In Asia’s Tinh Khuc Sau Cuoc Chien, Asia 4 paid homage to their hombre Cardin by hailing his music as the future of Vietnamese entertainment. They made it sounds like he’s the next Prince of Brownness who would revolutionize the music scene. You want to bitch-smack them, but you get it. They are still riding his midget dick, even though he kicked their ass to the curve. Now that is some real brotherly love right there baby!

Like I said, if Asia productions promote Cardin’s work as the new, hip joint, we’re in deep shit. His Trai Tim Dai Kho (Foolish Heart) is anything but modern. Who still listens to that obsolete freestyle beats on the title track and “Nang Sieu Nhan?” Let me not even touch on his lyrical writing. When he rides upbeats, his voice drowned inside them. When he croons slow-tempos, dude sounds like a pitiable bitch, especially on “She’s So Beautiful.” I get goose bumps as soon as he starts to sing. I thought Ung Hoang Phuc’s version of the sugary “Sau Mot Tinh Yeu” is unlistenable. Cardin’s rendition is simply unbearable. Can’t get any wimpier than that.

Feel bad for homeboy Chosen for having to do these Diddy craps like “Sending All My Love.” Why stuck by Trish, Da Nhat Yen, and Cardin rhyming over these horrendous pop tunes? You got the flow, get your own gig on, son. Speaking of Trish, Cardin is like her male version; therefore, they sound so damn tight together on “The Chase,” even though the music and the lyrics are corny as hell.

How could Cardin’s music be the future when he covers tunes from Boney M. and Modern Talking? They are two of the most antediluvian groups on the planet. I guess he’s trying to take us back to the future.

The site I use at least ten times a day gets a new facelift as well as web-standards treatment. Nice!

When 2pacalypse Now, Pac’s debut, hit the streets in ’92, my English was not good enough to pay attention to his provocative lyrics. Last weekend, I pulled the album off my boy’s CD collection and stuck by Pac’s lyricism. In “I Don’t Give a Fuck,” he ain’t fucking joking when he spitted, “And if you look between the lines / You’ll find a rhyme as strong as a fucking nine.” His words were filled with violent graphics. I still recall an incident where two kids shot at a cop and blamed on Pac’s music for the motivation, and I am not finding it surprising with what Pac had described in his “Violent” words: “My homie dropped, so I hit the cop / I kept swinging, yo, I couldn’t stop / Before I knew it, I was beating the cop senseless / The other cop dropped his gun, he was defenseless / Now I’m against this cop who was racist / Given him a taste, of trading places.” At such a young age—barely legal to drink—Pac was fully aware of the injustice as a Black male. In “Words of Wisdom,” he prosecuted AmeriKKKa with, “the crime of rape, murder, and assault / For suppressing and punishing my people / I charge you with robbery for robbing me of my history / I charge you with false imprisonment for keeping me.” And he also questioned the Black history lessons: “No Malcolm X in my history text / Why is that? / Cause he tried to educate and liberate all blacks / Why is Martin Luther King in my book each week? / He told blacks, if they get smacked, turn the other cheek / I don’t get it, so many questions went through my mind / I get sweated / They act as if asking questions is a crime.” Obviously two of Pac’s mega classics were “Trapped” and “Brenda’s Got a Baby” (courtesy of YouTube). Both pieces demonstrated Pac’s skillful narrative storytelling as well as his poetic lyrics with a wicked flow.

I’ve been allured into Le Kieu Nhu‘s Nua Hon Thuong Dau and I don’t even know how and why. She has a seductive voice—silky and raspy—but not outstanding in a distinctive sense. Her technical skill is minimal; she doesn’t even know when to hold her breath; her musical selections are way older than she is; and she choose to sing with a man twice her age. Why Duy Quang and not Duc Tuan or Quang Dung? Their duet on Ngo Thuy Mien’s “Niem Khuc Cuoi” reminds me of a marriage photoshoot, between an old Taiwanese bastard and a young, model-looking Vietnamese girl, I have witness in Binh Quoi. The look on her face was like she’s about to head straight to hell in a white gown, but there was no way out. And that’s how Le Kieu Nhu crafted her album, like a real dramatic musical epic. After “Thuong Nhau Ngay Mua,” there’s only “Buon,” “Sang Ngang” “Con Tuoi Nao Cho Em,” and ended up with “Nua Hon Thuong Dau.” She may not be a skillful ballad crooner, but she sure can makes us feel her bitterness. She delivers these sorrowful tunes with tremendous pain and despondency. What makes me coming back to this album again and again is that she makes her stilted flows sound like they are choked with tears. Sympathy is the best word to describe the album, and I do feel pity after listening to it. Who wouldn’t feel that way about a girl who looks so damn fine?

Soul Wax sure is groovy, to the point where I am getting dizzy. At least I don’t feel so bad for keeping this site down to the minimal.

Hoang Ngoc Tuan plays “Trong Com” (Drum Rice), a well-known folks tune, with his intricate guitar-picking. What striking is how he’s “Vietnamizing” (his own word) the western instrument to get the traditional sound. Check out the short clip in which Hoang Ngoc Tuan strums and talks about his musical vision.

Feelin’ the flavorful beat and the savory guitar riffs from Jimi Hendrix’s “May This Be Love.” Dig the lyrics too:

Some people say day-dreaming’s
for all the lazy minded fools
with nothing else to do.

So let them laugh, laugh at me,
so just as long as I have you
to see me through,
I have nothing to lose ‘long as I have you.

Quang Ly’s “Nu Hon Goi Gio” gets me everytime. I have linked to the tune before, but still loving the poetry lyrics from Hien Vy:

Moi em mong do la do nhu mo
Cho anh nho gio hon vao la vao moi em
Hon em anh mong tinh nong
Nho con gio thoang hon vao toc em.

Mad props to Hoang Viet Khanh for turning this gorgeous poem into a wonderful song.

I must admit that I have been listening to Quang Dung’s new version of Dieu Huong’s “Vi Do La Em” more than my main man Tuan Ngoc. The little intro he does in the begining accompained by the romantical piano is just irresistible. Quang Dung has followed the pop rule. If he could get the girls to come, the boys will follow. Damn you, pimp!

De roi tu do ta yeu em khong ngai ngan
De roi tu do trong buoc chan nghe gan hon
Mot ngay lai den trai tim ta dai cuong
Roi tung chieu len mang noi buon vo bien

Last Friday, the web team at Vassar shut down shop and headed to the city for a much-needed break and to revive our creativities. We dropped by The International Center for Photography, MoMA, and had a long lunch at the Hudson Cafeteria. There’s nothing more rewarding than working with group of talented, humorous individuals. Last Saturday (August 19) marked my fourth year at Vassar. Time sure flies when you enjoy the work you do. Over the past few years, I have turned down all freelance projects to focus all my energy on Vassar. Every piece that I have churned out for the school, I am pleased with the result. Each site reflects both my personal style as well as the institution’s image. As for the campus environment, it has become part of my life, and the web crew is like my extended family. I am way too attached to this place. Thanks Vassar folks for making my working life enjoyable!

Not too many positive feedbacks on my previous layout, so I am changing the design again. Back to white, of course.

Update: Damn! Very strong reaction. Thank you all for the feedbacks. I am taking off the girlie/gay pattern for now. I’ll work on my own design later.