[Review] 周杰倫 - 十二新作.

Finally, I have listened to this album enough times to do a review on it. Jay's songs tend to sound better the more you listen to them, so reviewing the album after just one or two listens wouldn't give a fair evaluation of it. (But then again, someone who is not a fan wouldn't bother.) This review should be taken with a pinch of salt, because in case I do not make it obvious enough, I am a die-hard Jay fan, so no matter how hard I try to be objective, to a certain extent I am biased towards his music. Well, I must be biased towards Jay's music to be a fan of his, right? *laughs*

I'm not gonna talk about the MVs individually as it would take too long, but it is noteworthy that Jay is directing all the MVs in this album himself. And I really do like the MVs he directed! He said that there are gonna be 11 MVs in total, and 6 of them are already released at the moment. I should also mention that he looks really good in the MVs. Initially I didn't like his blonde and ginger hair in some of them, but they have grown on me somehow lol. I still maintain my stance that he looks the best with black hair though!

Listening to Jay's albums always reminds me of my love towards the sound of a piano, because it is heard in almost every song. Recently I may have been gushing over how awesome electric guitar solos sound, but really, I will never forget that my first love is the piano. It is still the prettiest-sounding instrument, in my opinion.

Overall, I think this is a great album! There are quite a few songs that me go, "WTF", but it's always in a good way 'cos they make me laugh. The light-hearted songs are nice and they make me smile. The ballads are especially good. I kinda wished these songs weren't all mixed around though; I feel bipolar, feeling depressed or almost tearing in one second and laughing or smiling in the next. Or maybe that's the point. Anyway, it's definitely a better album than the last!

1. 四季列車

Except for the first two, Jay's albums always start with a more upbeat song with rap as its verse (like 龍戰騎士, 跨時代 and 驚嘆號), and this song is no exception. I don't especially like it, but the arrangement of the song is interesting as somehow it just brings up the image of a car racing track in my head. And the "嘟嘟" and "噗噗" in the chorus always make me laugh, because they sound like the sound of car honking.

2. 手語

A very sweet-sounding song! I like how it starts with a lone piano, and even though it is joined by beats and other sounds shortly after, the piano is still prominent throughout the song. The whole song just sounds really happy :D. I like how relaxed Jay sounds in the verses. However, the autotune in the chorus is a big discount. He did this before in the previous album with Mine Mine, using autotune in an R&B song, and just as I did not approve of it then, I do not approve of it now. Still, it's a nice song.

3. 公公偏頭痛 [MV]

This song is just so LOL. But it's really catchy, especially with the repetition of the word "公公" throughout the song. The Chinese-sounding arrangement is good, and Jay's rapping is so fast here! The choreography of the song is cute XD.

4. 明明就 [MV]

I LOVE THIS SONG. It was the second song released as a single before the release of the album, and even though I already had the physical album pre-ordered, I couldn't wait and just had to buy this song off iTunes. It doesn't sound like much after the first listen, but after like the third listen I just fell in love with it. Jay's singing is really good here, especially in switching between his real voice (lol I don't know what "真音" is in English; modal voice?) and falsetto. The lyrics are simple, about letting someone go 'cos she'll be better off with someone else. They are sad, yes, but I think it's Jay's singing, the prominent piano and orchestra that make this song sound so deliciously heartbreaking. I also like how the orchestra starts off soft a few lines into the song, and builds up near the bridge. 

5. 傻笑 (feat. 袁詠琳)

Such a sweet song! At least that's what I thought, until I read the lyrics, which are about two people who like each other but can't be together because of a wrong timing. That's rather strange, considering how happy this song sounds from the very first second till the end, whether it's the singing or the arrangement o__o. That aside, it's a really pleasant song. Cindy's voice is very nice and blends well with Jay's.

6. 比較大的大提琴 (周杰倫+梁心頤+楊瑞代 ) [MV]

This is another of Jay's "weird" songs, but I really like it. I think it's jazz? (Not that I know a thing about jazz.) I like the lone double bass in the beginning of the song and the wind instruments that come in in the chorus. Jay varies his singing quite a bit in this song, which is good. The lyrics are so cheeky lol! Don't tell me the "哇咧喵" before the chorus didn't make you laugh XD. And the goat sound! And Jay's "還有一遍啦" and chuckle before the last chorus are so adorable HAHA. Lara sounds really good in the second verse!

7. 愛你沒差 [MV]

The second ballad of the album. I like how the song starts with just piano, then joined by a soft orchestra, the sound of a ticking clock, and then shortly after drums and guitar come in. Jay's singing sounds good and I think the layering of the voices in this song was done really well. The background voice in the first two lines of the chorus still makes me do a double take though 'cos even though I'm convinced it's Jay's, it sounds so smooth that I really thought it was a girl's LOL. But I think my favourite thing in this song is really the sound of the ticking clock. When you listen to the song at night with earpiece in your ears and silence all around, that sound really sets the atmosphere of the song.

8. 紅塵客棧 [MV]

The 中国风 song of the album, and also the first single to be released. It's not very special, but it's nice. Jay performed this song on piano with an apple, which is kinda cool.

9. 夢想啟動

This song sounds very uplifting! The piano sounds nice.

10. 大笨鐘 [MV]

I really like this song; it's very cute and sweet! Definitely one of my favourites in the album. The lyrics are rather childish, but together with the melody, they sound almost endearingly so. The wind instruments in the chorus add a nice touch to the song.

11. 哪裡都是你

This song is the third ballad of the album. It is so sad :(. And I love it so, sigh. The arrangement is simple, with the usual piano, guitar and drums. But Jay's singing here is so heartfelt and almost desperate, like that in 最長的電影. And the lyrics ;_______;. 

12. 烏克麗麗

Jay's singing at 1:27-1:35 always makes me grin like an idiot; he's just TOO ADORABLE hahahaha. He sounds more nasal here, but I think it was intended and it sounds okay. I also like how there's that tune that you usually hear in scenes related to Hawaii in the background; it brings into mind the image of the beach.