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Hyperfocus #11: The graceful melancholy of GFriend, still K-pop's unlikely heroes
Despite the odds, GFriend carved a space for themselves and became one of Korea's biggest girl groups.
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Niko Batallones
2
Hyperfocus #10: Linkin Park and the musical restlessness that defines them
As the rock icons enter a brand new era, I wonder: was it right to judge them based on their first two albums?
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Niko Batallones
4
Hyperfocus #9: I went to the same school as Kitchie Nadal
How was it like to be in the same space as someone so influential yet somehow also so ethereal?
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Niko Batallones
Hyperfocus #8: Lifeblood is not the Manic Street Preachers entry point you'd expect
The 2004 album saw a turning point as the band sought to grapple with past demons and start anew.
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Niko Batallones
1
Hyperfocus #7: Eat Bulaga! and the never-ending battle between loyalty and quality
After six months, we can finally sing the Eat Bulaga! theme—a song that means a lot for Filipinos all over—the way it should be sung.
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Niko Batallones
Hyperfocus #6: Pursuing 'purity' in pop is futile, so stop. Just stop.
Insisting pop music should stay within its own parameters is counterintuitive and foolish.
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Niko Batallones
11
Hyperfocus #5: A Good Day, but not a lucky one
Good Day's good debut was followed by nothing. It happens often, but how can fans say they stan the "right" group?
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Niko Batallones
Hyperfocus #4: How the Itchyworms' Noon Time Show points a mirror at all of us
It says more than "television networks can do better"—but are we willing to listen?
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Niko Batallones
5
Hyperfocus #3: Twenty years of Keane's "Everybody's Changing", my musical North Star
How my favorite song of all time has led me to where I am now—and why I keep coming back to it after all these years.
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Niko Batallones
Hyperfocus #2: Revisiting Mamamoo, one album at a time
I attempt to trace my history as a MooMoo by listening to every single one of Mamamoo's (Korean) albums.
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Niko Batallones
Hyperfocus #1: Bocchi the Rock! and how language affects our response to foreign pop
The Bocchi the Rock! soundtrack gets me thinking about how we approach songs in a language other than English.
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Niko Batallones
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