Archives For big vocal chops

Salyu – Glide – Merkmal Live @ Nippon Budonkan 2009

Unlike Bjork, I feel Salyu is approachable, or it must be that politeness that plagues Japanese language as a whole… anyway, Salyu seems nicer than she appears with those crazy eyes. You know? When she’s singing in this performance of Glide, which by the way is one of those songs that don’t get performed enough for being part of the Lily Chou Chou repertoire, instead of Salyu’s. Because Salyu IS Lily.

Listening to her is one of those experiences, imagine it LIVE~ O.o

https://youtu.be/7majgyyW6Pc

You just get to watch it as a YouTube stream, while I enjoy it on my 5.1 Surround sound dvd – and Bill… well, he gets to see Salyu live. I’ll stick to Bjork… unless Salyu decides to come here. Wink wink nudge nudge.

If this clip doesn’t get you to listen to other Salyu songs, I dunno what will.

Posted on July 12, 2010 In Celebrity, Clips, DVD/BR, English, Japanese, Music, Sharing , , , , , , ,
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Remembering AI – Story

This one’s for Bill~ thanks for the AI recommendation ;P

I have finally fallen in love with the song. It took a while~ Now, that Hitori janai kara/watashi ga kimi o mamoru kara kills me. The song is just so… uplifting. I think it might go great together with Christina Aguilera’s Beautiful. Once you hear it, you have to stand up and sing it out loud.

https://youtu.be/LCKCRv1d_-s

Here’s the okay-ish English lyrics.

I really like her FEAT AI album!
and her PASSION song kills me when she sings “Mira, mira / Watashi o mite”

I am beautiful… in every single way. Yeah, words won’t… bring me down~~~

Posted on July 11, 2010 In English, Fun, Japanese, Music, Music Videos, Sharing , , ,
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Diane Warren’s Bibi Song – I Miss U Missing Me

I’m all over this. I usually love Diane Warren’s cheese… I mean, she did write I Don’t Wanna Miss a Thing — the song most Aerosmith fans hate… but you know, it’s a great song. Especially to sing-not in Karaoke. LOL It’s the feeling. Liv Tyler is losing her dad to the asteroid! Please, cry! xD

I Miss U Missing Me is the first English song by Zhou Bichang… and Diane Warren’s first for an Asian artist (?) Has she written any other songs for anybody not from America or Europe? OMG, please let that be. xD

This one so needs to be the 2nd single.
This one > The Chinese/English version.
一滴淚的距離 (Yi Di Lei de Ju Li) – A Tear in the Distance

This can totally fit into the story between Grace and Alex, Julz~~~
This is so Alex -> Grace xD

Anyway~~~ Look!

BiBi performing I Miss U Missing Me
same presentation, different spot.

She’s a bit off, and the spiky jacket throws you off.
*sighs* I Miss BiBi in BiBi’s chic-geek style.

Posted on June 25, 2010 In Celebrity, Chinese, Clips, English, Fun, Lyrics, Music, Sharing , , , ,
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Salyu – Maiden Voyage – Merkmal Live @ Nippon Budonkan 2009

March 26, 2010 — 14 Comments

HMV JP takes top marks on shipping.
It only took 2 days! TWO days for my order to arrive~~~

It took Salyu 3 years to release her 3rd studio album, but it’s not like we were deprived of new music. In fact, Maiden Voyage contains many of the singles that Salyu had release these past years [6, if I count correctly]. You could say this could be a compilation of sorts, but it surprisingly works nicely as an album.

The album art gives you the visuals of flying… almost in a dream-like fashion — I mean, Salyu IS floating on a mattress and/or pillows, right? These visuals work really well with the overall themes and overall energy of the songs (yes, I actually grabbed the song book and followed the bouncing ball).

It also looks like Salyu is experimenting with her own music by finally stepping onto the writers chair, and even working on the music herself. Of course, she’s not doing it alone but with the help of Takeshi Kobayashi who has been there since the days of Lily Chou Chou. The collaborations between Kobayashi and Salyu are what we have come to get used to as far as Salyu’s sound is.

Interestingly enough, Salyu’s song (written and composed as least with the help of Tatsuya Kokufu) L.A.F.S (which stands for Love at First Sight) reminded me a little bit of what Salyu used to sound as Lily. Somewhat off-beat melodies, with really simple lyrics, but really moody.

Overall, the album really flows well and feels like a whole, except maybe for the oddball BIRTHDAY, which threw me off… in a really good way. The song, written by Salyu and composed again by Kokufu, sounded like Shiina Ringo and Bjork had a lovechild, if that were EVER possible.

I’ve taken to Salyu’s music because it’s soothing, as well as quite slow and easier to follow with a songbook. Salyu is really quite good to practice your reading and pronunciation. However on BIRTHDAY, she slurs her words and sounds completely different. I’m looking forward to more of that sound in the future. Hopefully.

As for the concert DVD. Well, it’s totally worth the price you pay for this limited edition with DVD ~

Screencap galore after the break~

Continue Reading…

In Concerts, DVD/BR, English, Japanese, Music, Reviews, Screencaps, Sharing , , , , , ,
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Sodagreen – Incomparable Beauty and More

I have just fallen in love with a new song. Better yet!
Lyrics live up to the expectation.
Take a look at Sodagreen from their 2007 album
Incomparable Beauty. Beautiful lyrics and instrumentation on the song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adgEGZQHG28

And this is Little Love Song.

FYI, singer is a guy. But here he is doing a pretty rocking version of Toxic. LOL Now imagine him singing and 2001 Britney Spears performing to that music. Would be sweet.

I love LOVE Incomparable Beauty. *sighs*

Posted on December 22, 2009 In Chinese, English, Music, Music Videos, Sharing , , , , , ,
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Han Hong Returns!

Say what?

She’s got a new album! And it was released not long ago, and a lot of famous people showed their support for the release!! Including Andy Lau, Eason Chan, Nic Tse and Stefanie Sun~~~

This is the video for the first single, Gui Lai (Return)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=045A6clHAF8

must get my hands on that album~

and I demand a collaboration with Celtic Woman, Meav or Sarah Brightman~~~ LOL

Posted on October 26, 2009 In Celebrity, Chinese, English, Music, Music Videos, Sharing , , , , , , , ,
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Han Hong – The Woman with the Wonderful Voice

I know I’ve tagged this with “new talent” and “new music” when in fact it’s not.

First, a little about Han Hong – according to Chinese Wiki – She’s won the award for the Most Popular Female Singer, as well as the Best Female Artist Award (in mainland China). That means she’s critically acclaimed, and popular among the public – which doesn’t happen often on this side of the world. LOL

Her voice is often compared (by the fans) to Sarah Brightman for her unique style… music and lyrics. – and everyone loves Brightman… she was even on the Beijing Olympics Opening.

Now, a little on my story. I first noticed her at the Beijing Paralympic Opening Ceremony – with Andy Lau singing Flying with the Dream – but I didn’t have much luck getting her name or clips back then, so I kinda forgot about it until the day I was watching those music concerts on CCTV back in April and she appeared on stage. My mom thought what an amazing voice! While I added I had seen her in the Paralympic Ceremony… totally forgetting she’s also featured on the Beijing Welcomes You music video (thank you, whoever did those annotations! It’s hard to keep track of so many singers…) – Anyway, that day… I ended up discovering Chris Lee instead of Han Hong… but the wait is OVER!

Since the beginning, I’ve always thought she had an amazing voice, but the video above moved me so much. It gave me shivers, and almost brought tears to my eyes. No, really. It’s THIS video in particular… this performance. She’s an amazing vocalist! I would love to see her perform with Sarah Brightman herself, or maybe even the lovely women of Celtic Woman – or Meav *tsk tsk*

I’m not completely sold on her videos – like on most vocalist I follow – but her live performances are so much more worth it. Here are some of her other performances…

Ommani
Qinghai Tibetan Plains

Posted on June 26, 2009 In Chinese, Clips, English, Fun, Music, Sharing , , , , , , , , ,
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Lily Chou Chou – Kokyu Re-Issue

March 30, 2009 — 10 Comments

So this totally slipped my mind! I got the re-issue of Breathe!!! The Lily Chou Chou album from the Lily film by Shunji Iwai. The first time you see the film is so SO difficult~~ it’s such a hard theme, and characters you just want to slap around. I was a kid not long ago, and I felt so disconnected from THAT reality… yet, the film. You go back to it, and absorb it. The visuals, the music… it’s heartbreak.

Salyu, her voice~~ I fell in love with the soundtrack. The album is an experience all on its own… perhaps more than Salyu’s other albums. It’s the film, it’s because the album is strongly connected to that reality that it works so well… perhaps, a bit poetic. It’s THAT magical. At least to me, and to all the people that had bought the first issue of the album~~~ and maybe the reason WHY it was re-released.

I just want to know, from the people that bought the first run of copies… is it the same as the re-issue? Or has something changed? Hence, the re-issue credits in the album (including a re-design credit) ~ your thoughts?

Lily Chou Chou - Salyu - Kokyu

In English, Films, Fun, Japanese, Music, Products, Reviews, Sharing , , ,
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Wo he Ni – You and Me – Olympic Song

Sarah Brightman was the sh!t performing… Okay, Liu Huan sang pretty good too, but the attire, man~~~ He was so underdressed – Brightman, on the other hand, was STUNNING. The song is oh so very Chinese feeling ballad, betcha it’s not for everyone’s taste, but I betcha people are looking for lyrics…

Bear with me! First pinyin lyrics, EVER. I’ve got a secret tool, will post on that later! I’ve also got videos to post~~ The Live performance, and the official music video (aka [MV] or [PV])… pick you poison and begin singing.

Continue Reading…

Posted on August 8, 2008 In Chinese, Clips, English, Lyrics, Music Videos, Pinyin, Sharing , , , , , ,
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Celtic Woman DVD Reviews

October 27, 2007 — Leave a comment

First, before anyone complains about my opinion, I’m writing this reviews not only as a person who listens to Celtic Woman, but also as someone who’s bought tons of DVDs, and even has made some in her short career.

I’ve got my complete Celtic Woman DVD collection, of sorts…
– Celtic Woman
– Celtic Woman: Live at Slane Castle
– Celtic Woman: A Christmas Celebration

First, some facts on Amy relating to Celtic Woman:
– Saw them on a PBS (Public Broadcasting SOMETHING SOMETHING hahaha) in Canada
– Were in Vancouver, but missed them coz I had classes.
– Fiddling is cool, Amy thinks.
– Saw clips of the Slane Castle show, and bought the DVD.
– The 2nd DVD was the first in my collection.

Reviews Continue Reading…

In DVD/BR, English, Misc., Music, Reviews, Sharing , , , , ,
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