aespa

[Jeremy Blackman]

If Le Sserafim are the down-to-earth, lovable comedians of Kpop, Aespa are something like the opposite. They're basically aliens with their otherwordly vibe and comic-book-y cyberpunk aesthetic.

In fact, they have a whole storyline in which the members have specific superpowers, communicate with their alternate-universe AI doppelgangers, all while fighting the villain Black Mamba (some of which is conveyed in the MV above). Honestly I need to find an explainer video.

LSF puts an emphasis on dance and tackles extremely difficult choreography, and they have two lead singers. Aespa, again, is somewhat the opposite. Their choreo is much simpler and less athletic. In exchange, every member could qualify as lead singer and rapper. Aespa really seems to be a vocal-centric group.

Karina is the most magnetic member for me. She has that main character energy. Her rapping and vocal inflections and her tone are all extremely addictive. I really like Giselle's rapping as well. I could listen to the two of them go back and forth all day. Ningning is a very skilled and showy crooner, but I have to say Winter is the member who delivers the most satisfying vocal fireworks. Her eye-popping high-pitch runs are smooth as butter. Just for one example, her highlight in Next Level (2:17 in the MV) is absolutely transcendent.



This BTS video is pretty remarkable and insightful. Interesting how they determined that Winter's parts needed to be laid down first. And I love how Karina came in determined to nail the first verse specifically, knowing how important it was to the song. Also appreciate her lack of false modesty here; it's like you have to be in a more objective frame of mind in the recording booth.

Besides showing how talented everyone is, it gives an interesting glimpse into the recording industry. There's a huge emphasis on getting the tone and delivery exactly how they want it, while being exactly on-pitch is a non-issue. In fact, pitch is not mentioned a single time, even when one of them (Giselle, I think) does get a little pitchy. I guess it's just understood that pitch correction is going to be applied. Software can adjust pitch with ease and precision; what's more valuable is having a unique tone and inflection and interesting vocal delivery right out of the box. Software can't simulate that, at least not without sounding terribly fake.

I really have mixed feelings about this, because I there's a level of deception to pitch correction that makes me uneasy (moreso in live performance I guess), but at the same time isn't perfect pitch something of a parlor trick compared to all the other things a singer can do with their voice?

[WorldForgot]

Hahaha how come you didn't just make a 'K-Pop' thread?

[Jeremy Blackman]

Hahaha how come you didn't just make a 'K-Pop' thread?

Cause I thought no group can possibly top LSF, then I thought no group can possibly top aespa...

[WorldForgot]

I see...

[Jeremy Blackman]

I see...

The other reason is I think that maybe people are more likely to click on a thread with a band name without the stigma of Kpop.

[Jeremy Blackman]

There's no way...

[WorldForgot]

You better believe it

[Jeremy Blackman]

"UP" is genuinely one of the best pop songs in a while. Karina is a boss, and the whole thing is very reminiscent of Britney Spears. The chunky synth bass is doing so much work here.

[Jeremy Blackman]

Please stand for the Aespa national anthem.



How cool is this? Perfect thumbnail, by the way. (It was the intro track to their first EP.) Also makes it easy to remember their powers...

Karina: rocket-puncher!
Winter: armamenter!
Giselle got xenoglossy!
Ningning: e.d. hacker! (e.d. meaning extra-dimensional, of course)



Currently obsessed with Savage. It kinda has everything. The verse at 1:28 is a pure sugar rush. Giselle is so good! Let her and Karina rap battle in every song.

I don't think there's a track that more perfectly epitomizes Aespa. Next Level edges it out as a better song for me, but Savage is really special. Speaking of which, I might as well do some rankings.

Members:

1. Karina
2. Winter
3. Giselle
4. Ningning

Ningning is great, don't get me wrong—in fact, she might be their most technically-skilled singer. I just find her less interesting. And arguably Winter's talents overlap with hers quite a bit.

Karina should be self-explanatory here. She has the star power and big personality that you need in a group like this, the same thing Yunjin brings to Le Sserafim. Karina's unique timbre brings a certain intrigue and dark color to the group's sound. It's funny, she's not the group's best singer or rapper, but her idiosyncrasies make her essential. (This includes applying megaton doses of vocal fry in a way that's never annoying.)

When Winter hits those high notes, it's like the clouds part and a beam of light blasts through from the heavens. I would confidently submit that she's probably one of the best singers in the world. And it's not just her range, it's all the subtleties, inflections, and artistic choices. Her section at 2:50 in Savage is unreal, her verse at 2:18 in Next Level is legendary, and her bit in Armageddon at 1:18 is literally what got me hooked on the group. (These are all MV times.)

Giselle is underrated even among fans, I think. She's the best rapper by a comfortable margin. Besides the aforementioned Savage example, she really shines in Next Level. (Fans are obsessed with the way she says "I see the NU EVO.") She really deserves more of those showcase opportunities. I don't think people realize that Giselle is sort of the secret ingredient of Aespa—she provides a sense of humor and playfulness that would simply not be present without her. Giselle's "everybody look at me" verse in Savage is so funny. She's also the designated fluent English speaker, which lets her tackle certain English sections where you might want a less-accented delivery.

The songs:

1. Next Level
2. Savage
3. Armageddon
4. UP (Karina Solo)
5. Black Mamba
6. Drama
7. Whiplash

Just a top 7 for now, before I go through their catalogue a bit more patiently.

[Jeremy Blackman]

17:18 and the section starting at 17:47 – how is this the voice of a human? Like, does she even have a falsetto, or does her head voice just ascend the scales indefinitely? What a crazy, otherworldly, piercing yet buttery-smooth tone.

Believe it or not, Karina's Leemujin appearance is even better, but I'll get to that later.

Current top 10:

1. Savage
2. Flowers
3. Next Level
4. Armageddon
5. UP (Karina solo)
6. Black Mamba
7. Girls
8. aenergy
9. Pink Hoodie
10. Drama

[Jeremy Blackman]

I since realized something about that performance – Winter uses falsetto at 18:00, then switches back to head voice when she goes higher, which is an insane flex. I don't know that I've ever seen a singer do that before. (I'm guessing Mariah Carey/Celine Dion/etc. have, but still, this is not a normal human skill.)



And yet, as I foreshadowed, Karina's Leemunjin performance somehow tops Winter's. Why Karina might now be my favorite singer, period: she not only has the power and technical prowess, it's also the tone, the creative choices, and the feeling.

Important parts to watch here:

10:05 – "I Choose You" (just wow)

17:18 – A fun little cover that really showcases her unique tone

21:31 – a GOD-TIER vocal performance (no exaggeration, I promise) peaking at 24:38

[Jeremy Blackman]

From the moment I got into Aespa, the first thing I noticed was the excessive use of hypnotic hand movements in their choreography. In fact, hypnosis seems central to their vibe and aesthetic.



I hoped to post a YT video on what I thought was an obvious topic, but I can't find anything, so now I'm going to have to write this myself and sound a bit crazy.

The term "Left Hand Path" (LHP) in occultism and esotericism describes a spiritual path that emphasizes individual self-deification, empowerment, and the breaking of societal taboos and restrictions.

Chaos Magick, a branch of the Left Hand Path, emphasizes personal power and manipulation of the chaotic energy of the universe.

I first learned about this when LPOTL covered Aleister Crowley, who (Henry argued) followed the Left Hand Path and believed hypnosis could be accomplished through the skilled use of simple gestures and hand movements. It was also argued on the podcast that persuading others to do your bidding was basically the same as the kind of "magick" that Aleister Crowley obsessively pursued.



Trump was one of their prime examples of a "magician" who had developed the practice of using excessive hand movements and gestures to successfully induce an actual state of hypnosis in his audience, bending them to his will.

I got used to Le Sserafim's choreography, which is flashy, athletic, and at times fully gymnastic, practically using the whole body at all times. Then I ran across Aespa, who were taking a very different approach. Their choreo is slower and heavier, but just as powerful, while they essentially conduct the viewer, their hands and arms often completely filling the frame.



Armageddon is an unceasing treasure trove of hypnotic sounds and imagery. There's the obvious hypnotic hand movements, this first one being an actual snake-charmer move...







But also so much hypnotic swaying and lateral head-bobbing.





So what does it all mean? Well, consider this a rough draft.

[Jeremy Blackman]

I finally found something by Chaweon Koo, who wrote a book called "Bewitched by K-Pop: What Modern Witches Can Learn About Multicultural Spells and Ritual Magic from South Korean Pop Music Idol Groups." She's described as a witch and "a writer of the intersection of pop culture, the occult, and futurism."

She gave a relevant talk here. Unfortunately the video expired, but the description remains. Crazy that we both reference Chaos Magick...

Literally called "idols," these groups are also representatives of the most effective state-sponsored magic rituals of the last 30 years. "Soft power" has now become South Korea's most powerful export, through the leveraging of cutting-edge technology and the power of social media.

Whether inspiring North Korean teens to risk imprisonment by buying South Korean cosmetics worn by their favorite K-pop idol, millions of international Twitter fans to spam police websites during #BLM, or bringing Augmented Reality into the mainstream via hybrid digital-human idols like AESPA, K-pop is more than just music. How did South Korea, a small country technically at war since the 1950s, and considered a developing nation even in the 1990s, become a cultural zeitgeist for the world? And what can witches learn about powerful rituals from 3-minutes of a K-pop routine onstage? This talk will analyze several popular K-pop performances through the lens of Western occult traditions, Chaos Magick, and Korean shamanism, in order to reverse-engineer what makes K-pop such a formidable force of modern bewitchment.

Also came across this tweet from Twitter user flyingishh, roughly translated:

Can you talk about K-pop and how people are obsessed with their singers as if they are under the influence of drugs and violent with anyone who criticizes anything about them or their concerts? Because I started to get deeply involved with them and I felt that I was literally hypnotized and wasted 4-5 hours a day watching their videos.

I should also mention that a video from the Kess and Han Reacts channel reminded me to post about this topic, especially this exchange just after they watch the Armageddon MV for the first time:

Kess: It started, and I just went into a state...

Han: I literally felt like I was being hypnotized.

Kess: I actually promise you, if you asked me a question about what I just heard, what I saw, what they even look like, I don't even know. I'm pretty sure I 100% blacked out. I feel really unsafe. [She's joking there, but still interesting.]