Archives For taiwan

Sodagreen – What is Troubling You

I gotta admit. I got a little choked up with this music video, and I’m totally pumped for Sodagreen’s upcoming new album… also titled What is Troubling You (你在煩惱什麼) — which, I have to admit~~~ comes at a bad time when Bibi is coming up with her new album and the Brown Eyed Girls are coming up with her nifty-licious repackaged Sixth Sense.

Did I tell you? I pre-ordered Sixth Sense and I ate it up like a sucker.

What makes me even more of a sucker, however, is that I had just pre-ordered the repackaged version too. Alongside Bibi’s new album.

Anyway, this new wonderfully sad and strangely uplifting music video comes from the brilliant mind of Muh Chen Yi Ren, from GrassJelly Studio — who also worked on my favorite Sodagreen MV… Incomparable Beauty [MV]. When these two get together, they make magic.

The lyrics seem… simple. I mean there’s not much lyrics… but I’m having issues with the double negative hahaha. I guess this is going to be my next Chinese class then!

Pinyin will do until then!

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Posted on November 7, 2011 In Chinese, English, Fun, Lyrics, Music, Music Videos, Pinyin, Sharing , , , , , , , , , , ,
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I can’t believe he said that~ Leehom Wang – Open Fire!

I’ve attempted to sing Leehom’s new song six times already. The first time I saw it and he reached those verses in English… somehow I was deeply moved. LOL But I really can’t believe he’s saying all of this on the song. It’s really quite explosive.

Also, the people complaining it sounds like Ke$ha – please, as if she has copyrighted autotuned vocals. Plus, Leehom sounds more Michael Jackson than anything, specially singing in English. And I’m fine with that, in fact… I kinda love the energy when he says those things.

On the rough — seriously, are you going to trust my Google translation abilities? — multi-language lyric translation and pinyin below the break!

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Posted on September 15, 2011 In Celebrity, Chinese, English, Lyrics, Music, Music Videos, Pinyin, Sharing, Spanish , , , , , , , ,
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OAOA with Mayday!

Since I posted the OAOA MV on YAM Magazine, I haven’t been able to stop singing along to the song, which at first was stupid. I mean, REALLY — the song is called OAOA. If you speak Spanish, it just reminds you of the Teletubbies. Lucky that the song is actually called O.A.O.A, but still! I just couldn’t get passed that name… then I finally listen to it, and it has been non-stop butchering Mandarin while saying OAOA.

Saying OAOA is as fun as singing Linda, Linda!!! Linda, Linda, Lindaaaaa~ xD

What’s even more impressive about Mayday 3DNA is that it’s also going to be a movie, and not just a concert movie but a movie-movie, with a plot and all. Makes me want to see it even more.

Pinyin lyrics after the break! So you can butcher Mandarin with me!

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Posted on September 5, 2011 In Chinese, English, Films, Lyrics, Music, Music Videos, Pinyin, Sharing , , , , , , ,
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When Cpop Went Beyond American Pop

Am I starting a series? Nah… I don’t think I can come up with a Jpop list xD

Unlike the Kpop list which it focused 99% of the time on dance pop friendly tracks that went beyond American commercial pop, this “Cpop” list is… not really pop.

Popular music in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Mainland China (but mostly Taiwan) tends to be pop/rockish flare. Sure there are dance pop friendly, but even they have moved or are moving more towards pop/rock. They also love indie flavor, and accept not particularly attractiveness in their idols… even though there are some very good looking people who are immensely popular.

To be completely honest, compared to Korea’s pop music charts, Chinese music charts have a broad variety. But then again, compared to Japan’s pop music charts (which is comprised of AKB48 and Arashi xD), even Kpop charts (mostly 2NE1 and Big Bang now that DBSK is gone) seem to have some variety. xD

So this list of great Chinese music includes varying genres from R&B, pop/rock… more rockish, ballads (regular and of the indie type), etc. once again listed by year of release.

Again, it’s a bit weak on the earlier years… but you are welcome to make suggestions (for any year). A few guidelines would be that they cannot be too indie (I couldn’t fit Cheer Cheen or Mavis Fan in the list because they don’t feel completely pop, if you know what I mean), must include MVs (so songs released as singles), not older than late 90s.

Also… song must work as MV too. So no awesome songs but tacky videos. Sorry.

[iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/videoseries?list=PL0C06C35FA9FC1C64&hl=en_US”]

YouTube link.

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What do you like about the Cpop industry?

Who are your fave artists?

Posted on August 25, 2011 In Chinese, English, MixTapes, Music, Music Videos, Sharing , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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Yu Aoi: Today’s Kakigoori

July 30, 2011 — 5 Comments

I am pretty (99,9%) sure that this used to be called Haru Natsu Aki Fuyu Kakigoori (春夏秋冬かき氷), which I translated as Kakigoori for All Seasons or Shaved-Ice for All Seasons. But now it’s called Kyou mo Kakigoori (今日もかき氷). I don’t know when that happened. But look!

We know how much Yu lovessssssssssss shaved ice, she’s like… super passionate about it. Some people love animals from shelters, melt for abandoned puppies and other assorted pets — Yu-chan loves herself some Kakigoori. She loves Taiwan for it, and my Mandarin teacher who’s from Taiwan tells me shaved-ice in Taiwan is off the hook out of this world.

I have no illuminating knowledge about shaved ice, because apparently Peruvian raspadilla has NOTHING on Taiwanese shaved ice. But there you go! Now you know how to say shaved ice in Peruvian Spanish~ I’ll put it in katakana: ラスパディーヤ // RASUPADI~YA. LOL The root of the word comes from “raspar” which means “shave” – and while in English, there’s also what we call “snow cones,” raspadillas aren’t really served in a cone.

Another common name for shaved ice in Spanish is granizado, in katakana: グラニザード // GURANIZA~DO, which comes from the word “granizo” as in “hail” ~~~ and also the term nieve raspada (shaved snow) or in katakana: ニエーベ　ラスパーダ // NIE~BE RASUPA~DA, which in itself is a wonk term because you can’t shave snow… can you?

Are you bored by now with my Kakigoori knowledge? Well, in any case Yu is willing to travel the world for the perfect Kakigoori… I guess she’s going to need to know how to call it in different names. But if my teacher is telling me the truth, then Taiwan is all Yu needs.

Here are some more photos!

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In Celebrity, English, Japanese, Photographs, Reading, Screencaps, Sharing, Spanish , , , , , ,
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More Takeshi Kaneshiro for GQ China~

June 30, 2011 — Leave a comment

Baby, why you so hot. xD I can’t take all the hotness that is you, especially in these high contrast and moody elegant photos of you.

If you want bigger pics, you’re gonna have to drop by Aiya They Didn’t.

In Celebrity, Chinese, Japanese, Photoshoots, Sharing , , , , , , ,
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LGBT Worldwide Music Videos

June 24, 2011

Once again, if you were subscribed to the YAM Magazine RSS Feed, you would know about this two-part post with LGBT music videos from around the world.

Also, you probably missed our LGBT Blogathon, didn’t you???

Here’s:

In Chinese, English, Korean, Misc., Music, Music Videos, Sharing, Spanish , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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Ten Hot Multiracial Entertainers

June 24, 2011

We can be sooooooooooooooo superficial from time to time ;D

Read it and pimp it~

In this case… WHY AREN’T YOU SUBSCRIBED TO THE YAM MAGAZINE RSS FEED?

In Celebrity, Chinese, English, Japanese, Korean, Photoshoots, Sharing, Spanish , , , , , , , ,
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My Best Chinese Music Playlist Yet!

This one turned out to be really awesome, if I may say so myself.

Of course, I have been trying to put this together since last year, LOL – so it’d better be good, right? Though, I know there are some repeat tracks if you’ve followed the blog, I think it’s fair to say that the combination of songs has a nice flow. It’s turned out to be a really moody list~

You can check my previous Chinese Music Playlists [1][2]

[iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/videoseries?list=PL4603C993E0B0D0BB&hl=en_US”]

  1. Mavis Fan (范曉萱) – I Want Us to Be Together (我要我們在一起)
  2. Waa Wei (魏如萱) – Shangri-La (香格里拉)
  3. Jing Chang (張芸京) – Broken (壞了)
  4. Leehom Wang (王力宏) – Daily Necessities (柴米油鹽醬醋茶)
  5. R-Chord featuring LaLa Hsu (謝和弦 feat. 徐佳瑩) – Under the Willow Tree (柳樹下)
  6. Stefanie Sun (孫燕姿) – Silent All These Years
  7. A-Mei Chang (張惠妹) – What Time Is It Already? (你在看我嗎)
  8. Jing Chang (張芸京) – The Opposite Me (相反的我)
  9. Chris Lee (李宇春) – Lost Heart Crazy (失心瘋)
  10. Dream Girls – Weak (軟弱)
  11. A-Mei Chang (張惠妹) [as AMIT] – After the Sentimental Love of Animals (相愛後動物感傷)*
  12. Stefanie Sun (孫燕姿) – The Kingdom of Fools (愚人的國度)

*Note: There’s some blurred nudity and depictions of sex in that video.

You can check the playlist on YouTube.

Posted on June 24, 2011 In Chinese, English, MixTapes, Music, Music Videos, Sharing , , , , , , , , , , ,
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YAM Magazine 2011 LGBT Blogathon – MISSTER: Girls who Look like Boys who Look like Girls for Girls

June 3, 2011 — 1 Comment

Welcome to my personal contribution to YAM Magazine’s LGBT Blogathon.

In this particular post we will be talking about Taiwanese boiband MISSTER, which I have already talked about on this MISSTER 101 post I did a while back.

Unlike the rest of the world, who have shunned dancing boybands (and girl groups) for more “rocking” affairs or idols who can’t dance at all, Asia is still a place where such groups have flourished for the past decade. The pop music industry is alive and well there, over-saturating our ears with danceable sugary pop tunes sung by idols that look so polished that it hurts.

Continue Reading…

In Celebrity, Chinese, English, Music, Music Videos, Sharing, Stills , , , ,
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