happybutsleepy

Despite the flamboyant title and cover that suggest something bold, the album ultimately plays it incredibly safe. It is unfortunate that such a fast-tempo pop-rock record somehow manages to be mildly boring. The production offers nothing noteworthy, the mixing is flat, and the songwriting is equally uninspired. And surprisingly, the production team is the same cast that I praised previously. I understand the concept of paying tribute to and reinventing the 1980s Cantopop stars (Anita Mui in ... read more

This is a coherent album with fluent execution of melodies. The theme(s) explored was also relatively bold in HK. That said, it lags behind in terms of innovation in songwriting and production. Musically it's 77 (by track ratings), but I'll give it an 80 for concept (similar to 天演論 by Candy Lo).

Track 1 showcases her cheeky and playful personality with crisp production. Reminds me of Ciacia. 8/10
Track 2 may benefit from more restrained use of harmonica. I understand without ... read more

I decided to listen to them on a special day.

This album was released after the lead vocal's death, which was probably why it was relatively less well-known. However, this is probably one of their greatest achievements in artistry. There are influences of Britpop, art rock, ?Gothic rock, electronic rock/ synth pop scattered around, and they no longer cater to the popular music taste of the general public, nor the fans of the main vocal.

Firstly an apology, since I wasn't impressed by her most popular hits (e.g. 木紋, 鋼鐵是怎樣煉成的), which basically follow the generic Cantopop ballad songwriting and production (short boring piano prelude, a few boring strings/ guitars at prechorus, random percussion at first chorus), I didn't listen to her albums in full before.
Following recommendation from a friend, and seeing this album is released this year (?first in 13 years), I decided to check this out, and ... read more