Bijou's Newest
Bijou has a new album out, Face the Music. It seems Choi Da Bi and Jou Min have decided to stay together to cut another album of ballads. When looking at the cover of the CD, it is hard to recognize Choi Da Bi -- she obviously has undergone some cosmetic changes over the past year. Her voice has not changed, and together with Jou Min, she produces those smooth sounds.
The first track, The Saddest Thing [MP3], is not particularly sad or melancholy in sound despite the name. It is poppy for a ballad, and relies heavily on the synthesizer. Jou Min does the opening passages before handing off the solo to Choi Da Bi.
If H.O.T. or Sechs Kies released a song called Yah1x1x [MP3], you know it would be full of a lot of yelling.
In the case of Bijou, however, the "yah" barely merits the exclamation points following it. This is an R&B song in which Choi stretches her vocals but not through shouting.
I Swear My Love [MP3] sounds like "classic" Bijou, with Jou Min doing the narrative spots and Choi Da Bi singing the refrains. Also, it has one or two cute-sounding English phrases thrown in, which is typical of a Bijou song (even if they don't always make sense).
One of the nicest pieces on the CD is Sentiment [MP3], a jazzy Latin number that should have a few feet shuffling. The Sentiment Master Remix [MP3] is attractive in a different way -- without vocals, it turns into a light, easy-listening track that makes for good mood music.
M.F.E.O. (Made For Each Other) [MP3] is an R&B sound, and although the instrumentation isn't that exciting, Jou Min's vocals are always nice, although they should just sing in Korean and avoid the unnecessary English clutter. Choi really goes for it near the end of this song.
Having criticized them for singing in English, I'll back track and say that the counting in Haebyuneuro Gayo [MP3] is tight. The opening is straight-forward Jou Min, and this song really ties-in with earlier Bijou tunes. The beach sound isn't quite there, but it doesn't matter.
Seulpeuntaedoh Euteul Soo Ituh [MP3] is the "purest" ballad on the CD. Although Bijou is known for ballads, they sing so many uptempo songs that it is easy to forget that association.
Most fortunate is the inclusion of a remix of Love Love [MP3] from their first album (also included on the Scent of a Woman compilation album). The original version of this song was charming, and this zippy remake will only produce smiles from the listener.
By Denise Ahn
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