NCT DREAM - Glitch Mode Album Thoughts(Kpop)

 

  Nct Dream is a sub group of the newly popular group NCT 127.... I say newly popular because this group received no love when they first came out in Korea, even with them being from one of the top record labels. It took them multiple tries to finally win on a music program but when they did, it was a cheerful victory for all. Since then, the NCT universe has found their steady rhythm and NCT Dream is come back in on the action with their second full length album titled Glitch Mode. 

1. "Fire Alarm (파이어 알람)" - 3:12
2. "Glitch Mode (버퍼링)" - 3:27
3. "Arcade" - 3:27
4. "It's Yours (너를 위한 단어)" - 3:44
5. "Teddy Bear (잘 자)" - 4:02
6. "Replay (내일 봐)" - 3:34
7. "Saturday Drip" (Mark, Jeno, Jaemin, Jisung) - 3:00
8. "Better Than Gold (지금)" - 3:20
9. "Drive (미니카)" - 3:18
10. "Never Say Goodbye (북극성)" - 3:32
11. "Rewind" - 3:04

       I wasn't too big on this sub-unit in the past.... Well, I wasn't a complete fan until more recently. Glitch Mode reminds me that I see this intervention as a rap unit with other dabbles of music. This album sounds a bit tighter on what they want to sound like as well as what they want to say in their music. Love is the theme here and making their female fans feel uplifted is that this album did. They did all this while still supporting a tough vibe in everything that came with this album. Mark kicks on the feel for glitch mode in the opening few songs while the others follow. I enjoyed how they strong held that rap pop formula but not being trapped by it at all. You can hear a rock break down in the last part of Glitch Mode that will make you air guitar. Then the latter half of the album goes to a strictly pop mode that avid Kpop fans would probably enjoy. Some calmer music was need after the hyper rap number Saturday Drip... It seemed that the album switches around that Pop, Rap, RnB, realm which was great ear candy. Especially tracks such as Teddy Bear and Better Than Gold(this song has a neo soul disco sound). I only had two track that I found boring and they were It's Yours and Rewind. I'm not a fan of songs that fill space with repetitional lyrics.  

    Nct Dream getting rid of their graduation system was one of the best things that could have happened to this group sound wise. Mark's return also sparked something in the groups overall dynamic too. Vocals are on point as heard in their more slow jam songs. I'm satisfied for now.  

A Writter's Odyssey(刺杀小说家) Chinese Film Thoughts

      

 

   Written and directed by Lu Yang, A Writter's Odyssey is a 2021 film that stars Lei Jaiyin, Dong Zijian(Mountains May Depart), Yang Mi, and more. The film was based off two novels by author Shuang Xuetao. When the film was released on lunar new year, the film was met with positive response and continued to have good opinions even in the west. 

    A man with the power to control the speed of throwing rocks, searches for his daughter since he believes that she is trapped in a mystical world.... The world is being created by a man online.....

   Let start off by saying that A Writer's Odyssey has effects that look the best that has been seen in years. The monsters and suits look almost up to pair with Hollywood so seeing how far China has come in the last few years makes my happy. Their graphics used to look like they were created on a Widows 98 computer, which says a lot coming for a country that's suppose tp have the biggest economic success. It was said that it took two years just to work on the effects alone and it defiantly shows. You will be engaged watching the action sequences the times that they do occur. What the problem was for me is that these sequences don't occur enough in the film. Viewers have to kinda work for it because over half of the film is storyline happening in the "real world". Viewpoint for both worlds switch back and forth  while seeming to stay more on the side of reality, Theres a good mixture in flow of comedy, action, and mystery but, you get more story building than anything else until the last few scenes of the film. That's not a bad thing as A Writer's Odyssey will keep you interested throughout with it's drama mystery that ties back to a fictional world. It's done quite well I might add....

    There's a good group of characters that are there and you don't feel close to any of them really. You will only care about the missing daughter.....  Everyone else was kinda of there for a purpose however, the plot doesn't focus on you getting to know these characters. Instead you learn about how they fit into the fictional world. The acting was alright. The cast wasn't give much to work with because the CGI God had the best performance out of everyone. 

   I recommend this film to people who want to see the best that China has to offer after years of those horrible fake looking Jackie Chan/martial art films. A Writer's Odyssey looks great and you will enjoy the pace of the film. 

Cosmos People(宇宙人) - This Is The Moment(理想狀態) Album Thoughts (C-pop)

 

   Cosmos People is a band that's been around the Taiwan music scene since 2004. They have gained wide acclaim for their music over the years. Each member also has a musical background; each member graduated from a music college. I've seen this band on the internet on and off but only kinda got into their music until more recently. Their newest album it titled This Is The Moment. 

01.►
02宇宙人、违法SmashRegz-自己来
03.你的样子
04.明天留给我
05.蓝色的你
06.我还绕着你在旋转
07.理想状态
08.先这样(AlbumVer.)
09.好野
10.无所事事
11.有一天你会忘记
12.Baby我不想离开

   Cosmos People's been on my playlist once ad that I was back a couple years ago. I wasn't too impressed with the album I heard. It could have been because I was in a bad mood or that their music didn't click well with where I was in my life at the time. This Is the Moment fit my mental state like a glove thought. Cosmos People is older. I'm older now as well, so the men come back with their brand of City Pop. This sound for them is more relaxed, settle, and perfected compared to their older sounds. I got down into the grove of pop rock soaked into funk soul that was like a tribute to the late sixties. Song lyrics showcase maturity as they write about life moments that should be cherished as well as how life should be enjoyed. There's a sad love song at some points also..... Overall, I was very impressed with how much this band grew as musicians. 

     Everything that goes into the group creating the instrumentals for their tracks, you would think that this would effect the vocals but it doesn't really. The vocals still sound like a regular frontman from Taiwan. However, there is a bit of control in how pristine he sounds when singing over such funkadelic beats.  He remains in control all throughout the album from ballads to uptempo tracks while never once feeling strained by the music. 

      I'm glad that I gave Cosmos People another shot. Yeah, it was years latter but if I hadn't, I would have never seen the growth that they've shown in This is the Moment.    

Seo Bok: Project Clone(서복) Korean Film Thoughts

   

   Seo Bok is a South Korean film that was released last year. The film stars Squid Game actor Gong Yoo and popular actor Park Go Gum. Architecture 101 director Lee Yong Gu takes the chair for this Sci-fi action film that went to the top of South Korea's box office during release, however, Seo Bok still failed to earn back the money used to make the film. As a result, the film was pulled from theaters after a few weeks. 

    An ex-special agent is tasked with protecting South Korea's first human clone from getting into foreign hands. They form a bond causing both him and the clone to take a harsh look at the meaning of life as well as death. 

   Seo Bok is that film you have to take in the same way you breath in air. The plot is fairly simple to follow so you can easily get the deep dark undertones about life itself. There's an equal amount of action and character building. I was surprised that the action, while used sparingly, was exciting enough to glue eyes to the screen. Seo Bok's powers were unmatched so it was fun to see him kinda beat up on those who wanted to capture him. The character building takes a good chunk of the film's second half but doesn't feel slow like other films such as The Witch's first hour did. Seo Bok and the agent's ever growing relationship was a fun watch. They had humor that didn't feel forced. Then there was also conversations about the tides of life which seemed to trouble Seo Bok the most. Some other secrets are in mixed in too. I'm not going to spoil it for you, Don't worry.... Considering Seo Bok's situation, you can guess the outcome. Endings where you have no other choice always hit my heart hard. I believe the only issue I had was the last five or ten minutes and how these scenes felt rushed and tacked on in my opinion. No rushing was need at that point in the film because most who watch will have developed a connection to Seo Bok's character, causing them to be more invested in the finale. Sadly, the last scene took away from a film that was almost perfect. A heartfelt flashback scene would have drove everything home instead of that beach scene.... I also have questions about the agent's health now...... None of this was answered when it could have been. 

    Gong Yoo and Park Bo Gum had amazing chemistry together in their respective roles. Just seeing their scenes together actually was the highlight of Seo bok.  What was a bit hollow was the director''s unwillingness to take the Agent and Seo Bok's relationship to a romantic level. I could see the two character's heading in that direction as they grew closer but I guess the investors and director were too afraid to make them "gay". I don't want to put a title on it because two men who are close can love each other to that extreme and never feel that way about another man in their lives. This was that edge that Seo Bok was missing to really spice things up. Korea's little brother or big brother complex wasn't enough this time. (Even thought what the actors did with what they had was powerful too..) I think that giving that extra push would have had Korean people talking and the film would have made more money back.... 

    I enjoyed Seo Bok like I knew I would. I've never been let down by a film that Gong Yoo has been in. Seo Bok isn't perfect. What film out here really is though?