Author: Wilfrid

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Travel Blog

Photos From My Petaling Jaya Road Trip – Of PJ Hilton, The Curve, And More

PJ Hilton

After my rather unexpected encounter with the Malaysian Custom, my next challenge was to locate “PJ Hilton”.  I had no clue how exactly to get there.  It’s been donkey years since I worked in Petaling Jaya and how the whole place has changed!  There are new flyovers, streets turned one-way, new shops spawned from nowhere, and already humongous shipping malls duplicate into twice the size.  This interesting satellite city of Kuala Lumpur has officially gained a city status just two years ago.

Photo captions from left to right: (1) A slice of Petaling Jaya, (2) PJ Hilton, (3) View from the hotel room

Truly a weird feeling not sure if some of you could relate, pieces of memory of the street layout that I was once so confident in negotiating from one street to another seems to have vanished in thin air.  I have zero recollection on where is where in PJ.  OK, I do have a vague idea that PJ Hilton is along the Federal Highway but how to get to the highway?

New Paris Restaurant and the Curve

Photo captions from left to right: (1) New Paris Restaurant at SS2, a must try! (2) interesting dish with champagne braised chicken that has a sour taste served with balls of water melon!  Say what?! (3) Finally, “The Curve” signboard after a 2 hours drive … the return trip was barely a half-an-hour trip.

Fortunately, what we humanly not possible to accomplish – in my case, the revival of my faded memory – technology made possible.  Nokia Map is a great tool, though I must say the screen size of my N95 is a tad too small.  It is pretty much like a computer game to me.  There is an icon marked as my destination.  And there is this blinking cursor telling me where I am via the global positioning system established between my tiny phone and the far away satellites above me.  All I need to do is keep driving till the blinking cursor coincide with the target icon – in theory.

The Curve at Petaling Jaya

Photo captions from left to right: (1) “The Curve” is a new shopping mall with little stores along the middle of the street, (2) TGI Friday!  I wonder if they will return to Singapore one day, (3) There is … Cineleisure at “The Curve”!

And because I do remember and know some of the landmarks and eating spots in PJ, finding them in my phone is relatively easy.  Getting there, took time.  At one point, after going round and round in circle and Cynthia and I were excited to see that our car was finally heading directly to the new shopping mall “The Curve” only to realize that it was a dead end blocked by another highway.

Also unexpectedly, I have decided to call up my good old friend Catherine and her husband whom I met back when I was working in Mauritius.  Their daughters are so cute!  And they have grown up so much.  Amazingly adorable they are.

My friend Catherine and her family at PJ

Categories
Music Reviews Pop Rock & Alternative

HAARP – Muse Live Tour – Full Of Light And Sound

HAARP by Muse

We have watched the Muse concert at Fort Canning Singapore back in January last year and that, has blown our minds.  Can HAARP – a CD and DVD collection recorded at Wembley UK on June 16 and 17 respectively – blow our minds too?  The answer is a definite yes.

I won’t go through much of the details here because my previous journal has (surprisingly to me!) captured more or less the essence of what you would expect in terms of sound and visual (ahem … a pat on my back).  What I will cover here is how I perceive the post-production work involved in creating HAARP.

Let’s start with the CD.  Muse is a 3-piece band with one to two additional musicians to help out on selected songs when on tour.  The live recording of the music tracks are surprisingly clear given how hard it is when sound tends to flood over from one track to another.  And the sound from the audience is crisp and nicely mixed into the recording too.  You can actually hear some girls screaming “I love you” in the background.

To me, the CD is great.  But the DVD that contains a few piano tracks amongst others that are not found in the CD is the real gem of the package.  Cameras whirling around the light filled stage, special visual effects with subjects of interest blurring in and out of focus, seamless cut scenes in tandem with the beats of the music – all of which aim to bring the electrifying live experience right into your living room (depending on how loud your audio system is of course).  Their interpretation of the song “Feeling Good” is a pleasant surprise to me.  Below is a clip of the song “Hysteria”.  Enjoy, and don’t forget to turn down the volume a bit!  If you are already a fan, there is little reason why you should give this collection a miss.

Related Entry: Muse’s 2007 Tour at Fort Canning Singapore

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Drama Movie Reviews Romance

The Other Boleyn Girl – How Accurate I Wonder

The Other Boleyn Girl

Knowing that I was about to recover from my flu, Cynthia tapped onto the Sunday morning paper and said, “I want to watch number 1, 2, and 3.”  “What’s number 1?” I asked.  She said something and I replied, “Huh?  What boleh girl?” (”˜Boleh’ in Malay means ”˜can’, which ironically is not too far from the plot).  It was not as hilarious as my friend TK whom we met later at the cinema.  He joked: The Other Boon Lay Girl.  (”˜Boon Lay’ is a small housing estate in Singapore.)

“The Other Boleyn Girl” has both the talented Natalie Portman (TK and I are big fans of her) and the beautiful Scarlett Johansson as the main actresses.  To top it up, Eric Bana (my favorite Hector of Troy!) played King Henry VIII.  I had no idea what to expect from the movie and I came out of the theatre feeling a bit more aware of some of the important events in England such as the breaking away from the Roman Catholic Church and the birth of Queen Elizabeth I.  I certainly had no idea the importance of the role played by Anne Boleyn and Mary Boleyn – the sisters acted by Natalie and Scarlett.

The life of King Henry VIII is rich and complex.  Married six times and having a few mistresses of his own, “The Other Boleyn Girl” portrays only a facet of his life – his affair to Mary Boleyn and his marriage to Anne Boleyn.  If the film sticks to the original intend and tell a story from the other Boleyn girl’s perspective – that is Mary played by Scarlett – it may have been more focused and intense.  But we all know how captivating Natalie’s acting can be and she does have a lot of air time in the movie.  In that sense, I am not sure if I was watching The Boleyn Girl instead.  Validity of the historical accuracy aside, I too find the casting of two Americans and an Australian with little or no British accent to play these main English characters odd.

There is little doubt that the acting is great.  And Natalie Portman is such a versatile actress.  If you try not to think too hard on what one man would do just to get a baby boy of his own or how all of these was a bloody mess due to one man’s lust, it is actually quite an entertaining romance drama to watch.  “The Other Boleyn Girl” does seem to me like a prequel to the more epic movies “Elizabeth” and “Elizabeth: The Golden Age”.  In such, the reminiscence of Natalie Portman’s role as Queen Amidala as sequel to the epic movies of Star Wars episodes is quite startling – to me at least.

Somehow there is a yearning within me to learn what exactly happened to Anne and Mary’s lives during their time.  The plot of the movie may not have done the history justice.  And I wonder, will the filmmakers hundred years down the road be fascinated by the stories of Prince Charles and Princess Diana and make a movie out of their lives?  One thing I am sure is: royal scandals sell – especially ones that come with sex and blood.

Categories
Book Reviews Fiction

Remember Me By Sophie Kinsella – A Calculated Risk That May Or May Not Work For Some

Remember Me by Sophie Kinsella

Fanboi talk aside – as I do have read all eight of her novels – “Remember Me” is an interestingly subtle departure from her time proven success with the Shopaholic formula.  First, let’s recap.  Be it as Becky Bloodwood of the Shopaholic series (5 books), Samantha of “The Undomestic Goddess”, Emma of “Can You Keep A Secret”, or Lexi of “Remember Me”, the author’s heroines have always been an embodiment of someone who is flawed, optimistic, and passionate towards family and friends.  The formula extends beyond the main character herself.  There will be lovers involved, parents, best friends, best friends who are no longer best friends, bosses, and a sister in some cases, and to top it up, Sophie Kinsella’s books are always a fun read that make you laugh-out-loud drawing suspicious glances from people around you.

The bottom line is: does the world need another book from Sophie Kinsella?  For those who worship the Shopaholic series, “Remember Me” may come across as less entertaining.  It has lesser laugh-out-loud moments per page flipped.  For those who find the Shopaholic series too shallow but enjoy reading her standalone novels instead, “Remember Me” may come quite close to “The Undomestic Goddess”, which I still think it is the author’s best work today.

There is a novelty in the idea itself: imagine what would happen if one day you wake up and three years worth of memory has just vanished?  And you wake up with a new job title, a new look, new set of friends, and you realize that you are married to someone who is a stranger to you.  Through the character Lexi, Sophie Kinsella explores the condition of amnesia, and more so than any of her previous works, I think there are a fair bit of planning in order to make the storyline works – set aside the need to have every small details made sense to the readers.  To that, I think Sophie Kinsella has done a great job in delivering a relatively more complex storyline with relatively more character development for those who surround the main character.

“Remember Me” is still a page turner and prompted me in thinking: perhaps all these efforts of upkeeping my own blog site are not too bad an idea just in case one day, touch wood, I bump my head onto something and lose a chunk of memory.

PS. I tried to place a reservation at our National library but I gave up after seeing the queue.  I was close to number 250 with just over twenty books available for lending.  And knowing how long it may take for the paperback to hit the bookstore, I go for the hardcover instead.

Related Entries: Can You Keep A Secret?, On Sophie Kinsella’s Shopaholic & Baby, and Undomestic Goddess – A Good Read

Categories
Diary

My Doctor Prescribed Nanotechnology Enabled Medicine For My Jaw

Flexogan

I couldn’t open my jaw.

OK.  I could.  But not without the strange bone cracking sound from within my skull, and the pain.  It started when I was in Malaysia and it didn’t bother much till I realized that I couldn’t really sing without being able to open my mouth wide.  And I couldn’t yawn properly during my rather tiring return trip on the Malaysian highway.  Took me forever to finish eating a sandwich.  When I told my friend JL my little problem, her response was: you were speeding on the highway with the window down and your mouth wide opened, izzit?

Ha ha ha.  Farny.

Since I woke up feeling sick, I was motivated to see my favorite neighborhood doctor whom his core competency is to give out medical certificates – and I hope to have my jaw fixed.

We were like long lost friend inside his consultation room because my last visit was on December 2006.  “So you’ve changed your job,” he asked.  I nodded and he told me that I looked more relaxed and less stressed.  Really?!  And I shall trust a doctor’s observation.

“What can I do for you today,” he asked.  I told him my jaw problem.  And I told him that I may be coming down with a flu.  He said he would give me some lotion to apply and some painkillers for my jaw and my flu.

At the counter, I stared at the lotion and it says: nanotechnology.  I was amazed!  Although nanotechnology is not new, its application to our commercial world is still at its infancy stage.  It will be years before those nanoscaled swarm of microscopic machines become a reality as depicted in Michael Crichton’s novel “Prey”.  When that time comes, I don’t know what the world would become.

My friend SF asked me out for lunch and she saw the tube of lotion.  She asked if I was OK.  I waved the tube in the air and said, “This, has enough nanorobots to keep me happy.”

“There is no nanorobot inside,” she laughed.

OK.  I know she is a bio-science graduate.  But still …

“Yes, there are,” I insisted.

“No, there isn’t,” she shook her head.

“Look,” I began.  “Look,” she interrupted.  I continued, “Look, there are things inside this tube that are manufactured, programmed to carry out a certain function, and they are super tiny.  Therefore, these are nanorobots.”

“They are not nanorobots!” she reinstated.

Whatever they have inside the tube, it doesn’t seem to work wonders.  It smells really bad (bad bad robots!) and I think the painkiller does the job just as good.  In the evening, the flu virus seemed to be ahead of my willpower by a nanometer so I have decided to take the non-drowsy flu medicine my favorite doctor prescribed.

At first I felt terrible.  Then I felt like puking.  My head was spinning.  I vaguely remember such an experience.  This morning I woke up, I did a search of “cough pills” in my own site and I found this post.  OK.  For future reference, my body doesn’t go well with Dextromethorphan (or Dexcophan).

Bad bad (+)-3-methoxy-17-methyl-9α,13α,14α-morphinan or whatever it is.

Related Entry: Cough Pills

Categories
J Pop Music Reviews

BoA – The Face – And The Conquest Continues

BoA - The Face

To tell you the truth, I am more thrilled by BoA’s phenomenal success in the music industry at the age of 21 than her music itself.  Straddled between the Korean and Japanese markets, her 11th studio album is a Japanese release that attained the number 1 position in the Oricon chart the 6th consecutive time (only Ayumi Hamasaki has done it before with now a record of 8 consecutive number 1’s and stops there).  To enjoy such a strong fan base in Japan as a Korean is remarkable.  To enjoy such a commercial success as a 21 years old, I say it’s phenomenal.
 
I often admire BoA’s ambition and energy.  There are not many artists in the world who relentlessly release albums that target at two different local markets, in two different languages, simultaneously.  Her appetite, I believe, is not only in these two countries.  Rumor has it that she is currently putting the Korea market on hold and planning to venture into the US market.  I am concerned over her English pronunciation but we shall see.  And she has released a few songs in Chinese as well.
 
“The Face”, like her previous albums, is packed with the typical electronic sounded pop music that you can happily bop to.  I personally think that these bright and youthful songs are great to be seen live as BoA is a great entertainer on stage.  Just by listening to the album alone, something does seem missing.  Perhaps the music is not as memorable as I would like them to be.  Perhaps those complicated dance beat arrangements are meant to shine during live performances.  Hence, like her previous album “Made in Twenty (20)”, I actually appreciate the DVD better than the CD.
 
“The Face” comes with 2 DVD’s.  One with music videos from the single releases as well as an interview session that I don’t understand.  Another one is packed with live clips from two different concerts filmed in year 2007.  Those live clips are beautiful.  It has the classic BoA-and-the-piano-and-the-orchestra kind of performance.  It also has the BoA-and-her-hot-dance-moves kind of performance too.  One year ago, as written in the previous review, I was trying to get used to her voice.  Today, I still try.  At times her vibrato sounds a bit mechanical.  Perhaps, I will get myself BoA-ized one day.  Below is one of her singles “Lose Your Mind” with the making-of clip.  If you enjoy slow songs, try search for her another single “Love Letter”.

PS. Is it just me who feel that BoA looks more haggard judging from the live videos these days?  She has definitely lost some weight.

Related Entry: Made In Twenty (20) – Another Japanese Album By Korean Singer BoA

Categories
Silly Me

The Stupid Things I Did At The Malaysian Custom

A supposed to be surprised MMS to Cynthia but the telecom network failed to deliver

You wouldn’t believe what I did at the Malaysian Custom last Friday.

When I was young and needed to travel overseas on my own, my dad always made sure that all the new items I carried across the border would have the original packaging removed.  Each and every item.  As I grow older, I deduce that if the items are for self use, it is OK to carry them over from one country to another.  Where does the line being drawn?  I have no clue.  I am sure travellers visit places overseas and buy souvenirs for friends.  Some are pretty big ticket items (like the Swiss watches).  Who would shop overseas and declare all their goods at the Custom and get themselves taxed?

Seriously?

Last Friday morning, as Cynthia left our home and headed to the airport, she smiled at me and said, “See you in Malaysia tonight!”  I smiled back and said, “No no no!  See you in Singapore next week!”.  The truth was, I did not give Cynthia a firm yes that I would drive all the way and visit her over the weekend.  Call it a semi-surprise visit or an internal struggle yet to be sorted out.  I hadn’t even packed my bag that early Friday morning.

I knew she has to work over the weekend and I have thousand and one things I could do in Singapore.  But then … why not make someone happy and besides, I always love a little adventure.  I had no idea where and how to get to PJ Hilton.

So I packed my bag in a hurry (still needed to go to work for half a day), brought along a new brainless book, grabbed my Spanish classical guitar, and … that should be enough to keep myself entertained.

Except, I had this sudden urge to attempt to write some songs during this road trip and I have stumbled upon a nice neat toy a while back that condenses the entire home recording studio into a hand-held device!  I just had to buy that before heading to Malaysia!

Fast forward to the Malaysian Custom, one friendly officer asked me to open the car boot and he pointed at my shopping bag and asked, “What is it inside?”

“Erm … it’s a recorder,” I replied gingerly and already cursing my own stupidity.

He took it out from my shopping bag and clearly had no idea what it was.  It is definitely not something you can commonly see in all good electronic stores.  Carrying with him my brand new toy, he consulted his group of officers (must be like 6 or 7 of them gathering by the desk … very intimidating!)

“You need a permit for this,” he smiled.

In any other given days, I would have loved his friendly smile.  I said, “I don’t understand.  It is just a recorder.  More like a MP3 player!”

“I know, I know!  Well, you will need a permit in order to bring this into Malaysia.  But I shall tax you instead.  It is much better that way,” he said.

“Tax me?!  But it is for my own use!” I gently protested.

“Do you have a receipt?” he asked.

Now, how stupid I was?!  I could have said: no, but I remember it cost 10 bucks.  Instead, I passed him the receipt.  He took out a calculator, punched in some numbers, and said, “The tax is 30% and that will be RM 175.”

I was nearly in tears!  I pleaded with him that I bought it just before lunch and I planned to use it to record my guitar this evening (I didn’t dare to show him my mint condition S$1,500 guitar at the back seat that has a receipt inside … the best place to keep a receipt is with the item itself, no?).  I even tried to strike up a conversation with him on music.  To tell you the truth, he must be the most sympathetic and friendly Malaysian Custom officer I have ever met.

After much deliberation with all sort of analogies I could think of (he was very patience too!), he did not bulge and kept telling me that he was just doing his job.  Reluctantly, I took out my wallet ready to hand him RM 175.  He was taken aback and said, “Don’t you want a receipt?  You have to pay the tax over there.”  He pointed at somewhere far.

That’s it.  I wasn’t going to walk!  It would be a walk of shame!  And I would be haunted by this stupid moment of mine for the rest of my life!  I counter suggested that I should just throw away the packaging right here right now.  He was shocked slightly and smile, “Sorry Sir, I have already seen the box!”

“But it doesn’t matter!  I will rip the box apart.  And you won’t see it again!  Besides, I wouldn’t be able to sell that in Malaysia right?” I insisted.  OK, my heart would bleed because I do keep all my toys inside the original packages all the time.  But between RM 175 and heart pain, I would choose the latter.

As I attempted to take the box from his hand, he stopped me and said, “Let me ask my supervisor.”

The supervisor looked really cold and stern.  Actually he did look very scary.  I was not sure if I could muster enough courage to face him.

The officer presented my case.  the supervisor kept quiet at first and then let out one command in Malay.  He didn’t even bother to look at me!  The officer returned and asked, “What passport are you holding?”

Huh?!  Now only you ask that from me?!

“Singaporean passport!” I held my breath.

“Next time, please don’t do that again,” he said.  I was in such a relief that I even shook his hands!

Gosh, isn’t that a bit out of proportion?!  30% tax?!  For something that I actually use.  Lesson learned.  Always listen to what daddy say.  He has more grey hair than me for a reason.

Categories
I See I Write

Got Kicked Out From Tourist & Transit Hub @ The Singapore Flyer But Overall Experience Is Positive

Singapore Flyer

I genuinely wanted to know more about where else to sightsee in Singapore.  At the ground floor I saw an outlet called “Tourist & Transit Hub” and I thought I’ve hit the jackpot.  There were brochures at the counter and the place did look like a tourist information centre.  I have no idea why the place is named that way but knowing how ‘unique’ Singapore is, I thought it was meant to be yet another cool branding strategy to reinforce our “Uniquely Singapore” image.

I approached the counter and asked if I could take some brochures.  The not-so-attentive staff motioned me a ‘yes’ and so I took one brochure of “Attractions Directory – Visitor Information” and another one on the Singapore Flyer itself.  Very well!  The centre has a comfortable ambiance.  There was a huge flat panel TV surrounded by a good number of comfortable sofa – all empty.  In front of the TV was a small round table with some local newspapers.  At one end of the centre was an Internet kiosk and there were two men surfing the Internet in this wonderfully air-conditioned place called “Tourist & Transit Hub”.

While waiting for Cynthia and my mother (from HK) to finish their fish spa (more write-up about that later), those empty sofa seemed like a big magnet to my tired body.  As my butt making its way to those seats, I heard a female voice from behind me.

“Can I help you,” said the not-too-friendly staff.  “Erm, not really at the moment.  I just wish to sit down and read through the brochures,” I replied politely waving the brochures in the air.  “This place is for group tourists only,” said she.  I was speechless for a moment standing just an inch away from the sofa and there was hardly a soul in the room!  “How about individual tourists?” I asked.  “You can’t sit here.  Sorry,” she insisted.

I couldn’t think of anything else to do but to leave.  Actually, if she was to allow me to stay, I really wouldn’t mind giving up my seat should the group tourists actually turn up.  How about renaming the center to “Exclusive Group Tourist Lounge”?

Inside Singapore Flyer

I-have-only-my-stupidity-to-blame aside, the Singapore Flyer is actually a charmingly huge structure able to see – as quoted by my mother who has seen the Flyer advertisement in Hong Kong – Malaysia and Indonesia.  (She actually said Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta and I said no way.)  The Singapore Flyer has 28 capsules and it takes 30 minutes to complete one round.  Deep inside my heart, I knew my mother wanted to take the Flyer so … well, she is above 60 so her ticket was S$24.  Both Cynthia and I have to pay S$30 each to go up. 

Being an engineer at heart, I marvelled at the beautiful and symmetric structure.  Although there is probably nothing much to see by now except the Integrated Resort construction site, the highway, the sea, the Marina Bay area, and some of the city buildings, I think it will be a nice view once the Integrated Resort is completed.

The Singapore Flyer is not perfect.  My humble wish-list would be:

  • Make each capsule a mini-museum of Singapore history and introduce the current attraction spots.  It doesn’t have to be elaborate, can be made subtle, and if done right, add new meanings to the experience.  Look, the Flyer has trapped up to 20 tourists in each capsule for 30 minutes and they are not going anywhere.  Why not help them to know Singapore more?  It is actually getting quite boring after the first 3 minutes.
  • Dedicate an area for a museum of the Singapore Flyer itself.  What was the building process, how high is the capsule at topmost position, and etc.  People like to boost about what they have done overseas.
  • Have some automated mechanism to clean the capsule every now and then during the day.  Singapore rains often and if it is the view we are selling, it is quite a turn off to see through those dirty windows (like in our case).
  • Turn the entire area into a mini-carnival.  Add in the clowns and live music, stores to play games and win soft toys.  Make it a fun and colorful place that is memorable.  Right now, the Singapore Flyer looks like some sort of business centre to me.
  • (Perhaps rename “Tourist & Transit Hub @ The Singapore Flyer”)

My mother, Cynthia, and I at the Singapore Flyer

There aren’t many interesting shops in the Singapore Flyer except one – the fish spa where there are tons of fish in the tank ready to nibble your feet’s dead skin away.  My mother is the brave one but Cynthia, I am not so sure.  After reading an article by my blogger friend EastCoastLife on “doctor fish therapy”, I insisted that Cynthia should try.  The package (30 minutes fish spa and 10 minutes shoulder massage) was quite expensive, S$38.  According to ECL, it only cost her S$10 per half an hour!

They both love the results feeling the renewed freshness of the skin.  Cynthia observed that her feet looked whiter.  My mother loved it so much that she grabbed my sister for another session the next day.  Now that my mother is back in Hong Kong, we all know what she misses the most here (definitely not us, sis!).

Categories
J Pop Music Reviews

Wish By Yuna Ito – Of Moon Rabbit, Urban Mermaid, And A Titanic Theme Song

Yuna Ito

Strange to say, I thought Yuna Ito’s 2nd album “Wish” is much better than her debut “Heart” in so many different ways but yet, the sales figure so far doesn’t agree with me.  Perhaps the movies “Nana” and “Nana 2” that she has acted in and her accompanying soundtracks did help to push the sales of her previous album.  Usually, Cynthia cringed at almost all my Japanese collection screaming, “She doesn’t hit it, she doesn’t hit it” (i.e. pitchy problem especially at high notes).  This time, as I yet again tortured her with yet another Japanese album and surprisingly, she screamed – in excitement I suppose – “Yes!  She hits it!  Is she the same girl who sang ”絢香”

Of course, having showcased the last track of the album the other evening with Yuna Ito’s own interpretation of Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” certainly helps.  It is a difficult song to pull it off.  It is big (Celine Dion!) and it has a wide vocal range.  Yuna Ito can easily be one of the better J-pop singers (I do have lots of respect to the Japanese jazz singers by the way) and being born in America, her English pronunciation is a notch above her peers.  It seems to me that her vocal skill has improved since her last album.  Her middle voice in “Wish” is richer, more pleasant to the ears.

Her duet track with Celine Dion “あなたがいる限り ～A World to Believe In～” is perhaps the biggest track of the album although my personal preference would be the more memorable tracks towards the second half of the album: “A Long Walk”, “Moon Rabbit”, “I’m Here”, and “Wish”.  From what I have read, Celine Dion was impressed with Yuna Ito’s interpretation of her Titanic theme song and Dion proposed the idea of a duet with a song taken from her latest album.  I am not a fan of “A World to Believe In” though I appreciate the novelty.  “Wish” falls under the category of some tracks work for some but not others.  Some songs tend to have unusual key switch and also between minor and major.  You will have to sample the album to see if it is your cup of tea.

Probably a rare moment to hear Celine Dion singing Japanese.

Categories
Country Folk & Jazz Music Reviews

Taylor Swift – A Young Country Singer With Potential

Taylor Swift

Look, to be able to release an independent record (2006) at the age of 16 written and co-written all the 11 tracks in her debut and be nominated as the Best New Artist for Grammy in 2008 certainly demands attention, if not respect.  Taylor Swift does have a music talent and her voice does communicate a certain level of honesty and youthfulness.  My only reservation is on the genre itself.  To me, every country song tells an emotional story.  Be it as a wedding that took place against all adversities, a girl who waited for a traveling soldier who didn’t return from the war, a poor family but yet happy with contentment, the impact of a divorce to the children, and etc, I think a country singer needs a certain level of maturity to tell stories of multiple facets.  Being a teenage country singer and writer, the topic of her self titled debut pretty much circles around teenage love affair, which is good and bad.  Good if you can relate to it and not getting tired of it for the entire album duration.  Bad if you expect a country genre to be more, country, to have more impact.

For a 16 years old (when the album was released and she is now 18), Taylor Swift does have some mad vocal skills – although I must say, she doesn’t quite have the big voice as my favorite female country pop singers such as Carrie Underwood or Martina McBride, nor have that characteristic country voice of Martie Maguire from the Dixie Chicks or Gretchen Wilson.  I hope to see a smoother transition of her low, mid, and high registers in her subsequent albums.  And her voice may not sound unique – at least to me – and I find it hard to identify her voice amongst some other teenage pop singers.

From the song melody point of view, Taylor Swift’s debut does have a good number of catchy tunes.  Overall a well rounded album and since she is still very young, she does have a great potential in this music industry.  Below is one of her singles “Teardrops on my Guitars” inspired by a true story of hers.  I am sure you would love it like I do.  And you may understand why she has become so popular these days.