My first blog post for 2013, and what a great way to start the new year for me!
SONEs couldn’t ask for a better treat to usher in 2013 than to see their favourite girl group back with a Korean album. ‘I Got a Boy’ is SNSD‘s 4th full album, and after the rather disappointing “The Boys” from nearly a year-and-half ago — my expectations were rather high for some great new music from my girls!
The girls get a bright and saturated look this time around
And today afternoon (January 1st in India), the music video to “I Got a Boy” released. Here we go!
1. “I Got a Boy”
Okay, this is going to be a long rant.
Upon first listen, I instantly guessed SM Entertainment followed the same formula they used on SHINee’s “Sherlock”. You know, that “two songs mashed into one” bullshit. But in Sherlock’s case, “Clue” and “Note” really sounded like “Sherlock” split into two. The song’s chorus alone made that song rock. “I Got a Boy” on the other hand is a mash up of godknowshowmany songs! It kicks off with Sooyoung and Yuri delivering a rap. Then the real crux of the song begins at 0:53 with the heavy piano hook. The verses are still an offbeat lead up to the chorus.
And then at 2:05, Tiffany puts it down another way! (She says so)
Just when you thought the song could possibly grow on you, the tempo changes to a faster bpm (beats per minute). At this point you’re wondering: “why did they do that?” or “was this really necessary?”. The chorus melody stays the same but the verses sound like they’re from a different song. Hyoyeon and YoonA deliver their rap during this bit.
Then at 3:37, the song changes pace once again. TaeTiSeo has this section all to themselves.
“Hey, let’s dress up the girls in wigs and change the set for a 12-second sequence. ‘Cos… you know, we’re SM! Dollar, dollar bills y’all!”
By the 4-minute mark in the MV, the tempo returns to 140 bpm and Jessica soars into the bridge before the song ends with the repeated chorus.
At first listen, all I could think about was: “WTF SM!?” Watching the music video with all the weird mix of aegyo cuts in between the cool ‘gangsta-girl’ attitude was really messing up my thoughts. So I just looked away and listened to the audio alone to see if I could get a better opinion. I must say the initial weirdness wore off and the song did grow on me, but honestly the only bit that stayed in my head is the chorus. It’s catchy, no doubt.
As for the music video itself, the stylists went for a more f(x) (or dare I say, 2NE1) style — and I’m not sure the girls really pulled it off. Of course they look good, but then again, even if the members were dressed up in black garbage bags, they’ll still look cute and pretty! I hate Sunny’s look in this video, they really messed up her hair. Seohyun also seemed too cute to pull off the punk-inspired look.
If the girls themselves don’t enjoy singing the song, they sure will enjoy dancing to it. The choreography is kick-ass and it’s the one thing I feel the girls will have fun on stage with. And for what seems like an eternity since ITNW, the girls can finally dance in comfortable sneakers and not their usual heeled shoes. A relief for each one of the girls I’m sure!
But in the end, I still have mixed feelings about “I Got a Boy”. And ‘mixed’ couldn’t be a more appropriate word for this song.
2. “Dancing Queen” – The song that was rumoured to be the single in place of “Gee” – but couldn’t be released due to last minute copyrights issues.
Thank god for that! “Dancing Queen” is nothing but a Korean remake of Duffy’s smash-hit “Mercy“. So if you like the Duffy original, well, then you’d like this song too (I guess). I can’t imagine what SNSD’s career would have been like had they not released “Gee“! – 3/5
3. “Baby Maybe” – Originally a demo for British singer Pixie Lott titled “What You Do,” this Korean version really suits Girls’ Generation. Sweet, sugary girly-pop, and after the offbeat start to the album, we find ourselves in true SNSD-territory. – 3/5
4. “말해봐 (Talk Talk)” – If this sounds familiar, then you heard it first on Girls’ Generation’s second Japanese album as the track “Boomerang” — which was one of the better tracks on ‘Girls & Peace’. That said, by now I was hoping for some fresh material, and not more recycled music. – 3.5/5
5. “Promise” – The expected ballad finally hits. With its thumping beat, harmonious vocals and a good chorus, I really like this song. – 4/5
6. “Express 999” – When I saw the title, I couldn’t help but reminisce about the Japanese anime classic ‘Galaxy Express 999,‘ and listening to the ’80s-inspired sounds, I’m sure SM producer Kenzie imagined the same. Another great track! – 4/5
7. “유리아이 (Lost in Love)” – Really liked the soothing vibe on this ballad. It reminded me of the harmonies ballads from the ’70s and the early ’80s had. Another good track. – 3/5
8. “Look at Me” – Back to weird again. This track is another one that plays around with different sounds through its verses and chorus. It’s okay, but I found myself skipping it on repeat listens. – 2/5
9. “XYZ” – With lyrics penned by Seohyun and Yuri, this song isn’t a lesson in the ABCs. Instead, it’s a uptempo dance track the girls would have worked on while listening to a lot of Britney Spears records. (I can tell ;)) A good effort none the less, and a sign the girls’ songwriting skills are getting much better! – 3/5
10. “낭만길 (Romantic Street)” – The track featured in the ‘drama’ teaser SNSD dropped for “I Got a Boy”. It’s (if you haven’t guessed from the title) another ballad. But just like the other ballads on the album, it’s sweet and mellow. I find the ballads really stood out more in this tracklist! – 3.5/5
Normally I would have chosen a common theme for each member’s image. But with this comeback, it was hard to.
For all that I said about the comeback single, I actually think ‘I Got a Boy’ is a very likable album. Unlike many SM albums of the past where the lead single and maybe two other songs stand out, with the rest being nothing but filler material, there are many tracks on this album I would listen to far more than “I Got a Boy”.
It’s been a few hours since the MV came out (it’s midnight as I wrap this up) and the reactions to “I Got a Boy” have been just as how I felt when I fist heard the track. Except that by now I have grown to accept the varied sound — while thousands of others still seem to hate it! Many are disappointed with the comeback single, while the rest are trying convince them to give the song a few more listens. I could tell you to do the same, but I will be honest: those who have trouble accepting certain genres of music will find it difficult to like “I Got a Boy”.
It’s still not the great comeback single I had hoped for, that too after the mediocre “The Boys”. I guess it’s justified when people have high expectations from SNSD’s Korean comebacks. After all, gone are the days when the girls spent all their time in South Korea. Now with the girls making way more money in Japan, we don’t get to hear much new (and I mean really new) music in Korean. The Japanese singles have been great, but they just don’t feel as natural.
I am happy the girls are back on the screen though! At least during the promotional run, we can expect variety show appearances, new interviews and more fresh SNSD content. I’m at a phase where I’m watching older clips on YouTube because I have practically watched every funny piece of recording SNSD have appeared in!
That said, I really hope SM entertainment has a re-packaged album in the works with a real killer single as back-up — just in case the backlash for “I Got a Boy” is a tad too much. Heck, if SM Entertainment has such a tough time choosing the right single, just give me a call! I’m someone who listens to practically every genre (and sub-genre of music) from the ’70s all the way to present-day chart music.
I’m all for artists trying to challenge themselves and take the risk in trying something new. But even I had a tough time appreciating “I Got a Boy”. I’m curious to see how the fan-chants to this song are going to work. Anyway, knowing the rabid fanbase SNSD has, ‘I Got a Boy’ the album will still do well on the charts and the girls will rack up a few wins on the music programs (if not win all of them!).
But for now, tallying up the individual scores, my final rating for SNSD’s fourth full-length album is:
I woke up early in order to catch a ferry to get to Macau by around 10am.
What the trains look like at 8am
To get to the ferry terminal for boats going to Macau, I got off at Sheung Wan station and just walked up, through a mall, to get to Turbo Jet’s ticketing counter (Cotai Jet is here as well). The ticket to Macau cost HK$163 (Rs. 1150/$21/€15) and I was hoping to get a seat for the ferry leaving at 8:45am, but as my bad luck would have it, the one guy in front of me at the counter wanted god-knows-how-many tickets and was arguing about change with the man behind the counter! Grrh, don’t you just hate it when this happens to you while waiting in line?! I stood there frustrated as not only did the 8:45am ferry fill up, so did the 9am one as well! I got one for 9:15am and then I waited at the departures ‘lounge’.
The terminal was filled with tourists from mainland ChinaI knew it would be well past 10am by the time I reached MacauThis was the standard ‘class’ which was comfy enough and air-conditionedI bid farewell to Hong Kong — for now
I asked for a window seat (as usual)
I kept praying I would get to Macau and clear immigration in time so I could head to the airport to see SNSD arrive. But that wouldn’t be the case.
I only reached Macau at around 10:30am. I already knew by now that my chances of making it to the airport in time were slim.The casinos greet you as soon as you near the Macau ferry terminal
For those who have been following my website since 2010 – or have landed on my website when searching for information on Loi Krathong in Thailand – you must have read about how disappointing my 2010 attempt to capture the Yeepeng Lanna festival was. Long story short, I got confirmation when and where the event was taking place but by the time I got to the venue, I missed the big release of lanterns by a matter of minutes!
I was gutted the remainder of the night and vowed I would go back to do it right the next time. I wanted to go to Thailand in 2011, but last year’s floods ruined my plans. This year, I could wait no more. I had plenty of good reasons to go to Thailand and I did.
Even though I had a friend for company, I made no compromises about getting to the venue early this time. As soon as we were done with lunch, we found a tuk-tuk driver willing to take us to Maejo University and back for 600 baht. In 2010 I paid 500 baht, so 600 baht for both of us sounded like a good deal. Plus our driver spoke fairly good English – something of a rarity in Thailand. We felt comfortable knowing everything was going smooth so far. (Yeah, wait till you read how it all ended!)
We set offThe weather seemed great and the highway leading to Maejo University was easy on the trafficOur driver told us it was the first time in over 20 years that he was entering Maejo University. For which there was no need to, because I knew from last year’s visit there was an alternate road to take.
After getting directions from the university staff, we reached the same point where I was dropped off last time. It all came back to me now — how I walked for at least a kilometre before reaching the actual grounds where the event was taking place.
People were setting up their stalls to sell paper lanterns, food and drinks
But this time, we drove down the same road and found parking right next to the main grounds! It was just past 2pm and we were really early. I was happy though. I knew I was safe inside and sure to witness the big release of lanterns this time!
Our tuk tuk driver said he would wait for us until evening and told us he was just going to go out for lunch. But we knew he was leaving the venue to go about his business of picking up other passengers. Who cares, as long as he came back for us. We hadn’t paid him yet.
We weren’t the only ones who arrived early. Many other tourists – mostly Chinese and Japanese, some locals and volunteers were milling about. (The above photos were all taken on the phone)There was some ceremony going onMore of a photo-op for us
The boys had a showing too
Once that was over, we moved to the actual grounds nearbyThese are the lamps that would be used to light the ‘khom loys’ or paper lanternsAnd the whole ground was full of them!My friend Ramesh and I found ourselves a small tree under which we could take respite from the sunThat’s the podium on which Buddhist monks would be chanting prayers before the actual release
I walked up to the center of the groundsI guess the carpet is for the many ceremonies that lead up to the big lantern release
But walking around, I noticed most of the sections were blocked by tour groups. As if they reserved sections for whoever paid to be here.Our bags were cooling off in the shadeI decided to drink as much water, juices and then go to the toilet beforehandThere was some ceremony going on inside which we weren’t allowed to photographThey had volunteers greeting visitors in both Thai and English
I drank a lot of ice cold water and went to the restroom because henceforth I wasn’t moving away from my spot.
A lot of video cameras and DSLRs were setup well in advance to secure the best viewing pointA LOT of cameras!This whole venue is going to be full of people lighting paper lanternsI set up my tripod and made test shots of all the possible viewing anglesEveryone took respite from the sun under the shade of the treesSlowly but surely the crowds were making their way inPeople carried their khom loys which were sold at the venue for 100 baht eachTour groups were trying to get their people togetherI guess you get your lantern ready if you already paid to come here with a tour groupLook up in the sky! Is it a bird? A plane? Kind of… this paraglider was surveying the grounds from up above. Imagine the view of the lanterns he was going to get from up there!This guy’s spot isn’t too bad either It was a full moon night, a factor based on which they set dates for this festivalThe paraglider was still doing the rounds while paper lanterns made their way up. What a perspective he must have got!As the sun was setting, the crowds were growingThe venue was full and by 6:30pm people were getting the urge to start lighting lanterns, despite constant announcements asking everyone to refrain from doing soBy 7pm, we were well into the many ceremonies that precede the release of the lanternsThe monks chanted prayers which were followed by traditional songs and performancesThais around me were deep in meditation and chanting alongBut I couldn’t get a good sight of all that from where we were standing as it all happened in the center of the grounds – sections all reserved for guests and VIPsIt was hard trying to get clear shots because there would always be some head obstructing my view. But I made the most of it. Love the 70-200mm lens! This is a long exposure panorama comprised of 4 shots tried with as little shake as possibleThey lit some firecracker… or somethingAfter all the ceremonial activities were over, the announcement was made to light the lamps
But everyone was instructed not to light the lanterns yet
Sadly the instructions were only in Thai and English, meaning some Chinese and Japanese around me couldn’t wait to light up.
And so it beganMyself and Ramesh decided we would light lanterns after the big release. Until then our focus was capturing photos and videos.It’s not easy to light up such a huge paper lantern and try to take photos at the same timeAnd despite repeated announcements not to release the lanterns yet… there’s only so long one can hold on to it once it fills up with hot airThis Thai man giving us the thumbs up was overly joyous and talkative to us asking us where we’re from and what we were doing in Thailand. Nice chap Lanterns were going up even before the main announcementPeople near to us were still getting their lanterns readyThese khom loys are massive!I was getting a bit worried the lack of co-ordination was going to ruin the big lantern releaseI mean, the whole beauty of Yeepeng Lanna is seeing thousands of lanterns go up at the same timeHe was happy to let go, but I prayed the others would waitBut then…OH. MY…… !!!!!
All around were just screams of joy and exhales of utter amazement! Even Ramesh and I were going: “Oh man, oh man… oh oh-ho-ho!” Really… there are no words to describe how you feel at that very moment you see it. It’s a visual-sensory overload! Even though I was shooting at my widest, no camera can capture the sheer scale of the what the night sky looks at that moment. Your eyes are the only best tool.
I immediately then tried to try an capture a panorama comprised of multiple shots. I never once thought how the end result would look… I just clicked-clicked-clicked-clicked.
And this is the best I could put together
I had to piece together the above 4 shots (out of 6) manually as no photo-stitching software (including Photoshop’s otherwise impressive Photomerge) could find common links between each photo. Here’s a larger version.
The lanterns were floating right over me. Guess that’s the way the wind was blowing.I took this vertically to get as many lanterns as possibleIt was amazing to see just how quick these lanterns float away out of sightPeople were still lighting up lanternsAnd just like that… into the distanceAnother panorama I had to manually piece togetherAnother manual panorama stitch comprised of 4 shotsWonder where these lanterns eventually drop toAnother panorama manually pieced together from 5 shotsAnd another one pieced together from 4 shots. Not perfect, I know.I knew back in 2010 itself just how tough this festival is to capture on camera. One, it’s dark, and two, you’re trying to capture moving objects in low light.I shot in Manual Focus mode because keeping it in Auto Focus meant the focusing would be slow (my wide angle is the Canon 10-22mm f3.5). Although I had the Tamron 28-75mm f2.8, from experience I know how lousy its focusing is compared to the Canon. Keep in mind, most of these photos were taken at shutter speeds ranging from 1/6 to 1/20.And shooting in Auto mode with flash like how many with point-and-shoot cameras were clicking meant you get photos like this. It kills the very glow of these floating lanterns.But just when you think the visual sensory overload is over…… fireworks!
I actually took a lot of photos of the fireworksSadly, most of them came out blurry. I guess that’s the downside to keeping your lens on Manual Focus and getting lost in the revelry :-/ They looked fine on the LCD but it’s only when you zoom in or view them on the computer you realize: “Crap!”
With the activities slowing down at the grounds and people making their way out, Ramesh and I went up to the big hall to get an overhead view.
We wondered what the spectacle from up here would have looked likeA team next to me were still filming video. I set up my tripod to take some longer shutter release.We took each others’ photos using the fire lamps as backgroundsAnd that was it. We were done.
Well, done taking photos of other people having fun! Now it was our turn. We went to buy one of the big lanterns but sadly they were all sold out. We went out to the main road by the river stream to check with the vendors there.
The stream of thousands leaving the venue meant it was going to be near impossible to walk through it all. But it did remind me of 2010 when I was one sad face walking like a zombie (in disappointment, than lacking life) after having missed the big release of lanterns.
This year though, I had a smile of my face. I captured the amazing moment the lanterns went up and now I just felt like lighting up some lanterns myself. We looked around until I finally found a big one lying unused and wasn’t torn. Ramesh found a vendor inside and bought another.
We decided to light up the bigger one first.
These Japanese girls helped us light the big one as you need more than two hands to hold the lantern up — and take photos!Two or three minutes later, it was ready to float awayMade a wish, and then let goWe lit another one with this Thai girl, who was awfully kind to help us
But I later realized she was only helping us so we would finish up and leave. She was one among the many volunteers who immediately began cleaning up the venue.
So we let go of our final khom loyAnd with that, we were finally done for the night
Walking back, looking at all the volunteers cleaning up the grounds, putting out the lamps and clearing all the trash, I now understood why the organizers have started commercializing this festival. For over 20 years, this privately organized event grew into one of the most symbolic of Thai festivals in the eyes of many tourists. Heck, I’m sure this event is what inspired this scene in ‘Tangled‘!
Last year when they announced a separate event would be a paid event, that too with a US$100 entry fee (slashed to $80 this time), I scoffed at how greedy they had become. Of course, now they hold two – one free event and one ticketed event. But even this event had large sections of the ground cordoned off by tour groups, reserving the good spots for those who surely paid to attend this festival.
Still, I won’t blame them now. Just because it’s free for many of us, doesn’t mean there aren’t expenses. Somebody has to pay for the free ice-cold water, somebody’s got to pay for all the free plastic chairs they handed out to those who waited since afternoon. Not to mention, again, the hard-working volunteers cleaning up the entire venue and helping out with the various activities.
Will I attend this lantern festival again? Although I managed to get in early this time, I’m still not absolutely thrilled with the photos I took. I shot altogether over 440 photos today, but I only used a quarter of that for this post. Many came out blurred. I don’t entirely blame myself, because I did the best I could with my Canon 7D and 10-22mm f3.5 lens. Being surprised by the moments of amazement that took place before my very own eyes, it was hard to plan every shot. Trying to capture what your eyes see with a camera is always tricky. I would like to think had I got a full frame camera with the Canon 16-35mm f2.8 lens, I would have taken better photos. Then again… ‘shoulda, coulda, woulda’. We all have such thoughts after something has happened.
As we walked back to our waiting tuk-tuk driver, it was 8:45pm. But we were happy. Not for long though.
When we approached our driver, he had the look of displeasure on his face. He complained saying he’s been here for hours and we promised we would be out by 6pm (which we never did). I knew why he was acting this way and it soon came out. He demanded we pay 1000 baht instead of 600 baht. I refused, saying that was too much for a tuk-tuk ride. He said he would take us to the police station if we didn’t pay up. So I said “sure, go ahead” and got in.
I took his photo while we were stuck in the slow moving traffic outside the grounds
But then, strong winds started blowing. Blowing so hard it was toppling sign boards, chairs and other things off shops on the road side. Then came the loud sound of thunder. Then it began to rain. And how! It was pouring cats, dogs and any other animal you can throw at to describe a torrential downpour! Myself and Ramesh, although with a roof over out heads, were still getting wet with the heavy wind throwing water at us from all open sides. I tried to take my rain coat out of my camera bag but hesitated to move from the covering position I was in. Even opening up the rain coat was a challenge with the wet winds rendering it counter-productive even before I could use it as cover. My camera was getting wet too, so I needed to stuff that back in before it could take in any more water.
And just when you think bad weather in the midst of heavy traffic couldn’t make things any worse, our tuk tuk sputtered to a stop. Water got inside the spark plug making it hard for the driver to restart the vehicle. So yeah, we were stuck in the rain. Then the power went off all around us. Yup.
Ten minutes later, the vehicle restarted and we were off again. But given the driver had chosen to take the inner roads to hopefully skip traffic (or take us to the nearest police station), driving through puddled roads… the tuk tuk stopped again. For the same reason. We now had to wait longer. In the rain, in the dark, and with no clue where in Chiang Mai we were!
But the driver’s attitude changed by now. Although he complained of how cold he was (he was getting drenched too), the talk moved to light banter complaining about Thailand’s electricity cuts, calling it the worst in the world. We assured him there’s always India to make Thailand’s infrastructure look far superior. But as light as both our attitudes were by then, Ramesh and I couldn’t believe how our night was turning out to be. I couldn’t believe my drive back from the lantern festival could possibly make me sick again. We were shivering in the cold and prayed the tuk tuk would start again. It did, some 20 minutes later, and fortunately by then the rain had reduced to a drizzle. We asked the driver to avoid potholes and see if he could connect back to the main highway.
Funnily enough, all I kept thinking was how the rain could have possibly been caused by the development of hot air caused by the thousands of lanterns in the air from the Yeepeng Lanna grounds. It was as though god was pissed with all the fire we were sending up his way and he decided to wash us out with a massive downpour of water! But the driver told us he had heard in the weather report that there was a depression from Vietnam heading towards Thailand. Still, I think the hot air could have aggravated the rains.
It was well past 10pm by the time we saw a highway. Ramesh could take his phone out to take this snap as I wanted some evidence of just how much it rained. Trust me, it was much worse when it began!
By the time we reached Chiang Mai city, it was 10:45pm. It took us two hours to get back, but what horrible two hours it was. We asked our driver to drop us near the Night Market as we just wanted to have some hot food before everything shut shop early because of the rains.
When it came time to pay him, we still gave him 700 baht feeling sorry for an old man shivering out at this time of the night when his wife kept calling asking him where he was.
It’s not that I have it usually, but we felt like having some rum or whiskey to warm our bodies. This was a moment when I craved hot Indian food too, and although available aplenty at the Night Market, most places were Muslim-run restaurants. Which meant we would get the food, but not the alcohol.
We just sat inside a popular restaurant and ordered everything. I desperately wanted to be done with dinner so I could run home to take a hot shower.
I wanted something hot and spicy to warm my body up but there was no Indian food on the menu. Instead, I tried Myanmar pork curry, which although tasted okay, ended up being gingery sweet. Not what I craved that night.
Done with dinner, shivering and soaking wet from head to toe, we walked back to our room and I quickly took a hot shower. It felt soooooo good.
I tested my camera to see if everything worked fine. I know the 7D body is weather sealed, so it can handle the elements to a certain extent. But I was glad to know the lens and the motor all worked a-okay. (This is was our twin room at Rux thai Guesthouse by the way)
So that was my day. From hot and sunny in the morning, thrilling in the evening, to cold and rainy in the evening. I wasn’t even in the mood to look at the photos I took because it was well past midnight and we had a morning flight back to Bangkok where I had to attend SM Town III the next day. I had to sleep.
But I was still happy
P.S: Here’s a video Ramesh took when the lanterns were released into the air:
I’m someone who listens to practically every genre (and sub-genre of music) from the ’70s all the way to present-day chart music.
