Wednesday, September 28, 2005
My Music

I just wanna start this post with this statement - I think it's important to listen to all kinds of music (no matter how biased you might be against certain genres of music) in order to be more well-rounded in one's appreciation and taste of the musical arts.

I never appreciated nor understood this until my second year in university when,of all people,a Christian helper pointed this out to me.Before he talked to me about this,I had mainly listened to rock and rap music (not the regular radio pop though).I learnt to dabble in other genres (stuff like classical,new age,jazz and etc) after this piece of advice and I am glad I heeded this piece of advice.Because,otherwise,I wouldn't have opened my ears (and horizons) to the spectacular beauty of other forms of music.

Still,I believe that everybody will have his/her favourite artistes who play music that speaks to them(hmm,but then again,I'd like to know exactly what Sylvester Sim's fans think of their idol's music [besides "good good good,it's very good"...BAH!Talk to my hand].I'd like to know how 祥龙十八掌 affects them.).Everyone will have his/her favourite pieces of music/songs that he/she will revisit again and again for solace,comfort or whatever.

I am no different.There are certain singers and bands that I particularly like and which I'd like to introduce to y'all.So for this post,I'd list out my top ten favourite artistes whom I like and also explain why.You'd see that they all hail from the pop and rock music arena because well,I guess my main listening staple still consists of popular music.Anyway,as regards to the other genres of music,I find myself liking pieces rather than artistes/composers so it wouldn't make sense to say I like Piotr Tcahikovsky particularly when all I enjoy are a few particualr pieces of his.

Anyway,here goes...in alphabetrical order:

The Divine Comedy

There was one particular occasion in the Office when Colossus was over at my cubicle and he overheard me putting the Divine Comedy on my speakers.

He asked me if I was listening to it and I was like "Yeah...of course..." and he replied by saying that it didn't sound like my type of music.

Hmmm,really?

I guessed I must be really getting pigeonholed as regards to the type of music that I listen to.

Well,I can't really blame anyone with the amount of loud,noisy rock music I blare out like Oasis and Ash...but,I would just like to clarify that the Divine Comedy's music is also exactly the type of music I enjoy listening to:Big brassy orchestral pop...with lyrical edge.

The Divine Comedy is made up of Neil Hannon and his various merry men (to be honest,I think,besides himself,he does not really have a consistent band line-up).Taking after the fine big band traditions of Scott Walker and Burt Bacharach,TDC marries fine melodies with big orchestral arrangements and sharp,clever and droll lyrics about love and life...and sex.

I never really got into them until 1996 when I got hold of their fourth album,Casanova,after reading good reviews about them in NME...and well,I became an instant fan,collecting every single one of their releases since then.

The reason why I love them so much is ,as I mentioned before,the fine orchestral arrangements they embellish with msot of their melodies and the droll lyrics.I guess it's nothing more than quintessential British wit but it's still a treasure.

Erasure

There is a place in the world for all kinds of music. Music such as angry nihilistic metal by the likes of Slipknot or furious dancefloor pounders by groups such as The Prodigy. There is also (self-)righteous old school rock by ageing rockers like U2 and nasty but amusing (as long as you don't take the content too seriously) rap by rappers like Eminem. And finally,there is also shiny fluffy disposable synthetic pop such as Erasure's.

There might be more than a few snotty alternative rock connoisseurs (shit,I actually do consider myself a pretentious rock critic too,ok some might prefer to call it discerning but come on,pretentious IS pretentious lah) who would sniff at the music Erasure plays and argue that they're worthless as a band.

My argument to that is this:I think everybody needs a great big happy singalong chorus every once in a while (especially when you are feeling damn good or when you need something to cheer you up) and Erasure delivers these in abundance.

Erasure is full of big catchy hooks and every Erasure album contains at least a few life-saving choruses that will likely have one humming happily along,nothing more but also nothing less.And in that may lie one of pop music's greatest functions:To simply bring joy to its listeners.

I do not deny that the function of music should extend beyond the simplicity of bringing joy through cheerful melodies and sound but I think there will be times when we do not want to think so much and want to just enjoy music at its most basic level.

And Erasure scores big on that count...even though you probably won't remember most of what they had sung after the song is over.

Jay Chou 周杰伦

I am a huge fan of Chinese pop music and I sincerely believe that Chinese pop melodies are among the best in the world in terms of catchiness but the scene also suffers from a serious lack of originality and innovativeness.

In fact,the Chinese pop music scene has such a serious lack of originality that anyone who offers a fresh sense of what pop music can sound and be like is instantly touted as someone who can "save" the Chinese music scene (as if it needs saving).

Well,Jay Chou is a big deal in the Chinese pop scene and is the only Chinese artiste in my list.The reason why I only have one Chinese performer in my list is really simple...I can't tell the rest apart.Everyone is either doing derivative R&B or ballads.And tell me how many Chinese pop songs do NOT begin with piano tinkling or an ah beng disco beat?There is also no variations at all when it comes to song arrangements.

Well,has anyone noticed that I haven't actually talked about Chou much so far?That is because I believe that Chou has already run out of tricks and surprises in his arsenal.His music has begun to sound extremely samey to me nowadays.For an artiste who seems to stake his reputation on being ahead of his competition and being innovative,it sure rings pretty hollow.

But I still have to say that Chou remains streets ahead of most of his competition in the Chinese pop scene and he's the only one whose releases I purchase on a consistent level...even though that speaks less about him than the current state of the Chinese pop scene right now.

Mika Nakashima 中岛美嘉

Lovely Mika is something of an anomaly in J-pop for two reasons.

First,she has a low husky voice which is very different from the thin squealing baby chick voice (I did not coin this myself,it was a Jap female friend of mine who said this to me) that characterise many a J-pop female artiste(refer Ayumi Hamasaki).

Secondly,she is a chart-topper who dabbles heavily into jazz.

Mika's liking for a jazzy sound in her music is the precise reason why I like her so much (ok,besides the fact that she looks good and I'd like so very much to smooch and cuddle her).In my opinion,it is very difficult to find a J-pop chick (see also Chihiro Onitsuka 鬼束千寻) who isn't doing predominantly electronic J-pop or J-rock and this is what makes Mika so unique.

But then again,that doesn't explain why I chose Mika and not Chihiro.

The key difference between these two is the way they present their music and the tunes each chooses to tackle.

While I also enjoy the sounds of Chihiro,she performs predominantly ballads which,while soothing,can feel extremely tedious after a while.Mika tends to mix her songs up to make her music more palatable,mashing in jazzy tunes with more generic electronic dance tunes and slow rock songs so that there is a greater range to enjoy within each release.

And it helps,of course,that Mika can sing pretty well and is miles cuter than Chihiro!

Morrissey

Morrissey is what we'd call a 'miserablist'.That is,someone who is so miserable,he probably finds joy in it.

But it would be absolutely no fun to listen to a miserablist if he/she was just plain miserable.

Anybody can be miserable,you don't need a genius to be that. But a miserablist who is smart enough to see his own nature and joke about it.That's different.Because he has perspective and is interesting.He isn't simply trapped in his miserablism and can see through it,realising the joys and pitfalls in misery even while he is wallowing in it.Morrissey kind of sounds like that.He is possibly the poster boy for millions of pimply teens trapped in their own bedrooms without a boyfriend/girlfriend.

At least in the 90s,that is.

Morrissey was in the great Brit band,the Smiths before going solo and that's way before I discovered him.If you understood and heard the sounds of the Smiths,you'd basically know what Morrissey is all about.I do believe that despite the sparkling melodies that Morrissey and his band can conjure all,he is an acquired taste...because once you look beyond the music,not everyone may find his lyrics to his/her taste.

The reason why I enjoy Morrissey is because I think there will always be times in one's life when one will feel miserable and need some miserable (but tuneful) music to listen to.In order to soothe his/her soul and feel just that bit better again...because well,someone out there understands and have written a song that talks about your feelings.

And the Mozzer is extremely good at conveying the feelings of the rejected,depressed and afraid.Sometimes it almost feels like he is just describing (your) life as it is...and he can be extremely observational and funny about it.

Droll words,sad sentiments and sweet music.These are strange bedfellows indeed.But in the hands of the Mozzer,they usually (but not always,not recently anyway) come in one glorious whole.

Nine Inch Nails

One word sums up NIN:Angry.

And NIN can be very angry...so much so that since their debut (or is it really just Trent Reznor since like TDC's Neil Hannon,he simply has a rotating squad of musicians around him to fulfill his vision) in 1988,they've been basically repeating the same themes of anger and alienation over and over again (it begs the question of why he is so angry...but then again,if he has been doing it for something like 17 years,at least he obviously believes in it).

Now isn't that boring,you say.How can I listen to the same nihilistic and angry shit for the past 17 years?

Well,just like I believe everyone needs their staples of happy and miserable music,I also believe one needs angry music sometimes...if nothing,for the pure purpose of catharsis.

And NIN is pretty great at channeling the release of pent up anger.

I have to confess that I have been listening to NIN a lot these past fews days,coming to a week.And somehow it always feels good listening to Reznor singing (or howling?) angrily about the obvious themes of alienation,betrayal,fcuked up authority and well,the anonymous humdrum of "soul-killing" daily life routines.Dress these words up in buzzsaw guitars,industrial machinery noises and glorious melodies and one is good to go.

Exorcise your demons.

Primal Scream

1994 was a watershed year for British rock music.It was the year Britpop broke big.It was the year Oasis came into being.It was the year Blur released their best album,Parklife and a year before,Suede showed the way with its stylish rock (I am clearly a big fan of Britpop yeah?).

Out of a myriad of bands that appeared and jumped onto this bandwagon was another band that strangely got tagged onto the Britpop wave despite having debuted years earlier and had released its influential Screamadelica album in 1992.

Step forward,Primal Scream.

The Scream only really came into being (and my attention) with 1997's Vanishing Point which was unfairly ignored by many because it co-incided with The Prodigy's The Fat of The Land LP that year.But well,class is permanent and form is temporary.

While The Prodigy is a spent force now,The Scream has been getting (strangely) stronger with each passing release despite their advancing age.If Vanishing Point was edgy dance rock,The Scream's latter two releases XTMNTR and Evil Heat were genuine mind-fcuks.Edgy beyond edginess and angry beyond anger.They are a band with a message,who genuinely believes in what they have to say (unlike the cowardly Manic Street Preachers...nice prose but it's all in the head,not the heart) and for that,I respect and love their music.

Pulp

Pulp looks like a group of Average Joes and plays synthetic sounding pop music with singalong choruses.No big deal here.But in Jarvis Cocker,they also have one of the sharpest minds in modern pop music.

To be sure,Cocker really isn't much to look at.He wears Joe Public spectacles and looks gangly and unsightly.He can't even really sing.But one look at his lyrics and maybe you can understand the gist of why he's special and has made Pulp special in the hearts of many as well.

Pulp sings about the lives of Average Joes,the underclass and underprivileged like they've lived it...and hey,they probably really did.Many of their songs connect with the "Common People" (to borrow the title of their most famous song) and they speak uncommonly well to a wide level of audiences,though particularly to the man in the street.Taking the stance of a bystander who is forever standing at a street corner,making sharp observations about life as it went along,Pulp is never pretentious as they go about singing about life and its various minute details.And therein lies their appeal...and the precise reason I like them so much.

The band is,of course,part of the 1994 Britpop cohort although they had appeared on the scene years earlier.But while Oasis is on their last legs and Blur have faded into a cartoon called Gorillaz (how sad is that?Damon Albarn is nothing but a cartoon),Pulp is still well-liked and well-respcted by critics.As I said:Class is permanent.

Radiohead

Radiohead is another member of the Britpop cohort but unlike most of the rest of their fellow Brit bands, this band garnered worldwide respect through their releases and then became increasingly weird (other bands just faded away).

In 1995 and 1997,Radiohead released their two greatest LPs,The Bends and OK Computer which put them on the map of global rock.

The Bends still sounds fresh today as the band tries to catapult into the status of global rock giants.The LP made a nod or two towards the direction of U2 (when you try to do a U2,you make clear your ambitions) but the band never makes concessions with its lyrics.

U2 may write in simple platitudes but Radiohead has always been abstract with their words,allowing you to make your own interpretations as to what the band is really talking about.I think sometimes,it's important to trust that your audince is smart enough to get it and not have to spoonfeed them in every single way possible.And I love Radiohead for taking that stance.

Their words are never easy to understand and you have to do a bit of research to understand the meaning.But when you do get it,I think you're all the better for it.For instance,much of Kid A was influenced by Naomi Klein's book,No Logo.

I can't talk about Radiohead without making a mention of OK Computer of course.One of the greatest rock albums of the 90s,its beauty is still unsurpassed and unmatched by any today(nice try,Coldplay but you ain't good enough).And the words...well,the words (about modern paranoia,alienation and disconnectedness)...read George Orwell's 1984 to get a feel of what they might be on about.

Anyway,Radiohead has kind of degenerated into a sub-standard Aphex Twin tribute band these days and that's a shame...just go back to what you guys do best.

Rock.

Shena Ringo 椎名林檎

Shena is unpredictable,raw and edgy and is probably the most avant garde mainstream artiste in Japan today.Her music is not an easy listen and her song structuring can be so all-over-the-place,I have trouble following it,but I also think therein lies her appeal.Because she is not for every person.She is a niche that more than a few would give a miss if they didn't persevere.

Why do I like her so much then?

Well,for the simple fact that she's different and uncompromising in her musical pursuits and beliefs.And for the amount of raw energy that she puts into her work which is more than can be said for many of her cutesier (and much more boring) peers.There are joys and surprises galore to be found in her work that cannot be had in conventional pop.This is refreshing in a pop music world that almost prides itself on predictability.

And she's kinda cute too...ok,she's a divorced mum with a kid but hey,it's ok.