Matching my personal favorite albums with some of the best k-pop songs, and vice versa. Also check out the colors playlists! This is just for a bit of fun; I hope you can find a new book and / or song to enjoy. Share your favorite pair in the comments down below!
(Also: can you tell I spent way too much time making these little poster boards on Canva? Lol.)
(Check out my other favorites lists here)
#1: TTPD
(by Taylor Swift)
Genre: Alternative / Folk / Pop
Description: Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department is an excellent album not only because of its evocative lyrics chronicling the painful downfall of a relationship, but because it manages to make a cohesive piece where every track, despite their similarities, has something that makes it stand out.
Songs:
- Call It The End by Rose
- You Were Beautiful by Day6
- Hai Cheng by Xu Minghao
Description: Both a celebration of their 10th debut anniversary and a memorial for their 5th member, Jonghyun, The Story Of Light goes back to basics for its color scheme, but explores many genres of synth and pop, all while processing the ever-present sadness that’s left behind.
Songs:
#3: Elisabeth Das Musical
(Starring Maya Hakvoort and Mate Kameras)
Setting: Austria, 1854 – 1898
Language: German (with bits of Italian)
Genre: Historical / Romance / Musical
Description: a musical adaptation of the real-life of the enigmatic Empress Sisi of Austria, that showcases her mental health struggles via a love story with Death against the backdrop of the fall of the empire.
Songs:
Description: Halsey’s newest album, The Great Impersonator is a love letter to her three-year-old son, written after she was diagnosed with leukemia, that takes inspiration from 70s, 80s, and 90s stardom to explore fame, chronic illness, and the messiness of family.
Songs:
#3: LIZZIE
Genre: Rock / Opera
Description: a mainly sung-through rock musical retelling of the Lizzie Borden murders, Lizzie is at times horrifying, empowering, and heartbreaking, despite only featuring four main characters, a barn loft full of pigeons, and a very convenient trove of poisons.
Songs:
Description: Running the gamut from Danish to Swedish to Icelandic to English, Folkesange is a beautiful collection of pan-Scandinavian folk songs, telling tales of infidelity, Norse runes, and witches, on ancient instruments and modern violins alike.
Songs:
- Voyage by Kim Sejeong
- I by Taeyeon
- Stay by BLACKPINK
#7: Gluck
(by Lotte)
Genre: Deutschpop
Description: With tales of young love, mistakes, and finding oneself in a new city with a whole new world, Glück–which means “luck” or “happiness”–is an understated pop rumination on the past, the future, and everything in between.
Songs:
Description: A desperate, melancholy concept album separated into three acts that tells the story of three generations of a family caught in an inherited cycle of addiction, III takes inspiration from Appalachian folk, Springsteen, and Guthrie.
Songs:
- Goodbye by 2NE1
- HANN (Alone) by (G)I-DLE
- Love In The Milky Way Cafe by 10 CM
#9: The Last Stand
(by Sabaton)
Genre: Metal
Description: This album from metal outfit Sabaton shows forgotten stories from World War One like the many men lost to the cold on the Western Front, the African American and Puerto Rican regiment called the Men Of Bronze, or the one-day respite from the fighting where soldiers on both sides played soccer and drank together.
Songs:
- Internet War by Seo Taiji
- Take Me Now by FTISLAND
- Demian by Dreamcatcher
Description: Singing in Mandarin, Thai, and English, Jeff Satur’s Space Shuttle goes from hauntingly beautiful understated ballads to cathartic demands and all the way back again, exploring love, life, and the costs of fame.
Songs:
Let me know your thoughts!