this MiniMix idea has been floating around Stereowaves HQ for some time but none of us made the effort to sit down and do something about it. the concept is simple: a mini mix of songs, preferably 3-5 songs, based on a certain theme, idea etc. i was not planning to do this theme but was prompted by this song this morning when it pop up during the shuffling of my ipod. so since the seed is planted, lets get it harvested shall we?

Mini Mix #01
Theme: Modern Hokkien Songs
"Its not always about drinking, being drunk and reluctant dance hostesses you know"

Hokkien songs have been well known for having a 風塵味 to it, and usually it revolves around dance hostesses, or drinking with dance hostesses, or being drunk with dance hostesses, or worst, the dance hostesses being drunk. of course, there will be love songs - be it in love under the same small umbrella or parting love at the bus station but they sounded so unabashedly decadent, which some would say its part of their charm.

but amongst such decadent frivolities are new, more modern approaches, using the melodic sensibilities of mandarin songs and coupled with simple yet meaningful lyrics to form something on par with a well written prose. i picked my favourite 3:




潘越雲
純情青春夢

in her entire career, A-Pan has only 2 Hokkien albums to her name. the first, 情字这条路 made the 1st top 100 chinese albums list in Taiwan. that album has a more simpler, earthy feel to it. the 2nd one, 純情青春夢, produced by Bobby Chen no less, has a more complex approach. it signifies the difference in the time period of the recording and also how different A-Pan approaches her materials at both times. the song talks about lost love and dreams. if i have to give an analogy to those 2 periods, i would use rural and urban times to define them.



許景淳
天頂的月娘

i was very moved by this song when i first heard it via streaming audio over the internet. her voice sounded so crystal clear, yet never overdoing the pyrotechnics. a song about a girl longing for love and decided to seek the help of the Moon Goddess (in case you wonder, 月娘 refers to the moon) by making a wish upon it. very beautiful and poetic, the aching heart so rapturously captured in the song. this could be the high benchmark for all Hokkien songs.



江惠
家後

the credit for this widely popular song, besides the great singing talent of 江惠, has to be given to the songwriter, 郑进一. wonderfully written, it talked about life after marriage, of how she doesn't care if she eats greatly or poorly (吃好吃丑无计较) or whether she wears good clothes or bad ones (穿好穿丑无计较), she will still love him cos she is now his wife and his family. despite it being in Hokkien, the lyrics presented it in a manner that does not seem awkward (unlike say Andy Lau's rather awful 今晚你和别人睡 - a title that reeks of pure trash). the best part, and the most touching, has to be the final few lines　of both chorus ending. the 1st chorus ended with (我会让你先走 因为我会呒甘 放你为我目屎流) - the wife would rather the husband to pass away first, because she cant bear to see him cry if she's the one to go first. the second chorus (你着让我先走 因为我会呒甘 看你为我目屎流), has the same reasoning, she cant bear to see him cry, but this time she reverse her decision and wanted to pass away first.

just breathtaking.


of course this maybe just the tip of the iceberg. there are other modern hokkien songs to savour out there and it just take a more open mind and open ears to appreciate them.

better known as the former half of natural q, 魏如萱 aka waa has since strike out on her own. since her departure, she got herself involved in many a music projects and gigs including the release of her debut solo album and sophomore ep, as well as contributing to the soundtrack of 花吃了那女孩 and the musical 向左走 向右走，fresh off a run of her collaboration with 陈建琪 - a music-based interpretations of shakespeare's works of tragedies and sonnets, for the taipei arts festival, she brought her almost-full band for a one-night-only gig here with 陈建琪 in tow, as some sort of a special guest.

since both her solo efforts were not released, she's relatively unknown as a solo artist in this part of the world, tickets to her gig were sold out nonetheless. perhaps her infectiously ditzy reputation has warrant a following somehow. not forgetting her roots, she started off with a natural q sing-along number as a not entirely successful attempt to warm audiences but enough to show her incessantly warm personality as she made known whatever she had in her head and expressed those thoughts in a tone akin to a kindergarten teacher trying to acquaint herself with her kids and in her case, the audiences - undeniably cute but not entirely benign.

given her limited discography, she did quite a number of covers and new material. 2 of the really twee tracks off her debut (一起去旅行 & the self-penned 拖鞋） were given a slight makeover with a more solid arrangement and less breathy vocals to bring them back to the ground. she did get a bit more airy with her charming intepretation of coralie clement's samba de mon cœur qui bat which even she, was somewhat in awe of her vocal prowess for that song, a thought she entertained aloud with a girlish giggle.

despite her snazzy persona, the atmosphere did get a little heavier with the more depressing tracks like 泡泡 a self-penned track to commemorate her heartbreak, a cover of the scientist - the coldplay track most often covered by female artists (aimee mann, belinda carlisle, etc.) as well as a taste of the shakespeare gig she just did by transforming herself into the ophelia prior to her suicide - a haunting aria of death which she carried off with enrapturing gusto. As for the new material, she seems to have a penchant liking for offbeat song titles - 我恨我不是数学家 and 你是不会当树吗？- the former is penned by sandee chen as though a respond to her coldplay's cover and to be included in waa's forthcoming album while the latter is her own composition which was some of a gift to 陈建琪。

though her persona played a major role in her performance, there is no dispute to her vocal talents. better known for her breezy timbre as evident from her natural q days and debut effort, she had the flair to stretch that last note a bit further and ends off with a slight quiver. she was also much at ease when it comes to delivering that emotional punch with sturdier vocals. Other than her dramatic interpretation of hamlet's ophelia, it was also very well showcased in 想想 a track she wrote and originally recorded by ciacia - very much a gradual accumulation of pent-up longing.

she probably sung a little over 10 songs including her encore 香格里拉 but her concert lasted a little more than 90mins which is half hour longer than the stated duration and probably half of that is all her banters as she struck easy rapport with her audiences. be it all the anecdotes behind almost every single song she picked that evening, bending the strict no-camera-and-phone rule way over backwards, dishing out the dirt regarding her fart happy band member, asking for a volunteer to start a chitchat session etc etc, it all was quite a deliberate attempt to show off her kooky and occasional feisty side as well as created many a side-splitting moments. perhaps a little too much fun at times, would be great if a bit of that fun could be offset with a bit more singing.

-setlist-
坐在巷口的那对男女
一起去旅行
拖鞋
samba de mon cœur qui bat
想想
麋鹿
the scientist
我恨我不是数学家
你是不会当树吗？
奥菲利亚
泡泡
买你
香格里拉（encore)

a nice review here.

shedding a bit of light on that teeny piece of cheese on the moon
Q. I’ve got to ask… Chesney Hawkes’ The One And Only on Sam’s alarm clock. Why?
Duncan Jones: .....here in the UK the audience immediately reacts and they get the fact that: “What would be the most annoying thing in the world?” A Chesney Hawkes alarm clock!

WE ARE BACK! well, sort of anyways as we decide to take a break from our yearly seclusion (editor: huh? since when did we have seclusion) to celebrate our nation's 44th birthday, Lowlife's birthday as well, and our dear friend, Faithpig's annual event. you got that right: 小信猪金曲奖2009颁奖典礼 will be in its 15th glorious year and we have once again been invited to predict the winners.



( so ladies and gentlemen, strap on your flu masks and brace yourself for some musical divination! )

given his popularity during his heydays, his music is pretty much a staple on the constantly evolving pop scene during the 80s and to a lesser extent, early 90s. so it's hardly surprising that me brother was a big fan and there's a period of time when he would put the thriller cassette (and subsequently we are the world, but that's another story) and play from start to end at least once a day. wasn't that much into mj stuff, still not really actually but it did contained some enduring pop classics like billy jean, beat it, etc. missed out on his bad era as me bro somehow outgrown his mj phase along the way.

only picked mj back up with the release of dangerous as hyped by the catchy first single - black or white. its eye-catching video ended with a sequence of seamless morphing of many very different faces which given the technology during its time of release, had to be seen to be believed - yet another milestone in his list of many firsts, to me at least. heh.

predicted by "professional" analysts to be the biggest hit single on dangerous, which if i remm correctly, didn't quite happen. nonetheless, with a catchy rhythm line and cryptic lyrics that oozed sensuality and a sepia-toned video directed by the late herb ritts featuring naomi campbell strutting round mj in suggestive poses, in the closet did have all the making of a hit single. also featuring spoken words courtesy of a certain "mystery girl", later revealed to be princess stephanie of monaco.

it was also the era of locally produced late night mtv programmes and of coz on regular rotations were mj's videos and with classic ones like thriller which pretty much defines what a video can do for a single and newer ones like remember the time (ancient egyptian setting featuring cameo eddie murphy and magic johnson as well as arabian-inspired dance moves and touches of visual wizardry),who is it? (directed by david fincher and pretty much an elaborate scenario of cinematic proportion chronicling a story of a mysterious high class escort cheating on the reclusive mj) and of coz scream (collaboration with his sister janet and touted to be the most expensive video ever made during its time though can't really tell where all the money went)
....those were the days.

of coz, the subsequent years marked king of pop's fall from grace. hardly anyone cared abt his music anymore as his private life came under scrutiny with alleged charges as well as financial woes of mega proportions. so much was written about it, it all became really tiresome. much like his music that came after, example earth song (heal the world gone intense?), you are not alone (subsequently repackaged as i believe i can fly?), etc.

which is to say his newer efforts were pretty much off my radar until bjork (a very big mj fan apparently) included one of his then very recent track - butterflies, on her breezeblock playlist. it was one of those times where he sounded so effortlessly smooth and yet so sublime at the same time, quite beautifully done. somewhat still, not enough for me to pick up his newer stuff just yet. i did get a copy of his invincible (some sort of a misnomer, no?) album eventually at quite a bargain but never got round to listening to it. curious i guess but not curious enough.

not sure if his demise will push me to dig out his last proper album and take a listen. somehow, i think i am more inclined to scour for his early days maybe even jackson5 stuff to have a taste of how it all started. somehow, one of my earliest memory of him began with the song - one day in my life. one of those really sentimental maybe even sappy ballads during the motown's golden era, ya know the sort that started off understated leading to one or more dramatic cresendoes. not sure how i gotten to hear it, think my brother probably put it on repeat mode (a tedious affair considering the format) to try and jot down the lyrics or something. in any case, it's one of the songs i can't really shake off until now, not that i mind or anything. and with his passing, it does sound more melancholic than ever, much like how superstar sounded with the tragic passing of karen carpenter i guess.

it's a pity both mj and his career did not age as gracefully as they should. still, given the magnitude of his popularity which is quite unpredented during its peak, there is no dispute to his pop legend status. and with the many bizzare mj anecdotes floating round the rumour mill - all of which unverified, he could be just about as undead as elvis presley in time to come.

i was channel surfing yesterday when i came across the upteemth re-run of her (self) congratulory concert at Taipei's Fisherman Wharf for her Agent J album in 2007. despite the fact that she garnered polarized views - either you liked her or you don't, you have to admit that this lass put in doubly the efforts in her performance than your average pop star. be it the ribbon-acrobatics for her 舞孃 album or her pole dancing period during the above 特務J, she has to come out with a big bang, and no doubt all eyes will be on her.

despite changing record companies (she's with Warner now), the new album is built upon the blueprint of the last one. alternating between fast dance numbers (mostly are covers of existing eurohits) and ballads, this 10th proper full length effort (excluding the excruiating english covers album) has smattering moments of deja-vu, say for example 愈慢愈美丽 is like a sequel to 日不落. creativity, it's surprising that the new company did not ask for a change of producers, which highlighted play-safe-and-consistent-sales approach nowadays when it comes to releasing albums.

only 1 track does it for me: the forlorn 妥协 with the melody written by 阿沁, which thankfully does not pile on the 哭腔 that is so overly evident in 一个人, one of the 特務J singles. and the lyrics, penned by one Wonderful (seriously) is infact, quite wonderful (pun intended). i especially loved the line "你 划定楚河汉界 我 不能轻易犯规", which singlehandedly described the mood and the meaning of the song - good stuff.

a more focused and leaner production than the last one, which is not saying alot. no doubt targetted at the same crowd that helped pushed 特務J to the top of the sales charts, this new album will not attract detractors to the fold. nevertheless, im perplexed at her increasing similarities with Elva Hsiao - the image especially the hair, the slurring enuciation and the half-baked attempt at rapping. her continuing effort to muscle in on Elva's market share (or whatever is left of it) is turning her into something that lacks originality and ingenuity. for me, this 花蝴蝶 lacks the bright colours to stand out, replaced instead by a dull sheen.


Rating:

not really a best-of list as there are indeed many albums i should listen to (see LOWlife's list) but somehow did not managed to. also, somehow lost the habit of listening to albums as a whole, so will not be singling out any albums this time round. so below is merely a list of those songs that somewhat made an impression (move mouse over album art to check out the titles). so i guess the imeem compilation at the bottom of this post is really to make up for the absence of those standards and stuff, enjoy!