been digital singles or songs for dramas. Which are amazing, don't get me wrong, but I want another album, mini or full. Please ALi, bring us more music with that amazing voice of yours!

27. Letter From Secret - Secret [193 Points] Released: April 30, 2013

Yay! Secret came back in late April with a fun, summery feeling mini album. Secret (for those that don't know) is my favorite girl group in the Kpop industry! (Sorry but worldwide Spice Girls is still #1 in my heart!) I really enjoy all of their personas, from cutesy to super sexy spy/assassin/saloon girl (Poison anyone?). The promotion song for Letter From Secret is Yoo Hoo and more along the lines of their cutesy image. I enjoyed it and it was on my main playlist late into fall! Also on the album were three other songs that are ballads. I enjoyed them as well, but my favorite of the three is B.O.Y (Because of You) (can someone explain to me why a lot of these abbreviations are missing the last period? I don't get it. T_T). It's really pretty and stayed on my playlist almost as long as Yoo Hoo did! The Music Video is fun and summery, involving Secret's boat somehow leaving them stranded on an island. I won't spoil the ending, but it's cute and fun and silly, and will bring a little warmth into this crazy cold! :)

27. No. 1 - Teen Top [193 Points] Released: February 25, 2013

"La-la-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la-la-laa-laaa" Teen Top presented fans with a full album late February. One of the songs, I Wanna Love, was pre-released digitally and had a music video. The promotion song is Miss Right (if you've heard the song, you understand the previous las) and also had a music video. I enjoyed both songs, but I think overall I like I Wanna Love just a tad bit more. Miss Right involves a silly video where the boys get stuck in jail with one girl (WHAT?) and sing about her. I enjoyed the dance a lot, and the Las as well as the "몰라몰라몰라몰라몰라." Honestly, those make the song for me. Plus CAP's hair. Back to the music, HERE is the link for I Wanna Love, my favorite of the two. It's more of a pop-rock-ballad-electronic mix (that's mixed well) and I really enjoy the song. The music video pretty much has them being sad (or eating unusually large amounts of canned fruit) and wandering the streets, out in the world! Once again, check both of them out! Let me know what you think in the comments between the two!

26. Boys Meet U - Shinee [197 Points] Released: June 26, 2013

Mid year Shinee released their second full Japanese album. I enjoyed a good chunk of the songs on the album, including a few from their previously released singles (Dazzling Girl & 1000年、ずっとそばにいて…). Of the new songs, their PV was for Breaking News (PV=MV in Japan), my second favorite song off the album. My first though is Kiss Yo which is just a fun song that has some hip-hop undertones with Key's awesome English rapping. Plus, I like to make fun of the ending. So the song starts off with the sound of a telephone ringing. At the end of the song we here a dial tone and then Key asking, "Hello? Would you like to kiss me?" I don't know why, but I always say the same stupid line and laugh to myself afterwards. But the music is fairly SM-like, focusing on Shinee's dance and close up of the members singing. But Shinee is a group of awesome dancers, so I'm not complaining! Above I linked the previous singles that were compiled into this album, although I think they're are a couple more. But I liked those the best. Also, what PVs that get posted on YouTube are almost always short versions, so if you would like to see the entire video, try here! PS: EVIL! You better watch all of them because I'm pretty sure you have seen them all. Bad Shawol! XD

  

25. XOXO - EXO [208 Points] Released: June 3, 2013

Oh EXO, I was super impressed by the promotion songs they released for XOXO, both the normal and the repackage versions. Below is the first, Wolf. This song has some parts that have odd lyrics, but has a fun chorus! I showed it to my roommates and Billy kind of walked around for a few days randomly going "a-wooo." She probably will now since she's listening to the song again with me.... but that's beside the point. I thought the drama version was cheesy, but I really enjoyed the dance. And the vocals were really good, especially during the crooning parts. And for those that haven't seen the lyrics for it....some of those lines. Here's a link, the official video is below and doesn't have lyrics.  As for the second  promotion single, I actually like Growl more. It has a really good R&B feel to it. Also the dance is pretty cool and the music video is all filmed in one shot. I like things like that. The only thing I don't get is why are they dancing in an empty warehouse? Eh...it's SM. Oddly lit rooms for everyone! Check out Growl if you haven't already! Especially if you like more of the songs that have good head nodding grooves. Just saying; I head nod to it. You should too.



24. Re:Blue - CN Blue [209 Points] Released: January 14, 2013

In January of 2013 CN Blue released their fourth mini album, Re:Blue. The promotion song for Re:Blue is I'm Sorry, a good pop-rock song. I really enjoyed the mini album overall, my favorite songs are I'm Sorry, 나란 남자 (Guy Like Me), and Coffee Shop. They also released a song completely in English called Where You Are. I enjoy Where You Are, although sometimes it makes me laugh at how it can be misconstrued as a stalker song. "I'm searching where you are." Although if it's where I am, why is he still searching? I don't know, but I enjoyed the mini-album overall. Another fun lyric: "Oh please touch my body and my face." It just makes me giggle. Don't mind me. If you're a fan of the more pop rock style and looking for something Korean (or just foreign), definitely check out CN Blue and this album (also FT Island {speaking of FT Island, anyone else watching Bride of the Century and completely addicted already?}). Check out the links above for the other songs I enjoyed, otherwise just watch the video for I'm Sorry. It involves CN Blue playing on a rooftop and kind of just being miscreants around a city. Plus Jonghyun has his hair styled up, and goodness gracious does it look good. Plus we get to see his forehead/face. Just saying. :)



23. The Blessed Unrest - Sara Bareilles [211 Points] Released: April 23, 2013

Oh my goodness this album. I love love love Sara Bareilles and was so happy and excited when she announced a new album. I immediately got The Blessed Unrest and still have a few of the songs on my main playlist. What would be considered the promotion song in Korea is Brave. The song itself is amazing, with such a wonderful message lyrically, but just has a melody that makes a person feel good. Well, at least it's a feel good song when I listen to it. As for the other songs, some of my other favorites are Hercules (the video has some info about the name of the album before her singing), Little Black Dress, and I Choose You. My favorite song off the album, with over 60 plays (just in 2013 - it's gone up since then) is I Wanna Be Like Me. I find it completely empowering (like most of Sara's albums and songs) and was completely sucked in only after a few seconds. It's got some fun background sounds and is a good mix of string instruments and more electronic tones. Seriously, I can't fully express how much this song means to me both musically and how it just generally makes me feel. Please, please, please listen to it and share it with anyone and everyone. It needs to be heard. So check out the fun music video of people dancing in random areas and pay attention to the great lyrics!



22. A's Doll House - Ailee [213 Points] Released: July 12, 2013

Ailee came out during the summer, promoting with the diva-licious song U&I. I love Ailee and I love this mini-album. Ailee has such a powerhouse of a voice and definitely in my top three female solo artists in South Korea (with ALi and BoA). U&I has some big trumpet parts and gives it a little bit of a big band vibe, which I find completely awesome and music-licious. Apparently Ailee just has -licious descriptors. Back to the music, Ailee is one of the singers referred to as Korea's Beyonce, with her power voice, strong rapping and snazzy moves. To top it off, I also give major props to Ailee for not being obnoxiously stick thin. She's got some thunder thighs and some curves, and a lot more sexy to me than some of the really popular girl groups out there. Most of the other songs on the album are more ballady, but I really enjoyed No No No and Rainy Day. Honestly though I love everything Ailee's released so far. Her voice is so pretty. Excuse my fangirling, but really. If you enjoy Beyonce and power vocals, definitely check out all of Ailee's stuff. Plus she just debuted within the past couple years. Big stuff already! Also if you didn't notice, most of what I linked above are the live versions. Yes, she's pretty good live as well!



21. Black Box - Brown Eyed Girls [214 Points] Released: July 29, 2013

So I have to say, Brown Eyed Girls definitely popped back up into the top of my rankings with this album. A big part due to the promotion song Kill Bill. The normal music video (posted below) is a fun take on Quentin Tarantino's hit movie series Kill Bill. Now for the actual song, I love it. The girls and back-up dancers look cute and sexy in their western/cowboy styles and the opening dance move in the dance version...holy guacamole! Plus...let's just say I have a thing for cowboys...and dancing....and the back up dancers.... <_>_>... So the music video is a fun parody (but more serious than most parodies are), the dance is fun and sexy (as one would expect from BEG), and I just overall love Brown Eyed Girls and the more mature material they grace all Kpop fans with! 



Well that's all for now! Stayed tuned for the last two parts of the this countdown, as well as countdowns for January and February! Any comments or questions, leave them below! Until then my music loving peeps! YouTube Playlist!

Stasi ♫

My Top 50 Albums of 2013: 50-41

Well, here we are kicking off the countdown! I bring you albums 50 through 41, complete with thoughts about the songs and even accompanying music videos! WARNING: will quite possibly be video heavy. And with no further ramblings, I bring you Part 1! If you just like to skip my ramblings, or read them all and then watch the videos, here is a playlist I'm updating with each post on YouTube!

| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 |

50. Lee Jung Hyun - V [156 Points] Released: July 22, 2013
I love this song and music video. It's so creepy and weird. Despite being a single, this ranked pretty high on my list (considering there ended up over 100 that I looked at specifically). The music video is directed by the same guy that directed the original Old Boy. It's dark, but funny, and definitely creepy. I don't know why, but I always have a soft spot for the music videos and songs that have a darker side.



49. Zion.T - Red Light [159 Points] Released: April 9, 2013
I enjoyed Red Light overall, but I think that Babay is the best song on their and probably my favorite song released in the Spring. It's crazy and funny music video paired with the funky rhythm and beats is just pure gold. I found myself singing along pretty quickly and it became on the jams I listen to while folding laundry. I haven't listed to it in a few months, but going through everything for this has boosted it back up to my everyday list. I love the sound and tone of Zion.T's voice, and it pairs really well with Gaeko (from Dynamic Duo) in this song. Prepare to have your funky groove bust out!



48. Shinee - Everybody [160 Points] Released: October 14, 2013
Despite coming out later in the year, Shinee's Everybody has made the top 50 list! I wasn't as impressed with Everybody as much as I was with Dream Girl and Why So Serious? at first, but this song really grew on me. Plus anytime I hear someone say "everybody" I can't help but singing it. As with Shinee the dance is really cool, I love the toy soldier beginning. It gets a little repetitive, but I found that I'm not as bothered by it anymore, especially since it makes it easier for my Mom to sing it with me! The EVIL Shawol. Anyways, the music video is pretty simple (as we come to expect from SM), but really Shinee's music videos are watched for the dancing. I also enjoyed watching the Dance Practice video (the dance starts around the 1:45 mark), so check it out if you really want to see the choreography without all the other distracting bells and whistles! The rest of the album is good as well, some other favorites off the mini album being Symptoms and Destination. A lot of people are surprised, but Shinee has some really nice ballads under their belts.



46. Super Junior EunHae - I Wanna Dance [162 Points] Released: June 19, 2013
I Wanna Dance is the 2nd Japanese single that Super Junior's subgroup (affectionately called by ELFs as) EunHae. This song is just what we would come to expect from them, especially after Oppa Oppa in 2011. It's got a good dance beat, the pair being their crazy personas in the music video, and is just plainly a lot of fun. The music video has some good funny moments between the two and even includes some cameos from other Super Junior members. The other song released on the single features Henry and I enjoyed it as well, just not as much! I was excited to hear with what they were doing after Oppa Oppa (it's still on of my favorite Super Junior songs) and I wasn't disappointed at all. Plus it doesn't seem weird that it's Japanese and not Korean (sometimes you can tell it's not their native language or just sounds odd). I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!



46. Akdong Musician - Kkong Ddeok Bing Soo [162 Points] Released: May 23, 2013
So the translation for this song comes out to Bean Rice Cake Bing Soo. For those not familiar with the popular Korean summer time treat, Bing Soo is shaved ice that is topped with various things, commonly fruit or ice cream. This song was actually released as a promo for Paris Baguette, a cafe chain found around the world. The accompanying music video is more of a behind the scenes shots of the duo during a photo shoot set to the song. The song is very happy (as most of Akdong Musician's music) and just has a good summer time feeling to it. Plus every time I listen to it I want Bing Soo. :( Go ahead listen, bringing some summer to this cold winter!



45. Infinite - Destiny [166 Points] Released: July 16, 2013
*Sings* "You are my Destiny woo~~ wooo~" This song grabbed me from the first beat and took me on a wild ride. With Infinite's amazing choreography, catchy chorus, and Sung Gyu's many solo parts I was stuck. Destiny is my favorite song of the year from Infinite. I can't say how much I like it without repeating myself. It really just grabbed a hold of my ears and lulled them into a sense of security before stripping them of all cells. I don't know....that metaphor just got weird, but back to the song. The choreography is really, really cool with the members weaving in and out of each other like one organism. As for the other songs on the album I also really enjoyed Inception. It's got a great beat and just makes someone bob their head along without really noticing. Plus the flutes in it really give it a cool twist paired with the electronics. The video below is version B, which was the only one that was released officially. There is a version A, you can find it on Youtube, but around the time of the release there was a plane crash and version A is set around some junked planes and stuff. Hence the creation of a version B that was released instead. "You Are My Destiny!"



44. AA - Come Back [167 Points] Released: March 27th, 2013
AA (pronounced "Double A") really struck gold with this mini album. Come Back is a good song and I like the music video (which is the one below), but reason why this album is ranked so high is for the sixth, and last, track of the album: Call Me. This song. Oh my gosh this song is so pretty and I think is the best song that AA has released. I would classify it as a fusion song, with ballad lyrics and undertones, but with a quicker and more upbeat melody. I can't quite find the right words to convey how much I love this song. It's good. You should listen to it (the link) and revel in the amazingness I stumbled upon. The music video below is the promotion song and showcases their dance talents well. Don't get my unenthusiastic rants wrong, I think it's a good song, but it just can't compare to Call Me. (See that! I liked it again. That's how much I want you to listen to it! XD)



43. Vanness Wu - Different Man [169 Points] Released: June 7, 2013 (My Birthday!)
The first Chinese album on my list comes from Vanness Wu! Released on my birthday, I jammed out to the Different Man music video when I got home from work. Shortly after I listed to the full album, quickly adding Different Man and one other song to my everyday playlist. The other song that I latched on to is Love Overtime. Love Overtime is an awesome song that has it's own music video and I highly recommend you watch it as well. Vanness did it as a tribute to Michael Jackson and Prince, so it's no wonder I like it. I still have Love Overtime on my everyday playlist, one of a few songs to last so long. I also like the song Let It Go featuring Flowsik. Please listen, and if you're a fan of Michael Jackson or Prince, definitely also check out the Love Overtime music video! (See, I posted it again! XD)



41. C-Clown - Shaking Heart [170 Points] Released: April 18, 2013
Tying at #41, we have C-Clown's hit of the year, Shaking Heart. This song has a good R&B feel to it with the vocals, paired with some really solid rapping throughout. And instead of the rapping just being a small verse or a "cameo," instead about half the song is rapping, which I actually really enjoyed. There are only a few other songs on the album, another one being Do You Remember, a collaboration with ALi (my favorite female solo singer). Her unique voice paired with C-Clowns smooth raps and vocals really made a great pair for another great song.



41. John Park - Inner Child [170 Points] Released: July 3, 2013
John Park, for those that aren't up on Kpop, but have watched American Idol, he should sound familiar. John participated in the 9th season of American Idol, leaving as a semi-finalist. He then went to South Korea and competed on one of their music shows. Inner Child is his first full album, and holy cow do I love this album. The entire thing is pure magic and just makes me feel warm and cozy. Like curling up on the couch with a hot cup of tea, good book, cat on my lap, and snow slowing falling outside. Out of all the songs, I really like Baby the best. It's the promotion song and he has such a good, yet unique tone that really stands out to me. I the song Baby, and for some reason I found the music video funny, especially at then with all the things falling down in the background. Don't ask me why I found it funny, I just did and almost died laughing. But back to the song, it's just an all around feel good song with a great melody, John Park's amazing voice, and just leaves a warm feeling in your soul. I know I'm repeating it, but really guys, really. If you haven't heard it already, please listen to it and join me in the cozy feels.



Well that's it for videos 50-41. I hope you enjoyed my small rants and listening to some of the music that got me through this past year. We're only going to get bigger and better from here! Once again if you would like to watch all the videos in succession with out worrying about my rants, here is the playlist I will update with each post. Stay tuned for more of the countdown!

Stasi ♫

Surprise!! 2014 Comeback & Top 25 Most Played Songs in 2013!

Happy New Year!! 

So to start 2014, I wanted to try to get back into blogging again. Although with more purpose. For those that have read my blog previously, I love music. It's been a life affair and I though I would starting trying to review and put my own thoughts out there. Anyways, I've been working on some formulas and have finally came up a with a good system. I'm going to try to do a post for each month, and  possibly quarters and halfway through the year and stuff. Anyways, they'll probably be pretty video heavy or just have a lot of links, so I'll separate them out. Anyways, to give a little sneak peak while I finish preparing the rest of the posts, I'll give you the top 25 most played songs of 2013!! Stay tuned for....

My Top 50 Albums of 2013!
| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 |

Oh, and just a side note. These list will be a mixture of Kpop, Jpop/rock, American Releases, and even some random Cpop. Who knows! Maybe they'll be other speckled in! Until then....

My Top 25 Most Played Songs in 2013!

24. Dream Girl - Shinee (Misconceptions of You Chapter 1) [49 Plays]

24. I Wanna Be Like Me - Sara Bareilles (The Blessed Unrest) [49 Plays] 

23. Rat a Tat ft. Courtney Love - Fall Out Boy (Save Rock & Roll) [50 Plays]

21. Boogie Man - Hong Jin Young (Boogie Man) [51 Plays]

21. Alone - U-Kiss (Alone Single) [51 Plays]

19. It's You - Super Junior M (Breakdown) [52 Plays]

19. Breakdown - Super Junior M (Breakdown) [52 Plays]

18. I Can't Live Without You ft. Verbal Jint - Seo In Guk (Y.BIRD from Jellyfish Island) [53 Plays]

17. I Love You - Akdong Musician (All About My Romance OST) [54 Plays]

16. Ghost - Gackt (Best of the Best Vol. 1 Mild) [55 Plays]

14. One Kiss - Kim Jae Joong (I) [56 Plays]

14. Standing Still - U-Kiss (Collage) [56 Plays]

13. Kill Bill - Brown Eyed Girls (Black Box) [57 Plays]

12. Where Did The Party Go - Fall Out Boy (Save Rock & Roll) [58 Plays]

11. Paradise - Kim Jae Joong (WWW) [60 Plays]

10. G.R.8.U. - Vixx (Jekyll) [61 Plays]

8. This Love - Shinhwa (The Classic) [67 Plays]

8. You Fill Me Up - Kim Jae Joong (I) [67 Plays]

7. All Alone - Kim Jae Joong (I) [68 Plays]

6. Healing For Myself - Kim Jae Joong (I) [79 Plays]

5. Incredible ft. Quincy - Xia (Incredible) [81 Plays]

4. What's Happening? - B1A4 (What's Happening?) [90 Plays]

3. On & On - Vixx (On & On) [95 Plays]

2. Hyde - Vixx (Hyde) [117 Plays]

And last but not least, my most listened to song in 2013 is:

Mine - Kim Jae Joong (I) with 119 Plays!

So that was a little snippet. I'm still listening to Hyde. Outside of plays, my favorite song from 2013 hands down is Vixx's Hyde. I love that song and it's still on my playlist. Also to put it into perspective a little more, Jae Joong's I was released in January and Hyde was released in May. Just sharing. Anyways, I haven't synced my iPod for a couple weeks, so there might be a few more plays on some of these, but I didn't want to risk adding 2014 plays onto.

I'll stop here. Definitely stayed tuned if you're interested and keep you eyes open for more posts!

Stasi XD

Back in the Game

Good Morning!!

So here is my first real post after getting back onto the blogging horse. Yay!! Well, I guess to start off I'll say that this morning I voted at 7!! I was there right when they opened  the doors. The people running were laughing at me, but I just laughed along because it was ridiculously early. I'm just happy the Starbucks on campus opened at 7 as well!! Yay for Pumpkin Spice Lattes!! It's my favorite special Starbucks drink and I'm sad they only have it during the fall and early winter. Yes, but anyways, I took a celebratory picture and have changed it to my default picture pretty much everywhere. Here, facebook, myspace, twitter, and I think that's it, but I'm sure you get the point. Also when I decided to update this morning I went to blog and sat there staring at the gif I posted with my last update for like 5 minutes. I find it absolutely hilarious, so I was trying to laugh as quiet as possible in the computer lab. Too bad I didn't find one that had Eunhyuk's charade paired with Heechul's. I'll post it again here for the picture for anyone that didn't see the previous one. I'll try to find Heechul's too!!

Here's the original one I posted:

 

Here's one with both of them, but it's not the one I was looking for:

Okay, so I'll start out with Skip Beat! It's still in the Violent Mission Arc, but I'm loving what's going on. I love the president and Yashiro-san (Ren's Manager), so to have both of them trying to put Ren and Kyoko together and have Ren tell Kyoko things (like to try to convince him to say he doesn't need her when Ren knows that isn't true and would be lying if he said it). Anyways, I caught up and can't wait for the new chapter here in a couple of days. The last chapter was a little scary with the car accident and Ren losing it. His eyes were a little terrifying. I have seen people become like that and it really does look like the soul has disappeared from their body. It's very eery and creepy. It's also nice that we are learning more about Ren's back-story. I sense a big reveal coming soon. There were a few laughs though so that was good to have a little bit of the classic Kyoko comedy again!!

Let's see, what else can I talk about. Oh, Halloween, my favorite Holiday!! So Halloween itself was pretty uneventful. I worked most of the day, but then I went home. That was nice to see my mom, brother, sister, dogs, and kitties (especially Cheesey). Unfortunately it was really short since I picked up an early shift on Monday. Oh well. I do have plans to go back Friday though. People are leaving the house leaving my Mom alone, so I'm gonna go hang out with her!! She said we'll watch a movie or just hang out! It'll be nice to spend some girl time with my Mom. Plus, I'll get to finish my laundry!! Anyways, back to Halloween...Erin and Eli did throw a party on Saturday afternoon/evening. It was a blast. I've been to a few Halloween parties before, but this was the best hands down. I dressed up as a non-descript Bleach shinigami. I didn't get much pictures because I totally forgot my camera. Literally forgot though, because when I got home I realized I left it on their counter. Go me. But we played Rock Band 3, I watched the Exorcist for the first time, had a laughing fit with Talking Carl in the corner for 20 minutes, and enjoyed hanging out with my friends. It was nice because I haven't hung out with them like this since before I went to Japan. Overall, the point was the Halloween festivities were amazing, but unfortunately nothing actually happened ON Halloween.

Let's see, what else do I need to add. Um as for fandoms, I've pretty much solidified my Mom as a Shawol (Shinee fan). It's amazing because not only am I getting her and my sister hooked on Kpop now (I've previously converted them to Jpop), they are staying within the SM Family!! It was really funny on Halloween. During dinner we watched the 2010 Hallyu Dream Concert. When Shinee came on my mom suddenly said "I feel like I should be screaming. Even though it's just on TV and happened a while ago, I still want to scream and cheer." Ladies and gentlemen, my Mom has now been promoted from fan, to fangirl. Welcome to fandom Mom!

Okay, so back to fandoms...as I have mentioned in a previous post, the first Kpop band I listened to was Big Bang. I have to say that they aren't my favorite, but I still enjoy their music and totally have a G-Dragon bias. But anyway, I was sent this questionnaire thing about Big Bang, so I will fill it out and do it and post it in my next post. I'd do it in this post, but it would get way too long. So I'll put it in a separate post! Hopefully I'll fill it out and get it up soon!! Also relating to fandoms, I need money. Super Show 2 DVD was just released and I want a copy really really bad. I want the edition that comes with a poster!! The plus side is that it will be cheaper to buy a 2-disc DVD plus poster delivered from Korean than buying a CD from Japan. I'll only end up spending around $30. Hopefully I'll get enough money soon and can order it before the editions with the poster sell out.

I'm not quite sure what else to add, but I'm sure that I could add much more. I guess I'll just have to wait until the next post! As mentioned in the previous post, I am going to try to update my blog at least bi-weekly, but I would like to do it at least weekly. Also, I'm thinking of getting a Tumblr to post my quote of the day there as well. Also, I might open another Twitter account to do my quotes of the day, but I'm thinking I'll most likely go with Tumblr over another Twitter account. We'll see how I feel and if I actually think I have the time to post it on Tumblr and not just on my Facebook statuses. Instead of a last icon/picture, I bring you the most recent video that had me dying of laughter. Introducing, what I believe to be, the most EPIC pillow fight EVER!

Until next time~

Stasi