Jay Chou [Fantasy] (Second Album)

愛在西元前 Love Before A.D. (Ài Zài Xī Yuán Qián)
爸，我回來了 Dad, I’m Back (Bà, Wǒ Huí Lái Le)
簡單愛 Simple Love (Jiǎn Dān Ài)
忍者 Ninja (Rěn Zhě)
開不了口 Can’t Speak (Kāi Bu Liǎo Kǒu)
上海一九四三 Shanghai 1943 (Shàng Hǎi 1943)
對不起 Sorry (Duì Bu Qǐ)
威廉古堡 William’s Castle (Wēi Lián Gǔ Bǎo)
雙截棍 Nunchucks (Shuāng Jié Gùn)
安靜 Silence (Ān Jìng)

The album starts off with 愛在西元前 Love Before A.D. (Ài Zài Xī Yuán Qián). Ah, this song always seems to pass over me, but I like it a lot. The arrangement is pretty calm, I like the tinkle like melody of it and how it makes me think of the city on a slow and bleak day. Jay’s vocals were surprisingly soft, but he did have a bit of emotion in his voice. It makes you think of a longing type of love. I adore how he took the song out, nice.

The next track on the album is the dreary 爸，我回來了 Dad, I’m Back (Bà, Wǒ Huí Lái Le). This is a rather personal song, as Jay talks about his mother and the abuse she suffered by his father. Its appropriately dark, the arrangement. Jay’s vocals during the verses reflects his anger and bitterness and perhaps his inability to do anything. The chorus shifts and he sounds sad and mournful and it makes your heart bleed. I like how the song ends with the sound of rain.

The next track on the album mellows things out with 簡單愛 Simple Love (Jiǎn Dān Ài). Ah, I love this song, it is just so sweet. The arrangement as well as Jay’s vocals and the music is as simple as the title suggests. This song makes me think of an innocent love, untainted by the world. It always fills me with a warmth and makes me smile from my heart.

The next track on the album is the up-tempo 忍者 Ninja (Rěn Zhě). Jay always has at least one song like this on his albums and they are always hit or miss with me. This would be a hit. I especially like the chorus, its pretty sexy.

The next track on the album is the down-tempo 開不了口 Can’t Speak (Kāi Bu Liǎo Kǒu). This track sounds so airy and windy and that’s only enhanced by the arrangement, which makes you feel like you’re standing outside under a blue sky with the wind blowing around you. Jay’s vocals are quite tender during the chorus and soft during the verses, though he did strain a bit which I found odd. I keep thinking this is suppose to be some sort of hopeful sunshine after the rain song, but it exudes such a depressing atmosphere.

The next track keeps the down-tempo’s coming with 上海一九四三 Shanghai 1943 (Shàng Hǎi 1943). This song brings me back to Love Before A.D. probably because of the similarity of the titles in a sense. The arrangement gives off a feeling of intimate longing, but it moves you. Jay put a lot of emotion into his vocals and even though they seemed all over the place like he couldn’t control himself, I still thought it was a good performance. This song seems rather sad as well.

The next track on the album is the slightly mid-tempo 對不起 Sorry (Duì Bu Qǐ). This has always been one of my favorite Jay Chou songs, I just love the whole flow of it. The arrangement is very clever and I can’t put my finger on it; guitar? Violin? Did I hear a piano at some point? Whatever it was it was nice. I love the way Jay chooses to sing this song, I mean its really hard to explain, but it was very interesting and certainly kept me engaged.

The next track on the album is the haunting 威廉古堡 William’s Castle (Wēi Lián Gǔ Bǎo). This song plays pretty darkly and certainly brings meaning to the title. The arrangement is so Phantom of the Opera or Count Dracula and gives off an atmosphere of being utterly alone. Jay’s vocal performance was very interesting, especially his tones during the chorus.

The second to last track on the album is the random 雙截棍 Nunchucks (Shuāng Jié Gùn). Er… hmm? I wonder what the point of this track was, since it seems to make no sense and sounds like an alternate more underwhelming version of Ninja.

The last track on the album is the down-tempo 安靜 Silence (Ān Jìng). This is not one of my more preferred ballads from Jay, in fact I hardly ever listen to it, but it is a good song. I love how simply sad everything is about this track, you get such a heavy feeling listening to this which is only enhanced by the amount of emotion prevalent in Jay’s tones as he sings this. This was a good ending to the album.

-GRADE: B+
Rating: **1/2 stars

Jay Chou’s third album Fantasy is a good album and definitely one of my favorites by him. Though this is a good album the songs don’t particularly stand-out. I mean of course we have the dark ‘dad, i’m back’ which speaks out on a personal level, so that’s sure to catch your attention and then we have ’simple love’, ’sorry’ and ’silence’ which are the only other songs that really jump out at me, the others with the exception of ‘nunchucks’ just plays nice. Fantasy is course nostalgic because it was when Jay Chou was actually making good and meaningful music, instead of the stuff he’s putting out now, which is a far cry from what I’m use to from him. I’ll pop this in before Capricorn any day, seriously.

Jay Chou [Capricorn] (Ninth Album)

龍戰騎士 Dragon Knight (Lóng Zhàn Qí Shì)
給我一首歌的時間 Give Me A Song’s Time (Gěi Wǒ Yì Shǒu Gē De Shí Jiān)
蛇舞 Snake Dance (Shé Wŭ)
花海 Ocean Of Flowers (Huā Hăi)
魔術先生 Mr. Magic (Mó Shù Xiān Sheng)
說好的幸福呢 Where Is The Promised Happiness? (Shuō Hăo De Xìng Fú Ne)
蘭亭序 Orchid Pavilion (Lán Tíng Xù)
流浪詩人 Wandering Poet (Líu Làng Shī Rén)
時光機Time Machine (Shí Guāng Jī)
喬克叔叔 Uncle Joker (Qiáo Kè Shū Shū)
稻香 Rice Aroma (Dào Xiāng)

The album starts off with the frenzied 龍戰騎士 Dragon Knight (Lóng Zhàn Qí Shì). Why am I not surprised by this title? The arrangement is so-so. It has a lot going for it variety wise, but it does sound like its trying too hard to be martial arts climactic scene epic sounding, it all just went over my head really. Jay’s vocals are good, they were intense and let you know that he was really into the song and feeling what he was saying. That’s nice in all, but I thought this song could have been a lot more interesting than what it was. Instead it falls back into the same pattern as his other songs that are like this. Its an all right opening for those that are into songs like this.

The next track on the album is the somewhat down-tempo 給我一首歌的時間 Give Me A Song’s Time (Gěi Wǒ Yì Shǒu Gē De Shí Jiān). I think I’m going to be adding this song to my huge list of favorite Jay Chou tracks. The arrangement is simple, but a good kind of simple. It seemed loud to me for some reason, and though it irritated me a little, it didn’t irritate me enough to turn me off of the song. I enjoyed Jay’s vocals in this, and how they added such an old-school 90’s rnb appeal to this song. The chorus is definitely the highlight, its really quite beautiful and a bit longing.

The next track is the just under three minutes 蛇舞 Snake Dance (Shé Wŭ). Hmm? I’m a bit speechless. This song seemed longer than its 2:54 running time, and that’s not necessarily a good thing. The arrangement is typical for a song called, ’snake dance’ it has a very distinct Middle Eastern like flow to it, and that’s basically the only part of this song I liked, you can really move your hips to it. Jay chooses to rap instead of sing for this song, and Jay’s rapping voice always trips me out because its so fast and in turn hilarious. I of course didn’t like this song, I thought it was ridiculous.

The next track on the album is the down-tempo 花海 Ocean Of Flowers (Huā Hăi). I really thought I was going to like this song. I mean the arrangement really makes you think of the ocean in an detached sort of way, its a really nice and soothing arrangement. I also think there was a flute being played in this as well, which really enhances the whole ocean-like feel of the song. Jay’s vocals are what ruin this song for me, he just sounds so flat, strain-y and as if he’s trying too hard to pull at the emotional strings of your heart. I just wasn’t buying.

The next track on the album is the warped 魔術先生 Mr. Magic (Mó Shù Xiān Sheng). At first I thought this song was going to be an interlude, because it started with Jay and some man talking. I was wrong, but after listening to this, I kind a wish it had been a pointless interlude, because it really beats a pointless song, since you don’t have to endure it for so long. The arrangement can be described as, ‘a day at the carnival’, seriously. Jay’s vocals were so childish and it really makes me wonder if he was on something when he recorded this song, because even though its so light and kid-friendly I can’t help but get such a creepy vibe from it.

The next track is the down-tempo 說好的幸福呢 Where Is The Promised Happiness? (Shuō Hăo De Xìng Fú Ne). After the disaster that was the last down-tempo, it was nice to hear another good one. The arrangement is very simple and so are Jay’s vocals. This is really your typical Jay Chou down-tempo song. Its one I like though.

The next track is the odd yet endearing 蘭亭序 Orchid Pavilion (Lán Tíng Xù). The one thing I liked about this song was how oriental the arrangement was, very traditional Chinese sounding, and I’ve always really liked that aspect in Jay’s music. Its just so beautiful and old-fashioned. It seems almost lost to time. Jay’s vocals were decent, but he sounded pinched or muffled a lot. One thing I didn’t like about this song was this one part where these weird voices start talking or something, I don’t know if it was Jay Chou making his voice sound so stereotypical or what, but I just didn’t like it. Other than that, this was a really nice track.

The next track on the album is the brief 流浪詩人 Wandering Poet (Líu Làng Shī Rén). Umm…hmm? I’m very much so disappointed by this song, since with a title like ‘wandering poet’ it could have been a very good song. The arrangement is that of a harmonica, which is nice and different, but it gets old after awhile. Jay’s vocals were nice, but the song is so short and bland that that ceases to mean anything. Its also very forgettable.

The next track on the album is the longest, 時光機Time Machine (Shí Guāng Jī). I really wanted to like this song, because it’s not bad, but just… no. The arrangement is very basic, but it fits. I really didn’t have a problem with it, it was Jay’s vocals that I had a problem with. He strained an awful lot, which is ridiculous because I’ve never heard a Jay Chou song that would have cause for it. His voice not only strains, but at the same time its both irritating and annoying and it seems to fluctuate between the two. It reminded me of Changmin’s from DBSK/Tohoshinki who has a nice voice, but whose voice also has the tendency to sound impossible. I’m not sure what’s going on with Jay but this whole voice sounding impossible thing from him just seemed to sneak up on me. I did like how this song was long but didn’t seem long, I’ll give it points for that. I still don’t like it though.

The second to last track on the album is the WTH? 喬克叔叔 Uncle Joker (Qiáo Kè Shū Shū). And I thought 魔術先生 Mr. Magic (Mó Shù Xiān Sheng) was a pointless song. I’m all for an artist breaking out of old formulas and making new ones, introducing us to new sounds and genres and showing us that they can reinvent themselves and do more than what we’ve come to expect from them. However, Jay Chou’s whole experimental phase isn’t really working to his advantage. This song was just really pointless and that’s really all I can say, oh, and the laugh at the end was random and FREAKY.

The last track on the album is my favorite 稻香 Rice Aroma (Dào Xiāng). I first heard this song when I watched the video and I instantly fell in love. The arrangement is very traditional and I enjoyed that a lot. Nothing impresses me more than when a singer incorporates the sounds of their culture into their music, it shows a genuineness to who you are that really touches my heart. Jay’s vocals were great, and what I’m use too, a smooth calm and beautiful tone that really makes his songs come to life and stick. This song really embraces that of family and how its so important to hold on to those bonds and never lose them or turn your back on them. The birds chirping was a wonderful addition, and made everything just so peaceful. This song just gave me a: ‘it’s all right, i’ll be just fine’ feeling, lovely way to end the album.

-GRADE: C
Rating: * star

Jay Chou’s ninth album Capricorn is a step up from his previous album On The Run, but that’s not saying much because this album is just as bad. Jay went the experimental route once again this time, and decided to try his hand at circus music with devastating results. I only liked four songs on this album: 給我一首歌的時間 Give Me A Song’s Time (Gěi Wǒ Yì Shǒu Gē De Shí Jiān), 說好的幸福呢 Where Is The Promised Happiness (Shuō Hăo De Xìng Fú Ne), 蘭亭序 Orchid Pavilion (Lán Tíng Xù) and 稻香 Rice Aroma (Dào Xiāng). Now really, that’s a shame. I gave this album a solid C and not a C- or below because a few of the songs weren’t bad and did have the potential to be good, but I guess something just got lost in translation. Capricorn didn’t disappoint me as much as his previous album did, but its just not a good album and I’m once again left with a bad taste in my mouth.

Jay Chou [8 Dimensions] (Third Album)

The Orcs (Ban Shou Ren)
Iron Box of the Island (Ban Dao Tie He)
Secret Signal (An Hao)
Dragon Fist (Long Quan)
Where Is This Train Going? (Huei Cha Do Wei Ki)
Split (Fen Lie)
Grandfather’s Tea (Ye Ye Pao De Cha)
Return to the Past (Hui Dao Guo Qu)
Blacksmith of Milan (Mi Lan De Xian Tie Jiang)
Final Battle (Zui Hou De Zhan Yi)

The album starts off with the up-tempo track, (Ban Shou Ren) The Orcs. It starts off all majestic like, and then goes right into the addicting beat, and catchy chorus. This is a really fun song, and that’s surprising because with a title like, The Orcs, I really thought I was going to hate it.

I really love the next track, (Ban Dao Tie He) Iron Box of the Island. It’s so soothing and sad. I love the sound of the door to a shop opening in the beginning, it almost sounded like someone stepping into memories. I really enjoyed how Jay sung the verses, always keeping his voice consistent. The chorus has to be the best part of the song, because the way Jay sings it is very melancholy, because there is so much longing it in, and it makes you feel what he is saying.

The next track is another down-tempo tune, (An Hao) Secret Signal. The only thing this song has going for it in my opinion is the arrangement, which is just lovely and one of his best. I honestly wish that he would have let it shine more. The vocal performance from Jay wasn’t all that good, in a sense he sounded almost whiny, and as if he was trying too hard to make this song ‘tearjerky’ or touching. The verses are uninteresting, the chorus is dull and drags, and I hated the background verses since they made the song worse! It’s just an unintentionally boring song.

The next track picks up the pace a little, (Long Quan) Dragon Fist. It’s a song that I thought was going to pleasantly surprise me, like The Orcs did, unfortunately this song turned out to be just as garbage as I originally thought it would be.

The next track brings the pace back down. (Huei Cha Do Wei Ki) Where is This Train Going? is a nice little down-tempo song, that has a sweet arrangement, that really gives off this feeling of, ‘going somewhere’. A nice vocal performance from Jay; the verses were consistent and the chorus was interesting. This song shows variety, especially with how his voice drops and rises during the hook.

Jay decides to keep the down-tempo tunes coming with the next track, (Fen Lie) Split. This song reminded me of an even more duller version of Secret Signal. I mean everything from the vocal performance to the arrangement is just so simple and not even a good simple, but a uber boring simple. I mean there’s nothing really stand-outish about this song, and even after listening to it two times, I still retained nothing, it just went over my head.

The next track is one of my all time favorite Jay Chou tracks, (Ye Ye Pao De Cha) Grandfather’s Tea. It’s such a lovely song that just oozes nostalgia. I love the catchy chorus it’s so much fun to sing along too, and the arrangement is just too infectious. I just love this song, what more can I say?

The next track is the down-tempo, (Hui Dao Guo Qu) Return to the Past. There’s really nothing overtly interesting about this song to be truthful, but it does have a nice vocal performance and arrangement. It’s one of those rare songs I like, because of it’s charm. It is a rather sweet song.

The second to last track on this album is the somewhat underwhelming, (Mi Lan De Xiao Tie Jiang) Blacksmith of Milan. I don’t know, it has a somewhat catchy beat, but I don’t know it all seems to fall flat, because I expected this to be a somewhat serious song, what with a title like Blacksmith of Milan, but instead it just comes off rather childish and forgettable.

The last track on the album is definitely in my top ten favorite Jay Chou songs. (Zui Hou De Zhan Yi) Final Battle, is just a really sad song. I remember the first time I ever listened to this song, I was overcome with so many conflicting emotions, and those emotions and this song inspired me to write my favorite one-shot of all time fold the sky, in tribute to my favorite one-shot, Compos Mentis a Vicious/Gren war one-shot that was tragic and beautiful at the same time. The best part of this song is definitely the musical arrangement, and I really love the way the song ended, it really struck the heart.

-GRADE: B-
Rating: *1/2 stars

Jay Chou’s third album 8 Dimensions was rather brief, and forgettable. Though it wasn’t a bad album, I still felt as if Jay and Fantasy shitted all over it in terms of song quality, vocal prowess and musical arrangement. I guess Jay went for a more simple and basic approach with this album, really delving into human emotions, such as loneliness and separation; but I believe in the attempt a lot of it got lost in translation. Jay Chou’s songs always have such meaningful lyrics, and this album is no exception, but they cease to mean anything if they’re not composed right. I believe that is this album’s downfall. I use to really love this album, rating it among my top favorite Jay Chou albums, but now looking at it from a critic’s point of view instead of a fans, I find myself mostly disappointed with this album and incredibly bored. The stand out tracks are definitly Grandfather’s Tea and Final Battle, but I loved Iron Box of The Island, Where Is This Train Going? and The Orcs as well. I really wish that Split would have played more with the instrumental, because that is the only interesting thing about that song. I hate to say that these tracks are terribly average and mediocre, which is a bad thing because Jay Chou is no Faye Wong or even BoA for that matter, and simple just doesn’t suit him.