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Hello! Welcome to the first of a two parter! So, I have bad news: I'm talking about K-pop again. I know I said I'm moving away from the genre (which I am a little bit), but something very exciting and important happened recently. I received a press pass and was able to attend the Chicago leg of æspa's second world tour, Synk: Parallel Line, and I'm looking forward to sharing my highlights and photos from the amazing concert. Before I do that, though, I thought it would be a good idea give an introduction to æspa. I'll explain why the group is my favorite music artist right now and why the ability to see them in concert was so special. I hope you'll join me next week, too, when I talk about the concert!
Who is æspa?
Aespa (styllized as æspa) is a K-pop girl group under SM Entertainment consisting of four members: Karina, Giselle, Winter, and NingNing. They debuted in 2020 and currently have five EPs and one studio album. Despite being active for four years, it is considered pretty short in the lifespan of a K-pop group. æspa is best known for their futuristic, sci-fi concept with aspects like a virtual reality, avatar versions of themselves, and a virtual idol associated with the group named nævis. They are also known for their exploration of the hyperpop and EDM genres as well as some experimental pop with early releases like "Next Level and "Savage." The group has already hit multiple milestones with broken records, two world tours, and a Coachella performance.
Why do I like æspa?
I talk about æspa a lot. I wrote about their most recent EP Whiplash in a post only a couple weeks ago and about my favorite song from them, Drama, last semester. This doesn't even include all the mentions in my personal blog. So, how did this happen? I discovered æspa when they debuted in 2020. It was right after I had gotten into K-pop and when fourth gen was still pretty new (for reference, fifth gen started last year). I was particurly drawn to new fourth gen groups like Itzy, Everglow, Loona, and Iz*One, and æspa was one of the first groups that I caught the debut of. I was immediately hooked with their concept in "Black Mamba": they ventured into the colorful sci-fi world of Kwangya to defeat an evil giant snake. I had never seen a concept with such deep lore that did things like create its own terms. Their concept was everywhere, from the lyrics themselves to the music videos. It was also what drew me to my favorite group before æspa, Loona, also known for having complicated storylines.
After their debut, I was hooked and stuck around for future releases. I will admit that their first comebacks, "Next Level" and "Savage" were growers at first, but now they're some of my favorites in their whole discograhpy. They still had their concept of exploring a fictional world and seeking to destroy evil with the help of their virtual guide. With the defeat of the villain in their fourth release, "Girls," I was uncertain what æspa's future would be. While they were busy in the meantime, there was almost a year gap between "Girls" and "Spicy," their next release. I will never forgive myself for a post on my personal blog calling "Spicy" mid because now I love it and its Mean Girls/summer concept. It was also the beginning of æspa's new concept of being in the "real world" instead of the virtual one. I was worried at first that I wouldn't like it as much and would fall out of love with æspa. Luckily, that isn't what happened. After "Spicy," I was on board for this new approach.
Their next release was "Drama," which you already know I love. It was a different, darker approach and sound from the group, especially compared to "Spicy," but I found it fitting. This continued with "Armageddon" and its prerelease single, "Supernova." These explored more of æspa in the real world, and I particularly love "Armageddon" because it adds on to their concept with the real world vs. the virtual one, commenting on the use of AI. It also took a horror angle, which is something I hope they will lean more into. Finally, "Whiplash" came out and featured lots of futuristic real world technology and imagery (and is an absolute slay). Their concept and sound has perfectly evolved from 2020 to now, and it is what I most love about æspa.
What about the music?
I just want to say that I think æspa has a nearly flawless discography. Some of their slower songs and collab releases aren't my cup of tea, but that's something I feel with a lot of groups. I believe æspa has an unprecedented streak of amazing title tracks with "Drama," "Armageddon," and "Whiplash." I couldn't figure out for the longest time if I liked their older tracks or newer tracks better since they are all just so good. I've talked a lot about their title tracks, but their EPs and album are incredible, too. The Savage EP is one of my favorite mini-albums in K-pop, and I also love the My World, Drama, and Whiplash EPs. I haven't listened to the full album as much but loved how they made track videos for the B-sides. I also love their non-album releases like their Japanese debut, solo songs, and English single "Better Things." I love everything from æspa and can't wait to see what they put out in the future.
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