Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Someone Like You


What if you found someone whom you've been looking for all your life? Someone whom fit perfectly the mold you wanted someone as a spouse. You believe he is the one, forever and ever...

And he does not think the same..

It's pretty heartbreaking. Sad. Are there someone else then out there to fill this vacancy then? Will there be a substitute to this desolate and most disheartening feeling ever?


What happen?

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Robyn's Robyn

Looking for good pop music to play in your house lounge when you invite the who's who of party? Searching for the best pop song to come out recently but overlooked by the mainstream media to brag to your peers? 

This is the album to play.

Robyn Robyn, go and get it.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs

In a kingdom of yesteryears, a queen who is so vain of her own beauty realized that someone else is more beautiful  than herself. And that someone happens to be her own stepdaughter. No mention of her husband the king, she was so jealous she ordered a shepherd to bring her to the forest to be killed and as a proved that the shepherd did not lie she asked the shepherd to bring to her the princess's heart to her.

The shepherd was not able to kill her out of deep sympathy and fondness for the princess. He let her go and demanded her to run as far away as possible.

The princess ran and ran and reached a small little cottage that was inhabited by 7 dwarfs. They made great friends and began to forge a great relationship, even with one member of the dwarf who initially was not agreeable to the stay of the princess.

The next day after much partying and celebration, the dwarfs set off their routine daily diamond-harvesting, leaving the princess all by herself, accompanied by her friendly and cute animals. 

Whence the princess was cooking apple pie for the dwarfs, the queen in the guise of an old decrepit lady with basket of apple offered the princess the apple.

What was initially a reluctance of the princess to be tempted by the old lady to take the apple turns out to the princess taking a bite out of the apple due to the old lady's pitching about the power of the apple which able to fullfill anybody's wish who takes a bite of it.

The princess was evidently fell to the ground and went unconscious. The queen was laughing with sinister glee. Upon walking out of the door she realized the dwarves are running home being alarmed by the princess's friendly animals. The queen  still in the guise of the old lady, ran to the other side which turns out to be a dead end of a hill cliff. It was also begin to rain heavily, occasional accompanied by thunderstorm.

At the end of the hill cliff there's a huge rock, lying precariously, which the queen used with a stick to tilt it towards the dwarves who are running furiously up the hill to catch the queen. 

Luck has it, whilst the queen was tilting the rock with a stick as a fulcrum, lightning strikes at the weak side of the cliff, making the land where the queen stood crumble and fell together with the queen. With the fall of the chunk of land, the rock which was being tilted to fall to the slope side of the hill, intentioned to hit the dwarves instead took the opposite side and fell after the queen. 

The expression of the vultures at the fall of the queen and the rock made it sound like the rock landed on the queen.

The dwarves was so devastated with the demise of the princess that they did not have a heart to bury her, but instead build a glass coffin to be displayed.

One day the prince whom saw the princess on the day before the princess was forced to run away from home due to the death threat by the queen, and fell in love and serenaded the princess with songs of love, which was of course requited with a kiss via a proxy pigeon.

In order to break the spell of the apple, the princess must be kissed by her first and one true love. The prince saw the lying and calm princess in the glass coffin and went up to her and planted a kiss. 

After the kiss, the princess was awake, like waking up from her slumber. Everybody cheered and celebrated. The prince took the princess on his white mare. The princess kissed all the dwarves goodbye and the story ends as "and they lived happily ever after".

Strive TO BE The Best

How did the art direction of the 50's ever managed to create such a beautiful and timeless movie such as Snow White and THe Seven Dwarfs?

What such creative production? 

What differentiate  one good movie from a bad one? What makes one movie an oscar winner and another a Razzie recipient?

It is being brave!!! It is daring to be different, it is daring to be oneself without fear of being villified and laughed at. It is being mad that amkes a person stand out. But he needs an extra something something, talent.

Either that or it's hard work. How hard do you come out with your idea? How badly do you want this?

Remember this Sun..

YOu will be great rather than good. 

YOu have done a great job for a start, to be who you are, to stand out for yourself even when there is a little self-doubt, even when others are against your values, even when many jealous souls are tarnishing your dignity. 

This is your destiny, work hard for it, for talent only talent blessed a small number of people. Most others are need hard work, plus they are usually the more successful than the natural talent. 

Saturday, April 26, 2008

Little Voice Review: Contemporary At Its Greatest





I could start by saying Sara Bareilles has hit jackpot with an album that transcend the present pop culture, with her alto but strong vocal prowess and a great knack of an ability to write strong melody, this album is the standout album for this year.

And it's a welcoming production where charts and airplays are monopolized by the run-of-the-mill gangsta urban rap hits, or when the adult contemporary chart surrounded by repeated old 90's Dianne Warren-written songs, songs from adult chart are so boring that a hit could last at no.1 for more than 10 weeks, case in point Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield in 2005 spent 10 non-consecutive weeks at no.1 trading places with Home flip flopping like nobody's business.

So I am eager to share with you the beauty of this album. An outstanding and perpetually-on-my-playlist album.

It starts with Love Song, a constant darling by radio djays, it was initially thought out, due to its title, a sappy love song for lovers on valentine's day, but upon listening, turns out to be an angry ode towards someone. It did not make sense initially, "I am not gonna write you a love song, if u ask for it" does not sound like a conversation with her lover. End up, after reading further, "OH" pops out from my brain; it's a ditty to unscrupulous greedy recording agents who pressured her to write a love song to fit in this album. How ironic it is to come out that successful.

Then she takes us her earlier days of ambitiousness, the usual "live up your dream" mantra taken up by many pretty-face people looking for superstardom but lacking much of talents, in Vegas.

Take not that all her songs are mostly self-penned, she has definitely got the 'teeth' to write good songs, and it shows in Bottle It Up, a song about her conversation she had with her ex-bf, and how she's not gonna quit just because the relationship ends.

One Sweet Love is a heart-renching song about how she longs for a true "sweet" love. How much she wants to taste at least for a while how would it feel to be in the state of real love with someone who loves her back. Not bad

Come Around Soon obviously is about someone non-lover whom she's angry at. And she end with a strong climax soaring at her highest note from the album. Here her attitude-floundering is at its greatest.

Every love song always comes with unrequited love, every album always comes with longing for the one whom u've been ditched. Certainly every single sould(save for some) would have loved and being dumped badly by that person. Every single album also has story on love-break-and-love-again-then-break-again song, and Morningside speaks from her heart from Sara's experience. 
She said
"Let me down you say never baby blues don't you ever
I'm used to being one with the misfortune to find"

 Perhaps the strongest ballad in this album is Between The Lines, driven by melodic piano rift, she wails her way to a sad ditty that is Morningside Part 2.

And then every other album must have songs about dumping people as many as songs about being dumped, and hence Love on The Rocks  is the one u could play when u wanna dump someone.

"Here's a simplification of everything we're going though
You plus me is bad news"


I can relate very much to Many The Miles, about what's life purpose and all.

Gravity was rehashed from her debut album; Careful Confessions. I would love to have a listen of that album cauise Gravity; about entanglement with the person you try very hard to break free from, is beautiful

If you wanna get a piece of ones life and read them hard and wide, if you wanna have someone to understand you and share your feelings with, get this album.

It's the Adult Contemporary album of the year.

Friday, April 25, 2008

How did I fare over the five days on holiday?

1. Porn-arrrrgh still the infectious disease I could not shave away from. Doing 4 days  out of five
2. Book reading- read a couple of books, but still many to complete, 
3. Movie watching- a couple of movies I watched Including Lars And the Real Girl, which is a great movie
4. Cleaning up the house. I see it as a gradual activity, taking things one step at a time. Moreover house will always get dirty, if there's a reason to be clean eg frens coming over, there will be a spring clean season, if there's no reason, it will be done rather on whim hehe
5. Blogs- so far so good, I came out with many articles



Next goals to achieve from what's left of my days:
1. Continue with the house cleaning, blog and movie watching
2. Need to buck up on the book reading
3. Assignment speech is yet untouched

I NEED TO KNOW MY HOLIDAYS WERE SPENT WISELY!!!

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Testing Myself Too Much

I love myself a lot these days that I really don;t care how people hate me. 

In fact I know how to react to it, or shall I say proactively response to it. 

Though it need some refinement, like a quick and bulls-eye counter jibe, but I just love myself too much to bother.

The thing to remember is that this is a test.. A test of my self-worth and self-confidence. Do I value myself too much to be affected by the insults from the others? 

Answer is correct: I just value myself too much to be affected by the words.

Short of Money

OK, I have decided!

Since I don' t have the money to travel and since my credit card says "I am bloated and do some enema on my ass please" and I am a miser, wiser and older for my own good thinking about how my future gonna be uncertain as the health of my parents, I have decided to spend my holidays on books. 

I have bought a lot of books over the 32 years of my life, some out of the real need to cram for information, some for light entertainment and some due to impulsive buying. Ironically not all books that are wasted are  bought under the latter category;bought on a whim of the perceived and self-conceited need.

This makes me having piles of books begging for me to read them. And read I have. I have read the long-awaited John Grisham's The Innocent Man, his first ever non-fiction on  the wrongly accused and incarcerated Ronnie Williamson to a crime he did not commit. He was jailed and even a few days away close to being injected with Sodium Thiopenthal, and Potassium Chloride in the most deadly city of Oklahoma before being halted due to the mandatory appeal owned by every citizen on his death sentencing; well the appeal was not decided yet, it was apparently a technical error that they sent a letter to Ronnie telling him he would get executed when Ronnie himself was left uninformed. So much for close shave.

Before that I also finished a unneccessary, unneeded and kinda boring book My Life As  A Quant by a Professor in Physics and Finance Analysis, Emanuel Derman. I meant unnecessary cause it was given to me by Austin cause he thought I would appreciate it having seen me reading financial papers like THe Edge; turns out that the theory and rhetoric here are bunch of gobbledygook which I do not really need to better understand what I am reading. I kinda understand more about bond though, albeit I did not ever involve in bond before. It's kinda a waste of time generally but hey I am proud of finishing this book, well of course I skipped the useless part like how he went on a few pages about how he got to his theory that he made which in all means and benefits I won't gonna remember it.

Next I scanned through Rudy Giuliani's Leadership, his book about his mayorship of New York between 1994 and 2001, centering the book around 911 and US foreign policy. I kinda get a deeper understanding to how a republican, or conservative in US may think like; falling back on divine intervention, high integrity, progressive somewhat and hypocrisy another. Overall I find this book inspiring where inspiration due, especially when  dealing with a catastrophe as humongous as the terrorist attack on World Trade Centre. 

I really want to read a fiction again but fictions are the ones I usually devour and finish first on the day I buy them. Non fictions are the ones that lay collecting dust after a few pages turned. So I am now surrounded by so many non-fiction looking at me with accusing glare, coaxing me to read them. Perhaps a Stephen King? :)

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

R&B Hip Hop?!! I m Digging IT!!

I was at this new opening of gay bar owned by a friend of a friend. Met this cutie but he left early(oh well).  And we were talking about his bar which looks tad unworthy of a gay bar. The Carlsberg sign, the simple interior, the green colour and non of the sign says fabulous.

We gave him a few pointers on sprucing up the place, and then we talked about music. I naturally suggested him to find a new line of music for more refined ears(hehe) Enough of the techno and incoherent babbling of house music. For once, make a gay bar sound a straight! Not that R&B Hip Hop belongs to straight people.

So he was asking if anyone could provide him a compilation of R&B Hip HOp song. I was like, the hell I would! I will be the dee jay, (well sort of) .

Hence I was sieving through my CD collection and stuffs, and copying and pasting some of my best what is now known as urban music for this new friend of mine who incidentally looks a bit like Rudy Giuliani(haha) but gay.

Let me share with ya my nigga some of the best urban jam I would just LOVE to dance on when MR D Jay play it;

Fantasy Mariah Carey and ODB version. The hallmark of R&B Hip Hop, the epitome of Hip Hop greatness, and the turning point when Hip Hop became desirable in the mainstream and pop became urban. The person who did it is none other than the queen of pop herself, Mariah Carey. She is the first ever pop mainstream act to do a hip hop collaboration, the Homo Erectus of the evolutionary music in AMerica. Yet, being the first doesn't mean it need refinement, it is THE BEST hip hop song ever! It hit the chart all over the wrold and made Day Dream her most successful album after MusicBOx and erned her 6 Grammy's. 

Can;t Nobody Hold Me Down- Puff Daddy. Puff Daddy's debut album where he got his entire family record with him is I believe is one of the best hip hop album ever to come out of the scene. He's the first one who did sampling of old song and flip and reinvent them totally to a new sound and new hit, long before Kanye does. And this is one of his best effort ever. Other important ones which should be listed here as ones of the greats but would seem redundant if explained are Mo Money Mo Problem, It;s All About The Benjamin.

Fantasy- Mariah Carey, Puff Daddy and Mase, we are still in the 90's here, please bear with me. In fact I am sure you are enjoying yourselves. This is one of the best collaboration for Mariah Carey. Puff Daddy was just a genius! He captured the new essence of Mariah Carey- nasal, falsetto soaring weakness, sexy - so well in this single and sampled the opening lines from World's Famous Supreme's Hey DJ  The Treacherous Three's Body Rock this hit one of her most memorable from her.

Like I Love You- Justin Timberlake Now we're into 21st century, the name Neptune pops out like Mount Everest on the sea level. Their syncopathic beat simply reinvented hip hop over the course of 2000 to 2005. Chad Hugo and Pharrel Williams who surprisingly did not come out with memorable hits themselves even though they actually recorded a couple of studio albums. Justin Timberlake for one is the one act who knows where the music is evolving into. With the descend of Boy Band era of the 90's all top boy band members decided to go solo, and none of them are around today, except for him, for he knows where music is heading towards. He teamed up with Timbaland and Pharrell and came out with some of the most prolific hip hop tracks ever like Cry Me A River, Sexy Back and My Love. Like I Love You is I consider the best to come out by him.

Touch The Sky by Kanye West- coming off from his second studio album Late Registration, this is one of the best single from the album. It features Lupe Fiasco in the song. 







Monday, April 21, 2008

Seriously I Really Can;t Be Bothered

I mean I can;t be bothered.

This guy in msn asked me for my photo, when he did not put up a clear photo of himself. We first met in fridae, and hence we have known each other in fridae. Of course i did put my photo in fridae and hence of course you should have seen me already else you would not have msg me to be frens!

What's with the silhouette of twinky-you illuminated by the dusk background. Like I would know how cute(NOT!) you look like, in that odd pose of singlet and bermuda. Please!!!

Moreover I am not in the mood to get to know people. I am in the unsociable mood. I have 1001 stuffs in my me-time. 

I could get the guys  that I want at Frangi and Marketplace, and wherever I go I get people paying attention to me, my look, my charm and my intelligence. My ability to make people laugh is my pride, people who do not laugh at my humor are either blonde aka dumb or deaf. So there!! 

I doubt I will find you attractive cause you look too chinky to be able to converse good english with me. You're like my past few dating-cum-fucks; they generally just stay quiet throughout the meet, from dinner to fucks. All they know is to show how good are they at sucking me off. I have no doubt you would end up the same.
That is if I want to even meet up with you of course.

SO there.

I am in my diva mode, and but of course to be able to continue perching myself up at the pedestal of socialite elite I have to be tactful with you. I would usually say, sorry I dun't have photo at the moment, y not I send to you next time?

Now, I am not in the best of mood, I prefer to just shut u off and you go wondering whatever happen to me, not answering your stupid question, too dumb to realize your obvious stupidity and blondeness.

I am out

Saturday, April 19, 2008

What ot write what to write

I am torn, I am not sure where to go

First and foremost I dun think I have the money to go. If I use too much money I have this nagging sense of fear that I am unable to clear off the debt in the short run. 

Probably my exposure to Francis yesterday gave me an overwhelming sense of envious insecurity coming out from his overly successful, high monetary returns from his work by his diametric biological clock as I am.

Will I end up like the person, Gary whom my braggociously mad customer's driver, whom was told about his mountainous debt of 25k at his age of 50 confined him to a life of perpetual employment without any sign of light at the end of the tunnel. 

Or what if my parents got sick, a notion which usually a person pushing the age of 30 would think of, as for me whether I am able to pay up for the medical bills that might come my way, or will I absolve myself from the very filial responsibility that I ever gonna act on since the last time I paid my parents allowance early this year?

Damn, then again, life is all about living it to the max. Isn't I for all the coccoon I have immersed myself unknowingly for the past decade of my 20's, has lost all the opportunity to be the best that I am feeling and seeing right now? I have notice the changes in my brain, the ability to think complex thoughts, to come out with complex thoughts. to rebut what was then with weak "watever" replies everytime I am stuck for words, even though my nagging egos would have wanted me to stand up and get myself heard, that I am not the proverbial dumb blonde or even to "get even" at whatever jibes that were thrown at me with ease and spontaneity. If I did not expose myself enough to this friends, if I did not invest enough with my exploration, if I did not weakly feign certain characteristics to be able to involve and belong to this group and to this street-smart type of life, how would I ever able to talk constructively with Francis yesterday, how would I ever able to give such an inspiring training to my successor to the point she told me that "this company gona lose a very talented person", how would I ever able to lay my head to my pillow, without any regrets of how the day goes by, due to the inaction I took from the insults and annoying gestures I get from people that mattered!?

My question is, would this return of investment I put  in the self-discovery theme cover the cost I put in? And how soon will I see the return?

This question is difficult to find. "How would I know the future?" question would tantamount to harming myself to the foot, and throwing myself from my 23 storeys condo for such immature response is an awe-disappointing response. I should ask

a: I exploit more of the learnings that I gain
b: I place the exploit in dollar values, 
c: The sense of urgency if definitely on the card for the money spent is tremendous. Gone are the days of procrastination and last minute assignment completion.

Shall we plan already? :)

Friday, April 18, 2008

First Day of holiday

i am embarking on a holiday of a lifetime. Never will I ever have this epic self-discovery journey again, at least not for a very long time.

I have just fullfilled my notice period resignation and am waiting to report my first day in my new company coming May 2, 2008. Meaning between now and then, I am unemployed, unburden, free, liberal and unbounded by the shackles and needs of other party other than myself(or probably my family member :))

Hence, this is the time where I could make the most of, just for myself. A self-discovery journey of a lifetime. WHere I am heading and where had I been? What do I know about myself and my potential?

I will not go idle. I will expoloit the time I have and kill the most out of it.

My plan is to go to Bangkok, and Taiwan(perhaps) next week, do something, anything that I have never done before.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Mariah Did Idol Proud


Thank goodness!! She pulled it off! I was so afraid she couldn't, went pitchy and
hoarse and stuffs!! Hail the queen Mariah!!

Mariah Carey one of the most gifted vocallist in the world was the most enchanting
singer ever to grace any concert or show. During the 90's her vocal soar like the
sky worship the sound it vibrates on. Remember when she did If It's Over in the Grammy
back in 1992? It still gave me goosebump! Remember when she goes freestyle on
Joy To The World, "god where did she get the stamina and vocal acrobat from?"

But since Butterfly, her voice has shown signs of fatigue, overexertion of her voice, the
wrong technique that she adopt in her singing has finalloy taken its toll on the VOICE.

She became the singer whom backup singer doubles as occasional lead singer, she is credited
as much to her backup singer as much as the soaring notes that she barely reached.
Occasional lip-synch(my allegations, which is not unfounded) she has become the debate topic between
the loyal fans and loyal critics. "Does she or does she not sucks in her live performance?"

One thing for sure, she is just not as good as she was before. The charm is gone. Celine Dion and
could still belt songs which she recorded 10 years ago like All By Myself and It's All Coming Back To Me Now,
but why can;t she? The reason is arguably the surest thing you could say about her.
Her vocal technique is just not the type type which all music tacher would condone.

So it's a big surprise for me when she actually decided to grace the biggest show on earth
where vocal pitch and soaring notes are the worship deity for every contestants and are the
the demi-god where every audience searching for. She's going to actually perform live in front
of audiences who are conditioned to specifically pinpoint the pitch note and demand the soaring notes
at every chorus.

Her songbook are collection of musical Picasso, very hard to imitate and very hard to sing
by lowly idol-wannabe. In all of Idol show, songs from Mariah are as rare as songs from
say REM, because it's just begs for audience to compares the contestant to her. And this show
proves just that. All the contestants who strictly follows the arrangement of her original recording pales
in comparison. Syesha sucks big time, trying to do a Vanishing, reminiscing of her performance
in Saturday Night Live 1990, Syesha is like the earth and Mariah's heaven's heaven.

Carly flop with her rendition of WIthout You. Mariah's remake is the best version ever for that song!! What does she
think she's doing? Then again what choice does she has. The best vocallist among the idol contestants can;t even do it!

Kristy, enough said. She's clever enough to simplify the arrangement so that she could just lie her
way through this week.

Brooke! Worse Hero rendition ever! Then again was there ever another person's rendition ever done?

The guys instead prove that Mariah's song could only be succesfully pulled off by creatively
flip off the arrangement and make it say rockish for David Cook and Latino for Jason Castro. And they worked
Only Archuleta, whom we know are such a gifted and seasoned diva song's singer could do a Mariah's
version and come out victorious and glorified by Simon.

So, I am done with insulting the contestants.

The result night!

Mariah performed Bye Bye, the second single from E=MC2 which is incidentally released that day.
She could either prove her worth for a no.1 album, which would obviously hit no.1, or totally turn off
the viewers with her hoarse voice, bad flu-excuse, and weak vocal.

But as surprise as it might seem, she did the former. It was spot on! IT was pitchless and the thing is,
all the judges gave her standing ovation! Simon never gave anybody standing ovation before! And that says a lot.
I am so glad. She is so gonna sell more than 600k copies this time. I hedge my bet higher than 500k which
i said last night.

My only qualm is that she sing so like the song from the album. No vocal twist, no extra subtleties to reflect the
mood of the night, no artful melisme that defines her performance during the 90's. It could justas well lip-synched!!
But before I get myself assasinated by Mariah's fanatic, I will give her the benefit of the doubt. It's
not possible to lip-synch in the very show that promotes vocal prowess.

She has my blessing...

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

E=MC2


I've always been Mariah Carey's fan since day 100(well  day 100 is roughly the day I heard Vision of Love after it is already at the top of charts for like several weeks, it was just a glance through some music channel where they mention the top 10 song, but they never really play it, then one day I heard it over the radio while I was lazying down in my living room, I was blown away, instantly in love with her and never looked back). I was with her through thick and thin. 

I bought her Charmbracelet album, twice even though I think it sucks. I bought the second time because they have this offer to buy at discounted price after the purchase of her ticket for Charmbracelet tour in Malaysia back in I dun know, 2003 or 2004? I dun quite remember.

Well, enough of the history, let's talk about E=MC2, but that's exactly I was trying to get at. I was with her through sickness and health and we came out stronger, and I thought she would have become some sort of an artist who does not compromise on good music when it comes to her body of work since her Emancipation album.

I mean Emancipation was a great album. I loved it the first time I heard it. We Belong Together was an all-time sing-along song, the ballads are breakthroughs, the hip hop jams are shining bright. Hell it won 3 Grammys in 2o06! It just makes you believe, really believe that Mariah Carey has finally graduated as the darling of Grammy Grannies, just like Kanye and Alicia. You believe so much that the next albums gonna be like Aretha's hey days releases, Grammy nominees or winners through and through.

Boy was I disappointed!

Badly disappointed.

I tried and tried to love it. I failed.

Migrate was horrendous. It's true that one critic says about the album, only Touch My Body is worthy enough for a single. I fear the worst, that Touch My Body is the ONLY no.1 song here. 

The rest of the album are forgettable except for a couple;

I'm That Chick- ethereal like the 70's heyday, possible single and the most potential to reach the top.

Love Story- I love it at it's first listen, but the interest fade upon repeated playing, I am not sure why! I mean this is one only good ballad that's worthy of consideration for the chart.

Bye Bye- it's a good ballad, formulaic to the C! But it's a Don't Forget About Us rip-off! The chord and the beat sounds just like the 17th no.1. Will it be her 19th no.1. I highly doubt so.

The listeners are yes, bunch of run-of-the-mill ears who listen to what sounds melodic, and yes, the beats has to be urban, give me T-pain beat with Scott Storch joint, but they ain't as stupid as unable to discern a so-yesterday sound!

I worry the worse for her. After all those promotional interviews and tours done, I am afraid it's not worth the salt of her sweat. Seriously!

Probably it could sell 500,000 copies in the first week next week, but the sales would plunge like rocks into ravine on the subsequent weeks. 

Pessimistic? Yes, for a Mariah fan, would that be tantamount to apostasy? Haha, I am exaggerating, but it not unfounded. 

Buy it and take a listen, cause there ain't not gonna be new fans to supoprt its ascension this time.

L.A Reid, shame on you!

Saturday, April 12, 2008

I am Shelby Lynne

Shelby Lynne is a alternative country music act who comes out with some of the most outstanding albums of our time. Born in October 22, 1968 in Quantico, Virginia, she is in my opinions the most prolific female act I've ever heard. Her smooth husky voice accompanied by her strong laconic phrasing is the hallmark of her emotional projection of her songs. 

She was discovered back in 1988, when she was only in her teens and was touted to  be the one of the most talented new artist at that time. Unfortunately since then till the late 90's where she came out with 4 Nashville-infused albums, she did not achieve the success where it's due, most probably because she had to adhere to the cookie-cutter formula of the country record company which did not suit her voice.

Then it happens, in 1999 she decided she's had enough and break free from the constraints of record company and came out with this album. I am Shelby Lynne. a soulful collection of heart-rending pop songs. It incorporates deeply biographical lyrics in blues and rock & roll elements, helped by the smokey grains of her voice, the emotion that she exudes in  this album is something that run-of-the-mill pop vocalists will never able to touch.

She wrote and co-wrote all of her songs. Let me lead you to some of her songs in this album  I AM Shelby Lynne. 

Your Lies kicks off the album with sweeping violin and driving electric guitar talks about her anger being cheated by her lover. 

Your lies won't leave me alone
you used to say you loved me did ya
why'd you do me this way
it didn't have to be that way


Leaving is an emotionally-charged song about saying goodbye to her lover, accompanied by soft music in the background, giving her husky voice and laconic phrasing do their magic. 
You thought you had it all figured out
but baby, you don't know what love's about
It's time for me to spend some time alone
I'm tired of trying to make
this your happy home


mLife is Bad is a memphis-influenced country rock song just about sums up her jadedness with life yet the resolve to move on is very much alive. It's a great sing-along especially when you are in the middle of a chaotic personal life you could go

Oh life is bad
Oh no, worst I ever had


rIt's discernible only on the chorus, the rest of the verses for me are bunch gobbledy- gook which only a southern country folks would be able to understand. I think that makes the wonder of this track. You know just as well what this song is all about, and being incomprehensible on the verses make it easier to relate and you could project your own feelings to the song as well.

Not all the songs in the album are about calamity and tragedy, this song Gotta Get Back is about anticipation of being reunited with the man she loves

I can almost touch u,
flying above the clouds in a bit old plane
I can'twait to hold u and c u again
tell u where i;ve been

Perhaps the most beautiful song I've ever heard is this dreamy, flute-driven song of bedroom conversation, almost sounding erotic, Shelby does her magic of making clarity and sweetness the rule of her game.

She repeated Did YOu miss Me Did You Miss Me at the end of the song. It's like the type of stuffs you say to your lover almost every night

And last but not least song from the album is Where I am From, a wonderful ode to her Alabama roots, She sings in a dreamy twang, accompanied by bass guitar and strings. 
Crickets spreadin' rumors by the shoreline
with the lonesome lady whine
crab trap full of nothin
I'm high as the tide, all the time



Thursday, April 10, 2008

The Fallacy of Love: Sara Bareilles

Sara Bareilles- Love Song

In the culture of western compatriots, love is the ultimate joy of life, it's the finance of the minutes of life. Circulation of love juice is very much alive and kicking, feeding the hungry stressed-out both cosmopolitan and village people alike like chicken bun to a proletariat. It moves like a heart pumping, staccato and ever so rumbling, maimed by the periodical act of killings. The heartbreaking acts by the minor hooligans will not and can not stop the flow of the love act, love juice and love money in the western world.

And hence love song is ever so essential to hold it together, it's like the capillary that enclosed with pulsating might. It helps to prevent haemorrhage, which kills the organ of the world. Putting a strong resistance, the love song defines how love should be.

Yet, love songs kills creativity and stereotype how a relationship should come about, should inspire, should be sowed and ultimately to be broken. And hence that's where the fallacy of love comes in; whatever the pure love exist when people are so in line with what the pop songs tell us? 

At least I am aware that love is so bounded by the shackles of silly chinese pop songs coming from a small number of writers in Taiwan and Malaysia that we see no shortages of depressed asshole barring their love to the love song of their dream.

ok i digress, it's so hard to write a review for this song cause I just love it. Sara Bareilles has the right ingredient to come out top in the chart for it's fresh new pop sound.
I guess we have found the right adult contemporary sound to survive and thrive in this rhythmic-obsessed urban music. 

 Heavy on the piano and strong on the melody, and edgy on the lyrics, come-on a little bit of anger wouldn't hurt either. So let's see what is the next adult contemporary breakthrough to rise to the upper echelon of Hot 100? 


Tuesday, April 8, 2008

This loneliness is deep!

Wow, (almost the most usual word I use, not sure whether it is even a word) I am feeling the slice of the knife this afternoon. I am feeling the shrieking hollow in my heart right now, short of leaking my eyes off I am trying to avoid sappy songs.

I miss him. I never miss someone that badly. Or at least I dun remember missing someone that much. But I am ok. I am fine. This is a great feeling.  I finally having a strong emotional attachment in a very very long time. It's not really an odd thing for me but I am sure 99% of the world population would understand what I am going through. 

Attachment with someone is an age-old story. Two falls in love, two can't stop thinking of the other, and two just can't wait to see each other again. When I was waching my Private Structure underwear I have a pang of de ja vu. I remember the hardcore of missing was when I was in my preteens, during our school holidays my cousins and I were dumped at our grandparents. We had so much good times with our grandparents that on the day when we were brought away by my parents, I can still see it vivid in my eyes, the tear just well up, like open dam. Surprisingly my father saw me and were nonchalant about it. None of the "ah u ok?" and "you had a great time huh?". I of course know the whole story afterwards.