The 18 Martial Arts
Wang Lee Hom
Myself
Jolin Tsai
Two of Mandopop’s big guns go head to head, with their new releases out within a week of each other in Taiwan. So far, it has been neck and neck.
Wang Lee Hom, born in the United States but who is based in Taiwan, took the top spot on the album charts the week The 18 Martial Arts debuted, while dancing diva Jolin Tsai staked her claim to pole position a week later when Myself was released.
The more important question, though, is: Are they any good?
Wang’s disc is the more problematic of the two. On his 14th Mandarin album, he seems to be running low on ideas.
The singer-songwriter’s self-declared style of “chinked-out” music which he introduced in the album Shangri-La (2004) – mixing western genres such as hip-hop, rap and R&B with elements of eastern music – is no longer new.
Wang’s disastrous directorial debut feature Love In Disguise casts a large shadow over the album.
Right off the bat, opening track Dragon Dance incorporates chunks of movie dialogue, reminding one of that unpleasant viewing experience.
Things improve a little with the electropop and rap of Do You Love Me, which was also featured in the film. But its too-cutesy Mandarin title, complete with a heart icon in place of “love”, grates.
The ballad All The Things You Never Knew is meant to be a touching number but, instead, one is reminded of the chemistry-free and cringe-worthy romance in the movie between him and actress Liu Yifei.
If Love In Disguise was meant to boost album sales, the plan has backfired.
Jolin Tsai’s 11th Mandarin album is very much what one has come to expect from Tsai – perfectly serviceable, slick, danceable and disposable.
So what if she sounds decidedly less than stellar live and her dancing is slicker in music videos than on stage?
Thanks to technology’s wonders, it’s all good on disc even when she’s pilfering the synth line for Honey Trap from Justin Timberlake’s SexyBack.
For prime examples of what she does best, head for the slice of bouncy dance-pop that is Party Star, the breezily catchy Take Immediate Action and the slinky ballad Nothing Left To Say.
But while the album is titled Myself, it is hard to say what exactly Tsai reveals of herself. Beyond the pixels that is.
(ST)