[CD REVIEW] 閃閃閃閃 (Shine X 4) – Meet me when you are 25 (2009)

The bittersweet age of 25 –– too old to be called young, and too youthful to be considered an adult, Taiwan’s 閃閃閃閃 (The Shine & Shine & Shine & Shine) (referred to as Shine X 4 for abbreviations sake) treks this fine line between adolescence and maturity. Adhering to a similar indie rock aesthetic as international darlings Hot Chip, The Fiery Furnaces, or the Faint, Shine X 4 follows the genres standards such as featuring cute vocals, jangly guitar lines and dazzling electro beats.  The end result is a band that could comfortably fit into the weekly indie band review pile at Pitchfork or NME.  But what may come as being normal in the Western world, becomes stranger within the context of the band’s Taipei origin.

Full of spunky hipness, the band is lead singer 阿彭 (Meuko), singer/guitarist 小妹 (Dixen), lead guitarist 啟仲 (Chizong), bassist 小豬 (Remi) and drummer 肚皮 (Ikicks). One thing to note is that drummer Ikicks is also a member of the famous oldie revival band 旺福 (Wong Fu).  This becomes interesting as the music he plays with the Shine x 4 couldn’t be more stylistically different, from the Electronica influenced groove of “Cut My Hair” to the semi German potty mouth lyrics of “I Know what you Say”, there isn’t really anything oldie or conservative about the band’s music.

The first half of the album is an exercise in diversity and excess of energy, the band cuts its teeth on music ranging from Dance, Electronica to Cutie Pop.  Out of these songs the highlight is probably the 4th track “四月物語” (“April Story”) –– which successfully meshes both synthesizer and guitar rock with a melody that is both cute and nostalgic.  Things take a turn for the serious starting with the track “Which Oskar”, where singer Meuko takes on a more subdued and desperate approach.  This change in tone leads up to “Tell Me So”, which features a distinctively guitar heavy, distorted/noisier expression ala Sonic Youth.  This is continued on 一瞬之光 (Flash of Light), which prominently features the more serious sounding vocals of Dixen.  This also brings up one of the neatest feature of the band –– the dual vocal attack styles of both Meuko and Dixen.  The vocal interplay between these two singers’ fringe on playfulness and seriousness, and makes it easy to use this as a parallel on summarizing the band’s message –– the mixed feeling comprised from a yearning for youth, while facing the unavoidable reality of growing older.

Meet me when you are 25 is an open love letter to the shattered dreams of yesteryear while preserving the hope for dreams that have yet to be realized or fulfilled.

Ahh –– the age of 25, a bittersweet age indeed.

Recommended tracks: 04, 08

Track Listing:
01. Song 1
02. Sweetie
03. Cut My Hair
04. 四月物語 (April Story)
05. I Know what you Say
06. Which Oskar
07. Tell Me So
08. 一瞬之光 (Flash of Light)
09. 301號房 (Room 301)
10. 17

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lojun

I like to spend my time on the internet searching for the meaning of life. When I am not doing this you can find me listening to music or playing the bass…or stuffing myself silly on Burritos.

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