KARA - Revolution

Have I done a post on a K-pop album yet? I don't remember. Well, if I haven't, I think KARA's a good place to start as they're one of the few K-pop groups I still care about listening to.

Revolution is KARA's second album, and their first to features new members Jiyoung and Hara.

Track #1, Mister: When I think of KARA, this is one of the first songs that pop into my mind. I would even go so far as to call it their signature song. It's an extremely catchy pop track reminiscent of early Britney or Spice Girls that had been updated for the music style of 2009. One of the best K-pop songs ever, in my opinion. 5/5.

Track #2, Wanna: This song brings back so many memories for me. It was among the first K-pop songs I discovered. Because of what it means to me, it's probably my favorite KARA track. There's not a whole lot of stylistic difference between this and Mister at all. Both are extremely catchy pop tunes and good examples of 2009 K-pop. 5/5.

Track #3, Magic: It's disappointing that this song comes after two fantastic ones. It's not a bad song, it just can't hold up against the first two tracks. It's a ballad, but unlike most ballads, there's something really soft and sweet about it's sound that makes it good to listen to. The strings are very pretty. 3.5/5.

Track #4, Secretly Secretly: Ah. The quintessential late 2000s K-pop album track. The one that sounds like every other one. This is it. I find this song very lifeless and bland. It's like a slower Into The New World, except not good. 3/5.

Track #5, Let It Go: I think this song is a good indication of where KARA was going to go with their future songs. It sounds a lot like what you'd expect a mix of Lupin and Mister to be, skirting the line between a "cute" pop song and a "dark" pop song. After Mister & Wanna, this is the best song on the album. It could've made a wonderful promo track. 5/5.

Track #6, Take A Bow: I can't really pin down my opinion of this song. It's not bad and it's a good catchy song to listen to, but I always forget about it's existence. I also can't think of any song with this title besides the Rihanna song. That might be what's blocking it in my head lol. The song is in the vein of Wanna and sounds like something off of SNSD's first album. 4/5.

Track #7, Aha: This song has a lot of the same issues that plague Take A Bow. It's catchy, danceable, has that typical late 2000s K-pop sound, yet it's so unmemorable. I think by the end of the album, you just start getting sick of the sugary sweet pop tunes since the album is full of them. Or at least I do. I like pure pop a lot, but it's one of the few pop styles that I have a limit on listening to before wanting something a lot more powerful. It just gets too sweet. 4/5.

Track #8, Same Heart: Again with the sugary sweet pop songs. I now remember why I don't listen to most K-pop album tracks often. These type of tracks really are a dime a dozen in this era of K-pop (much like the sexy songs today). 3.5/5.

Tracks #9 & #10, Instrumental versions of Wanna & Mister: Just instrumentals. Nothing to see here.

For being a K-pop album from a girl group in 2009, the album holds up surprisingly well. Sure, it's filled to the brim with sugary sweet pop tracks, but I can also easily imagine Mister or Let It Go being released today. 4/5.