Nee akaleyaano‘s soundscape is pensive, meticulously constructed and magical! V.Sreekumar’s vocals go along the fascinating orchestration beautifully, even as the tune goes way beyond conventional film song structures confidently. The prelude to Prayam is one of the best I have heard in recent times; it mixes jazz elements much like how Sandeep Chowta approaches massy jazz fusion. But this one takes a new direction when the song starts – a bombastic Tamil-style tune handled brilliantly! Betaabi, reused from Prashant’s earlier soundtrack, Rahu, is heavily influenced by Rahman’s music, but is generic enough to just pass muster. Kaalangal and Jeevitham again evoke pleasant memories of Swarnalatha-sung Rahman songs, with Preeti Pillai filling the shoes of Swarnalatha admirably well. Velmurugan, Madurai Chinna Ponnu and Prashant himself join the raucous kuthu track Annan – the interesting part here is that there are elements that delineate it from a plain kuthu-fied sound! Annan’s ‘Live in Chicago Jazz Club‘ version, with piano arrangement by Yakzon (of Thaalam fame!) is an inventive attempt too! If Prashant Pillai’s earlier soundtrack, Nayakan, felt gimmicky (despite a couple of stand-out numbers), he soars incredibly high in City of God’s soundtrack by nailing the sound and tune combination wonderfully well!
Keywords: Prithviraj, Indrajit, Prashant Pillai, City of God Malayalam, #200
