Musical Tastes (Part III: R&B)

It's somewhat hard to separate Asian singers into specific subgroups, because so many of them tend to crossover into a variety of genres. The next few artists I'm classifying as R&B will more often than not have a few songs that are decidedly not R&B in flavor, but for the most part will have either the majority of their music conform to the R&B image, or have had their roots in R&B (although they may have subsequently branched out).

Utada Hikaru: Oh Hikki... there are no words to describe how much I love her. My favorite artist of all-time... even with those songs that will not be mentioned here marring my eardrums... She had her roots in R&B, with a soulful English album that served to catapult her to the top of the Asian music scene. Although her style has decidedly evolved into something more experimental at times, it hasn't yet fallen in quality, and only seems to be getting better with every year.

Fuck it, I'm posting more than one video for Hikki. "Sakura Drops."



"Beautiful World."



"Hikari."



"First Love."



"Wait and See."



Okay, so I might be an Utada fanboy. >_> On with the rest...

Emi Hinouchi: It infuriates me that she's not a bigger star in the Asian music scene. She has such a wonderful voice that manages to convey a sense of strength to the listener while still remaining delicate. You can hear her emotions spilling out on her slow songs, and her upbeat tracks invigorate the soul. "Only Love."

愛だけが


Mika Nakashima: Yes, she's more jazz than R&B, but whatever, the two genres are related enough for me to justify putting her here. Besides, I don't really know any other jazz artists... >_> "Aishiteru."



Faye Wong: Not quite R&B either, but it's definitely not pop, at least as far as I understand what pop is. She has such a hauntingly beautiful voice that it's hard for me to shrug off what her singing does to me. Her English is also really damn good, at least in her songs. Posting two of her songs for comparison. "Hero."



"Eyes on Me."



Chae Yeon: This woman embodies sexy. Helps that the music is damn catchy too. "Two of Us."



Bonnie Pink: I'm running out of English to describe these singers, and that's terrible, considering I want to write... I need to go back to school, or buy myself a thesaurus... whatever, I just really really like her stuff. "Water Me."



Seo In Young: She has such potential. I wish she had put out more ballad-type songs than she did. Oh well, I'm content with her up-tempo tracks for now, and the occasional slow song. "I Want You."



Bennie K: Two sexy girls, one rapping, one singing. What more do you want! "Sunrise."



Hn... Pop next!

And yeah, I'm gonna clump BoA into pop. WHATEV, WHATEV, DUNT CURR.

~ Kesshi, FXC

Calm the Nerves

// I just need something to calm the nerves right now. Because all I can really feel right now is angry, and I don't think that's the normal reaction for these sorts of situations. Hopefully Emi can help soothe the raging heart... \\

Getting mugged should probably illicit more of a fearful response than it did from me last night.

I missed my metro stop and ended up in Glenmont Metro Station. Since it was almost 1am, I decided to hoof it home. Three black teens are close behind me, but they're idly chatting amongst themselves, so I don't think anything about it. One of them even bums a cigarette off me, so I'm a bit at ease. After about ten minutes walking, I cross the street, hoping to maybe catch a bus home instead of walking the rest of the way.

All I hear for a warning is someone running up behind me. I turn to look and maybe get out of the way when the fucker swings down with his gun and cracks me on the side of the head. Blood immediately started to gush, and I crouched low to cover my head and try to stop the bleeding, cussing all the while. The guy rummages through my pockets and lifts my iPod, cigarettes, and bag, and points the gun in my face, demanding my money. I tell him aight and continue cussing as I hand him my wallet. Fucker runs off giggling like the shit he is and rejoins his friends across the street, and they take off.

All I can really see now is blood flowing everywhere and the hazy lights from a nearby gas station. I stand there for a second, sorting through the emotions swirling about in my head, and finally settle on one. I straighten up and scream fuck at the top of my lungs before I start trudging towards the gas station. People driving by slow down and peer out curiously at the bloody fat asian marching through traffic, but no one stops and sees what the matter is. I guess they shouldn't, really. Bloody man might rob them or give them AIDS.

Get to the gas station and ask the attendant if I could use his phone. He shakes his head vigorously and directs me to the police station, which, funnily enough, is only half a block away. Fuck me, I got mugged near a police station. At this point the blood's blanketed my right arm and doused my front with a generous coat, soaking through the front into the undershirt. I manage to flag down a passing cop car and the report starts. They find the fuckers and most of my stuff, although they couldn't retrieve my metro card. Whatever.

Six hours and a hospital visit later, I have five sutures and a tetanus shot to my name, and a feeling of just straight emptiness.

Sing for me Emi...

~ Kesshi, FXC