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Album
name: Speechless Where has this woman been all this while? Who is she? I have been told and also have read somewhere that she's been in the music business for the last eight years. But I've only just recently being introduced to her. Oh well, better late than never I guess. People, this is Michelle Chen Guan Xin - one amazingly talented singer to have emerged from Taiwan of late - probably the female version of Jay Chou (but then, that would be giving Jay Chou too much credit - okay, this is biasness speaking, but I don't like the guy that much. I admit he is talented but gosh, he needs to stop mumbling into the mike and actually start singing!) Michelle's voice, on the other hand, is great to listen to. The clarity is piercing yet not painful to the ear and sophisticated and soothing enough to deliver the emotions of each song. I love Sunny Day the best - it comes across as light-hearted and really, you feel as though it is a sunny day outside - the sky is bright and the world is your oyster. There's a touch of indie-ness to her music, acoustic heavy with influences of jazz and blues. Again, not mainstream at all. By that, I mean it's not your usual mandarin pop or cantopop. Far from it. Not everyone's cup of tea, sure, but it is definitely mine and this album rates high on my list of favourites for the year. A total of 15 tracks altogether (1 intro and 2 piano pieces), this is an album of exceptional standard (I'm comparing within the Taiwan and Hong Kong market so don't flame me!) Plus, Michelle wrote all the tracks (music and lyrics) too. And for that, I admire this woman even more. In this current age of packaging and commercialism, to break from the norm is not easy. There is always that toss-up between album sales, popularity and actually making/playing the sort of music you want or like. Again, Michelle may not make it big in Hong Kong because of her choice of musical style but I doubt very much she cares. Taiwan - which is more relenting in nature and more embracing of the different kinds of musical styles, may be a better bet. Hers is surely a niche market - I think if you like jazz or blues or something a little different, you would find her music a nice little departure. Definitely
a must try and must buy. Agree/disagree with my review? Drop a note in the guestbook. |
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