jct.music notes: October 2010

Friday, October 29, 2010

Album Review: Yoon Jong Shin – ‘Vol. 11동네 한 바퀴 (Round the Village)’

Album release date: November 2008
Genre: Kpop, Ballad
Rating: 4/5

Review by: jct

Yoon Jong Shin may not occupy the same seat near the top of the music charts as he did in the 90s, but his latest album, Round the Village, proves that he’s still near the top of his game as a singer-songwriter. Jong Shin is still doing what he does best: creating romantic songs that are not your typical boring ballads. The album’s musical and vocal quality are consistently good from track to track. Although the album falters slightly on some songs, it is still a solid release overall.

Consistently Good

Ever since his debut album, Yoon Jong Shin’s forte has been romantic and lyrical music. Although he began as a ballad singer, he has explored R&B/pop over the recent years. However, on his 11^th album, Round the Village, he seems to shift towards more ballad and pop music. The slower materials are fine though because he has a very distinct voice especially when it comes to ballads as he emphasizes on careful and perfect pronunciation of each and every word of the song.

The album starts off with a slow-tempo pop song called, “A Walk in the Village”, which is about thinking about a loved one while walking down the streets in the neighbourhood. The song has nice melody and smooth vocals as he sings with true genuine emotions. The title track, “Do It Tommorow”, is a sad love ballad that displays a wide range of his vocals. The song is about the feelings on the day before a breakup. Lyrically, all the songs are very original. The album only has one upbeat song called “Impromptu Trip”, with the guest appearance of MC Mong. The pairing of the two is a complete natural and the rap complements very well with Jong Shin’s vocals.

The album’s one slight flaw is that the production may be a bit dated. Since Jong Shin produces all of his own songs, he may still be sticking to the same approach. But the dated production isn’t much of a problem since his fanbase probably prefers it as the familiar sounds is much better than today’s soulless and increasingly computerized music. Overall, his music is a breath of fresh air compared to typical modern-day music.

Track list:

1. 동네한바퀴 (A Walk Around The Village)
2. 夜景 (Night Scene)
3. 즉흥여행(feat. MC Mong) (Impromptu Trip)
4. 내가 할일 (Do It Tommorow)
5. 같이 가줄래 (Will You Come)
6. 벗어나기 (Escape)
7. O My Baby
8. She's Not Here
9. 무감각 (Stupor)
10. 나에게 하는 격려 (I Encourage You To)
11. 즉흥여행(Impromptu Trip)

Artist bio: Khalil Fong (方大同)

Profile
Date of Birth: July 14, 1983, in Hawaii,

USA

Profession: singer, songwriter
Debut Album: Soul Boy (2005)

Early life
Khalil was born in Hawaii,

USA

, raised in

China

, but based his career in Hong Kong. He learned to play guitar and piano on his own at a very young age. At age 16, he wrote songs and sent demos to music producers. He was later recruited by Warner Music Hong Kong.

Career
Khalil Fong is an R&B/Soul singer-songwriter. He has a very distinct style compare to other Cpop singer as his songs are R&B/Soul which is rare in Cpop. His debut album Soul Boy, was released in 2005. In 2009, he released his fifth album, Timeless, which is filled with cover songs that according to him, influenced his music. Although he based his career in Hong Kong, his songs are in Mandarin rather than Cantonese. Khalil is fluent in English, Mandarin, and Cantonese.

In addition to his own songs, Khalil Fong has also composed songs for other artists in Hong Kong and

Taiwan

, such as Amei Chang, Eason Chan, Fiona Sit, Andy Lau, and Jacky Cheung.

Musical Influences
His favorite music genres are Soul, Neo-Soul, Jazz, 50's Doowop and Rock. Musicians that have affected Khalil's songwriting include Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, D’Angelo, R.Kelly, Babyface, Marvin Gaye, N.E.R.D, Musiq Soulchild, etc.

Discography
2005 Soul boy
2006 This Love
2007 Wonderland
2008 Orange Moon
2009 Timeless
2011 15
2012 Back to Wonderland
2014 Dangerous World
2016 Journey to the West

Source: khalil-fong.com.hk, yesasia, warner music hk

Artist bio: Taebin 태빈 (Danny of 1TYM)

Profile
English name: Danny Im (대니 임)
Date of Birth: May 6, 1980
Profession: singer
Education: High School Diploma from Diamond Bar High
Debut: lead vocalist of 1TYM (1998)
Solo Debut Album: Taebin of 1TYM (2004)

With 1TYM
Taebin is a member of a popular Korean hip hop group, 1TYM. While he was the leading vocalist for 1TYM, he also rapped like the rest of the members of the group in various songs such as 'What You Gonna Do,' and 'One Time For Your Mind'.

Solo Career
After the release of 1TYM's fourth album Once N 4 All in 2003, Taebin released his solo album, Taebin of 1TYM, in which he demonstrated the full range of his R&B/pop vocals rather than hip-hop sounds. The title track "The Reason Why I Close My Eyes" is the only song on the album with a music video and features Koo Hye Sun. Taebin speaks fluently in both English and Korean.

Currently, he is one of the hosts of his own TV show - Danny from LA, which talks about the latest trends in Kpop and his time in 1TYM.

Personal Life
He is married with 2 children (a son and a daughter). (2014)

Discography

Vol.1 - Taebin Of 1TYM 2004

Source: yesasia, maniadb

Yoon Jong Shin - Selected songwriting and production credits

Yoon Jong Shin is a very talented songwriter and producer, and his music deserves some love. :) Anyways, here are some of the songs he composed/produced:

- Sung Si Kyung - 넌 감동이었어
- Sung Si Kyung - 거리에서 (On The Street)
- Sung Si Kyung - Who Do you Love
- Sung Si Kyung - 굿모닝 (Morning)
- Sung Si Kyung - 한번 더 이별 (Once more farewell)
- Lena Park - 나의 하루 (My Day)
- Lena Park - 전야제 (Eve)
- Lena Park - 눈물이 주룩주룩 (Tears)
- Lena Park - 오랜만에 (For a long time)
- Lena Park - 夢中人 (몽중인) (Ideal person)
- Lena Park - You Mean Everything To Me
- Lena Park - 까만 일기장( Black diary)
- Lena Park - 게으름뱅이
- Lena Park - 이별하러 가는 길
- Lena Park - 미아 (Lost)
- Jo Sung Mo - 사랑의 역사 (History of Love)
- Super Junior - Disco Drive
- Na Yoon Kwon - 뒷모습 (Backview)
- Na Yoon Kwon - 미행 (Followed)
- Kim Yeon Woo - 수줍은 사람 (A Shy man)
- Kim Yeon Woo - 청소 하던 날
- Cha Tae-hyun - 몰라도 돼 (I'm not answering)
- Cha Tae-hyun - 피크닉(Picnic)
- Cha Tae-hyun - 아름다운 사람 (A beautiful person)
- Cha Tae-hyun - 생일선물 (Birthday gift)
- Cha Tae-hyun - 마지막 하루 (The last day)
- Cha Tae-hyun - Because I Love You (Scandal OST)
- Kim Jang Hoon - 그대 잘가요
- Kim Jang Hoon - 고속도로 로망스 (Highway romance)
- Kim Jang Hoon - 기다리는 사람 (Waiting)
- Kim Dong Wan (Shinhwa) - 이층집 소녀 (작곡)
- Yoo Hee Yeol - 어느 예비군의 편지
- Yoo Hee Yeol - 서울역 (with 김광진, Harim)
- O15B - 우리 이렇게 스쳐보내면
- O15B - 푸른 바다의 전설 (공동 작곡)
- Lee Soo Young - 스치듯 안녕
- Lee Soo Young - 덩그러니 (Left Alone)
- Harim - 출국(出國) ( Depart)
- Harim - Sorry...Sorry
- Harim - Dying Man
- Harim - Break Down
- Harim - You Are My Sunshine
- Harim - 고해성사 (Confession)
- Tim (feat. Sung Yuri) - 연인선언(Lover's Declaration)
- IU - 첫 이별 그날 밤 (The First Goodbye That Night)
- Super Junior - Good Friends

Note: Yoon Jong Shin's own songs are not included here.

*last updated 2011

Album Review: Khalil Fong – ‘Orange Moon’

Album release date: 2008
Genre: R&B/Soul, Cpop

Rating: 4.5/5

Review by: jct

On his 4^th album, Orange Moon, Khalil Fong delivers more well-sung and sensitive R&B/Soul songs that are forever hopelessly romantic. This is certaintly a strong album as he composed and produced most of the songs.

Hopelessly Romantic

The album starts off with the title track, “Singalongsong” which is a mid-tempo song and he sings it completely in English. The song is about writing a song for a loved one, as he smoothly sings, “Girl, I’ll do my best to show these words are true/And if you like to make a song and be in perfect harmony with me/ I find the greatest words to sing/ So we could write our own romantic thing”.

The album is filled with a handful of slow and sensual songs with very original lyrics. For instance, the next song, “Little Bug” with lyrics: “I’m not an expert at saying romantic lines, don’t blame me/I don’t understand, if it weren’t for this tiny bug/That frightened you, making you jump into my embrace/Would I be able to embrace you like this?/I’m really useless/I have to thank this little bug for giving me this chance”. Also deserving mentioning is a hopelessly romantic song, “Three Person Tour” about a man hopelessly in love with a girl who already has another man, but as long as she is happy, it is enough. He sings, “Quietly, silently, maybe it’s really worth it/I’m still waiting somewhere/Maybe this still qualifies as a type of happiness/At least one of us can still be happy/And that’s already enough.”

The album’s only slight flaw is that a couple of songs may sound similar to tracks from his other albums. But that can be forgiven since it’s not like he repeats himself very often. The important thing is that his songs are still fresh and compelling, and he still sounds full of life.

So, the bottom line is if you’re a Khalil fan, you’re unlikely to be disappointed by the album. Virtually every song on Orange Moon is excellent: the vocals, production and especially the lyrics. And if you’re not familiar with his music but enjoys R&B/Soul, this album is highly recommended.

Track list:

1. Singalongsong (English)
2. 小小蟲 (Little Bug)
3. 1234567
4. 黑白 (Black &White)
5. 如果愛 (If Love)
6. 黑洞裡 (Inside the Black Hole)
7. 三人遊 (Three Person Tour)
8. 每個人都會 (Everyone Will)
9. 100種表情 (100 Kinds of Expression)
10. 愛我吧 (Love Me)
11. 為妳寫的歌 (The Song Written For You) [Singalongsong Mandarin version]

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Album Review: Taebin – ‘Taebin of 1TYM’

Album release date: June 2004
Genre: Kpop, R&B
Rating: 4/5
Review by: jct

On his debut solo album, Taebin of 1TYM, Taebin demonstrates the full range of his R&B/pop vocals along with some hip hop sounds. His unique and smooth vocals fit really well with R&B music, and fill the album with earnest and heartfelt songs.

Spreading His Wings

During his career as the lead vocalist of Korean group, 1TYM, Taebin demonstrates mainly hip hop/rap vocals, but this album allows him to spread his wings and experiment on R&B/pop music. The title track, "The Reason Why I Close My Eyes" is a mid-tempo song about a broken heart. With his mellow vocals, he sings, “When I close my eyes, my head is full of your images/Miss you always/Can’t you see I’m lost without you.”

Most of the songs in this album are able to tug at your heartstrings, not only due to the great melodies and good lyrics, but also Taebin’s vocals, which stand out the most. The album also has the right number of guest appearances and for the right songs, without overshadowing Taebin’s vocals. Some guest appearances include Se7en, Wheesung, Perry, Teddy, and Kim Ji Eun. Also, deserving of special mention is the song,“Tabu”, as he sings about wanting a woman who already has a man. The lyrics are very suggestive of some bump and grind, which is rarely found in Kpop music. Although not a huge fan of bedroom music, Taebin deserves some props for experimenting it. The album then ends off nicely with a more R&B/hip hop tone with songs featuring 1TYM.

The album’s one possible flaw is the lack of diversity. Since the album is filled mainly with broken heart/heart aching-type songs, some of the songs may sound repetitive. However, Taebin still manages to make all the tracks on the album compelling with his unique smooth voice that any flaws can go unnoticed. Overall, Taebin of 1TYM is an outstanding debut album.

Track list:
1. I'll Let You Go
2. 내가 눈을 감는 이유 (The Reason I Close My Eyes)
3. 그때는 사랑을 했었나 (Did We Love Back Then)
4. 괜찮아 (It's Alright)
5. Interlude
6. Don't Stop (Feat. Perry)
7. 충돌 (Feat. 세븐 Se7en) (Collision)
8. Real Luv Story (Feat. Se7en, Wheesung)
9. 사랑할 수 있게…. feat. 김지은 (Kim Ji Eun) (So We Can Love)
10. B'Cuz I Love You
11. 가지마 제발 (Please Don't Go)
12. TaBu (Feat. Teddy)
13. 서로가 서로를 (Feat. 1TYM) (Each Other)
14. One Love (Acoustic Version) (Feat. 1TYM)
15. Without You (Bonus Track) (Feat. 1TYM)