Album Review: Forever's First Day
FOREVER'S FIRST DAY has a lot to live up to.
Wang Lee Hom's last two albums, Revolution and Impossible To Miss You, netted him a glut of awards, including a Best Producer nod at Taiwan's Golden Melody Awards in 1998. So does Forever make the cut? While it lacks the slickness of Revolution and refreshing spontaneity of Impossible, it more than makes up for it with a sure-footed maturity that belies Wang's young age -- all of 24 years.
The singer's genius is creating impossibly hummable melody, song after song, whether it be R & B or rock. Almost every track is a potential hit. But what is most notable on this record is his take on the standard-bearer of Chinese songs, Descendants Of The Dragon. He has updated it for the new millennium (read: synthesizer and rap).
The original version, incidentally sung by his uncle Lee Jian-fu, is a paean to the Chinese race.
Wang turns it into a personal mantra, asserting his Chinese identity while growing up in a Western society. It works mostly because of his conviction.
Perhaps this is the clearest sign yet that he is ready to grow into a serious musician from a mere poster boy.
Rating: 4 stars out of 5 stars
Singapore News Strait Times
Thanks to Jiehao!!
Believe it or not, critics once eagerly dismissed Wang Lee-Hom and branded him a poster boy fad that would not outlast the Asian market's fickle ears. Blessed with boyish good looks no doubt, Wang Lee-Hom's American-Born Chinese roots made his odd-sounding accent a little too strange for some. That was then.
Two albums (Revolution and Impossible to Miss You) and a bevy of awards later (including the Best Producer award at the 1998 Golden Melody Awards) , this 24 year old has not only silenced his critics, but also created a unique brand of Chinese pop that incorporates synthesizer with rap, hip-hop and R&B.
Needless to say, Lee-Hom's latest, Forever's First Day, has generated a lot more interest and pressure on his young shoulders. Not only has he written and composed most of the songs but this talented 24-year old has single-handedly produced, arranged and programmed all the songs in the album.
Admittedly, Forever lacks the boyish and carefree spontaneity of the previous albums but what we have now is a testimony of a maturing artiste who is serious about the music he makes. Lee-Hom says, "I have learnt from this album in the ironic way that a parent learns from a child. The virtues of patience, persistence, and love resonate in the songs of the album." He breathes life into each song with the sophistication of an artist and the tenderness of a parent. Most notable is the remix of Lee Jian-fu's epic song, 'Descendants of the Dragon' which Lee infuses with his own experiences of living in a Western society into the song. Other noteworthy tracks include 'Love is a Stage' and 'All I Think About is You.'
Rating: 3.5 musical notes
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