Someday is a Korean album released by Younha on September 9, 2008. I finally get more music from Younha. It’s a great album with tons of different sounds and styles. I was excited to get this in the mail, and now I’m very excited in reviewing this and perhaps letting you have some samples. Of course, like with all of my other album reviews, they are only streaming samples. I have always thought Younha had a great voice and I still do. It was a little discouraging not seeing much new activity from this artist for quite some time, but when I found out this album was released, I was ecstatic.

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Delete

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The Perfect Day to Say I Love You

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Young Greed

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Track list:
1.Delete
2.Child – I Cry
3.Password 486
4.The Perfect Day to Say I Love You
5.Hello Beautiful Day
6.Just Today
7.Love Term
8.Fly
9.Innermost Feelings
10. Young Greed (feat. Wheesung)
11.Alice
12.Child – I Cry – Instrumentals
13.Password 486 – Instrumentals

History:
Released on March 16, 2007, this album is Younha’s debut album for Korean release. All this time Younha has had her successes in Japan under J-Pop, but not until recently has her focus shifted toward her home country, Korea. Born on April 29, 1988, she grew up watching Japanese dramas and admired the language. She self taught herself for some time and auditioned around Korea. She was picked up and debuted in Japan since 2004. Younha has released a plethora of singles, a Japanese album in 2005 and this recent Korean album.

Research:
Though a little late on the news, I found out that there was a new album by Younha. Of course, on of the factors that it was a Korean release. At first I wasn’t interested, but I still gave it a chance and looked around the internet for some samples or PV’s. I came across the Younha site and was able to watch a small resolution preview of Password 486. Upon then, I knew that the album had to be great.

Review:
01 Delete:

This song starts out with a wonderful guitar rift. Then Younha’s voice can be heard clearly and fits the guitar rift wonderfully. Just about a minute into the song, the chorus comes in a sweeping movement of sound in wondrous fortissimo. The chorus reminds me of something from one of Kelly Clarkson’s songs. The c section of the song is also great and fits the whole song well. Delete holds a great blend of piano, guitar, and drums. The melody melds the whole song together giving a feeling of completeness. It seems short, but it really is a good length for the song.

02 Child – I Cry

Child – I Cry starts with a soft piano movement. Immediately you can tell that it is a ballad. Younha’s voice is strong throughout the song. The back-up singers add great harmony to the song. The chorus is very good and is smoothly blended into the rest of the song.

03 Password 486

One of the best songs of the album. In some way, the guitar rift in the beginning resembles another one from one of her previous songs. Her usual lower range is switched with a higher mid range, but it is not strained. The chorus is very catchy and cute. Just from the gist of the song, it isn’t hard to gather that this is celebrating love. The drums in the background aren’t broken up and establish the right speed for the song. The use of background singers is really great and adds harmony to the melody of Younha’s voice. About in the middle of the song the piano break really fits the song and shows Younha’s prowess on the instrument. Every sound in the song is balanced and can be heard.

04 The Perfect Day to Say I Love You

Another great ballad. Younha really knows how to transfer her experiences in previous songs and use them in her newer songs. This ballad is beautiful and soft in the beginning with a simple piano piece playing in the back softly. However, the song grows into forte and emits a strong presence. Younha’s voice is highly versatile throughout the song.

05 Hello Beautiful Day

Mixing jazzy elements and pop music, this song sports a very bouncy melody. The trumpets and trombone calls are placed in the most perfect places and add to the rhythm to the song. In a way, the trumpets and trombones make this feel like Chicago song.

Younha has a lighthearted approach to the song and uses her midrange to high in this song. Hello Beautiful Day is a very fun song and leaves a very uplifting spirit. I would say this song is a great pick-up after the softness and wonderful bliss of The Perfect Day to Say I Love You. It also can stand by itself and be used to lift your day.

06 Just Today

This album switches from fun songs to ballads almost every other song. Just Today is definitely worth a listen to. Unlike her other ballads before, this one is wholly soft. Just from listening to her voice, it is obvious that this song is very emotional. The soft instrumentals work with Younha’s voice and don’t ever clash or fight with her.

Vocals are really soft and airy, but just add more effect to the song. It’s a very sobering song and leaves a sense of sadness behind. I find it to be beautiful and soothing to listen to. I just admire how this song was put together and the placement of the song was well done in this album.

07 Love Term

Love Term starts off like a soft ballad, but it really is just the opposite. Everything in the song is clear and crisp. From the voice, to the guitar, and even the drums, everything can be heard. I think the most enjoyable parts of the song are when she is going into the refrain. It builds up from a soft and subtle area of the song to a full-bodied sound. Nothing is ever muddled in the whole sound of the song.

08 Fly

Fly takes on a tone of seriousness and has a sort of harshness about it. It almost has a sense of trouble. The refrain was put together well and delves the listener in a deluge of music and rhythm. The 2nd verse adds more instruments to the list, but overall musical sound is not muddled and is easy to hear everything. Fly, however, does feel rather short, but it is really worth a listen to.

09 Innermost Feelings

Another wonderful ballad. Like the rest of her ballads, it’s soft and flows. The string instruments add great harmony and counter melody to Younha’s singing. It does move rather slowly, but it is a good speed for a ballad.

10 Young Greed (feat. Wheesung)

This combines the use of hip hop, with Younha’s style of punkish rock/pop. This song was actually produced by Wheesung for Younha on this album. I typically don’t like hip hop, but it does complement the overall song. The melody and rhythm of the song is very catchy, too. The chorus is the most fun and bouncy part of the song.

The best part is towards the end where the chorus is repeated multiple times. It’s powerful and really enjoyable to listen to.

11 Alice

This is my least favorite song of the album. However, it is very whimsical and fits the sort of Alice in Wonderland like feel. It moves fast and doesn’t drag on and on.

Vocals: 10
Instrumentals: 10
Multiple listening: 9.5
Overall out of 10: 9.83

Video:

Review:
The main difference between this PV and most of the H!P videos I’ve recently been seeing is the use of guys in the video, scenery, and in general good editting.

The first thing that I noticed was the very nice visual effects in the beginning and Younha’s cute, pretty face. I really liked her clothing in the video which shows a more genuine person rather than a dolled up and costumed performer. Though I’m not familiar with K-Pop, I thought the slight “attitude” displayed was a little amusing, but it made her look good none the less. Her performance in the video was very good and gave the PV some personality. The people that put it together really had taste and knew what they were doing.

The color scemes and the places they used really tied the whole video together. I liked the use of the pink and white, which makes the video fresh and fitting with the times. This PV did switch between scenes rather quickly, but it did not lose it’s flow.

I really enjoyed the video and recommend anyone to watch it. Younha is a very good performer. I would comment on the song itself, but that will be in the album review.

On a side note: I from what I read, I believe that this is her first kiss ever in this video.

EDIT:
I forgot to post the ratings.
Visuals: 10
Song: 9.2
Overall Flow: 9.9
Final Rating: 9.7
A very good video.

“Hakanaku Tsuyoku” is coupled with “Aitai” on the other side. This is her first 2007 release on January 17th. This song mostly plays off the post Go! Younha album. She maintained a rock sound and her mature voice like in her recent singles before this one. In a way, she has a sort of punk rock like sound, but there is enough going on in the background to make this single a worthy investment.

Younha, like always, displays maturity in her voice. She maintains tones well throughout the whole song as well. Then, on the b side, “Aitai” shows a softer sounding song. “Aitai” is more of a ballad with swift movements. Her voice just carries the high notes well and then sweeps back down to her normal register with precision. From just listening to “Aitai” you don’t need to see a PV or performance to see the emotion. The actual single, “Hakanaku Tsuyoku” is up-beat and rock-like. Her voice doesn’t venture to far in to different areas, but it still is an entertaining song. The beat of and the guitar riffs are well placed and compliment the melody of her voice.

Track list:
1) Hakanaku Tsuyoku
2) Aitai
3) Hakanaku Tsuyoku Instrumentals

I’m generally pleased with this single. If there is one artist that will turn me to listen to a punk rock-like sound, it would be Younha. She continues to excel in her singing ability and grows song to song.

Vocals: 10
Instrumentals: 9.7
Multiple listening: 9.0
Overall: 9.56 out of 10.

Younha’s real name is Go Youn Ha. She is the second Korean singer to make it into the Oricon top 20 charts after BOA. She got her break as a J-Pop artist rather than K-Pop. Most of her singles are J-Pop as well. Her musical talent is beyond her own voice to piano. Her love of Japanese music was born from her early love of Japanese drama. She taught herself Japanese so she could understand the dramas.

Her start came from going to auditions in Korea. After being picked up by a Korean company, her voice was eventually heard by a Japanese company. In October 2004, her first debut single, Yubikiri –Japanese version- was released after a TV drama producer had heard her demo tape. In order to make her success come true, she went back and forth between Korea and Japan and still does. (continue reading…)