Making sense out of K-pop madness

GIRLS’ Generation, like Psy, has a worldwide hit. WILSON CHUA

When K-pop stars come to Manila, the world of their fans spin out of control. It’s madness, mass hysteria that defies logic.

How else to explain the sight of about 18,000 kids screaming their   lungs out, a few of them to the point of fainting, in a show that seemed to have overlooked musical substance in favor of dazzling looks and cutesy moves?

Of the six acts featured in the recent “Dream K-pop Fantasy” concert at the Mall of Asia (MOA) open grounds, only three—Exo, Girls’ Generation and, to a certain extent, U-KISS—made a good impression and transcended the limitations of K-pop culture.

There was a sense of foreboding in the music that accompanied Exo’s set, reminiscent of the exotic sound of Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir”—never mind that it was pretaped and the performers sang minus-one. In a few instances, some of the Exo guys appeared to be lip-synching, and of course the fans forgave them. “Better to lip-synch than to sing live but out-of-tune,” quipped a high school girl beside us.

But what set Exo apart from the rest were surprise cover versions of Journey’s “Open Arms” and Yeng Constantino’s “Hawak Kamay,” performed live on acoustic guitar and percussion.

The rendition of “Hawak Kamay” was very commendable, considering the group’s effort to learn Tagalog lyrics. It also showed that Exo was not content to just perform dance and R&B tunes, standard sound of each K-pop act to come out of Korea’s star-making factory.

Psy’s heirs apparent

EXO PERFORMED a commendable Pinoy pop cover. WILSON CHUA

Girls’ Generation, touted as the group most likely to follow in the footsteps of K-pop rebel superstar Psy, for having a worldwide hit song (“I Got a Boy”), charmed the audience with its energy and colorful outfits. There was likewise an earnest quality in the girls’ vocals; plus, they sounded very confident.

U-KISS’ set was interesting as well, featuring the “Star Wars” theme as prologue. We caught the guys lip-synching, but, as we said, this was forgivable in the eyes of the rabid K-pop fans, whose only goal was to marvel at how postcard-pretty the group’s members are.

For a moment we thought U-KISS was cultivating an androgynous image similar to what David Bowie experimented with in the 1970s. Not a bad thing, if U-KISS members would dare be adventurous in their music as well.

As for the first three groups in the concert—Infinite, Tasty and Tahiti—perhaps it’s high time their handlers realized that their standards might be dipping, judging from the rather lackluster performance of their talents.

The dancing of Tahiti’s members, for instance, illustrated a need for more polish and verve. And when they proceeded to cover “Gangnam Style,” the effect was more pathetic than hilarious.