10: 蔡依林 舞娘

Review first published in 2006.

2006年发行/EMI Capitol

A musically presentable album to offer to her audiences was promised by Jolin and she did it.

Anticipation have set in since news of her album release was known since this is Jolin's first album with a newly set up Capitol Music which is a sub-company of EMI. Her 3 years stay in SonyBMG has successfully brought her singing career to greater heights since her contract disputes with her artist managing company. Therefore, her sudden decision of not extending her contract with SonyBMG was rather worrying at first, however with the release of this album, sales soared beyond expectation in Taiwan with the help of massive and detailed promotion done by the record company.

The title track 舞娘 boosted her image as a dancing diva as we awed at her gymnastics performances in this music video. Even though we have seen Madonna and Elva assimilating yoga and pilates respectively previously in portions of their dance steps, I'm still impressed by the idea of incorporating rhythmic gymnastics in her dance movements.

This time round, the fate of this album lies in the hands of some of the top-notch producers which Jolin has worked closely with before, such as local musicians, Paul and Peter Lee, and A Di, giving the album a versatile outlook. Overall, I feel that Jolin's latest album is rather pleasant and radio friendly. The album started off with a bang with the opening track 完美 and the atmosphere was extended with a tinge of indie arrangement in the following track 舞娘. 马德里不思议 composed by Hagen Tan, one of the contestants from Channel U's Project Superstar, has such a catchy and light-hearted tune that makes one hum to the melody unknowingly. Her collaboration with Stanley Huang gave us yet another surprise, as 乖乖牌 ignites the chemistry between them. Mr Q's disco and retro finishing is specially tailored for party animals and playing this song will definitely uplift the mood of any occasion effortlessly.

Personally, I prefer her ballads this time round. Even though the slow tracks are not as distinct and impressionable, they depict the softer and inquisitive side of Jolin. 假装] stands out most among all the ballads in this album, portraying the emotional downturns of a broken relationship. I adore the arrangement of this song as it was able to capture a climax successfully to move her audiences. Other pieces worth listening are 心型圈 and 离人节. Despite that both songs do not have intricating and stunning musical arrangements, they did not fail to glow in the presence of Jolin's affecting performance. However, you need to repeat these tracks several times before the melody of these songs sets in subtly in your mind.

On the whole, Jolin has managed to secure her position in the music scene victoriously with this album. Even though gossips never fails to follow her wherever she goes especially of her relationship with Jay Chou, we should not neglect the fact that her improvements over these years have been tremendous and impressive. Jolin definitely have a bright future ahead of her, at least for the next few years to come.

A-

09: 江美琪 恋人心中有一首诗

Review first published in 2005.

27-5-2005年发行/Virgin Music(维京音乐)

A combined effort of poetry recitation by various celebrities.

More emphasis was placed on the invitation of a group of artists, to enhance the quality and content of this album, rather than on Jiang Mei Qi's comeback after a year's break from the music scene. The cover of this album, definitely brings our attention to Jiang Mei Qi's more revealing image too.

The opening track 晴天娃娃, was brightly welcomed by the innocent and adorable voice of May Wu, the daughter of well-known musician Sky Wu. Enjoyable and descriptive lyrics, stood out amidst the humble melody of the song.

In 那年的情书, the emotive lyrics penned by Yao Qian, accompanied by Rene Liu's captivating recital at the beginning, has successfully set up a nostalgic atmosphere for audiences. Uncomplicated musical arrangements, focused and depended solely on Jiang Mei Qi's attractive and moving vocals to lead listeners down the memory lane, a search for heartfelt relationships in the past. Compared to other artists, the uniqueness and flexibility of Jiang Mei Qi's vocals, has allowed her to stand out, and become noticeable easily.

Adore the arrangement of background vocals of her duet with No Name, 是否这就是爱情, beaming of happiness and sweetness of love. Shui Hai Xiang Xin 谁还相信, definitely my personal favourite for this album, is filled with apprehensive emotions when falling into the hugs of love. The cello performance at the beginning, leads audiences into a comfortable, a tint of lullaby affected environment. Produced by local musician, Li Wei Song, whom she has worked with previously in her compilation album last year.

Taiwanese producer, Jonathan Lee, has also lend his hand in 芥末不辣, strumming his forte musical instrument - guitar. Enjoyed Jiang Mei Qi's rock style in the chorus segment, carefree and effortless performance, leaving an unforgettable impression. 我心似海洋 was one of her theme songs for the theatre work which she has participated in during her break from the music scene. For ballads, she definitely have no problem in melting the hearts of her audiences, with her clear and sentimental vocals. Another dynamic theatrical feel was instilled in 父亲你是安静的. Dramatic musical experience, orchestral arrangement, strong and steady vocal performance by her, to end the whole album with a powerful impact.

Tap dance arrangement and performance in 我爱夏卡尔 is not a new concept, since it was previously used in Stefanie Sun's 绿光 which brought about a tap dance trend and craze during the release 4 years ago. Unlike the latter, Jiang Mei Qi's version is less upbeat, but more cheerful, bringing audiences into a magical fairy tale journey.

On the whole, each song has a particular distinctive theme which is rather pleasing and compromising when put together. Hopefully her stay in Virgin Music, will allow her to venture into more experimental genres of music, and at the same time, gain greater recognition and popularity from audiences.

B+

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2008年。

… 最近临睡之前挑出专辑聆听，陪我舒服的入眠。

其实对它的印象不深。
不过音乐却恰巧符合我近期的心情。

淡淡的，

没有太大的起伏，

悠然自得。

努力寻找简单的生活中的不平凡。

学习好好的过生活。

这是我最奢侈的渴望。

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T6: 那年的情书 词：姚谦 曲：陈国华

08: 梁咏琪 顺时针 新歌+精选

Review first published in 2005.



2005年发行/Forward(丰华)

2 CDs comprising of 3 new pieces, and 27 selected songs from her previous albums.

Reaching out to her 10th year in her singing career and to mark this remarkable feat, Gigi Leung released her 2nd compilation album to celebrate this achievement.

3 new singles, 偏见 and 游牧民族, and the title track, 顺时针, composed by Gigi Leung herself.

偏见 composed by Real Huang from F.I.R., impressed audiences with a band feel, and upbeat tempo, reciting from a true story of a fateful ordeal from one of her fans. An action of folly to commit suicide, that separated him from his loved one forever. Regretful of his decision, left him helpless and in sorrow for the rest of his life.
Life is indeed precious, yet unpredictable as well.

T1: 偏见 词：晴天 曲：黄汉青



顺时针 has a structured hit song formula, effortlessly gaining popularity and recognition from the audiences after several exposures.

T2: 顺时针 词：徐世珍 曲：梁咏琪



游牧民族 composed by Hong Kong's Lin Yi Feng, whose credited masterpieces include Stefanie Sun's 遇见. Typical and comfortable ballad.

T3: 游牧民族 词：阿管 曲：林一峰


My Picks:

向左走向右走: The theme song for the titled movie.
It can only be spotted in the movie soundtrack previously, thus it is definitely a wise choice to insert this symbolic track for this upcoming compilation album as well.

我很好: From her 4th album, 新鲜
Was affected by her touchy vocal performance, especially the chorus section.

胆小鬼: From her 3rd and self-titled album, Gigi
Unforgettable and relaxing melody, and easy-to-remember lyrics was well-received by audiences when released.

花火: From her 6th album, Armour
Her composition, with her involvement in the programming tasks as well. We have since then recognised her talents, and in turn, it has also successfully changed our impression of her cover girl image.

懂得爱自己: From her debut mandarin album, 短发
Adore her unwind and cheerful style, which fits her suitably.

B

07: 戴佩妮 爱疯了

Review first published in 2005.

11-3-2005年发行/EMI(百代)

This, I feel, is indeed one of her best albums ever and definitely worth waiting for.

Opening track, 游乐园(Wonderland), welcomes audiences to Penny's rich and talented musical world. As mentioned in her lyrics: no lies and uncertainties, indeed, it's impossible to reach dream in reality, but she hopes that the timeless effort she has sacrificed for her music will be rewarded with the applause of the audiences. The title track, 爱疯了(Crazy for Love), stunned us with a spectacular piano arrangement, accompanied with her emotional vocal performance.

Screening through the lyrics she has penned for all 11 songs in this 5th album of hers, Penny hopes to share her life experiences, especially her views on relationships. She hopes to encourage those who have met hiccups in relationships with It's Alright and 好好的过(Live Well), to move on with life happily even under failing circumstances. Be optimistic, you do have the rights to look on the bright side of life.

My personal favourite is, 试探(Have a Try), simple yet moving tune have captured my ears on my first encounter. Penny's freestyle of singing, is effortless, yet comfortable and arousing. This form was also portrayed in Amen and 之间(Between), where she depicted the loneliness felt and helpless situations, for some, when it comes to breaking up with their loved ones. Saddening yet unavoidable.

79 89 99, brings out her yearn to go back to her innocent and carefree childhood and teenagehood days, away from the unnecessary and uninvited attention from the media. This album may sound depressing, but catchy and melodious tunes such as 就是你(It's You) and 好想(Eager To), are included as well, to lift up one's spirit and neutralise the uptight atmosphere.

On a lighter and happier note, I feel that Penny has done well and up to expectations, as a composer, lyricist, producer and musical arranger for this album. The flow of the songs is pleasant and smooth, fulfilling audiences with a wonderful and enriching musical experience. Not forgetting to congratulate Penny as well, for holding her first concert in Taiwan in May successfully.

Will definitely be looking forward to her concert in Singapore probably in the near future to come.

A-

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三年后。

爱疯了让她获得06年第17届台湾金曲奖最佳作曲。
下一个目标应该是... 最佳国语女歌手？竟不是如此。
其实去年应该是登上宝座的最佳时机，不过却被舞娘蔡依林得逞了。

下次会更详细介绍iPenny这张专辑。

她去年决定以发行线上单曲的方式，活跃于这个圈子。
而且是成功的。
喜欢她的生活态度。一直在不断找寻灵感，享受音乐创作以外的兴趣。
其实我也想这么做，学习如何洒脱的过生活。

... 去年也为蔡淳佳拍摄专辑照片，效果不俗。
... 举行巡回演唱会应该也在她接下来的计划当中。

期待中。

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T3: 爱疯了 词曲：戴佩妮


T4: 试探 词曲：戴佩妮


T11: 往前飞 词曲：戴佩妮

06: 莫文蔚 L!VE is Karen Mok

Recollection

Just realise that I haven't been updating this corner of mine for quite some time.

Spent some time recently to listen to some past albums which I have missed out previously or did not catch my attention at that point of time when they were released. Was surprised to find some of them to my liking actually. Again, it proves that some albums should really not be judged by its cover and it's always a enjoyable experience to discover some of the 'hidden' treasures every now and then (at least, it appeals to me)

Anyway, there's nothing worth looking forward to for the next few months, so this is really a great opportunity to start digging those old cds from my drawers to review those earlier works again (a really good excuse to do that).

Should be expecting more reviews to come for the following months, hopefully.

30-11-2007年发行/SONYBMG

其实犹豫了许久才决定买下这张专辑。

我一直都非常欣赏Karen独特随性的嗓音，不过首播主打<日场夜场>并没成功引起我的注意力。Is funky and retro outlook the theme for this album? That was the first question that came to my mind.

Sad to say that this is really not my cup of tea.

I'm not really dubious of her musicial talents when it comes to composition. Her rather daring decision to release this album came as a surprise and makes me wonder whether is it appropriate at this point in time, especially when her last comeback album in 2006 failed to re-capture the ears of the audiences (as reflected from the sales of the album).

Is it a right move, then?

I do have to agree with the fact that this album will not appeal to majority, especially when we are in an era, suffocated with saccharine sweet, 'bubbly' pop music. In comparison to her previous albums, I think this should be one which you can find the least karaoke-friendly songs... losing out to most exisitng competitors in the current market.

Her amateur position when it comes to musical composition will definitely be outshined by those at the higher end. Therefore, the success of this album all lies down to comprehensive musical arrangement to 'beautify' the songs, and I'm glad to say that the production team managed to accomplish that at least.

The songs came to me as kind of repetitive. The best example(s) to describe this statement would be 隐隐(Lingering) and 台(Stage). Even though it appears that both happen to be songs on the 'high' side and climax of this album, they are still not that strong enough to make it there yet.

Intense oriental flavour in DIVA and rather layback arrangement in 散(Finale). A variety of genres as what you would expect to hear during a live concert. My pick for this album will have to go to 安可(Encore). Adore this tint of jazz and blue, and Karen's vocal performance is the entire highlight for this song. Comfortable and smooth engagement of this song.

Conclusion: Simply listening to her slinky performance just makes this album worthwhile.

Last album? I hope not.

B

T3：头号粉丝 词：李焯雄 曲：莫文蔚

T5：隐隐 词：李焯雄 曲：莫文蔚

T10：安可 词：李焯雄 曲：莫文蔚