+82 K-Pop Star by Lucy Liyou

Behind the clockwork coordination, symmetrical faces, tv-ready smiles, and flawless voices of k-pop, corporate machinery causes some of the most heinous emotional and even physical abuse found in any entertainment industry in the world. Giving us a behind-the-scenes tour of this shadowy idol factory, +82 K-Pop Star by Lucy Liyou simulates the complete personal pulverization that these figures endure. Accompanied by a text file that gives translations for all of the Korean spoken word on the album along with a handful of body-horror-esque excerpts and images, the album begins with eerie ambient and deadpan vocals before unraveling into extreme abstraction. While the idol’s external world sings in pentatonic harmony, their internal reality crumbles into moody free jazz, industrial ambient, and haunting chopped vocals. They’ve given everything, and the machine stretches out an open hand for more. All exits pass through the wood chipper, discarding the defaced idol before returning to its endless supply of fame-hungry fuel.