Chris Lee – The Dancing Artist

Release date: April 12, 2011
Label: EE Media (天娱传媒)

Tracklist

  1. 会跳舞的文艺青年 (The Dancing Artist) [MV]
  2. 对不起,只是忽然很想你 (Sorry, I Suddenly Really Miss You) [MV]
  3. 我唱啦啦啦 (I Sing La La La) [MV]
  4. 失心疯 (Lost Heart Crazy) [MV]
  5. 淹死的鱼 (Drowning Fish)
  6. 街角 (Corner)
  7. 小聪明舞曲 (Smarty Dance)
  8. 入戏 (Into a Play)
  9. 没有计划的旅行 (Unplanned Travel)
  10. My Love

I’ve said it before, I find the phenomenon of Chris Lee’s stardom incredibly fascinating. She’s not the best vocalist, her dancing is… you know, just amusing. However, I find myself drawn to her and what she does.

So this review is based on the standard that Lee has set for herself, with statements such as:

My most ideal singing style is to make people feel I’m “speaking” instead of showing off my skills.

or things like “External things, despite the wrapping, are transient, while internal thing are lasting and powerful. Music is a natural thing and doesn’t take much wrapping.

via Chris Li Yu Chun WordPress.

So in essence, Chris Lee’s music relies on capturing a melody with very simple arrangements in The Dancing Artist album, which exemplifies the concept and maintains it throughout the whole album in a very effective way, with songs like The Dancing Artist, Insane and Drowning Fish and even Lee’s first English-language track My Love.

The album also contains collaborations with different musicians who took composing credits, like Taiwan’s favorite geek musician Crowd Lu, who composed Smarty Dance, and German pop singer/composer Inga Humphrey, who collaborated on tracks like Corner and I Sing La La La.

Sorry, I Suddenly Really Miss You is a pop tune through and through with autotuned vocals that strip complex arrangements in favor of very simple lyrics — written by Lee herself — that show regret in a very upbeat way, thanks to the tune by Jung Jin Seo and Se Jin Kim, who’ve worked with the likes of the Brown Eyed Girls.

Overall, fans of Li Yuchun should feel really proud at the level of production of the album in concept and execution, even if critics don’t find anything good to say about it. In the end, Lee understands that there are those who love her unconditionally and those who hate her with a passion… and she’s fine with that.

Highlights: Sorry, I Suddenly Really Miss You, and Smarty Dance.

Rating: ★★★¼☆ 

Preview on Xiami.com | Like it? Buy the album on YesAsia.com

amy

YAM Magazine editor, photographer, blogger, translator and part-time web designer. Film junkie, music junkie… and lately series (a.k.a. TV) junkie.

2 Responses

  1. May 22, 2011

    […] I think Huang has worked with everyone in the industry by now, including Bibi twice — These Words, and Single Mirror… and Chris Lee’s latest Dancing Artist. […]

  2. November 14, 2013

    […] is the third single from her upcoming fourth studio album titled The Dancing Artist. The song lets Lee write her feelings of loneliness, which don’t only deal with sorrow, but […]

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.