Lesson 1.5 by Maggie Kim

"Coo" sets that stage as a smartly sexy opener, neatly sprinkling hip-hop inflections over a dance-infused rock base.

Kim's overall message is a positive one. "Perfect" is just that, an uptempo complement to Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful" that asserts, "You don't have to change yourself / Become somebody else / So they think you're worth it." The song is so concise and catchy, it's sick. Describing it as radio-ready is a compliment, not a condemnation -- this song actually deserves to be in heavy rotation. Most compellingly, Kim makes a statement about her place as both an aspiring pop star and an Asian-American on "White Girl", an entreaty to Kim's hip-hop idols Missy Elliott, Mary J. Blige and Dr. Dre, in which she asks, "Will you give me a place in your world?" These artists' influence is most apparent in Kim's homage to them, which drips with beats and scratches. She isn't afraid to confront her place in the scene head on, boldly declaring "Color's just a way to slow me / From where I want to go."

Don't think this is an afterschool special; Kim has plenty of sexiness and sass as well. On the sweet, groovy "Just Stay", she offers a tender plea to a lover. However, the album's most musically intriguing track may be "2 Drinks In", a pensively percussed seduction that blends a synthy sampling of "Carol of the Bells" with hot lines like "I want to drown in your skin."

The EP concludes with a slick cover of Prince's "Raspberry Beret". As the Artist Formerly Known As The Artist once said in another of his hits, "Baby, you're much too fast!" And he must have been talking to Kim, who appears ready to take off. Hopefully Kim is wrong, and color won't slow her one bit.

-- Georgiana Cohen, Splendid Magazine

"Maggie Kim is a one-girl version of the Spice Girls, but without the obvious "manufactured" aura of that group. And I don't mean that as an insult - hell, I secretly liked the Spice Girls. Maggie wrote 5 of the 6 songs on this disc and she has a firm grasp of catchy, often seductive songs and I can't wait to hear what she can do with a full-length CD. The last track is a version of Prince's "Raspberry Beret" which is even more sensuous than Prince ever envisioned the song! Maggie Kim is what Britney Spears would sound like if she made a real attempt at a serious album."

-- Ear Candy Magazine

"This woman has it all going for her, looks, a great voice, and the right music to back her exciting and soulful vocal range. Sprinkles of pop, rock, and rhythm and blues find its way into the six tracks offered up on this EP. This serves as a taster, a quick fix of the variety she can offer the easily bored listener. I imagine once a full length CD hits the airwaves that something will happen for her rather quickly. I enjoyed the music and her voice, and that is the whole ball of wax for this listener. This young lady has a goal; she wants to change the way pop music looks and sounds. If she stays the course she is on, reaching the highest mountain could become a reality."

-- Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck (www.muzikreviews.com)

"With influences as diverse as Madonna, Missy Elliott, Beck, Radiohead, PJ Harvey and The Cure, it's easy to expect great and off-the-beaten-path things from Maggie Kim. That is exactly what she delivers on Lesson 1.5. Based in New York City Maggie's music is just as much a melting pot as the city itself."

-- Dennis Halsey (BFM.com)

"With a rhythmic female vocalist sound, Maggie Kim has a very bright future. "Perfect" has a Toby Lightman/Bonnie McKee edge to it, and Kim's got the sultry vocals to allure listeners. "Coo" is a fun industrial sort of track. Did I mention she's got a rock version of Prince's "Raspberry Beret"? It's a great pop version with rock undertones, all professionally mixed. The great thing about Kim's music is that it's hard to define. Is she power girl rock? Female indie? Pop? Have fun figuring it out while listening to this album."

-- DiscoveringArtists.com

"Maggie Kim is a young woman who seems primed for pop stardom. Blending pop, rock, hip-hop, and a variety of other styles she is already creating some of the most infectious music currently coming out of New York City, and she's just getting started. There aren't many people that can be described by critics and fans alike as sexy, intelligent, edgy, passionate, witty, beautiful, provocative, and independent, but Maggie Kim is one such person."

-- BestFemaleMusicians.com

"As the first song begins, with a high pitched "doo doo doo, doo doo doo," and what sounds like an electronic drum kit, I wonder if this is yet another talent-less hack with a self-produced EP. There's a thin jewel case for one, and a picture of a scantily clad girl on the cover. But then, the song opens up more, and I'm starting to like the "doo doo doos." And then as the second number begins, there's a slightly raspy, ohh-so-sexy voice just oozing out of my speakers. Sheesh, where did she come from? Her bio gives the particulars, how she shifted from dark alt rock to the pop stuff. And while I haven't heard her previous stuff, the six numbers on this disc point to a formidable presence in the pop world. Her songs have strong hooks, are quite melodic, and heck, she even does an interesting cover of Prince's "Raspberry Beret." There is an appealing quality to her voice, as it balances between rasp and emotional desperation. On "Just Stay," a love ballad, she seamlessly shifts between grit and sadness. Sign me up as a fan."

- NY Rock Street Beat

"Lesson 1.5 began as a demo project that grew into a debut release for Penn grad-turned-burgeoning rock star Maggie Kim. Maggie wrote and produced her 6-song EP with Eve's Plum/Ruth Ruth guitarist Michael Kotch, beginning with rough guitar & vocal sketches and ending up with a tightly knit, loop-based disc of radio-friendly alt/pop songs. Her unique sound and style, reflecting both Missy Elliot and Gwen Stefani influences, comes through on the album as clear as it does onstage--seductive and beautiful, yet also at times flashing a Courtney Love/Wendy O. Williams brazenness. Lesson 1.5 's strength is undeniable. Within 6 songs, she has managed to give listeners a thumbnail chronicle of this...this melange of sex, intelligence, beauty, wit, attitude and independence that manifests itself in human form as Maggie Kim."

- Coyote Music

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