王力宏 - 改变自己

I had wanted to wait for the gai ban, but couldn’t wait any longer. I just had to get my hands on the album.

I was really surprised & glad when I saw the album. It was super thin and was just a simple case made of recycled paper with the CD inside. But it was flimsy, so I must take extra care of it. Compared to his previous albums which were packaged “lavishly”, this is much more “down-to-earth”, and I mean it literally as well. I actually prefer simple CDs. I don’t like it nowadays when every artiste has such huge rectangular albums that are thick somemore – can’t fit into my rack! Furthermore, it’s such a waste of resources! Why must there be another paper cover when the contents are the same on the actual album itself and the useless outer paper cover…

Oops but I believe the pre-sale albums are huge. Lee Hom’s Taiwan presale albums I mean. (Singapore didn’t have any! =( )

After reading some reviews online, in the papers & in magazines, it’s time to write my own!

I just got it the day before I think, and I have been listening to it since. This and only this. I don’t think I gave 盖世英雄 Heroes of the Earth，his previous album, so much radioplay as this! Actually, everyone has been saying how great GSYX was, but frankly, I didn’t enjoy it so much, don’t know why.. I think cos it’s too new – the chinked-out style that Lee Hom invented, or that I’m not exposed to that kind of hip-hop music. But XZDRY was OK. Nonetheless, I still think XZDRY & GSYX were 2 definitive albums of creative Lee Hom. And I’m really glad actually that he didn’t continue this chinked-out 风格 haha.. Actually, the way he sort of temporarily leave his chinked-out风格behind and go on to 改变自己 was really bold, as some critics may say that he hasn’t found a niche or something. (actually there’s traces of 中国风here and there la). But this is the exact reason why I like him, as he is constantly thinking of how to bring newer and better music to everyone by changing his music style and music theme for every album. And it’s really nice that nowadays artistes actually think of a main theme for every album.

On the whole, I think it’s a very “down-to-earth” album. I feel as if he’s trying to return to the 90s, the earlier “era” of Mando-pop – easy-listening songs with melodies that can hook you up. I feel as if he’s trying to tone everything down, get back to what most Chinese-pop listeners are familiar with, but at the same time he has infused a modern feel into this music – as in you may feel like it’s a 90s song but you definitely know that it’s not. Haha I think my explanation sucks…I feel that he’s trying to connect with the listeners only through his music, his singing and his heart.

So what does this album have? Sad ballads, you got it. Feel-good songs, you got it. Party songs – you got it too. Rap – the “in” thing now, it’s there. In fact I enjoy Lee Hom’s raps. They are listenable, & you actually know what he’s rapping, not like Jay or Edison, & has his own style and rhythm. Of course I like Jay’s raps too, but wa can’t tolerate Edison’s raps. His accent is so strong I don’t know what he’s saying. Oops sidetracked..

Think I’ll just do a track-by-track rundown la..

1. Intro – a very apt intro song. I can anticipate this to be the opening song for his concert. Very grand and “pompous” haha..

2. 改变自己 –
upbeat song which makes me want to stand up and move to the beat. Catchy tune too. Main message – 你我的力量也能改变世界 – do your part to help reduce global warming. He’s jumping on the bandwagon to bring the “green” message across.

"今早起床了 觉得头有点痛 可能是二氧化碳太多 氧气不够”

Actually this is not the first time he’s mentioned about global warming. People may misunderstand him that he’s only making use of the trend now, to give his album more publicity. Traces of a “green” Lee Hom can be seen in “你和我” and an English song “Nature” written by him which I first heard of in his compilation album “Evolution”.

Watch the MV here! Handsome Lee Hom X 4! haha..
Introductory video of the “改变自己乐团"
part 1
part 2


3. 落叶归根 –
the opening strings – beautiful! The song – beautiful! Lee Hom’s voice – beautiful! Initially I thought it wasn’t written by him, as the lyrics booklet stated that it’s written by “Kuang Y.M”. I thought who is this songwriter? How stupid can I be! It’s written by his alter-ego la in the movie 色戒。The character he portrays in the movie is named “Kuang Yi Min”. hhaah..

I probably won’t have as much feel for this song as one who has been away from home. But it’s moving and beautiful.

4. 创作前言 –
it’s nice! A mixing of his different songs all these years - like a dedication of the next song to his fans

5. 我们的歌 –
I believe it’s for the fans. I still remember in GSYX there was this song his fans wrote for him. So now it’s a return gift? Haha..it’s a catchy song with “personalized” lyrics. Especially like this line – “如果世界太危险 只有音乐最安全 带着我进梦里面 让歌词都实现”. I think it’s so true – music is like a reclusion for everyone, a shelter from this crazy world.

6. 你是我心内的一首歌 –
duet with Selina! I never imagined that he would ask Selina to duet with him! Haha.. but their voices do blend! It’s a “pretty” love song which has the retro-feel and I prefer it so much more than David & Jolin’s “song of the year”! Yuck!

The music arrangement is nice and gives a romantic feel. I like the saxophone in the middle! But the ending I felt was quite abrupt – the “cha cha cha” beat haha..

watch the 58s MV here!
Watch the Behind-the-scenes shooting of the MV here!

7. 爱在那里 –
it gave me a feeling that I’m listening to Jacky Cheung / Andy Lau’s classic oldies. The music arrangement and all. But it has a modern feel to it, especially the way he sings it with the vocal backings. Very soothing and easy-listening. Has a bit of ZGF ba.. but the chorus’s a little repetitive towards the end.

8. Cockney Girl –
a hip-hop song with some raps and reminded me of 竹林深处. Talks about his “神奇的巧遇” with this London Cockney girl who can speak Mandarin during clubbing in London. Quite a fun hip-hop song which shows his “party mode”.
Other than that, he emphasizes his love for music again “想追也追不到 音乐是我的呼吸 不用想太多 它自然在我的身体里” & the main theme this time around –改变自己 - “带你从纽约到乌鲁木齐 从京剧昆曲现在到伦敦的Cockney 有些人只会重复自己但是 not me”。Er.. was he referring to Jay? Haha no la probably not. 我太多心了.

9. 不完整的旋律 –
this song grabbed my attention. The lyrics may be sucky to some, but I feel that he’s talking to us, sharing with us his love and passion for music in this song through the lyrics and his singing.

“心里有个旋律 不完整的歌曲 你是否听得出 来我拖了一拍” – I wouldn’t expect such lyrics in a Chinese pop song! And honestly, I couldn’t really tell how he dragged the beat ahhaha…
“不完整的旋律 没什么结局 却是我真实的声音” – how earnest & sincere can he be..

10. 爱的鼓励 –
a lively and upbeat song with a very suitable title. It’s really a song of encouragement. Love the piano in the background plus the jazzy piano interlude. And the piano’s played by him!

11． 华人万岁 –
a rap song which shows how proud he is to be a Chinese. Quite a fun and happy song, basically a “Woohoo I’m Chinese!” kind of song. I especially find these few lines funny :

“从来没有人说过中文 LIKE THIS 标准可是加了黄绿红的TWIST. 黄绿红! 王力宏!”If you don’t know, it’s actually his nickname which he kept adopting since the MacDonald’s advertisements ahha..

“做一个领袖 做一个领袖 领和袖 我都有” – funny lei…

12. 星期六的深夜 –
a moving love ballad. With just a piano and a guitar played by him, he brought out the whole feel of the song. It sounds like a Western song to me though. But it’s sad..

I feel that this album’s rather introspective – a consolidation of all that he’s done so far, and in turn, giving a new feel to his music. It’s like Wang Lee Hom reborn haha…there won’t be any tracks that you will skip, but I guess there may not be a song as memorable as Forever Love, Kiss Goodbye, or 唯一. But I love this album a lot – gives me a sense of familiarity, security and comfort.

Wa another long album review. It is only during the holidays that I can write such album reviews haha..

改变自己 Official Site