Muse
(Sony)
Muse is the fourth studio album from the former local indie queen Candy Lo Hau-yam. Hardcore indie fans often doubt the sincerity of these former independent musicians. They think that their loyalty has been betrayed by underground performers who head to the glamourous showbiz world to become Canto-pop stars for fame and money. Right, they have to compromise: appearing on stupid game shows, doing TV commercials, acting in movies to promote their names. But Candy Lo, the ex-vocalist of indie group Black & Blue, on top of doing these commercial acts, still protects her musical territory.
Lo is influenced by Irish singer Sinead O'Connor. The way Lo sings indeed sounds similar, but she always adds her own distinctive tones. On this 10-track album, Lo composes three songs along with contributions from Mark Lui and Nicholas Tse, and participates in the production and arrangement. Her powerful voice works well with the indie guitar rock style music.
But Muse keeps dangerously off the mainstream. Even Canto-queen Faye Wong produces commercial tracks to satisfy market-needs. Lo may find her alternative sound may hinder her from conquering mainstream fans any further.
