Eric Chou(周興哲) - What Love Has Taught Us(愛教會我們的事) Album Thoughts(Mandopop)

   WOW! This has been a long weekend for me. I kind of went on a road trip that took me around the world and back.( not literally but it was long....) I did think about this blog concerning what I would be posting next. Don't feel too sad. You guys weren't completely forgotten. Thankfully Mandopop has been coming out with consistent releases all summer. One of those releases was singer, Eric Chou's second  album titled What Love Has Taught Us.

 01.負一分鐘 / Fu Yi Fen Zhong
02.Let It Go
03.明明 / Ming Ming
04.你，好不好？/ Ni Hao Bu Hao (《遺憾拼圖》電視劇片尾曲)
05.This Is Love
06.No One Like You 
07.我愛的那種 / Wo Ai Di Na Zhong
08.愛情教會我們的事 / Ai Qing Jiao Hui Wo Men De Shi
09.認定 / Ren Ding
10.想回到那一天 / Xiang Hui Dao Na Yi Tian (《奇妙的時光之旅》電視劇插曲)

  

   I found this guy while browsing through youtube one day with an urge to find new mandopop music. His music video for  "My Way to Love" had me playing the video a few times trying to decide if I wanted to listen to more of his music. One thing that sold me was his voice while doing ballads sounds different than other singers in his profession. My last decision was to try him out and see where it took me. I'm glad a did because his first album( Also titled "My Way to Love") is one of my favorite albums of 2015.


   Fast forward to this year with a new albums, "What Love Has Taught Us". Chou has dropped about four or five singles in promotion for this album. I listened to a few on the singles but I knew a new album was coming soon so I wanted to wait to hear everything together.  Honestly, I didn't care for any of the singles released nor could I really remember how they sound. I do remember "Let It Go" since this track was released fairly recently. "Let It Go" is a dance number with Chou pulling out all his pop chops. He showed the ability to transition from sweet sounding ballad Eric to dance pop Eric in his first album but my problem is this song will appeal to the masses but doesn't do anything for someone who has listened to many different types of music and has heard this style done again and again. The track production is top notice with each part of the instrumental being edited precisely to Chou's vocal advantage. His songs always have sustained feel that never too much but feels just right for a singer with slick vocals like him." Let It Go" sounds like a song Justin Bieber would sing on a bad day and Justin's bad day is Eric Chou's good day since he sounds good singing this style and the song grows on you in the selection of the entire album.

    Eric Chou took a new road with his music and left some old but also brought in new flavor.  He is know for having songs that lyrics open up your heart, enter inside, and pull at your heart strings. This quality is still in most of the songs contained in "What Love Has Taught Us" only the feeling has increased. At the age of twenty, There is still a lot more for him to experience in life but he has gone through enough heartbreaks to take that hurt and create relatable music for his listeners. Who knew a nineteen year old could be mature enough to cultivate his experiences in such a way that his voice bring such emotional lyrics to life? Another quality that stands out with this vocalist is his english ability. He went and lived in Boston for a few years causing him to adapt a bilingual take on his music. English really brings out the meanings to some of his songs which otherwise would not sound right in mandarin. Track "No One Like You" is preformed entirely in english causing him to once again  not only show off his fluency but appeals to a foreign audience like me. The track has a light youthful feel showcased with whistling sounds that sounds like they came from a Hello Lucy episode. We can't get any more surgery pop than this song. Its so sweet that you might become hyper but also relaxed enough that the song doesn't leave a bad after taste.  Other tracks give returning fans smooth ballads that make you not know what to do with yourself. You don't know if you should cry or just hold it in because he is totally talking about you in his lyrics. Tracks like "我愛的那種"  were tracks that I skipped because the choruses were just down right boring. Having a song with a chorus in dire need of more lyrics is not catchy to me.  Replacing those spots with just a beat or the singer singing the same note over and over again is also not my thing.  I did enjoy the different phases of musically styles that takes on a young tone of emotion then turns more mature. while the the core of this album is pop, you get many different genres of music surrounding that core sound. 


   Vocals are what differentiates Chou from everyone else. He doesn't sound his age but his lyrics give his age away a little bit.  Then again he does sound his age at certain points. the mechanics of his voice is start out low and buckle up. Then start going higher and higher and HIGHER until your holding on for dear life.  This boy can whale in that high voice without much effort it seems. Then all in the next breath start singing a note in a lower key. You don't hear in strain in his voice which lets you know that he  has a natural high pitched voice.  I say this about a lot of artists, but don't feel the need to have to go into your high falsetto all the time. We need more songs that do that a little less so your not over straining your voice for concerts. Its nothing like being in the middle of a live concert and your voice is shot from singing too hard. Rest that high part of your voice buddy.... 


   I can see this guy really going somewhere big in the future if he keeps up being genuine in his music and doesn't let popularity affect the way he views his music. i'm interested in seeing him grow as an artist. Also see what change will that growth will bring. As for right now, he's that twenty year old heartthrob singer who is just getting started.  I like his first album more so than this one but this album is good too. ENJOY!!!!