Van Son production is dead. The latest release, Que Huong Gap Lai, is a proof that the production has no creativity left. I try my best to find something nice to say, but can’t even come up with one. Not even a single music performance or a skit I could enjoy. Yes, it was that bad.

Van Son’s music is plunging even deeper than the Dow Jone. It’s beyond recession and more like depression when Che Linh and his clones dominated the stage. From Che Linh to Che Phong to Truong Vu, I thought I was watching Vietnamese Groundhog Day. Listening to Linda Chow’s Chinese-Vietnamese shouting (not singing), I was wondering how in the world did she land the contract? She is not that hot looking either. The only reason I could think of is that Van Son is trying to compete with Asia’s Thai Doanh Doanh to see who is the worse of the worse. Even Diem Lien’s rendition of Pham Duy’s “Nha Trang Ngay Ve” was a disaster. She almost turned the reflective tune into a drama opera and the band tried to swing behind her. The music and the voice didn’t even blend.

The comedies, which had been Van Son’s strongest selling point, had turned into desperate clowning for some cheap chuckles. I didn’t know if I should laugh or cringe when two grown-ass men running around the stage with nothing but banana leaves wrapping around their body. Please Viet Thao and Bao Liem, I beg of you to stop making embarrassing shtick. If it’s an obsession, get help.

Mr. Van Son, do us all a favor. Cease and desist exploiting the Vietnamese pop culture whether you have intended or not. It really is a damn shame.

Let’s face it. Kanye West is not a great rapper and can’t sing for shit, but he doesn’t let his limitations get in the way of his ego. On 808s and Heartbreak, Kanye ditched rapping and picked up crooning about the lost of his mother and the crumbled relationship with his longtime fiancé. He used Auto-Tune as a clutch for his voice and the Roland TR-808 drum machine for his beats. His musical direction is inventive, but his singing gets in the way. Although the pitch-perfecting tool created an alien-like voice to complement his dark, futuristic, rock-influenced productions, you just want to beg him stopping singing already. The entire album of Auto-Tuned crooning is just way too much. You definitely feel his pain, but he doesn’t seem to feel yours.

Due to traffic, our ride from Virginia to New Jersey took almost eight hours last night. I am not complaining though. I had my coffee to keep me awake. I had my jazz to calm my nerve. Best of all, I had a wonderful lady by my side to keep me warm. Glad to be home for Thanksgiving (or more like family gathering). Please take the time to be with your love ones. Like Lam Phuong once wrote: “Cách xa mặt nhau chỉ làm ngày tháng hư hao / Tuổi xuân là bao chẳng đợi thời gian vụt tới / Rồi mai đây trăng tà soi bóng ngó quanh lại còn ai.”

After getting through thirteen live recordings of Pat Metheny Trio, I could see how Metheny had the audacity to savaged Kenny G’s style as: “lame-ass, jive, pseudo bluesy, out-of-tune, noodling, wimped out, fucked up playing.” He has the virtuosity to back up his statement. With Larry Grenadler on acoustic bass and Bill Stewart on drums laying down the strong and spontaneous rhythm section, Metheny demonstrates his intricate picking techniques, improvisational skills and fearlessness in taking chances. “Question and Answer” is a beautiful 19-minute improvisation where Metheny shows off his inventive chromatic lines and elegant phrasings. “Counting Texas” displays his soulful blues picking. My personal favorite is “Faith Healer.” The heavy-metal riffs and the space-out sounding make the rock-jazz fusion so damn hypnotizing.

On their latest collaborative effort, Nhu Giac Chiem Bao, Tuan Hung and Le Quyen share a dream: to belt out on the poppy, syrupy hits. Because of their raspy, authoritative vocals, the two have done rather well on the solo tracks. Le Quyen comes off bittersweet and sultry on Luong Bang Vinh’s “Dang Cay.” Likewise, Tuan Hung sounds sentimental and tormented on Hoang Trong Thuy’s “Doan Khuc Cuoi Cho Em.” As a duo, however, they aren’t quite compatible. On Tuong Van’s “Hanh Phuc,” they both sound bored and dreary. Because their voices share similar qualities, they don’t have enough contrast to complement each other. Yet what bring the album down aren’t their vocals, but the lackluster, mechanical productions.

13 Creative showcases Jenn White Topliff’s elegant works.
The Lippincott is simply gorgeous.

The interactive site for Volkswagen Fox features an amazing navigational concept. Must visit.

A worldwide rendition of Ben E. King’s classic.

Getting your car service these days is even worst than visiting your doctor for a check up. A simple oil change at Radley Acura cost forty-eight dollars and two and a half hours of waiting time. Worse is the list of recommendations that runs up $1,500. Of course, I have to say thank but no thank to the list of recommendations. My car runs just fine. Just give me the fucking oil change.

Change of plan. I won’t have to be in New Jersey this weekend; therefore, I am going to be hanging out at Quan Van Nova on Saturday night. Anyone else wants to join me to crash the party? Hopefully anh Hai won’t kick us out. I really am looking forward to relax and enjoy the music. I am bringing my baby along too so the kid could get a taste of music. Like they always say, “Dạy con từ thuở còn thơ.”