Lux Mae's Corner: May 24, 2011

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

[Photo Edited] Kim Hyun Joong - Birthday Cake by redwood

so cute!! ^ ^

credits: redwood@DC Gallery + thekimhyunjoong.blogspot.com

[Photo] Heo Young Saeng - After MTV 'The Show' Recording [24.05.11] Add pix

his wearing white!! hehehehe still handsome as ever!

credits: @puk_kondem

[Video] Kim Hyun Joong - MBC News (CUT) [24.05.11]

can't wait for his comeback soon!!

credits: dscs.uueasy.com + ndhxuyen@youtube

[Video] Heo Young Saeng - Sings 'Let It Go' at Kim Heechul's Young Street [24.05.11]

he sings live!!! luv it!

credits: Athenejen2@youtube

[Review] Heo Young Saeng - 'Let It Go' Mini Album

i just love his album! and i can't wait to have my own copy soon... ^ ^

credits: allkpop.com

The five members of SS501 have been doing a nice job of keeping their fans on their toes this year with one solo activity after another. Recently, Heo Young Saeng made his break into the scene with his solo mini album, “Let It Go.”

Tightly packed with four songs and one instrumental, “Let It Go” is a morsel of music that Heo Young Saeng is pushing as a tame club mix of beats and swift melodies. Since the summer is upon us and the music that accompanies it is prone to pounding bass and loud mixes, “Let It Go” tries to follow that very formula, almost giving us the expected K-pop trends before the trends begin.

How did it fare? Check below to find out!

Track List:

01 Out The Club (Feat. Tae Wan)

02 Let It Go (Feat. 현아)

03 Rainy Heart/부제 비가 내리던 그 어느날 (Feat. 김규종)

04 I’m Broken

05 Let It Go (Inst.)

The album kicks off with “Out The Club“, where we hear Heo Young Saeng putting the club-bystanders on blast, spitting the line “If you ain’t gonna dance, getcho – out the club, getcho – out the club” in a very digitized voice. The song is flooded with whiny nuances, synths, digital claps, and all kinds of beeps and whistles. While it’s very ‘clubby’, there are moments when it starts feeling disorganized. It builds up a nice amount of momentum, but the song looses its grip somewhere in the middle.

It’s a decent little number, but it’s difficult to come out with a strong dance track of this caliber, especially when there’s one that sounds a lot like it already in existence; i.e. “Breaka Shaka” by Kangta. They’re not identical, but the vocal treatment, arrangement, and style is very much the same. I’ll give Heo Young Saeng the win for better use of English, but his song could use a bit of refinement to really get things moving.

The title track and lead single, “Let It Go“, quickly follows, bringing back all of those familiar SS501 sounds that fans have associated with the band. “Let It Go” doesn’t feature a complicated composition, but it is as melodramatic and ‘pretty’ as any SS501 song.

Although Heo Young Saeng’s lead single pretty much falls into that exact category of ‘redundancy’ within K-pop, at this moment in time it’s safe to say that there’s something quite likable about this song. Be it the fact that it’s reflective of all things Korean pop specifically, and perhaps that I find his glimmering voice easy on the ears personally – there are sections of “Let It Go” where everything comes together really well.

Heo Young Saeng has the type of high voice that works with or without auto-tune. Vocal treatment isn’t for everyone, but there are certainly those voices that sound awesome either way; Heo Young Saeng’s voice is one of those, and we hear him in both kinds of processing from track one to track two.

The only thing that tamper with my enjoyment of “Let It Go” is that it starts feeling like a giant loop by the midway point. There isn’t enough variation or interesting elements in the instrumental to hold onto, but luckily Heo Young Saeng delivers tid bits of nice melodies to shake me out of my daze.

One thing that can be said for “Let It Go”, along with the chill follow-up track, “Rainy Heart“, is that they could have both done without rap.

“Rainy Heart” begins as an indie-esque tune that is too quick to jump into the shelter of swooping nuances and digital add ons provided by a pop production. Basically, it leads you to believe it’s calm and subdued, but ends up heavier than anticipated, especially when an electric guitar is thrown into the mix.

Heo Young Saeng has a great voice and he sings the entire song really well, but it frustrated me to hear the middle eight of “Rainy Heart” get sacrificed for a rap section that shouldn’t have been there. There aren’t that many moments in this EP where we get the opportunity to hear Heo Young Saeng’s vocals in full bloom, and this middle eight could have been the perfect spot to unleash that one stunning climax. Unfortunately, it never happens.

“Let It Go” ends with “I’m Broken“, and if there was a choice between this song and the lead single, I’d definitely go with this one. This song is hands-down the gem of the mini album.

What Heo Young Saeng is singing and what is going on behind him in the instrumental blend together perfectly. It’s almost freaky how Euro-pop this song is, especially since it’s a part of an EP that follows the tendencies of Korean pop to a T.

The production sounds like it was the one song that was handled by someone else as opposed to whoever worked on the others. The ambiance and classic use of synths embellish the melodies and Heo Young Saeng’s voice rather than dripping over everything like slabs of mud. It’s got kick and an actual build up to a part of the song where Heo Young Saeng releases that strong voice of his. I was scared they had slathered it with auto-tune (which they do), but no; he goes for it and it makes for a nice finale to this EP.

In truth, there are good moments on this EP, and in the end, Heo Young Saeng sang his little heart out, sounding absolutely fantastic while doing so. However, when a couple of his band mates have already released outstanding pieces of work, this mini album ends up falling just a tiny bit flat in comparison.

This collection of songs starts off one way and ends another, and I would have liked the up-tempo tracks to be cleaner with a foofaraw of innovative twists and turns, but they remain just okay.

As a vocalist, I have nothing to take away from Heo Young Saeng, as he still managed to bring that lovely voice of his to the mix. Honestly, I just felt the song fell short.

Granted, for a first mini album as a solo artist, this is a valiant effort on his behalf and still worth tossing into the pile of SS501 songs already out this year. There’s more there, it just hasn’t been put into a solo release yet.

Overall Rating: 3.6/5

What are your thoughts on this mini album?

Suggestions for a future review? Hit the author up on Twitter (@rothsresidence) or via e-mail (arnold.arteaga@allkpop.com)!

Note: This article does not reflect the opinions of allkpop, only of the author.

[Fancam] Park Jung Min - Gimpo Airport Heading to Japan [24.05.11]

luv it! nice to see him again..

credits: p-jungmin.com + bpki0910@youtube

[Screencaps] Heo Young Saeng - at Youngstreet [24.05.11]

nice!

credits: @HYSmystyle + @Saengie_C4

[Photo] Park Jung Min - 'Wara Wara' Japan Version Poster

nice!

credits: haneul + @shinestar_space

[Fanpix] Kim Hyun Joong - Filming "Running Man" [24.05.11]

i can't wait to watch this!! ^ ^

credits: Jaesuk DC + Jaesuk Baidu + @petasvia + hyunderella.wordpress.com

[Info] Heo Young Saeng - Fan Signing Schedule

how i wish i could come to his fansigning..but can't! =(

credits: B2M Entertainment + loiskr.blogspot.com (Korean-English translation)

Re-post with full credits.

일시 : 5월 28일 (토) 오후 7시
장소 : 신나라레코드 일산점 (일산 라페스타)
인원 : 150명 (추첨)
대상 : 5월 25일부터 27일까지 허영생 1st MINI ALBUM 구매하시는 고객 중 추첨
당첨자 발표 : 5월 27일 (밤 11시) 신나라레코드 홈페이지 공지

Date : May 28 (Sat) 7PM

Venue : Synnara Record Ilsan Branch (Ilsan La Festa)

The number of people : 150 fans (lottery)
How to apply : Buy Young Saeng's 1st Mini Album at Synnara Record Ilsan Branch during May 25 ~ 27.
Winners of lottery : Will be announced at 11PM on May 27.

일시 : 5월 29일 (일) 오후 7시
장소 : 교보문고 강남점
인원 : 150명 (추첨)
대상 : 5월 25일부터 27일까지 허영생 1st MINI ALBUM 구매하시는 고객 중 추첨
당첨자 발표 : 5월 28일

Date : May 29 (Sun) 7PM

Venue : Kyobo Book Store KangNam Branch (Hot Tracks GangNam)

The number of people : 150 fans (lottery)
How to apply : Buy Young Saeng's 1st Mini Album at Hot Tracks GangNam during May 25 ~ 27.
Winners of lottery : Will be announced on May 28.

일시 : 5월 31일 (화) 오후 7시
장소 : 신나라레코드 인천점 (신세계 백화점 지하 1층)
인원 : 150명 (추첨)
대상 : 5월 28일부터 30일까지 허영생 1st MINI ALBUM 구매하시는 고객 중 추첨
당첨자 발표 : 5월 30일

Date : May 31 (Tue) 7PM

Venue : Synnara Record Incheon Branch (InCheon ShinSeGye Department Store B1)

The number of people : 150 fans (lottery)
How to apply : Buy Young Saeng's 1st Mini Album at Synnara this store during May 28 ~ 30.
Winners of lottery : They will be announced on May 30.

** 주의사항 **
- 본 사인회는 해당매장에서 허영생 1st MINI ALBUM " LET IT GO "를 구매하시는 분에 한 해 응모가 가능합니다.
- 당첨자는 5월 27일 신나라레코드 홈페이지를 통해 공지합니다.
- 본 사인회 참여로 구매하신 CD는 교환 또는 환불이 불가 합니다.
- 중복응모 및 대리응모가 가능하나 사인회 참여는 당첨된 본인만 가능합니다.
(중복 당첨시 1인 1매만 인정)
- 번호표 분실 또는 복제 시 사인회에 참여하실 수 없습니다.
- 동영상, 사진촬영, 녹음 시 FAN STAFF의 제재를 받으실 수 있으며, 데이터 삭제 및 압수 후 돌려드리지 않습니다.
- 본 사인회는 TO만 가능합니다.
- CD 이 외에는 사인을 받으실 수 없으니, CD를 꼭 지참해 주시기 바랍니다.

[ATTENTION]
~ The CD which you buy for this event will not be refundable or exchangable.
~ You can apply for it for overlapping and deputy application is available.
~ But only the name on the list of winners list can attend Young Saeng's fan signing.
(Even if you are picked in duplicate, you will be given only 1 ticket.)
~ You can attend the fan signing without the ticket.
~ Taking a video or photos are not allowed.
~ You can receive YS's autogragh on his album only. Please bring Let It Go CD.