Top 50 Singles of 2015: 15-11

15. BTOB - It's Okay



The year's most dramatic ballad, which at times feels more like vocal Olympics as the members continually one-up each other.

14. Donghae and Eunhyuk - Growing Pains



Criminally underrated, the soaring chorus on this anthem deserves major recognition alone.

13. Gfriend - Me Gustas Tu



K-pop's biggest breakout girl group of the year improved on their already brilliant debut track with this bubbly, ridiculously-catchy pop trifle.

12. Sungkyu - The Answer 



Infinite's leader proved his might yet again with this classy, orchestral ballad.

11. Nine Muses - Hurt Locker 



It's all about that bright, reach-for-the-stars chorus. An unending chorus of power pop vocals.

Top Albums and Mini-Albums of 2015: Number 4

ALBUMS

4. BTOB - Complete



I never really gave BTOB much attention until this album. Although the title track was a (brilliant) ballad, the album as a whole does an expert job of seguing between balladry that's not boring, and new-jack-swing inspired uptempos. It's not an album that I expected to pay much attention to, but it was released at the perfect time of the year and I just found myself falling into it over and over again.

MINI ALBUMS

4. Sungkyu - 27



Sungkyu probably could have released anything and he still would have been on the countdown. That's how much I love his voice and performance style. It certainly helps that he created a mature, melodic album with enough experimentation and progression to make the music incredibly interesting and layered. He's certainly in his element here, and every song feels more like an artistic statement than a means to an end.

SungKyu - The Answer

As I've made quite clear over the past few months, I am an enormous fan of K-Pop group Infinite. In particular, their leader Kim SungKyu is one of my favorite Korean performers (if not my absolute favorite at the moment). Beyond finding his personality utterly charming, I am continually impressed with his powerful, emotive vocals. His first solo album was really, really amazing, and although I find the just-released follow-up a little slow in comparison, I'm so happy he's able to release another collection of songs as an individual. At times, his solo stuff reminds me of Savage Garden/Darren Hayes, which was one of my first entryways into pop music as a teenager. The Answer is a good example of this. It's nothing mind-bendingly new or unique, but it marries gorgeous vocals with lush, string-laden production and a peaceful, affirming melody. It's not the kind of song I'd always be in the mood for, but it does its specific job very well. It's just really, really pretty. A classic pop song... about as far away from Gangnam Style K-Pop as you could get.



(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. Buy the album here. Follow me on twitter and facebook.