Music Questions Challenge
2026-03-18
I thought about splitting this into a concise and a rambling version but decided whatever, it's my blog. I'll ramble in one spot however much I want to.
- What are five of your favorite albums?
I listen to albums from one artist if I need to focus so I'm not distracted choosing the next song.
- Imagine Dragons - Night Visions
- The Singles are bad because of how overplayed they are, but Imagine Dragons has some really nice and bright songs. Really good with staying in the zone except I have to skip Radioactive.
- Carly Rae Jepson - Emotion
- SUCH a fun album. The single, Run Away with Me has an ICONIC intro. Gimmie Love and Warm Blood are my favourites off the album. She was using synths before it was cool again. According to Youtube, I was in the top 0.1% of listeners for her in 2024 :).
- Lorde - Melodrama
- So interesting to me what she based this album off of . She listened to gossip in a diner and was inspired what they would say. My standouts are Supercut and Perfect Places.
- Glass Animals - How to Be Human Being
- Of Monsters and Men - My Head is an Animal
- The entire album received animated lyric music videos and they are all mesmerizing!! It hints to a deeper world and fits the folk music so well. They are a bit creepy with what sort of monsters come out of it. Six Weeks is eerie since you are seeing creatures walking out of the forest and you sort of hope they don't notice you. The soft keys of Yellow Light and Slow and Steady are my favourite.
- What are five of your favorite songs?
- Xinzang cover by Ayanga
- Ayanga was starting his musical acting career with lots of success! This song is a snippet of the Butterfly Lovers Musical (China's Romeo and Juliet). The raw emotion in his expression and his powerhouse vocals are just absolute standouts in talent. One of the contestants was literally moved to tears.
- Xinzang means heart, but it can be a homonym for inflammed heart in Cantonese and I love how it fits the imagery. Liang Shanbo's heart will keep him warm even surrounded by a cold ocean.
- The Baidu page so I can stop losing it. You can see other singers and then you can see why I like Ayanga's version the best. The musical's producer joked that after performing this song, there will need to be ambulances on standby to save the audience from heartbreak.
- That Man cover by Ayanga and Fang Shujian
- This one is an interesting one since its a cover of a Korean song from a drama OST (Secret Garden) rearranged to fit the vocalists. The emotions they capture by using strings and modulating the volume at the different points in the song adds so much dimension. The original song has a level volume or gets quietly wistful at the end, I love the explosive drama at the end of the Chinese cover. The desperation and desire to be noticed is palpable!
- Favourite Record by Fall Out Boy
- Too Much by Carly Rae Jepson
- Birds of a Feather by Billie Eilish
- Favorite instrument(s)?
- I don’t play any instruments but I love the sounds of the Erhu and Guzheng! The erhu is like the cello as it can mimic the human voice.
- Erhu as seen in the Butterfly Lover's Concerto
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What song or album are you currently listening to?
- On repeat right now is Fleetwood Mac’s Silver Springs
- Tones and I cover of Achilles Come Down
- Flipturn’s Space Cowboy
- News' Chakabana it's an old song but I found it this year and its beyond fun.
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Do you listen to the radio? If so, how often?
- Not too often! Just when I need a break from my usual music, maybe once a week. Sometimes there are gems like Corneille’s Manque de Sommeil
- How often do you listen to music?
- Dialed in 4-8 hours a day right now! I like music when I work.
- How often do you discover music? And how do you discover music?
- I wish I was better at finding more songs that I liked. Currently, I found them through TV shows, China is big on music shows so I picked up a ton from watching Melody Journey.
- I found flipturn because they had a cool YouTube thumbnail so I’m glad I clicked it!
- What's a song or album that you enjoy that you wish had more recognition?
- I’m sad that Li Wenbao hasn’t released any new songs or at least nothing on YouTube! His rendition of Blue and White Porcelain was terrific and I would have liked to hear him sing more Jay Chou songs in an operatic tone. People have! Zhou Shen sang a cover of Preface to the Orchid Pavillion . He sang Blue and White Porcelain as well but it's impossible to find full versions.
- What's your favorite song of all time?
- No such thing as a favourite of all time for me.
- Has your taste in music evolved over the years?
- Yes and no, I mainly listen to Indie Pop music and still listen to lots of the same. The Chinese ballads are a carry over from what my parents listen to but with updated artists.