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Artist: CLAZZIQUAI Project Title: Color Your Soul Release Date: 2005.08.24 Product Code: AVCD-17820 Label: Fluxus Music

CLAZZIQUAI Project returned in October of 2005 with a groovy new album, Color Your Soul. Featuring fourteen new tunes and one bonus track, the disc had all the jazzy appeal of Instant Pig, made better by the wise arrangement of tracks - to produce a full, rich landscape of smooth sound. In Color Your Soul, CZQ took ‘diverse’ to a whole new level of meaning - from jazz with an R&B tilt to old-school dance pop, DJ Clazzi took fans everywhere on a journey through a fantasy world of rhythm and groove. Let’s check it out.

 

1. Beautiful Women [instrumental lead-in]

 

2. Salesman [Christina]

Yay for Christina and nonsense lyrics! Catchy as anything, ‘Salesman’ begins with distorted vocals (that sound vaguely like Alex) mixed with interesting noises. Which all ties in nicely with the crazy lyrics (one of the lines goes, ‘there is a hole in my brain’). But, gosh, I love this song. Christina sounds great, and the tune is (as I said) very catchy. A great way to start off the album.

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3. Fill This Night [Alex and Horan]

Ohhh, yeah. Get ready to dance with this old-school track! The bridge is INCREDIBLY CATCHY - let’s get dance now, movin’ in a right time - bad grammar, but awesome beats. Even my picky little brother likes this song. What can I say? This song just… rocks. Period. And it’ll probably blow the crowds away at live performances. One of the first songs I ever heard from CZQ, and still one of my favorites. Feel that rhythm!

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4. Cry Out Loud [Horan]

Horan sounds great in this funk/club track - the genre really suits her voice. I love the harmonies. But once again… I can’t think of anything to say about this song. It’s just nice, that’s all. Nothing about it stands out. Listen for yourself and see what you think.

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5. I Will Give You Everything [Christina and Alex]

Finally, a duet with brother and sister! A nice song, with cute lyrics that describe love well. The slow beats and keyboard effects create a casual, relaxed atmosphere. It’s almost R&B-ish, definitely something new for the group, but it’s good, so it’s all right. I love the way DJ Clazzi makes it sound as though Christina and Alex are having a dialogue - it’s so sweet. Good song.

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6. Come Alive [Christina]

This is sort of like Futuristic’s (Instant Pig album) younger, more mellow sister. It’s alright, I suppose. The chorus is too slow for my liking, and sounds rather like an old Janet Jackson song… or something. It also reminds me of that ‘I Will Survive’ song. I don’t know how to describe it, it just sounds old. And I wouldn’t be surprised to hear an African-American singer sing it. It just fits that sort of voice. Not to mention that Christina’s vocals sound particularly nasal in this track.

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7. Nal Jja Byun Gyung Sun (Dateline) [Alex and Horan]

The beginning of this song features an old British lady saying, ‘round the twist’ over and over again, which I’m quite sure means ‘crazy’ (as in ‘she’s gone round the twist’.) Weird? Yes. But don’t let that affect your opinion of this song, which is one of my favorite tracks on the album. It has the same lighthearted feel as ‘Gentle Rain’ (Instant Pig album), which is perfectly fine with me, because I love that song. Horan sounds particularly good in this track, very light and pretty. And please, don’t get me started on the musical arrangement - we already went through that in my review of ‘Gentle Rain’. Let’s just say it’s very, very well done.

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8. Be My Love (English Ver. - House Remix) [Alex and Christina featuring Lee Seung Yul)

Be My Love was one of the songs featured on the OST of Kdrama ‘My Lovely Sam Soon’, the other being She Is. This remix really isn’t much different from the original version, except, obviously, for the fact that it’s in English. Anyways, the track starts off with a couple lines of nonsense from Christina, which in the end is pretty much the extent of her participation in the song. Alex’s and Lee Seung Yul’s vocals make up the bulk of the piece, which is all right, I suppose. The melody is quite catchy and fun to dance to. ‘Be My Love’ is a nice song to listen to while driving or hanging around at the beach.

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9. Choom (Dance) [Alex and Horan]

This is a masterpiece. I cannot praise this track highly enough. Horan’s soothing vocals take center stage in this beautiful song, with Alex crooning gently in the background. Lucky guy, he even gets a solo in the middle of the song, which is perfectly fine with us girls, eh? But don’t let his sexy voice distract you from the jazzy instrumentals in the background - DJ Clazzi is a genius on the keyboard, and that rhythm (that rhythm!) is like waves on a beach. So if you’ve had a bad day at work, or you just feel like groovin’, let Alex and Horan comfort you with their magical voices.

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10. Color Your Soul [Alex and Horan]

Man, check out that dreamy title. Done? Now check out this dreamy song. Back is Alex’s lady-killer voice and Horan’s trademark spine-tingling whisper, complete with mesmerizing harmonies and more skillful keyboarding from good ol’ DJ Clazzi. The instrumentals work together to create a mellow tapestry of hypnotic sound. This is just a great song that works well as a title track - classic CZQ stuff. However, I could do without the saxophone solo in the middle of the song - it sounds abrupt and doesn’t really fit with low-key feeling of the song in general. I could also do without the dial-up sounds at the end - bad memories >.>.

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11. Speechless [Christina]

This melancholy ballad begins with a few simple strings, and it pretty much stays the same throughout the song. Unfortunately, it’s a pretty mediocre song. The lyrics are so typical, and somehow Christina’s accent sticks out more, as does the strange nasal quality her voice can sometimes have… I just don’t have anything to say about this track. Some might like it, but I certainly don’t. NEXT!

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12. Sunshine [Alex and Horan]

Ahh. I hope you didn’t give up on CZQ because of that last song, because if you did, you’re missing one heck of a good song in ‘Sunshine’. This song has a Mexican feel, especially in the chorus, and this is enhanced by the trumpets in the background. The saxophone solo during the instrumental break, instead of sounding out of place like in ‘Color Your Soul’, adds a nice touch and lends to the sunshiny (heh) feel of the whole track. Definitely one of my favorites on this album.

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13. Steps Ahead [instrumental lead-in]

 

14. Da Shi… (Again) [Alex and Horan]

The beginning of this song is a perfect continuation of the previous track, which is pretty darn cool (although so overused). That’s about all that impresses me about this mellow ballad, however, which has a rather annoying chorus and way too many strange bubble-popping sound effects in the background. It particularly disappoints me because, being the final track on the album, it ought to leave an impression on the listener, but ‘Da Shi…’ is just… unmemorable. It’s so boring, you practically forget about it right after listening. Well, I suppose every artist makes a bad song at one time or another. (I forgive you, DJ Clazzi!)

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15. Bonus Track - Be My Love (Original Mix) [Christina and Alex feat. Lee Seung Yul]

See review for Be My Love (Eng. Ver - House Remix).

 

Conclusion

I feel that Color Your Soul deserves four stars. I’ve enjoyed many of the songs on the album, but I still feel CZQ could have done better - and I swear, they get one star just because of the hot album title, haha. I’m especially disappointed with the last track, ‘Da Shi…’. Couldn’t they just have chosen a better song? But I suppose it’s alright since it’s followed by the upbeat and catchy Be My Love (which you will find yourself humming absentmindedly when you least expect it, I assure you). Also, I’m rather unpleasantly surprised at the exclusion of She Is, which is one of my favorite songs from this group. Still, Color Your Soul is a good album from a great band, and definitely worth a listen.

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