Model
Li Ronghao

Classic
Li Jian

Thanks to the upcoming Golden Melody Awards, two China singer-songwriters have been catapulted into the spotlight.
Both Li Ronghao’s Model and Li Jian’s Classic have chalked up five nominations apiece. And they will square off in the categories for Best Mandarin Album and Best Album Producer.
Model marks Li Ronghao’s debut as a singer but he had previously composed and produced for the likes of Rainie Yang, Jeff Chang and Chen Kun.
He has a lightly husky baritone voice which lights up the understated, mid- tempo material, letting the lyrics and music speak for themselves.
On the breezy opener Li Bai, he professes that he wants to be the famed Tang Dynasty poet, though not necessarily for the reason you might think.
“If I could start over, I would choose to be Li Bai/The rights and wrongs a few hundred years ago, there would be fewer people to guess”.
He then breathes life into the lovely title track, nominated for Best Lyricist for Hong Kong’s Chow Yiu Fai with its striking imagery.
“Like a playful kitten sleeping for tomorrow’s curiosity/These chaotic times, this transparent jail, and feel/Can’t continue to be the model in the window”.
Other highlights here include Too Frank, a light-footed number about getting hurt, and Actor And Singer, a poignant duet with actor-singer Chen Kun.
Li Jian’s pure, pristine voice harks back to someone like Fei Yu-ching and is a very different instrument compared to Li Ronghao’s.
Li Jian, formerly one-half of the duo Water & Wood, was possibly best known outside of China for writing Legend, covered by Faye Wong in 2010.
Backed by a 40-piece orchestra which includes the piano and harp, there are moments of exquisite beauty on Classic.
When he soars into his wonderfully tender higher range, only a heart of stone would remain unmoved.
He sings plaintively on Far From Home: “Many times, tears are about to fall/That window is the reason for my strength/That little door still bears her tenderness/Giving warmth to accompany me”.
Fifteen lush tracks can be a bit too much to take in in one sitting though, and Classic is best savoured in smaller doses.
Li Jian and Li Ronghao offer different styles in different voices, but one thing unites the two: Both are class acts.
(ST)