With Evolution, sexy singer Thanh Ha attempts to get her groove back. No crime in that. Even a MILF needs rejuvenation. Like what Y Van had suggested in “60 Nam Cuoi Doi,” life only lasts 60 years so you might as well make the most out of it. Thanh Ha gives Y Van’s classic a fresh makeover thanks to Roland Casiquin for the up-tempo, rock-up beat.

While some of the productions are superb, the song selection is all over the place. Most tunes are translated and Casiquin can’t seem to help himself from injecting annoying ad-libs and nursery rhymes into the tracks. The jump-off “Diep Khuc Mua Xuan” (written by Quoc Dung) wouldn’t be so irritating if he keeps the machine voices out of the tune. Likewise the little Auto-Tune singing-rapping on Van Phuong’s “Tinh Yeu” is exasperating: “Girl you’re the one / You’re my love / You’re my medicine / When it comes to [love?] makes you the veteran.” These Vietlish tracks, particularly “Nobody But You,” make Thanh Ha sounds like she desperately trying to be hip just like the suit she can’t pull off on the album cover.

“Tinh Voi” (a translated tune) starts off with such a sleepy bossa-nova that Casiquin has to rock it up in order to keep listeners from dozing off. From r & b to dance pop to rock to smooth jazz to soul to rap, the album should have been titled The Evolution of Thanh Ha’s Sandwich.

As someone who follows Ngoc Anh’s career for many years, I didn’t think she could make a bad record if she wanted to. Even under Thuy Nga’s poppy direction, she managed to cut some exceptional tracks with Giet Nguoi Trong Mong and gained a wider audience who only knew her after she appeared on Paris By Night.

Her follow-up release, Ta Tinh, however, proves me wrong. As Thuy Nga pushes Ngoc Anh deeper into the pop hole, she can’t save herself from sinking into the god-aweful productions. Her rendition of Pham Dinh Chuong’s “Nua Hon Thuong Dau” is one of the most tasteless covers I have heard. The bouncy arrangement takes the soul and the lyricism right out of the song. Intead of “Nham mat cho toi tim mot thoang huong xua,” the beat gets on your nerve if you close your eyes.

Ngoc Anh and Bang Kieu’s duet on Ngo Thuy Mien’s “Rieng Mot Goc Troi” is much worse than on Do Le’s “Sang Ngang.” The track sounds like two chicks and a horrendous soprano sax battling out for their own turf. Other than the excellent, heart-rending version of Pham Duy’s “Mua Thu Chet,” Ta Tinh is mediocre at best.

From skin-baring album cover to artifical, soupy hits including Le Xuan Truong’s translated “Cuoi Cung La Hu Vo,” Ngoc Trong’s “Sau Vuong Khoi May” and Hai Nguyen “Em Hay Ve Di,” it’s sad to see such a phenomenal artist getting sucked into Thuy Nga’s money-making machine. With Ta Tinh, Ngoc Anh is selling out her soul more than trying to reach the young listeners.

It doesn’t take long to fall in love with the British soul-pop singer Adele. In fact, the opening track, “Rolling In The Deep,” on her sophomore release, 21, hooks you right in. Who can resist the smoky, sexy voice complemented with the damn catchy beat? The second track, “Rumor Has It,” gets even better. In addition to the memorable melody, the hypnotic drum claps and the savor jazz keyboard lick, the punchline is dead on: “You made my heart melt, yet I’m cold to the core / But rumour has it. I’m the one you’re leaving her for.” On the slow pop ballad, “Don’t You Remember,” so pours her heart out more like an old soul than a twenty-one-year-old girl. 21 has a few stalled moments, but the album is definitely worth listening.

With Bird Songs, saxman Joe Lovano doesn’t set out to chase after Charlie Parker. Instead, Lovano and his Us Five (with pianist James Wheidman, bassist Esperanza Spalding and drummers Francisco Mela and Otis Brown III) use Parker’s compositions as a springboard and go off in their own direction. “Passport” starts out with the original melody with Lovano plays a lyrical solo before heading into his blazing chops. With “Barbados,” the band replace the bebop rhythm with the Caribbean groove and yet still provide the space for Lovano to pour out his soul. Bird Songs is indeed a compelling reimagination of Parker’s music.

Renowned jazz pianist Jason Moran and his Bandwagon (with bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Nasheet Waits) cut one of the best jazz albums of 2010. Ten celebrates a decade of the band working together with an imaginative reinterpretation of Thelonious Monk’s “Crepuscule with Nellie,” a modern approach to composition based on Jimi Hendrix’s infamous technique (“Feedback 2”) and an intriguing incorporation of funk, jazz and hip-hop (“Gangsterism Over Ten Years”). Listening to the trio reminds me of a Vietnamese proverb: “A lone tree cannot make a forest, but three trees gathered together form a high hill.”

Thanh Thao’s musical direction is best describe as “deafness fears no gun” (diec khong so sung). Even though most of her hits are mediocre, you have to hand it to her for playing around with different styles ranging from trendy pop to dance pop to imitated hip-hop and r&b to to over-sentimental ballad. Her new release, Hoang Tu Trong Mo, is a bolero devotion. She also enlisted an impressive roster of guest princes including Thai Chau, Ngoc Son, Truong Vu and Le Hieu for the duets.

What makes Thanh Thao intriguing is that she is not afraid to mix and match styles. She picks out her beats as if she shops for her clothes. Hoang Tu Trong Mo is based on the bolero foundation, but she also adds some pop, hip-hop and even jazz on top. The most fascinating arrangement on the album is the blend of jazz, hip-hop rhythm with traditional instruments on “Nho Nguoi Yeu” with Ngoc Son. The track sounds both “sen” (cheesy) and “sang” (elegant) at the same time. Who else, but Thanh Thao could pull that off?

Her collaboration with Truong Vu on “Duong Tinh Doi Nga” works surprisingly well. His over-emphatic singing is a perfect foil for her straightforward delivery and they seem to feel each other’s pain. In contrast, she sounds as if she is done with the Quang Dung drama on the medley “Nhin Nhau Lan Cuoi” and “Xin Dung Noi Yeu Toi.” They both sound flat and tired of the past. While Dam Vinh Hung is on top of her on “Gap Nhau Lam Ngo,” Vuong Trieu Vu is at the bottom of her on “Sao Em Vo Tinh.” They should get together and do a threesome.

Another standout duet is “Em Ve Keo Troi Mua.” Le Hieu’s northern accent in singing a southern tune is quite pleasing. Like most of Thanh Thao’s album, Hoang Tu Trong Mo contains both hits and misses. It’s nice to hear her messing around with different flavors.

Was Doan Trang on crack when she revealed her panties at a social event? Maybe. Was she on crack when she recorded her latest release The Unmakeup? Most definitely because a singer in her right mind wouldn’t release such embarrassing work. Seriously, what the hell was she thinking when she decided to make an entire album in English?

Quoc Bao was the original producer for The Unmakeup, but he decided to drop out. “Too busy” was his reason, but the real decision was that he realized the album was going to be a piece of crap. Doan Trang’s English is so horrendous that going through the entire album was such a painful experience as if listening to a cat clawing on the chalkboard. On “My 20s,” her flow is stilted as she tries to pronounce every word correctly. She ruins the beautiful jazz arrangement on “Nocturnal” with her imperfect accent.

Doan Trang, you’re such a cutie and all, but please stop making dreadful music. If this is an American obsession, get some counseling. Get off the white power too.

Vietnamese New Year is a perfect occasion for music productions to make money; therefore, Asia and Thuy Nga, two gigantic Vietnamese entertainments, competed against each other in the same concept was inevitible. Since Asia’s Dam Cuoi Dau Xuan and Thuy Nga’s Hanh Phuc Dau Nam went head for head, I am going to compare the two side by side just for the fun of it.

Let’s kick off with the opening. As usual, Thuy Nga started out with its line up of hot babes to grab the viewer’s attention. “Ngay Tet Viet Nam,” written for the program by Hoai An, featured young singers in ao dai. They sure were great to look at, but the song was too poppy with a bit of Chinese flavor. On the Asia’s side, Son Ca and Chi Tam were older, but they sure brought in the New Year vibe with “Ngay Xua Vui Cuoi.”

Asia’s ending was weaker than Thuy Nga simply because Truc Ho was too lazy to come up with a new arrangement for Ha Thanh Xuan’s performance of “Khuc Hat An Tinh.” Although Ha Thanh Xuan was giving her best vocal delivery, she was new and therefore no way she could outdo the veteran Y Lan in the same arrangement. As soon as the music began, Y Lan was immediately came to mind. On Thuy Nga’s side, Don Ho and Ky Phuong Uyen gave a modern pop version of Van Phung’s “Ca Khuc Mung Xuan.” Not that they had done a superb job, but at least their sounded fresh.

Given that both producing similar concept, I was surprised that only one song covered on both side. Lam Nhat Tien were up against Khanh Ha for Quoc Dung’s “Em Da Thay Mua Xuan Chua?” The outcome was predictable. Khanh Ha was singing an octive higher than Lam Nhat Tien. Her version was much more soulful and had more depth than his.

Y Phuong were up against Ngoc Anh for the swing. Although I like both Y Phuong’s “Mung Xuan” and Ngoc Anh’s “Xuan Voi Doi Song Moi,” Ngoc Anh would be my choice. She rode the beat so marvelously with her smoking voice and her steps were also sexy.

For the young duets, Mai Tien Dung and Toc Tien’s “Nguoi Tinh Oi, Mo Gi” were along the line of Anh Minh and Doan Phi’s “Buoc Tinh Nong” and “Qua Cau Gio Bay.” The choreography in Mai Tien Dung and Toc Tien was fantastic and the song was fun and energic. Sy Dan’s upbeat production for “Qua Cau Gio Bay” was quite rejuvenating and Anh Minh was hot as hell too. Unfortunately, Doan Phi killed it. His wardrobe malfuction, which revealed the use of velcro along the ao dai, was embarassing. He and his dancers tried to stick them together, but couldn’t get them to adhere. He should have just take off the ao dai when singing the line, “Yeu nhau coi ao cho nhau.” It would have been perfect.

Ho Hoang Yen’s performance of Anh Viet Thu’s “Nhu Giot Sau Roi” was a close race to Thanh Ha’s performance of Ngoc Bich’s “Mong Chieu Xuan.” They both did a fantastic job of delivering the tunes and both set the stage on fire, but I have to go with Ho Hoang Yen for the sexiness. Quang Dung in Tu Cong Phung’s “Mua Xuan Tren Dinh Mua Xuan” was a close match to Tuan Khanh in Pham Duy’s “Em Le Chua Nay.” Both weren’t quite do the song its justice. Their rendition was safe and a tad boring.

As for the skit, Nguyen Ngoc Ngan’s script was much sharper than Hong Dao’s. His puns were spot on. Hoai Tam said that in order to learn English you have to learn the “technique.” Chi Tai replied with learning English until you “tet dit” (split your ass). Chi Tai, Hoai Tam and Be Ti were killing it. On the Asia’s side, Hong Dao and Quang Minh were a bit over-dramatic.

Politically speaking, Thuy Nga stayed completely free. Even though Nam Loc can’t help throwing in a few jabs in the beginning of the show, Asia also had done a decent job of sanitizing its political view for the sake of New Year. Asia also brought in Ngoc Dan Thanh. Damn, how old is she now? She must be at least in her 50s and yet still very georgous. She looked stunning in the black ao dai. I still remember watching some of her music videos in my early days in the States and she hasn’t changed much in almost twenty years. She sure is aging quite gracefully.

Even though Thuy Nga was a bit stronger in the overall production, both brought out some enjoyable hours for Tet. With Tet, viewers do not expect new tunes. They just want some good old tunes to take them back to the wonderful moments of New Year. So the productions can do no wrong covering classic ballads with the spirit of “Xuan” and bringing some joy and laughter to the show.

What had happened to the mysterious, gothic Thuy Tien who rocked my world with Ngot & Dang and Narcissus? Her newest release, Em Da Quen, is a complete transformation from an innovative gal to a complete mediocre pop chick, as if Tori Amos has turned into Britney Spears.

Thuy Tien used to bare her soul in her songs even when she sang over a minimal arrangement like “Ao Dai Trang A Oi.” Now she hides her voice behind Auto-Tune and dance beat in the title track, but shows more skins in the video. Don’t give me wrong. I don’t mind the video and glad to see that she has gained so much confidence in her appearance. What makes my heart sink is seeing her musical talent gets wasted. Not a single track on Em Da Quen isn’t crappy.

It’s easy to dismiss the path Thuy Tien has chosen, but let’s walk in her shoes (or high heels) for a minute. Thuy Tien is now more popular than before. Em Da Quen probably sells more than both her first and second album combined. Why spend so much time and energy creating something that only a handful of people can get it? With her talent, she could churn out catchy pop tunes in her sleep and make much of money off them. The choice is between the starving artist and the glamorous celebrity. Thuy Tien obviously has picked her choice. Hate the game, not the player.

I got mad love for Ho Hoang Yen’s sensuous vocals (something about that slightly smoky timbre) as well as her voluptuous figure. In fact, I got so much love for her that I treated her debut, Bao Tinh, from a clean slate, as if I have not heard of the songs she performed on Asia’s video before. It really is a damn shame that her first album is nothing more than a collection of tracks Asia production gathered from its various video series.

Even if I try to get past the repackaging scam, I can’t get over Asia’s sleazy method of recycling old beats. At least two of Truc Ho’s arrangements have already been used in the past. “Mot Mai Em Di” and “Khuc Thuy Du” were taken straight from Thuy Duong’s version. Ho Hoang Yen just has to sing over the same old productions. Her version of “Hanh Phuc Lang Thang” and “Bao Gio Biet Tuong Tu” is just flat and uninspiring. The “Lien Khuc Vu Thanh An” with Tuan Khanh sticks out like a soar thumb.

I am so glad that “Xin Thoi Gian Qua Mau” has been rearranged and not reusing Ngoc Lan’s. While Ngoc Lan’s gorgeous rendition remains matchless, Ho Hoang Yen’s version takes on a different direction. It’s more tender and the jazz keyboard adds some nice touch to the tune. The title track is decent as if she has brought the quiet storm to the sentimental lyrics and her version of “Bai Tango Cho Rieng Em” is simply sexy, not sure if it’s the tango or the dress.

Bao Tinh is a disappointment because Asia places her in such a rigid template that she has very little room to wiggle, let along the space to be creative. With such a hypnotizing voice, Ho Hoang Yen can offer much more than this if she is willing to explore outside of the Asia’s box.