Music Highlights: April - June 2019

Here are some of my favorite songs from the last three months! Sadly, there are a few KPOP comebacks and debuts that I haven't had a chance to listen to (the complete albums) yet due to work. But! I do plan to as soon as I find the time. The majority of this list is KPOP but there are some English songs on here as well. What is your favorite release(s) from these last three months?

You can find my two playlists for these songs here & here.

1. Friend Zone - JBJ95

I know in my last post I kind of cheated and added Who I Am from this album but there's no real rules to these posts so I'm adding this song to this post. I just love JBJ95 so much and this song is so cute, which is very my type of song. Honestly this whole album has some real gems of song in it, and I would recommend giving it, and the duo as a whole, a listen.

2. Domino - 1THE9

1the9 have such a special place in my heart because their from the first trainee survival show I've watched, and I'm so happy that they worked with Crush on this song because he's one of my favorite artists and songwriters there is in the industry. There is something about the low bassline(?) in the prechorus and chorus that just really gets me and the choreography that goes along with it just matches so well that it really made me love this song.

3. Love Line - VERIVERY

VERIVERY are my second favorite boygroup that has debuted this year, they are so cute and precious and remind me so much of rookie Astro that I can't help but love them. Their second album is really good as a whole but Love Line has to be my favorite because of how sweet is sounds - I'm a sucker for songs like this that are super sweet but have raps that stand out really well.

4. Bloom Bloom - The Boyz

Wow, this song, THIS SONG. It's such a perfect Spring release and is so upbeat and so fun I don't know how anyone would not love it. The choreography is also super cute and fun. This is one of those songs that I genuinely would put on every single time I got into the car because of how much I love it. This song made me really look into THE BOYZ as group and listen to some of their other songs because it's so so so fun.

5. Happily Ever After - NU'EST (Album)

NU'EST really have had one of the best comebacks so far this entire year. This album, I already know, is going to make it into my top list at the end of the year because of how amazing it is. I love every song so so much but I think one of my top ones would have to Segno. All of their vocals are so smooth and amazing and just so pleasing to listen to. If you haven't I would definitely give this album a listen, it's amazing. Also Different sounds like it would've been a Seventeen song if it wasn't on this album.

6. Falling in Love - Woo Jinyoung & Kim Hyunsoo

Now that I think about it I can't really remember how I found this song but I'm glad I did because I love Kim Hyunsoo's (red hair) voice so much that I can't wait for him to debit with D1CE sometime this summer. This song is just super catchy and makes me smile and want to dance around in my room. I'm not super sure as to what makes it so addicting but I couldn't stop listening to it when I first discovered it.

7. Bon Bon Chocolat - EVERGLOW

I don't listen to many girlgroups but I think EVERGLOW is the exception because of how much I love Bon Bon Chocolat there is just something so incredibly different about the song (or I think anyways) compared to most girlgroup releases that it makes me love it. I don't think I've loved a girl group song this much since Red Velvet released Bad Boy.

8. Lonely Night - TREI

TREI is a group that I found when I was searching for newly debuted groups for my KPOP Groups Who Have Debuted in 2019 (So Far) post. Their title song Gravity isn't something that really stuck with me but later one while I was listening to their whole album - to try and get a feel for them as a trio - I came to love some of the other songs on it. Lonely Night being one of them. The beginning of it with the guitar echoing really reminds me of an Ed Sheeran song. TREI is a really interesting group that has debuted and compared to most boygroups who debut I think they have a quite different, and somewhat, unique sound/style.

9. B: COMPLETE - AB6IX (Album)

I honestly didn't think I would love this whole album as much as I do. BREATHE is such an amazing debut song that whoever decided that needs a whole bakery dedicated to them. HOLLYWOOD's beginning reminds me of Hard Carry by GOT7 so much so that one time I thought my playlist ended and went to the recommended songs. I think my all time favorite song on this album though would have to be FRIEND ZONE. It's a very me song to be my favorite, I just really have a soft spot for sweet, and cute songs like this. I definitely recommend the whole album, though.

10. Raise Us - ONEUS (Album)

I think I can confidently say that ONEUS are my favorite group to debut this year, I fell so hard in love with Valkryie when it came out that I didn't even realise it was by a rookie group. All of their songs are so good it's always hard for me to pick a favorite. Their title track for this album, Twilight has such amazing, and powerful choreography and the styling so elegant - is the only way I can think to describe it. English Girl is one of those songs that falls under the 'very me' of a favorite song because of how sweet and lovely it, when I first heard it I knew it was going to end up being one of my favorites. My last song that I want to highlight on this album is called White Night. Usually when I listen through albums I just put them on play and when a song catches my attention I check the title and that's what happened with this song. Their voices are so incredibly sweet in this song that it really shows you how talented they are.

11. WHO DO U LOVE? - Monsta X ft French Montana

Are we surprised that there is a Monsta X song on this post? Absolutely not. When I saw that French Montana was featuring on this song I was a little worried as to how they were going to make that work but it actually works pretty well, and I can see I.M taking over his rap, or writing a new one, if they were to perform this song live. I also this the quality of this song - for their second English release next to Play It Cool - seems to be much higher compared to the first. I'm not sure if it's because of a different studio/label or maybe they just had more time, either way I'm pleasantly surprised with this release and really hope they perform it live on tour this summer in the USA.

12. 사랑하기 때문에 (Because I Love You) - VICTON

This mention is really for VICTON as a whole. Sometimes when I add songs to playlists I never really look at who sings it and look into the artist, and that's what I did last year when I discovered Time of Sorrow which is one of my favorite songs, I used to listen to it all of the time but I never realised it was VICTON who sang it. When Produce X 101 started there is someone I follow on Twitter who is a very big VICTON fan so I realised that Seungwoo & Byungchan are from VICTON and seeing them perform on the show made me want to look into the group more and I ended up loving them. This is one of my favorite songs of there's but I really want them to have another comeback, this video also makes me want to see them in concert, so although I want the two members to do well on PDX I want them back with the VICTON members more. Please give them a listen.

13. Road Not Taken - Stray Kids

Usually intro songs are never a stand alone favorite for me but Road Not Taken is so amazingly good that I actually wish it was a whole song. I was kind of upset when I realised that this wasn't the title track of the album because of how good it is. The whole album isn't bad but among their other title songs Side Effects isn't my favorite, it's not bad but not a favorite for me. (Side Effects makes me thing Bangchan/3RACHA watched some zombie content before they wrote it haha)

14. RPM - SF9 (Album)

I haven't followed/been into SF9 for their last few comebacks but this comeback and this album is so unbelievably good that I want everyone to give it a listen and a chance. Their title track RPM very vaguely reminds me of EXO, not a lot but a little bit. It's a very solid title track with an interesting video but for me this album is all about the B-tracks. Round and Round gives me that chill-summer vibe with a little bit of love mixed in, it's a song that makes me really happy and makes me want to dance around no matter where I am. My all time favorite song on this entire album - and actually the song that made me really start paying attention to this album because it was on shuffle - is Echo. I can't even explain why this song is so good and why I love it so much because I really can't pinpoint one thing. It is one of those sweet songs that I like but I think there's something about the vocals that also gets me, it's so amazing, I highly recommend checking out this album.

15. TREASURE EP 3: One To All - ATEEZ (Album)

This is another album that really surprised me. Like, SF9 I had known a few of ATEEZ's songs but not many but after listening to this album they've really stolen my hear with their music. This is another really good album. My two highlights on this album are definitely Utopia - the song that made me say, "Oh wait a minute" because of how much it stood out, and my second pick being Dancing Like Butterfly Wings which is a very unique song in my opinion. It has a slightly "poppunk" vibe I think. The chorus has a lot of heavy drums, guitar, and that classic echo-ing/chanting that a lot of poppunk songs have - it made me a little nostalgic for when I was really into that music. Another great album to come out this year.

16. Never Not - Lauv

I love Lauv so much, they are one of my favorite artists and I could not believe I hadn't realised how amazing this song was before hearing on a VLIVE (lol). I listened to it nonstop for a good week when I first heard it, it's such an "emo" song that really gets you in your feels, but I love it.

17. Honest & If I Can't Have You - Shawn Mendes

I never realised how many of Shawn Mendes' songs I loved until making this list, all of his songs make me want to fall in love with someone (lmao). There really isn't even more to say his songs are just so good and I'm glad he makes music.

18. I Don't Care - Ed Sheeran & Justin Bieber

The video for this song is the definition for 'I Don't Care', and I can only think it must've been a pain to edit. This is one of those songs that is really just perfect for summer and makes you really love your friends and the important people around you because you don't you can be ridiculous with them where you are - that's the overall vibe I get from this song and I really love it.

19. Who I Am - Nlve

I found this song through Wonho of Monsta X doing a VLIVE. When it first came on I originally thought it was a Brendon Urie song or someone like that, but it's not (obviously). I had never heard of NIve before this song but I'm interested to look into more of his music because I really enjoy how smooth his voice is.

20. Bounce Back - Little Mix

Little Mix is one of the best girl groups there will ever be. I love all of their releases and some of their later ones have definitely given me that nostalgic vibe of songs I used to hear when I was kid in the early 2000s. I don't think they have one song I don't like. Now the question is when is their album coming out?

Honorary Mention: Going Crazy - Treasure 13

I couldn't not mention this song because I really did listen to it almost every day, multi-times a day for a good two weeks. I would find myself randomly humming it at work or singing it in my head, it's such a fun and upbeat song. We all know the mess that YGE is in right now so hopefully these boys get to have the debut they deserve when everything is taken care of.