Album cover for JJ Lin's seventh album: 100 days
In JJ Lin Jun Jie’s latest album 100 days, released on December 18, 2009, featured two versions of the same song: X and Still Moving Under Gunfire.
Although one would expect the two songs to be an exact translation of each other, they actually have entirely different meanings, and Lin utilizes this difference to address the issue of emotions in modern society. X focuses more on romantic relationship while Still Moving Under Gunfire takes place in a military setting.
The Mandarin version X tells the story of an one-sided love-relationship between two individuals. He has no feelings for her, but still continues to date her, possibly because she is unaware of the reality of his emotions. He later remains completely indifferent to her implied outrage, stating that his actions accurately reflected his apathy and suggesting a mutual understanding: no hard feelings if one person decides to cheat on the other.
The title to the English version does a good job of creating a setting: people imagine a battle field or any war-related item. The lyrics continue to reinforce the mind set of a battle field and warfare, describing his surroundings and determination to survive the war. However, towards the end, he starts referencing the light (sunrise), and the light from another individual, perhaps noting a spiritual light or pride for surviving till sunrise.
One aspect that does connect both songs together, apart from the same beats and background music, is an English rap, which can be interpreted to fit perfectly in both versions of the song. In this section, Lin sets up a list of rules for love relationships as well as for war. He advocates expressions of secrecy and deception as well as indifference and merciless so as to remain as manly as possible in times of hardships. Lin has show deception and cruelty in both the Mandarin version and the English version; where he is heartless and apathetic in one version, he is also determined to do anything necessary in order to live in the other version. In both situations, there is a lack of love and sympathy. Although the lyrics do not capture the beauty of the world, perhaps Lin is addressing a bigger issue that individuals face in modern society, an issue about love and genuine emotions.
Note: Despite the meaning behind the two songs, both capture the essence of the two separate meanings as well as the spirit of an up-beat, catchy song. I definitely recommend it, especially because Lin’s English has improved dramatically; he can pass off as American if he wanted to! The instrumental is likened towards some of Lady Gaga’s songs. I have not listened to enough Lady Gaga to confirm or deny this claim, I can say this: Lin is known for his hip-hop style in music and apart from more of a focus on the beats and rap portion of the song, I did not find these songs any different from his previous works.
A Patch of Sunshine 