Eager to lose his one-dimensional image of
the boy-next-door, JJ Lin Jun Jie reminds you that there is still a darker side
of him in his latest album, Westside - one with a murderous intent.
But the tongue can no man tame; (it is)
a restless evil; (it is) full of deadly poison. -- Jam 3:8
With the above biblical quote to kick off,
one would have expected a stronger sense of malevolence in this album. However,
other than the intricately crafted opening of "Du Bai" (Confession), which
builds up an ominous foreboding to the song "Sha Shou" (The Killa), as well as
the remixed bridge "Sha Shou@Xu" (The Awakening) thereafter, this album did not
manage to live up to its name.
Nevertheless, it is inevitable to place
much emphasis on "Sha Shou" (The Killa), which has generated much hype for this
album with its controversial music video, depicting human's multi-faceted
personality between love and hate, good and evil.
Yet this does not mean that there is
nothing else to look out for in this album.
If you were to listen closely to the
sequence in which the tracks are being arranged, you'd have noticed the
transmission from darker, eccentric tunes like "Sha Shou"(The Killa), to funky,
upbeat tracks such as "Wu Liao" (J-Fusion) and "K-O", with the sweet love
ballads of "Da Nan Ren, Xiao Nuu Ren" (Boyfriend, Girlfriend), "Bu Liu Lei De
Ji Chang" (Flying on Your Wings) and "Zi You Bu Bian" (Freedom) making the
ideal finish.
Sticking to his signature J-Fusion, JJ
infused his songs with the usual musical elements, like hip-hop, R&B, funk,
rock, as well as using the Chinese orchestra instruments Gu Zheng (Chinese
Zither) and Er-Hu as accompaniment, all of which he had utilised in his
previous album. While such combination has become infallible to JJ, it also
restricts his musical range, making this album less astounding than it should
be.
Even so, there are still a couple of
surprises in store, for example JJ's beat-box showcase in "Dan Tiao" (Let's
Battle), which is the prelude to "K-O", the ultimate hip-hop battle among
JJ, B-Box Mike and rapper Dr Moon. For the visual effects, you ought to check
out its sensual music video!
Also worthy of mentioning would be JJ's
second duet with Kym Jin Sha "Fa Xian Ai" (Love's in the Air), a light-hearted
and cheery tune which, though less catchy than its predecessor "Bei Feng Chui
Guo De Xia Tian" (Summer Breeze), is sure to put a smile on your face.
My personal favourite, however, remains the
title track "Xi Jie" (Westside), a poignantly melancholic number, making use of
Chinese wind instrument Ba Wu to illustrate the distance and heartache of
pining for a loved one at the other end of the world - the world without prolonged darkness.
Even though I was expecting much more from
a singer-composer of JJ's calibre, I'd have to say that this album has
maintained his usual standard.
With the rhythm to groove, the melody to move,
and the song to muse, that's J-Fusion for you. hooked
Hooked's rating: 3/5
Photos courtesy of Ocean
Butterflies Music Pte Ltd
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