Khalil Fong - Dangerous World Album Review

Khalil is back again after 2012's "Back to Wonderland" with "Dangerous World", a collection of jazz and R&B soul. The album contains both upbeat songs and slower ones, giving almost every listener something they will like. However, it is the upbeat songs on "Dangerous World" that makes the album memorable.

Niki: On a sillier note, his introduction track, "Welcome", left a very scarring impression on me. I first listened to this album out of order, so before the track came on I had been listening to a slow ballad and was feeling just a little bit sleepy. I lost interest for a minute and failed to notice that the track had ended and the next thing I heard was a deep demonic-like voice saying "Huan yin ni", freaking me out.

Iris: The album officially opens with lead single and title track "Dangerous World/危險世界" , a grand and cinematic-like single unlike anything he has released before and unlike anything you hear in C-Pop normally. It is an infectious and unique song you can't help but start moving to. The instrumental breakdown with the beats is fun and sounds particularly good with headphones or loud speakers, but runs about 2 minutes long.

Niki: This song is definitely a worthy title track, despite it's lengthy instrumental ending. Khalil's ability to create a mini-movie within a song with the infusion of different music genres and vocal techniques speaks to his creativity as an artist. It also displays how much he's grown over the last 10 years.

Niki: "Peace" is a funky R&B track that will get your head-bobbing. The collaboration with Tia Ray adds a new level of dynamic to the song. Although, it suffers the same weakness of being longer than necessary and becoming repetitive.

Iris: You can easily tell Khalil had a grand 'ol time recording "Peace" through the enthusiasm and energy he shows through his rapping. I'm pleased to be seeing Khalil making use of his rapping skills.

Iris: "Xiao Fong/小方" is easily my favorite song off the whole album and showcases Khalil's musical strengths such as smooth vocals, soulful style, and slick rapping skills. The whole song is catchy and unlike many of the other songs on the album, does not suffer from being too long.

Niki: Like Iris this song is easily my favorite song in the album. It's sleek, funky, and a complete representation of who Khalil is as an artist. What I like most about this song is the straightforward yet heartfelt lyrics and the fact that it differs from other artist's typical "thank you" songs (which are usually ballads or pop tracks). It's a track that is uniquely Khalil.

Iris: "Black White and Grey/黑白灰 " is another funky upbeat song that is uniquely Khalil while serving as his homage to his musical inspirations. The mix of jazz and R&B creates a very catchy product and the MV is memorable for being the first we saw Khalil dance in.

Niki: This song is a prime example of Khalil's ability to incorporate two different musical genre into something that's both amazing and unique. Every time I listen to this song I envision a chase sequence in a classic comedy and it invokes the same emotion of amusement. Needless to say Khalil's dance sequence in the mv was the highlight of my day when I first saw it.

Iris: "Love Blossoms/桃花運" and "Special Person/ 特別的人" both fail to stand out, and I find the former very boring and too slow. Is it relaxing? Yes, but more in a way that makes me want to fall asleep. "Special Person" fares better but still isn't a very interesting ballad.

Niki: "Love Blossoms" doesn't contain any hook to capture the listeners attention. Furthermore it sounds like Khalil's voice was muted by the music, since the music was very soft and consistent it easily makes a person feel sleepy. I liked "Special Person" a lot more than "Love Blossoms". In "Special Person" you can hear Khalil's voice better and there's a lot more flexibility in it. It also sounds like he's trying to tell a story through song, which makes it a lot more interesting to me. However, both ballads still fall short from his upbeat songs.

Iris: "Mr. Weather/天氣先生" possesses a tempo that is neither too slow or too upbeat, which is more similar to his past works. However, though an interesting blend of Mandarin and English, it fails to set itself apart from Khalil's older songs and can become quite repetitive.

Niki: Although it may not be Khalil's most outstanding work, it's still one of the better mid-tempo songs in the album, in my opinion. It possesses a simple but catchy melody that I find myself humming to from time to time and is calming without leaving me sleepy or bored.

Iris: After a short instrumental comes "Autumn Leaves/楓葉做的風鈴", a relaxing and mellow R&B song that is very Khalil-like composition. It has a serene and romantic feel so while it is not incredibly memorable, it is a smooth and enjoyable listen, and one of the better slow songs on "Dangerous World."

Niki: "Autumn Leaves" is the one ballad in this album that I like. It's soft and relaxing without boring me because there's more variety in the notes and fluctuations in the melody, unlike the other ballads.Listening to this song makes me envision a 1950s romantic movie which makes me feel happy inside.

Iris: "Paris/巴黎 " is initially catchy but quickly gets old, stretching over 4 minutes long. It would've worked better as a 2 and a half minute track. In terms of composition, this is definitely one of Khalil's weakest, as there is very little if any variety in notes and very repetitive. Things pick up though and we flow to the upbeat and fun "No Love", featuring Miss Ko. It is one of the more dynamic non-singles of the album and worth repeated listens.

Niki: After the "No Love/ 愛不來 Feat. Miss Ko葛仲珊 " we have Zombie, another pleasant surprise. The song has a very distinctive beat that matches the songs peculiar title and theme. Through the changes in tempo and fluctuations in notes within the song Khalil was able to paint a rather dynamic scenario in my head, making it all the more fun to listen to. He includes another surprise at the end of the song with the addition of an electric guitar infusing a rock element into the song, finishing it strong. This song may be one of the most dynamic and creative song of his in this album. The only shame is that it is not one of the title tracks. I would love to see the mv that would match this song.

Iris: "Zombie/僵屍 " is my favorite song after "Xiao Fong", but was unfortunately never released as a single. It is so dynamic and infectious it has a cinematic feel and Khalil at his creative best. I also love how when the song starts to fade out it tricks the listener into thinking it has ended, when it hasn't. The mix of R&B and rock elements was phenomenal.

The album closes with "Lights Up" ,another 4 minute song that would have benefitted from a cut. It is catchy and fun, but quickly becomes too repetitive. Two choruses could easily have been edited out. Nevertheless, it is still an enjoyable and feel-good track.

Conclusion: Khalil's album "Dangerous World" leaves us with some mixed feelings. While some tracks showcase his creativity and strength as a composer and artist, others sound strikingly similar to his past works and fails to leave any lasting impression. The album could also use some reorganizing as most of the slower songs are clumped together in the middle of the album making it seem draggy at times, especially after listening to a chain of up-beat songs in the beginning. However, while there were definitely some low points, songs like "Zombie", "Black, White, and Grey", and "Dangerous World" definitely make up for the disappointment by displaying Khalil's abilities at their best.

Album Review: Kelvin Kwan's "Breakout"

Kelvin Kwan's star continues to shine with "Breakout", his latest and best album yet.

The singer has matured significantly over the years and found the different musical styles that fit him, and "Breakout" shows this. The 8-song album provides a mix of the angst-ridden pop rock Kelvin successfully experimented with in "Occupation", emotion-filled mid tempo numbers, and slower, sweeter songs. Kelvin shows great range in his voice and musical style without including a traditional slow ballad already so often seen in Cantopop.

A closer look...

"Breakout" opens with "手刃情人/Busting My Lover", which bears a similar feel to "People of My Generation" musically wise, but speaks of pain towards a lover. Kelvin's voice and emotions are very raw here and present a different level of intensity than his previous songs.

My personal favorite from the album though is easily second track "你永遠是對的/You Are Forever Right." The mid tempo and melancholic song shows off Kelvin's range and emotion along with a great and moving musical composition. The MV elevates the power and message of the song, but suffers a setback due to Chrissie Chau's mediocre acting.

"一體兩面/Integrated Both Sides" has a slight space-like trance from its beats and arrangement. Although slower than the other songs on the album, it boosts a very serene vibe with a hint of mystery.

"孱弱/Fragile" is a song that takes what Kelvin experimented with from "Occupation" and "People of My Generation" and makes it even better. The song starts off slow with a gentle sadness before going into an angst-ridden and emotional number. This is arguably his best single to date. A more in-depth song review can be found here.

Kelvin once again goes rock with "偉大領袖/The Great Leader", only this time sheds the excessive angst for an upbeat and catchier tune.

"隻字不提/Not Mentioning a Word" is the only song that comes closed to being a ballad on the album, but also one of the less impressive. The arrangement is still very nice and Kelvin never fails to show his range in slow songs like this.

Coming in as another personal favorite of mine is "空氣公園/Air Park," a sweet, relaxing and dreamy song. Kelvin's vocals sound very warm here, putting a smile on your face. It has a very strong calming effect with its thoughtful feel.

The album closes with "舊好/The Old Good," another slower track with a very relaxing and serene vibe. It is an uplifting song with a lovely orchestral and band arrangement, which serves as a nice and sweet way to end the album.

Overall, the album shows great strides in Kelvin Kwan as an artist. "Breakout" reaffirms my confidence in Kelvin as a mainstay in today's Cantopop industry, which is in need of someone with edge and a flair for experimentation like him. He has surpassed everyone's previous low expectations of him as little more than a washed up idol and blown everyone out of the water with his genuine talent. "Breakout" is his most mature and best work yet as well as one of the most consistent and enjoyable albums of the year. I know I will continue to be impressed by him.

Rating: 4.5 stars

Song Review: Dear Jane's "Unavoidable"

Dear Jane makes their 2013 return with their new single "Unavoidable". Right off the bat, it is obvious that this talented band have once again given it their all into this song.

"Unavoidable" is a song that will probably only appeal to a smaller group of listeners. It possesses a softer rock sound, which fans of the band's former rougher and more punk influenced music may not be fond of. At the same time, it is not a song whose melody will immediately stick to you because it's not as catchy as their other material. However, it does not stop "Unavoidable" from being an overall great song.

This may sound strange, but in some ways this is one of Dear Jane's weaker songs, but in other ways their personal best. It's weakness consist of the reasons stated above. One must be more open minded and really appreciate music to realize this is actually one of Dear Jane's best yet. The song embodies what I love this band so much for: true passion and honesty. Howie's songwriting and composition is beautiful, personal and meaningful and Tim is able to showcase his voice and bring his lyrics to life. I'm pleased to see that Dear Jane, while conforming a bit to make it in the mainstream HK music industry, is also staying true to themselves and giving listeners the opportunity to hear something different and full of heart and substance.

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Additional Notes: Against my initial expectations, "Unavoidable" is doing incredibly well! It went #1 on the iTune store as well as on HK music charts, and still high up as we speak. It is wonderful to see a song that doesn't conform to usual HK mainstream tastes garnering critical and commercial success. Congratulations Dear Jane!!!

"Slow Boat Home" Review

"Slow Boat Home" had promoted itself to be a refreshing youth-oriented and romantic lighthearted comedy. While the first half of the series did manage to be quite enjoyable and deliver many laughs, a closer look and one can easily tell that it quickly morphed into another typical TVB family drama. Although quite funny in its earlier episodes, it became yet another series with poorly written story lines weeded together and love stories that lacked a romantic factor that turned it lackluster and draggy.

The four leads all deliver, but the development and outline of their characters was sloppy.

Raymond Wong is solid as always and delivers as "Cheung Bo Jai". The character would have easily become annoying with his obnoxiousness in the early episodes, but instead Raymond made him quite hilarious. Yet, Cheung Bo Jai found himself primarily pining after Bo Bo (portrayed by Aimee Chan) and caught in the middle of family drama, lacking his own direction in life. Although he has a dream of owning his own boat, not much is ever done with this subplot until - you guessed it - he buys himself a huge yacht in the last episode.

Aimee Chan is surprisingly pleasant and very likable as "Bo Bo". She is charming and appears very comfortable onscreen due to the tailor made role and casual atmosphere. However, it is actually her character that puzzles me the most with her odd actions and behavior. She so readily settled down into life at Cheung Chau and gave up her career as a director that it was simply bizarre. I find it hard to believe Bo Bo would not return to New York when she could, had such a good attitude about working as a waitress when she was formerly a director, and so easily gave up on looking for her father (the reason she came to Cheung Chau) after learning it is not Mui Kei (portrayed by Ngok Wah).

As a huge fan of Ruco Chan, I become giddy every time I start a new series with him as lead. Now, this giddiness literally lasted all through out "The Other Truth", yet wore off for me here after just a
few episodes. Why? "Fit Wing" offers absolutely no challenge to Ruco's acting skills and range, and didn't present much more substance than that of a fool blinded by love.

Selena Li is given more of an acting challenge with "Heidi", who goes from greedy to good to being even more greedy than before and finally back to well, volunteer work doing, no make up wearing good. She does what she can with the role and it's nice to see her exercising her abilities a bit, but Heidi's character changes were abrupt and poorly done.

As said above, the love stories lack actual romance. Ruco and Selena share so much sweet and genuine chemistry, yet Fit Wing and Heidi's relationship was a constant back and forth with Heidi's regression, hurting and using Ruco as well as his loved ones time and time again, only to end with him forgiving her. And then the cycle repeats again. And again. Their relationship was dysfunctional and kept suffering the same setbacks. I feel teased that two such lovable and endearing onscreen love interests were given such a terrible love line.

Raymond and Aimee's line fared better. They were entertaining during their take as the classic bickering rivals turned couple, but I failed to see when Aimee started to return Raymond's feelings for her. Although they were fun together and shared chemistry, they too lacked romance.

However, "Slow Boat Home"'s most significant setback is how disconnected from each other the four main characters are. At first, the series seemed to tell two completely different stories, with one taking place in Cheung Chau and one in Hong Kong. Although this improved when Ruco and Selena's characters relocated back to Cheung Chau, it still couldn't hide the fact that the four were very much disconnected and lacked cohesion.

Friendship was a theme that would have been enjoyable to see develop, but the bonds beyond the two couples was not explored. Aimee and Ruco do not even share a scene together until almost halfway into the series, and Raymond and Selena had almost no interactions despite being childhood friends. It focused almost solely on the two couples and unnecessary family drama.

The most enjoyable aspect of the series though, was the bromance friendship between Raymond, Ruco and Matt Yeung. The three guys appeared very comfortable together and their friendship looked realistic, resulting in fun and warm scenes. However, these scenes were limited, particularly with Matt's minimal screen time and once again, disconnection to the group overall. Poor "Chuen So Kei" was constantly lost about what was going on between the four and almost consistently the last to find out.

Easily the most refreshing thing about "Slow Boat Home" is its location filming in Cheung Chau. It was a breath of fresh air to not see the same boring sets and filming sites yet again and instead see the natural beauty of this small town. Of course, this alone was not able to keep "Slow Boat Home" entertaining and fresh.

What becomes most evident about halfway through the series is that there is no actual point to it. There is no central story line, and just a bunch of poorly written story lines weeded together while the two main couples were pushed apart and back again and again. Not only does it become mixed with trite family drama, but allows itself to fall victim to cliched and random story lines like Oceane Zhu's and Elaine Yiu's. These subplots added nothing to the overall story (whatever that was) and seemed like they were simply included to drag out the series length. In addition, Lee Yee Man's character can probably go down as the most annoying character of the year.

Here's a fun fact: when the series was first proposed, it was supposed to have a music theme and showcase the musical talents of the cast. Ruco and Aimee were to play together on the guitar and piano respectively. Sadly, what showed up in the final script was Ruco strumming random guitar chords two or three times and no use of music as a theme. This is disappointing as it could have helped make "Slow Boat Home" more refreshing, particularly with its musically inclined cast (Ruco can play guitar and sing, Aimee can play piano, Selena can sing and compose and plays the piano, and Cilla was originally a singer). My guess is TVB backed out of this original concept to ease and simplify the filming and production process, since they love taking the easy way out. I would have loved to see music incorporated into this series.

Overall, "Slow Boat Home" is a series that starts off funny and entertaining, but its humor quickly wears off and goes down the trite family drama route traveled a hundred too many times by TVB series. All four leads are strong and likable, but either poor or inconsistent characterization keeps them from being utilized to full potential. If it weren't for the large amount of free time I have on my hands these days and the main cast, I would probably have dropped it by the last five episodes. There was plenty potential, and marketed as a youth-oriented romantic comedy, it had the opportunity to be something fresh. As most TVB series these days though, it is once again wasted potential.

Rating: 2.5 stars

"A Great Way to Care 2" Review by Lynne

If you ask me whether "A Great Way to Care 2" is better than it's prequel or not, the answer would be no. But if you ask me whether it's a good series or not, I would say that it was an enjoyable watch. So depending on the question, this review will come out differently. For this review, I'm just going to be talking about "A Great Way to Care 2" without making any comparisons to it's prequel. (I will then later write one comparing the two.)

General Storyline: With a mixture of psychiatry and police work, "A Great Way to Care 2"'s story line weaves in between the two forces as they work together and solve the cases. From the forensic psychiatry branch: Alex Fong, Yoyo Mung, Edwin Siu, Power Chan, Oscar Leung, Eric Li, Henry Lee and Christine Kuo. The police force consists of Ben Wong and Tavia Yeung. Aside from these two main teams, other supporting characters also includes Ram Chiang, Aimee Chan and Leanne Li.

Waste of a Good Cast? I initially wanted to list all the character names of the artistes but as you guys can see, there were just too many names. Unfortunately out of that chunk, only a few were focused on. There were just too many necessary characters, or should I say, the characters were too small for the assigned artistes. With other series lacking artistes, they just had to throw a bunch into "A Great Way to Care 2". Trying to make it 'star-studded'?  Meh.  I found it frustrating.

You know what? It would've been alright if the series focused on the cases alone. But no, that didn't happen.  Instead, there were a bunch of unnecessary side-stories thrown into the script to distribute the screen time to all the characters. That's why the typical cases that are usually 1-3 episodes long stretched to 6-7 episodes. While I was okay with it in the first 1-2 cases (because they had to introduce the characters), it got on my nerves afterwards as I struggled to focus on the continuously "disrupted" cases.

Overall comments, a lot of the cast members could have been put to better use.

picture credit http://starphoto.joinbbs.net/

Characters and Acting:

Alex Fong
I was not a big fan of Alex Fong, but I've begun to like him since "A Great Way to Care". Resuming his role as Ko Lap Yan, his character did not differ much beside the huge screen-time cut! It is such a pity because I actually like Ko Lap Yan alot, and was looking forward to watching him every time he appeared onscreen.

Best scene? It'd have to be the one where he was reading Monkey's (Kate Tsui) letters. Didn't think Alex would be good in an emotional scene like this, but he proved me wrong.

Though Alex often comes off monotone, there is something about the guy that makes him interesting to watch. I cannot clearly describe it, but it's definitely not something a lot of actors can do nowadays. So despite the fact that he had little screen-time in each episode, I can still feel that he's leading the series.

Edwin Siu
His character had the potential to shine but that did not happen. If I were to define Leung Kai Wing by a geometric shape, he'd be a circle. Absolutely pointless. Wanna know his story line?

"I have a crush on this girl and is trying to woo her (lasted for half of the series). Finally got together with her! But wait, my childhood friend. I want to be there and protect her too. So in the end, who should I choose? I love both Q.Q Becomes a two-timer. Busted. Realization. Too late."

While I may have exaggerated this a bit, it's still pretty close to what actually happened.  Honestly they should have just crossed Scarlett (Christine Kuo) out of the whole picture (bias here because I actually really enjoyed the scenes he had with Aimee Chan).  Personally disappointed by how much they focused on his love life instead of his profession when he's one of the main characters.

Acting wise, Edwin is a capable actor and was funny at times in the series.  Unfortunately his story line was just nonsense.

Yoyo Mung
Don't let her position on the poster fool you. As a matter of fact, she and Edwin should switch places on that thing! Yoyo Mung barely had any screen-time and when she did, her sub story was boring and random. Maybe the scriptwriters/producers realized that they did not give her any screen-time even after the first 8 episodes or something, and so had to squeeze in that story about Franco And speaking of Franco, we never got to see his face or anything but at least we got to see his shadow right? Had an entire episode dedicated to that guy! Overall, she serves little purpose to the series and is only there because TVB wanted to push more stars in.

Putting my rants aside, Yoyo's "Cheuk Wai Kui" was pleasant to watch. I really liked her personality: stubborn and straight forward. Her relationship with her subordinates is quite cute and I love how they call her "Big Brother". And when she got "together" with Alex Fong, they called Alex dai sao (sister-in-law). Though this character is nothing new for Yoyo, I still enjoyed seeing her again (which is why I am unhappy that she did not have much screen-time).

Tavia Yeung
If there's a character worth watching for, it would be Lam Chung Yan. She first appeared as the daring and spunky prostitute who then turns out to be an undercover cop. TVB always like to surprise us don't they? Anyways, after she finished her case, Chung Yan returned to being a cop and begins to work under Chung Kwok Ban (Ben Wong). Growing up as an orphan, Chung Yan endured many hardships and there were a number of times when she almost lost her life too. But even then, she continued to live on an optimistic life. Unfortunately there is a limit to all of us and she eventually reached the level that she herself could no longer handle...

To be honest, I think a majority of the series was dedicated to Tavia Yeung. Thus she ended up being one of the very few with a decent character development. Thoroughly enjoyed Tavia's performance and notably in episode 23.

As for her pairing with Ben Wong, there was nothing special going on. Instead, I think that it would've been better if Alex paired up with Tavia since I liked the two of them together. But then, Alex would be dating another police woman like he did in the prequel. What are the possibilities of TVB copying something from the prequel into the sequel? BTW, this is within that rare percentage that they did not.

picture credit http://starphoto.joinbbs.net/

The 'Others':  While I would love to talk more about the other characters, there is little to talk about due to their minimal screen-time. So I'm just going to sum it up that the rest of the cast were great with the exception of Christine Kuo.  I'm relatively easy going when I talk about newcomers (or at least I think I am), but Christine has driven me to the point where I want to bang my head against the wall.  More so than the bad acting, it's the fact that her acting is going absolutely nowhere.  Back in "Ghetto Justice 2", I understand that her character in there may have been too complicated for her to portray.  But even in here, she's still not giving me much to look out for.  Acting in 8 or so series already, I expect her to be a bit better than now.

**To make it clear I am not criticizing her accent because I do not know Canto :P  Just the acting (ie. facial expressions, body language etc).

The Cases:  I would talk about each individual case if I wasn't so confused which case is which.

While there are a few main cases that are featured in the series, there were also a lot of sub-cases within those big cases that confused me.  So I'll only talk about a few:

Otto Chan and Aimee Chan:  Wrote this in a separate post before-hand.

The Pedophile Case:  This case focused on Chung Yan (Tavia)'s childhood friends, who she considers as brothers.  They grew up together in an orphanage: Chiu, Wai, Man and Yan.  Unfortunately Man disappeared when they were young.  Chiu and Yan then ended up working for the government (police officer and the other a lawyer).  On the other hand, Wai is crippled and often went into debts.  On with the case; a few murders took place.  Father, the one who took care of them (Yan, Chiu, Wai and Man) then confessed that he was the one who killed them.  Why?  Father works as a volunteer for a kids recreation center and cares a lot for the kids.  Later, he discovered that some of the kids were being sexually abused by a volunteer, foster father etc and thus couldn't stand it and killed all those pedophiles.  Eventually, we find out that he's taking up the blame for someone else (though the true murderer is also killed for the same reason).

While the identity of the murderer did not surprise me, I liked how the case slowly unwrapped itself.  Though the subject (issue) is something that's also used in other series, the length and the pace this one went at made it even more disturbing.  Honestly, I just really wanted the case to end because as it goes on more victims would be discovered and I just couldn't handle it.  More so, as it progressed I began to think of such situations happening in reality (which I know are not rare cases) and I just felt worse from there...

There are things in life you just wish you did not know because you won't have to worry or get hurt by it.  But then if you don't know about it, you can't do anything to help solve the problem.  On the other hand, there are so many things that is not within our power to resolve even when we do have knowledge of the issue.  I find it quite ironic how Ah Chiu is the murderer even though he's a lawyer.  Though he may work in the legal field, Ah Chiu couldn't see how law can punish those pedophiles and therefore took the matter into his own hands.  Thus this case in turn displays the imperfections of our justice system (nothing is perfect).  I personally pity Ah Chiu despite his wrongdoings and was saddened by his death in the end.

***Pedophilia is actually a psychiatric disorder.  

Serial Killer Case:  A number of people are killed and the police is investigating who the murderer is.  This is the last case of the series and it was quite interesting to watch.  Though I must say that its ending felt kind of disrupt.  (Not going to talk about it anymore since I don't want to give away spoilers.)

The Unnecessary Bits:
1)  Just cross out that whole love triangle between Edwin, Christine and Aimee.  More so, just cross out Christine because I liked Edwin's and Aimee's characters together.
2)  Yoyo getting a sperm donation from Alex.  While it increased their interaction with each other, it just felt ridiculous.  Although I know that they wanted to get the two 'together', this development was too hard to absorb.
3)  You know what, there's probably more but those two up above were the most frustrating to watch.

The Ending:
Here we have two professional psychiatrists helping a murderer escape.  Sounds a bit sketchy?  I can understand why they would want to help her, but yet at the same time, their whole set up is kind of ridiculous.  More so, even if she did manage to escape from the police, how in the world is she going to board the plane?  I'm sure the police would have restricted her (passport profile) from crossing the borders (or something like that).  Overall, it just seems too irrational.  I guess TVB wanted to be creative and add a "twist" to the ending.  Unfortunately, it didn't turn out so well.

Overall Thoughts:
"A Great Way to Care 2"'s story line did not run as smoothly since it kind of jumped from one character to the next, but the series overall is not bad to watch.  It's actually one of the more enjoyable series released this year and if you have time, I would recommend it.  But if you're one of those who loved the original "A Great Way to Care", just watch this without comparing it too much to the prequel, since it focuses less on psychiatry and more on the police force.

Song Review: Nam Soo Rim (Rimi)'s "Drive Me to the Moon"

Female K-Indie rapper Nam Soo Rim comes back after a year's hiatus with her new mini album "Drive Me to the Moon". For this comeback, Soo Rim trades her previous edgy style for a softer, more romantic one. The album's main focus is to tell the story of romance; each song provides a different perspective and situation. In her album-titled song "Drive Me to the Moon", Soo Rim takes us on a romantic and fantasy-like date.

The Song:
"Drive Me to the Moon" is a mid-tempo rock infused hip-hop track. The song features Nam Soo Rim's powerful rapping and the vocals of Park Ji Yoon.  The vocals and rapping blends nicely together and with the music to paint a story of love. Soo Rim keeps a strong and consistent beat with her rapping, which to me sounds like she's providing narration for the story and Ji Yoon's lovely vocals set the dream-like tone for the song.

I personally love this song, it's different, unique, and definitely not something you often come across in K-pop. Being a heavily rap focused song, I was surprised that Soo Rim was able to pull off a romantic style and sound using a genre that's generally more edgy.

The MV:
The music video uses stunning animations to depict the lyrics of the song. The video follows two girls as they go on a date through a fantasy-like amusement park. As it progresses reality starts to blend with fantasy as the girl's imaginations take over. The MV also raises a question about what the story is telling. It could be a story of two young lovers on a date, or it could be interpreted as two close friends hanging out. Personally, I think it's the former because of the romantic feel the tone of the song and the setting of the MV give off.

Overall, this is a phenomenal song that surpasses the usual boundaries of music. The song is sweet and romantic while still maintaining a funky and edgy sound. The quality of the animation used for the MV is stunning as well. Soo Rim did a fantastic job with experimentation in this new comeback. I will definitely look out for Nam Soo Rim's name in the future. This goes to prove that South Korea has much more to show than just its usual mainstream K-Pop.

Song Review: Fiona Sit's "告別我/Farewell"

Following the smash hit "Cold Joke", Fiona Sit releases her new single "Farewell", which is burning up the charts!

Over the last year, Fiona has made great strides in her musical career.  Her vocals as well as musical style have sharpened and matured, showing she will be the star and diva of tomorrow.  This latest plug joins the streak of great singles Fiona has been releasing.

"Farewell" is a beautiful and phenomenal ballad.  Its musical composition is lovely and pleasing to the ears, with a sound that is slightly reminiscent of 90s Cantopop.  The instruments and musical elements blend together beautifully.  The lyrics, which talk of falling in love with someone you know you will have to say goodbye to, are emotionally sung and executed gracefully by Fiona.  The pacing of the song is very nice, as it is neither too slow for a ballad nor too fast.  "Farewell" also gives a more sophisticated musical direction and image to Fiona.

In addition, the music video is nicely executed with tasteful artistic direction, and as a result compliments the song very well.  There is a melancholic feel to it, allowing the song to touch you more.    Everything about the song comes together so effortlessly and beautifully.

Overall, "Farewell" is a heartfelt and stunning song, and one of the more memorable ballads I've heard. It continues to show how Fiona is improving and maturing, as well as on her way to becoming one of the brightest and biggest singers in Cantopop.  This is definitely my new favorite song from Fiona (which I seem to say every time she releases a new single nowadays?), and I'm sure there is more great material to come.

Song Review: Ella Koon's "So In Love"

Ella Koon is back with "So In Love", her first single under Warner Music HK!  "So In Love" is written and composed by none other than her fellow Warner label mate, popular singer songwriter Khalil Fong.

Although "So In Love" possesses a relatively simple melody and lyrics, it is catchy, fun, and sweet.  There's nothing extraordinary about "So In Love", but it is such a feel good song that easily makes you smile, especially if you are feeling "so in love" yourself.  The sound is fresh and upbeat with its blend of synthetic pop beats and musical instruments, and makes you want to just get up and dance around your room.

The music video lets Ella's bubbly and sweet personality shine!  The colorful backdrop, outfits Ella wears, and various props allows the video to be a little creative and fun.  It looks like Ella herself was able to customize the set to her liking, which slightly resembles the inside of a doll house.  Instead of looking too silly or random, the set and Ella playing around shows the happiness, good mood, and positive outlook of a girl sweetly in love.

Am I blown away by "So In Love"?  No, but that doesn't stop me from loving this song.  It's not impressive, but nevertheless a very fun and sweet song that shows Ella's lovely personality and warm vocals.  It also possesses a fresh sound (most of Warner Music HK's music does) that is sure to be a hit with radio viewers and young HK people.  I'm very happy to see Ella part of the Warner family now, and I'm sure this will only help her to finally win the popularity and recognition she deserves!

Song Review: G.NA's "Oops!"

G.NA has made a comeback with her fourth mini album "Beautiful Kisses." This album has a total of five songs: "Oops!" (feat. Ilhoon of BTOB), "Hate it, Can't Stand it", "First Kiss", "Oh, Good!", and "Mind Sync" (feat. Hah Gak).

The Song:

Pinki: First off, this song has nothing to do with making mistakes. This song is about when a person likes another person...A LOT. This song starts from a guy's point of view, then the girl responds during the chorus. The guy happens to be younger than the girl because the first line of the song is "Nuna, you know you're the bestest right?" "Bestest" is not a word, while "Nuna" or "Noona" is a Korean term used to call an older girl you respect or admire, and it is also used by males when calling their older sister. The rap part of the song goes on about how the younger guy is "head over heels" for the older girl. The girl responds by saying she is a beautiful girl, what she likes, and to not tell her to do anything she doesn't like. For example, in the song G.NA says, "I'm a beautiful girl, I like to wear jeans, don't ask me to wear short skirts." This song is bubbly and upbeat, but with a sweet melody. There is also metaphors and similes used in the rap, which make me laugh. "Ha ha ^^~"    

Niki: Elaborating on what Pinki has said, G.NA's new song is a portrayal of the "Noona-Dongsaeng" (older woman-younger guy) relationship that has been so popular in K-pop lately. It depicts the older girl to be clever and confident. She know that guys can pretend to gain her trust, but she's not easily swayed. Meanwhile, the guy is depicted as a more impulsive and naive character hopelessly enamored by the older lady, probably because of her confidence and mature aura.  This is a portrayal that's commonly done and is a more stereotypical view of such a relationship. 

The song's lyrics are split into two parts, Ilhoon's raps and G.NA's singing, and takes on two different perspectives. I really like how this is arranged because it sets up a dialogue between two people and creates a somewhat interactive song, making it more fun and different. 

Regarding the title of the song, it does seem out of context and random, but my interpretation is that the noona is flirting with the younger guy. She is leading him on to get close to her, but then pulls away before he gets too close, thus the flirtatious sounding "oops oops". However, it is more likely that the "word" was put into the song as a simple hook.

The MV: 

Pinki: The MV is cute in a way, but it mainly reveals a sexy side of G.NA. It starts out with a guy and his cat. Don't know the purpose of the cat though, as it was just there through out the whole video  Then...BAM! Ilhoon comes out with his awesome rapping, and then G.NA gets out of bed and does the sub chorus  After that, her dance kicks in. I am not very fond of the dance as there is just something I don't like about it. It's cute and sexy but not really to my liking. That's pretty much the whole video. It's her rolling around in bed, Ilhoon rapping, and more of the cat. Then, I got very confused at the ending. It shows the guy that is in the very beginning of the MV, and G.NA dances with him and suddenly disappears  Then the guy look for her but doesn't find her, and when he enters what seems to be his house, he smiles. I don't know what the reason for that smile was. Was G.NA is his house? Then it shows the cat again and that's how the video ends. 

Niki: The cat in the video intrigued me, because I was confused in the beginning as to why a cat was there. But it donned on me afterwards that the cat was an allusion and they were comparing the Noona-dongsaeng relationship to that of a cat and dog. G.NA is being referred to as a "cougar" (an older woman who prefers to date young guys) for going after the younger male character. Connecting back to the lyrics Ilhoon's rap had a line that said "Because of all the packs of wolves around you. I wanna be your jindo dog," which implies that younger guys are seen as loyal an innocent. In a Noona-Dongsaeng relationship instead of having guys chase after the girl (like dogs usually chase after cats) the older lady is teasing and attracting the guy's attention.

The MV also shows the different sides to a woman's personality. The cat in the beginning and end comes to the guy in a calm manner and is seemingly docile, however when the cat transform into human (which always happens in real life right?...your crush is really your cat...totally! It makes total sense....) she reveals a sexier and more seductive side.

With the plot aside, I personally don't like the crossover between cute and sexy that G.NA has been donning for her image. Those are two different if not opposite images and purposely mixing the two would only end up as an awkward image. It also doesn't fit G.NA's personality very much as a confident and strong young lady. I prefer the more natural image she had when promoting "Black and White" and "I'll Back Off So You Can Live Better".  

Overall:

Pinki: I like the sound of the song and the lyrics are very fun. The video however wasn't really my thing. It didn't really "blow me away". But, I still like G.NA and her music, and won't start hating her just because she released one single I did not like.  G.NA FIGHTING!!!! ^^

Niki: I'm not very fond of the style or the message of the song and it's not really the type of music I prefer. However, I agree with Pinki that this is an overall fun song with a quirky MV that you can maybe bounce around to in your house. G.NA is still one of the K-pop artists I fairly like, I just wish that she would recover her initial image soon. 

Album Review: Mr.'s "New Beginning"

Released in the first week of 2013, Cantorock band Mr. makes a strong and rocking entrance into the new year with "New Beginning". Overall, it's an enjoyable listen with their signature rock sound coupled with new and different elements.

"第五類接觸/Fifth Kind", used as the opening song for their New Beginning Live concert, is an upbeat song that gets you pumped and moving. There's a lot of energy in it and gets you psyched, making you want to hear more.

"走一走/Walk" is another energetic song that will get you moving. The beat of the song will have your head bobbing to the music. The instruments get to have a lot more creativity and fun here.

What is most surprising and fresh about the album though is "Dance Floor". I never would've expected Mr. to release a dance song. It does a fantastic job of blending the musical instruments with dance and synthetic beats. The rock sound is retained but there is also a club vibe to it. The feel of the song is very mysterious and alluring, especially when Alan sings "With me tonight, with me tonight...". "Dance Floor" is incredibly catchy, slick, and infectious. It's not something I saw coming from Mr., and I'm very impressed.

"方向感/Sense of Direction" is a mid tempo song with a relaxed but uplifting tone, and one of my favorite singles from them yet. A more in depth review can be found here.

"舊日理想/The Old Ideal" is a good contrast to the rest of the album. The music and lyrics are filled with angst and raw emotion, a heavier than usual sound for them that fits. I love blasting this when feeling down or angry.

"What R We Fighting 4" is one of Mr.'s weaker singles. It's catchy and promoting a positive message, but musically it's repetitive and too simple. It's still a fun and upbeat listen, but a step backwards in terms of a maturing music style and wasn't the best song to promote as the lead single. Nevertheless, it makes a good anthem to fight for what you believe in.

The album ends on a thoughtful note with "一首情歌/One Love Song". Mr. goes acoustic here, a refreshing break from their upbeat and "louder" material. It's nice to see a softer and gentler side to them. The sound is very romantic, dreamy, sweet, and soothing. You won't be able to keep from smiling when listening to it.

"New Beginning" is a fantastic EP from Mr. that shows maturation in their musical style. There is more variety here than in their previous works as well as distinction between each track. Each song is worth listening to and repeating again. Although they keep with their band sound, they bring several twists to their music this time around for some freshness, and it works. It's the start of another very promising and successful year for Mr.!

Rating: 4.25 stars

Song Review: Kelvin Kwan's "孱弱/Fragile"

Although unable to release another album before the end of the year like he wanted, Kelvin Kwan goes out with a bang with his new single "孱弱/Frail", which is also the theme song for his short film "茶木邂逅" co-starring Shiga Lin.

When I started listening to the song for the first time, I thought "Oh no, another slow ballad".  While I like ballads and Kelvin has a strong vocals fit for them, I was hoping for something more impressive and less generic from Kelvin, who is able to pull off more musical styles than the average Cantopop singer.  However, "Frail" turned out to be much more.

"Frail" opens with a piano intro and softly sung verse full of sadness.  At first, it doesn't sound too special.  The song then develops into a slightly gritty, grunge influenced song full of angst.  Having loved his earlier alternative rock oriented singles "Occupation" and "People of My Generation", I'm pleased Kelvin continued exploring this sound.  "Frail" is not as heavy, but still rock influenced and the song has a very thematic feel making it addictive to listen to.  The edgy electric guitar and music works well against Kelvin's husky and strong vocal performance. The song flows well from a slower to faster tempo and back without every feeling choppy or sloppily put together.  I'm satisfied with the musical direction taken here and think it fits Kelvin very well.

Although the song is pleasantly edgy and gritty, the music video is a bit disturbing.  While I like the cinematic feel with the dark lighting and sleek filming style and how it matches the thematic feel of the song, but the kidnapping plot seems far fetched and off topic (but it may be because of my lack of full understanding of the lyrics).  The sight of Kelvin being locked in the truck of a car, getting yelled at by a presumed ex-girlfriend in Korean, before finally being (assumed to be) killed with a hammer by the girl is rather unsettling.

Overall, "Frail" is yet another great song released to be Kelvin this year and continues to show his potential and talent as a musical artist by exploring a more heavy sound.  "Frail" has managed to become one of my favorite songs of the year just shortly before 2012 closes.

Song Review: Pakho Chau's "Death Row/斬立決"

Pakho Chau impresses listeners while touching on their emotions and bringing their attention to an important social issue with his single "Death Row/斬立決".

"Death Row" is a commentary on one of today's most problematic social issues: bullying (more specifically, cyberbullying).  The lyrics compares and makes a metaphor out of a victim of bullying and someone on death row.  They're shunned from society, and not given the chance to "repent", even though they did nothing wrong.  The chorus paints the picture of an execution, and how people gather to watch the victim die, without shame and without making a move to stop it.  The lyrics paint heart breaking imagery and inform of the horrors of the effects of cyberbullying while the haunting melody leaves you feeling conflicted.  Pakho's deep voice allows the song to be sung with power and raw emotion.

The music video illustrates the metaphor used in the song.  Its concept is in a more artistic direction with simple expression.  The video is shot in black and white with a bleak setting.  Taking place in an empty room, Pakho is shown getting poisoned by an apple, and waking up to be on death row.  He is then executed (off camera and through angle shots) and lies in the arms of a masked and tattooed woman as flower petals fall around him.  There is a dominant use of unique and dark masks and other head pieces, which probably hint at more symbolism.  Also, there is an additional scene after the song ends where Pakho is shown eating the same apple, but this time is not poisoned by it, showing he has received a second chance to live his life.  The music video is executed very well.  Though simplistic and a bit frightening, it carries a lot of meaning.

Pakho Chau's "Death Row" is a fantastic song for all the reasons above.  Due to heavy content, it does also leave you feeling depressed and conflicted.  Overall, it is one of the year's best, with well written lyrics, a melody that sticks with you, raising awareness of one of the problems of society, and leaving a lasting impact even after the song has stopped playing.

Song Review: Hyuna's "Ice Cream"

HyunA makes a hot comeback with her new mini album "Melting". The album consist of five songs and the title track "Ice Cream." This new hit song has reached 20 million views on YouTube in just 10 days. Although this song has reached popularity and broken a record by receiving the most views in the quickest amount of time by a K-pop artist, I honestly did not like it. 

The song:

The song is very upbeat, and I admit it is catchy, but it's was not the song that I would like to listen to. It has meaningless lyrics, not to mention the word "cream" is overused. Throughout the whole song is basically mostly a girl talking about how great she is, comparing herself to ice cream, and how she can "Melt you down like Ice cream". I don't mind that it has those type of lyrics, it's just the lack of verses. As I looked deeper into the lyrics, I realized that this song has a lot of repetition. I feel like she only says five sentences throughout the whole song. 

The MV:

I am not going to lie, I think the MV really fits the song because like the lyrics it's meaningless.  In other words it doesn't really make any sense. The first thing you see in the MV is "Gangnam Style"'s PSY walking up to a very big and colorful ice cream truck. He walks in, gets a vanilla ice cream, and starts to devour it. That's when you spot HyunA yelling at him for eating her ice cream. 

There is some kind of protest going on. The people are holding up signs that says "Ha Ha Ha" and "Batman he is gone" during the protest, while she is driving her big ice cream truck she runs over a clown. Then they cheer and all the guys runs towards her. 

Spraying people with liquid ice cream? I don't know what to say. 

The bubble bath scene was not needed. 

I don't even know what this scene has to do with the song.  Nothing to do with ice cream.

The dance to this MV follows along the same line as her dance in "Bubble Pop." I don't mind the whole sexy dancing, but she could have thought of something else. This dance has that whole "get on the floor" and a lot of "body movements".

Overall:

This song is upbeat and any upbeat song to me is catchy. The first time I heard this song was going to be released, I thought of something cute, fun, and sweet like ice cream, but my guess was way off. Even though I was very very wrong the song and dance didn't surprise me at all. It was most likely expected. 

"Ghetto Justice" Review (By Iris)

"Ghetto Justice" unexpectedly became the sleeper hit of the year when it was released in 2011, becoming a critical and fan favorite.  Since then, many people had anticipated the sequel, including myself.

"Ghetto Justice 2" was set up very nicely.  It was one of the few sequels that truly felt like a continuation from the original.  All the principle cast members had returned, the ones who did not were heard from and had explained absences (Eddie Kwan and Joyce Tang), and the new characters (Raymond Cho, JJ Jia, and Crystal Li) were introduced well.

It all goes downhill from there though. The cases were weak, forgetful, and overall just uninteresting.  They failed to command attention, and with the excessive family related cases settled out of court, it strayed from the fact "Ghetto Justice" is a law series.  There were no captivating court scenes here.  Even the cases that had potential, such as the building collapse, were written poorly and ended abruptly. 


The heart and soul of "Ghetto Justice", embodied in the character of Law Ba made infamous by Kevin Cheng, lost his touch.  His ego seems to have inflated since the original, making him go from lovably cocky to just plain obnoxious at times.  His laziness and playfulness has elevated, and the brilliant lawyer failed to be exhibited much.  All of the subtle characteristics and flaws that made him special and likable in the first one were unnecessarily magnified.  He's still a likable enough character, but just not the same Law Ba that the audience came to love.

Myolie Wu delivers a repeat performance.  She reprises the role and shows small improvements, but doesn't present anything too new or impressive.  She and Kevin still have a great amount of chemistry together, and appear very natural.

"Ghetto Justice 2" wins the award for bringing in the most unnecessary plot device for its story ever: the love triangle.  The sequel saw challenges for Law Ba and Wong Sze Fu through Law Ba's ex-wife Lynette, played by Christine Kuo, who somehow managed to remain unknown to any of the other characters for so long.  The idea already seemed bad in theory, and its execution was no better.  Lynette was irritating, and almost singlehandedly makes the series a long draggy, mess.  There were some redeeming traits in the character, such as her wish to truly help people as a doctor, but her foolish love for Law Ba masks her potential likability.  Christine gives a mediocre performance with jumbled Cantonese and unnatural crying scenes, but the scene where she challenges Myolie to fight for Kevin showed she can be pretty fierce. 

Between the weak cases and overall storyline, the decline in Law Ba's level of likability, and the addition of Lynette, it was the supporting cast that kept me watching (that, and I didn't want to just drop the series since I enjoyed the original so much).

"Ah Dan" (Sam Lee) was already likable in the original, and continues to be.  In fact, I held a higher appreciation of the character of Ah Dan and Sam's subtle yet real portrayal of him this time around.  He is kindhearted and concerned of the well being of society to a fault, but has a tendency to neglect family.  Regardless of how small the appearance, it was also great that Sharon Chan was able to make a cameo as Ching Ching through the form of Ah Dan's memory and mind. 

I had major doubts of the pairing of Sam Lee and JJ Jia, but they turned out to be the pair I enjoyed watching most, from their initial dislike and misconceptions of each other, to their friendship and mutual understanding, to their eventual realization of their love of each other.  At first, JJ Jia's character Ah Sum seemed like she'd be very annoying, but she turned out to be a sweet, kind, caring, but smart girl.  JJ performed quite well, bringing out the heart and wisdom in Ah Sum.  She knew to remember the memories forever, but not let the past keep her from being happy in the present and future.  Her unwavering care of Ah Dan and willingness to help him through thick and thin was touching, particularly when she steered him to learn to accept his mother's death and mend his relationship with his father.  It was a plot line that could have been draggy to watch, but one of few things that were executed well in the series. 

Jazz Lam reprises his endearing performance as the adorable and gentlemanly MJ with ease, and it continues to shock me how he emerged into the character so naturally with his record of playing more rough and immature, younger characters.  Raymond Cho as "Leung Bao" was an appropriate replacement for Eddie Kwan, and had no trouble filling the void left in Law Ba's gang of friends.  Crystal Li did not have much development or screen time to work with as "Grace", but was very likable and shows potential as well as a certain aura of sweetness and intelligence to her.  However, the oddest character and casting decision was Elena Kong, who is pictured on the poster and initially appears to be a main cast member.  Her character had potential for development and another storyline.  Yet, she disappears after her divorce case and is never heard from again.

"Ghetto Justice 2" is deceiving.  It looks the same and as good as the original the outside with the return of its original cast and smooth entrance of new characters, but it's not.  The overall vision and point of the series did not mirror up to the first one.  It tried to expand on what made the original so beloved, but along the way ruined itself.  The sequel holds little novelty and things to praise about, but is full of weak and sloppy writing.  Perhaps it would have been better if the original producer Tong Kei Ming had returned, as he was replaced by newly promoted producer Joe Chan after announcing retirement.

Overall

"Ghetto Justice 2" feels more like a chore to watch than a pleasure, and definitely does not live up to the hype or the original.  With the exception of Christine Kuo, the series does boost solid acting.  However, the point that good acting can not save a bad script has been made and beaten to death by TVB a thousand times over, and "Ghetto Justice 2" is just another example.  The story is not engaging and sloppily written and should not be linked to the original.  There were some entertaining moments and I enjoyed watching the cast (mostly Sam and JJ), but the bad and weak outweighs the good.  Now that this review is written and done, I can now pretend there was never a sequel made for "Ghetto Justice".

Rating: 2 stars