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The Next Eternity
Jeff Chang
A timeless album:The Next Eternity ~ Jeff Chang Breaking away from two years of silence, here comes again the Prince of Ballads Jeff Chang. Jeff has just released his first Mandarin album The Next Eternity in two years. The brand new album is composed of 9 Mandarin and 1 Cantonese song. Most of the songs on The Next Eternity are ballads which Jeff is really good at. Help from various songwriters contributed much to offer such a timeless album production. As for Jeff's vocal, it does meet the high expectation of many. He has developed an excellent feel for singing that particular genre of songs and proved that "The Old Wine Is Better". White Moon (Track#1), the first principal track, is... [read more]
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Black & White (New + Best Selection)
Jacky Cheung
Slow hits: Black & White ~ Jacky Cheung Respected as the God of Canto-pop of in the 90's and havig stayed relatively low-profile in recent years, Jacky Cheung has put himself in the spotlight again. Besides preparing day-in-day-out for Snow Wolf Lake (Mandarin version) the theatre drama, he has also released the latest Mandarin album Black & White, with 5 brand new songs and 21 favourite picks by Jacky. Although the 5 new songs in this album are not as sharp and eye-catching as those in Life Is Like A Dream, they are still of much quality. To be frank, the present reviewer does not agree that Jacky is the best singer in the history of Chinese music, but his passionate, forceful and appealing... [read more]
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Back Up (SACD Version)
Andy Hui
Credits well deserved: Back Up ~ Andy Hui Here comes the end of a year as every singer works particularly hard on promotion. Most singers are going to give it one last try of this year for a signature album so as to boost up their popularity and at the same, in search for a big hit which will definitely increase their chances of winning awards. Andy Hui, the Most Popular Male Singer in recent yearas, is of no exception. Back Up, his latest Cantonese album, comes with eleven brand new songs. Back Up is a milestone album for Andy. Back Up is less glitzy and commercial but its scope of songs is widened and not only limted to ballads such as Mud and etc. It has been the best album from Andy in... [read more]
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Leon Dawn (Mandarin Album)
Leon Lai
Leon Dawn (Mandarin Album) ~ Leon Lai Leon Lai, once tapped as one of the "Four Great Heavenly Kings", has recently made a comeback with his long-awaited Cantonese album Dawn . The famous all-rounded star has just released another Mandarin version of the album named Leon Dawn, with Mandarin versions of all the songs in Dawn and some other Canto big hits such as The Fireworks Of Two People (Track#10), the theme song of movie Leaving Me Loving You . The Mandarin versions of those Canto big hits are nice but the present reviewer, after all, prefers the original Cantonese version as the use of words and the story the lyrics present are much better. Unfortunately, there is not much improvement in... [read more]
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Encore! (Limited Edition)
S.H.E
Here's the real charm: Encore! ~ S.H.E S.H.E., the stylish Taiwanese female trio, has just released their second album this year, Encore! with ten new tracks, since Magical Journey in February. "We have been surprising you, but expect surprise out of surprise this time!" is the concept of the promotion for Encore! . Albums by S.H.E. have always been great surprises and Encore! is no exception. In the album you are still going to find limited genres of songs, mostly ballads and dance songs the trio is good at, but their songs are definitely deeper and better in terms of the music, lyrics and production. Encore! demonstrates the real charm and glamour of the three beautiful young ladies.... [read more]
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Grace & Charm (Limited Edition)
Kelly Chen
Steady Performance: Grace And Charm ~ Kelly Chan Having her concert at the Hung Hom Stadium at the moment, Canto-pop siren Kelly Chen surprises her devotees by offering a brand new 10-track Cantonese album Grace & Charm. As in the last album Stylish Index , most songs in Grace & Charm are ballads and dance tunes. There is no major breakthrough in the genre of songs but it is great to know that quality stands still and Grace & Charm is definitely better than the Cantonese album Love last year. Besides, it is well-balanced between being commercial, poppy and catchy and at the same time, avoids to become gaudy and common. So, it is a good album from the icon. Kelly has also kept her own... [read more]
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Love & Promises (AVEP) (Limited Edition)
Leon Lai
Steady Quality: Love & Promises ~ Leon Lai Becoming the boss of a record company is really something and that might have fuelled Leon Lai, who did not release an album for two years, to amazingly release his third album, Love & Promises (AVEP), in an unbelievably short period of just three months. The album sees five brand new Cantonese songs, two Interludes and two music videos included. The industrious Leon has definitely been even more hardworking than most newcomers. While Wyman Wong wrote the Cantonese lyrics, Leon took care of all the Mandarin song material. The album was produced by Mark Lui and Chen HuiYang and the majority of songs offer what Leon is very good at, ballads and love... [read more]
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The Great Leap 2005 (Preorder Version)
David Tao
New Direction: The Great Leap 2005 ~ David Tao For two years have his fans been waiting and it could have been even longer. Fortunately, Tao managed to overcome the controversials that almost led to the banning of his latest album, The Great Leap 2005 , the first part of a trilogy, and greets his fans with an intro and twelve new tunes. Outstanding singer and song writer Tao wrote most of the songs by himself though he also teams up with other writers such as Wa Wa, Zhu Jing Ran, Li Zhuo Xiong and the 12 Girls Band. The album is, indeed, a great leap from Tao's previous footsteps. Gone are the flashy so-called-breakthroughs in music arrangement, here comes the real deal, with David sharing... [read more]
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Tanya (Reissue Version)
Tanya Chua
A masterpiece: Tanya (Reissue Version) ~ Tanya Chua A reissue version of Tanya Chua's debut Mandarin album "Tanya " in from 1998, which marked the start of the star's singing career, has been released. The latest version brings back and reminds us of the then-inspiring Tanya. It was believedTanya was at once regarded as an all-rounded singer and composer wasand shooting shot to fame when Tanya releasedafter the release of her first ever album back in 1998. Among the ten songs in the album, seven were created by Tanya single-handedly and most had already been included in her English album "Bored". The then folk-and-some-rock'n'roll style differs from but lays the foundation for her rather... [read more]
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Maybe Tomorrow
A-Mei Chang
Back to the basic: Maybe Tomorrow ~ A-Mei Chang Having incomprehensibly become the eye of a storm between the People's Republic of China and the Taiwanese government in the recent years has left A-Mei stunnedly speechless. Lucky for her fans, A-Mei is still able to put all the non-sense disputes behind her and has just released her first Mandarin album, Maybe Tomorrow, in over a year. There are 10 brand new songs, 2 bonus tracks and 1 hidden tune in the latest album. Maybe Tomorrow is actually the first ever album that A-Mei has released in Warner Music (TW) and sees a change in preference of song selections. Everything starts with the basic and most of the songs in this latest album are... [read more]
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November's Chopin (CD+VCD) (With Postcard)
Jay Chou
A Musical Masterpiece by Jay Chou, November's Chopin Pop star Jay Chou (Zhou Jie Lun) has just released a new album recently and has attracted a lot of attention in the Chinese community these days. With his first five albums all becoming mega hits, this latest work only confirms what we already know: Jay is the king of Chinese songsters. And in spite of coming a few months after the summer release period, the new songs are brilliant and well-worth the wait. The first track "Nocturne" (yie qu), which was released on the air waves in advance, is a beautiful, sentimental song laced with the lonely echoes of classical guitar and piano. The combination of classical sound and rap vocals, as we... [read more]
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Exposed (Asian Version)
Coco Lee
Quality album: Exposed ~ CoCo Lee It is very true that CoCo Lee is one of Hong Kong and Taiwan's most successful singers to impress the Western music industry. Her last English album Just No Other Way enjoyed global attention and opened up a whole new market for the star. With the release of CoCo's latest 13-track English album Exposed, she is doing better than ever. According to a recent Chinese review the singer is appealing only because she is sexy. The present reviewer does not agree, especially when you consider her vocals and skills. In the present reviewer's opinion, CoCo's voice is unique, passionate, energetic, sweet and sexy. Besides, she sings skillfully. It is absolutely unfair... [read more]
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Goomusic Collection 2004-2008 New + Best Selection (2CD + Karaoke DVD)
Denise Ho
Since her win as Best Female Singer at 2007's Commercial Radio Hong Kong Music Awards, Denise "HOCC" Ho has solidified her place as one of Hong Kong's most popular young musicians. Her latest compilation Goo Music Collection not only marks her work thus far with record company East Asia, but also the four years since establishing her "Goo Music" label. Unlike the usual compilations, which only feature a few new songs to justify a purchase, HOCC also includes brand-new remixes for five of her hit songs in the last four years. The best remixes among the five are "Hanami (Big Band Version)" (Disc 2 - Track 2) and "Rolls. Royce (Blues Version)" (Disc 2 - Track 3). For "Hanami", the new breezy... [read more]
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Dong Bang Shin Ki - The 1st Story Book 'Hug'
Dong Bang Shin Ki (TVXQ)
"Dong Bang Shin Ki - The First Story Book 'Hug'"- A New Ballad Band in Town Dong Bang Shin Ki, a new Korean quintet from the SM Entertainment, are ready to give you a big hug on their first release "Dong Bang Shin Ki Single Hug". All in their black jackets, these five teen idols are determined to spread their endless love to all girls with love ballads. The leading track "HUG" features the solos of each of the five members. The most impressive vocal goes to Hero because of his distinctly strong voice. Another member standing out is Micky, the band's Mr. Sentimental. "HUG", because of its repetitive melody, may not be as appealing as the next main track "My Little Princess". It is however... [read more]
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Yumiko's Space (AVCD)
Yumiko Cheng
After achieving a degree of critical success with 2004s Perfect Date, Yumiko Cheng's new album takes her in a direction no one saw coming: 80s style techno-pop. Producer Carl Ng, with Eric Kwok and People Mountain People Sea's Pixel Toy might have produced Yumiko's best album yet with Yumiko's Space. The refreshing mix of techno-pop, that is rarely seen in Canto-pop, and a proper amount of 80s nostalgia make this album a much-needed breath of fresh air in the Hong Kong music scene. The album starts off with the rather limp first single, Arabian Market. The up tempo song contains some of the most irrelevant lyrics of the year, and was inexplicably chosen as the opening track, giving... [read more]
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The 1st Complete Collection from Faye Wong (3CD+Karaoke DVD)
Faye Wong
With the recent news of her marriage and pregnancy, the possibility of Faye Wong retiring (again) is more real than ever. Coming at an opportune time then, is The 1st Complete Collection From Faye Wong, which is exactly what it sounds like - a 48-song collection of Faye's greatest hits. Unless you?re willing to search out every Faye Wong album ever produced, this will likely be the most complete collection of Faye hits compiled, and is certainly the best one. A collaboration between several record companies, The 1st Complete Collection From Faye Wong compiles over ten years of Faye's songs, dating back from her "Shirley Wong" days to her 2001 album Faye Wong. The collection includes too many... [read more]
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Seo Tai Ji Vol. 7
Seo Tai Ji
Looking energetic in his latest sportswear commercial, Seo Tae Ji has also been active again in the Korean music industry with this brand new album Seo Tae Ji Vol. 7. Since Seo Tae Ji released his last album Ultraman in 2000, Seo Tae Ji Vol. 7 comes out as an original full album after a fine 3-year effort. Time invested on this new project surely pays off well as Seo Tae Ji proves himself once again as one of the best of the best singer-songwriters in Korea. What this new album sells is a one-man-band production where Seo Tae Ji takes charge of all songwriting, penning, arrangement, production, guitar playing, sound effect programming and post-record mixing. Before the musical journey, what... [read more]
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After Ten - Wyman Wong Best Selections (2CD+VCD)
Wyman Wong
| Hong Kong Various Artists
| Ekin Cheng
| Sammi Cheng
DJ, actor, fashion columnist - while all these job descriptions would fit into Wyman Wong's profile, he is first and foremost a Chinese pop lyricist. After a surprise win at the Hong Kong Commercial Radio music awards (often recognized as the top awards in Hong Kong's music industry) as Best Lyricist this year, beating the legendary and longtime consecutive winner Lin Xi, Wyman is commemorating his 10-year anniversary as a lyricist with After Ten - a 34-track collection that highlights some of Wyman's most notable works. While the collection didn't capture some of his best lyrics (for a variety of reasons including copyright issues), its a worthy one for fans who don't own all one thousand... [read more]
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Miyavi -This iz The Japanese Kabuki Rock- (ALBUM+DVD)(First Press Limited Edition)(Japan Version)
Miyavi
An extended period of time abroad would usually change someone to adapt more to the newly adapted culture. In the case of visual kei rocker Miyavi, his time abroad in the United States actually brought about the inspiration to make an album that explores what exactly is Japanese rock, as well as the Japanese identity. The result is - naturally - an album named This Iz Japanese Kabuki Rock. Despite Miyavi's visual kei rocker appearances, braided hair, various piercing and all, his music is not what one might consider to be the "hardcore" rock visual kei is sometimes associated with. The album does start off with a bang with JPN PRIDE (Track 1), a rock track that combines a bit of hip-hop and... [read more]
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I Loved Yesterday (Normal Edition)(Japan Version)
YUI
Who said cute 21-year-old Japanese girls can't rock? With a spunky high-tone voice more fit for children's songs than rock-pop, young Japanese musician YUI returns on the heels of her most successful year yet with her 3rd album I Loved Yesterday. Unlike her American contemporaries such as Michelle Branch and Avril Lavigne, YUI lacks the powerful voice of the typical female rock artist, but it's the summery spunkiness in her music that makes her a better fit for the genre than a typical female Japanese pop idol. With all the tracks written by YUI herself, I Loved Yesterday is a guitar-driven album that falls in between two styles - rock ballads and light rock-pop. The rock-pop genre gets a... [read more]
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