Note: I want the titles to be as easy to search as possible, so sincere apologies if I make a mistake!
An icon of a different time and different hemisphere, I’ve been fascinated by Faye Wong for many years, ever since I heard her cover of The Cranberries’ “Dreams” for the Chungking Express soundtrack. Very underappreciated in the West, and this should be rectified! However, one of the best things about Faye Wong is that she comes from Mariah Carey’s School of Remixes – there are not many artists that have such an innate ear for what makes a good remix, but Faye is one of them.
Help Yourself is a short EP of six songs, half of which are remixes, and they all exemplify the best of the late ‘90s.The Discovery remix of “誓言” (“Shi Yan”) is the best of these remixes, and possibly my favourite example of Wong’s work ever; the repeating synth hook before each chorus mixes beautifully with her voice, and while the scratching record player is dated, it is not aged. It’s a song that makes me think of watching dolphins on a ferry, or playing Final Fantasy X, though that last part might be because of her contributions to Final Fantasy VIII’s soundtrack.
From the original material side, “守護天使” (“Guardian Angel”) is a similar masterpiece – her voice is layered in such an ethereal way, almost sounding like Enya for a couple of seconds, with the guitar and harp mixing being top tier. Well worth checking this short EP out.
