Off to the races, Blue jeans, Die Mountain Dew, Dark paradise & Radio – Born To Die (Lana Del Ray)
She’s being criticized left, right and center for being a manufactured singer; her performances on TV to promote this album is being criticized for being plasticky, but strangely, I think she has a fabulous album in hand! She may studio-created, but her voice, at least on what we listen in terms of this albums songs, is quite unique! The tunes too work uniformly well! I particularly love Off To The Races and Die Mountain Dew!
Naan dhaan veeran, Yeleh yeleh & Koopitadhu kuthamailla – La Pongal (IndiPop)
I heard La Pongal – despite being around for quite some time in the live music circuit – only when they released their debut album. And I love the sound. Someone did ask me on Twitter why I did not review Darbuka Siva’s earlier work, Yodhaka, and I had no idea. I heard Yodhaka and loved it too, but when sitting down for a review, I felt I would not be the best person, being a music-novice (no, being an active listener doesn’t help), to review that album. Back to La Pongal – I really love the way it modernizes Tamil folk without diluting its inherent beauty and also accentuating it in the modern wrapper – excellent concept and works wonderfully well.
Thaavi thaavi, Vilayaatta padagotti & Vaangum panathukkum – Dhoni (Tamil – Ilayaraja)
Dhoni’s music is the closest I have heard from Raja’s incredible 80s and 90s repository. There are opinions about misunderstanding the live recording and synth usage in Raja’s music, but as a layman listener and lover of Raja of yore, I find this soundtrack to be closest in terms of sound – take the violins, for instance – to what we thoroughly enjoyed and lived with in the late 80s. I can’t explain in technical terms of simple terms what that means, but I suppose anybody listening to Raja for a long enough time would understand what I’m saying.
Anandha jaladosham & Azhaippaayaa – Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Eppadi (Tamil – Thaman S)
This is a very un-Thaman’ish soundtrack, in that it hardly sounds like his usual technical wizbang in terms of sound. The sound here is simpler and the focus seems to be on good tunes and great lyrics. Anandha jaladhosham is a particular fave!
Voh dekhne mein – London, Paris, New York (Hindi – Ali Zafar)
The only song from the soundtrack that I seemed to like – the lyrics, by Zafar, and the vocals, by the lead pair, elevate this otherwise average tune to a new level. Aditi can sing!
Title song & Nuvvu naku kavali – Poola Rangadu (Telugu – Anup Rubens)
I noticed ‘An Anup Rubens Musical’ blurb in the CD cover of another recent Telugu soundtrack, Ishq. Has Anup really made it that big in Andhra Pradesh? He seems to be in the wings for ages, but glad that he’s getting recognition – love the title song’s repetitive hook; at times it arrives after a lot of music and is very catchy.
Un kangal – Krishnaveni Panjaalai (Tamil – N R Raghunandhan)
This is a simple, yet likeable melody – in a way, it reminds me of Deva’s melodies in the 90s; they didn’t have the nuances that one finds in say, Raja’s music, but they were perfectly functional in the way it appealed to broad set of people. Though, I do understand that these don’t really help an upcoming composer like Raghunandan who is operating in a highly competitive atmosphere unlike Deva, back then.
Boitha maro, Baarish ki boondein, Din guzrein, Duur & Jonaaki raati – Papon: The Story So Far (IndiPop)
The album that I was soaked in, for a long time in January! In a way, this is not the kind of album I was expecting from Papon, though, honestly, I have heard very limited stuff from him – not his original music, but only his filmy songs, composed by others. More than his vocals, it is the tunes that really worked for me – as I always say, for me, the singer, lyricist and everything is secondary – the composer is supreme since he’s the creator of the song, in my opinion. And here, Papon scores big with superb tunes across multiple genres!
Oy pilla – Nippu (Telugu, Thaman S)
Thaman’s Telugu music is showing strains of overwork; if The Businessman was not even a patch on Dookudu, this one is worse. Still, there is Oy pilla to enjoy – nice, catchy masala.
Yathae, Nammaloda paattuthaanda & Thukkamenna – Mayilu (Tamil – Ilayaraja)
Nammaloda paattuthaanda could easily pass off as a 90s film song starring Sathyaraj or Karthik (hero intro song?), while I could think of a pensive looking Revathy walking through a green field even as Thukkamenna thuyaramenna is playing in the background – that nostalgic! Yathae, on the other hand is in the style of Avatharam’s Thendral vandhu – more of the Karthikraja style, I’d assume, but with stupendous vocals (surprisingly!) by Bhavatharini!
Piya & Jeene de – Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya (Hindi – Sachin Jigar)
In a way Mohit Chauhan returns to his original self after the mesmerizing turn Rahman offered him in Rockstar, but even that return is a great listen for us, as Jeene de proves, even though the tune is predictable. Piya, on the other hand, rides solely on Atif’s soaring voice.
Aadi pona aavani & Aasai or pulveli – Atta Kathi (Tamil – Santhosh Narayanan)
Gaana Bala’s Aadi pona aavani is perhaps the most unadulterated and earthy gana after Balabharathy’s gana’s in Thalaivasal, if you don’t ignore Deva’s filmy ganas. Aasai or pulveli is a lovely, tenderly handled tune wrapped in beautiful guitar!
Vanakkam vaazha vaikkum Chennai – Marina (Tamil – Girishh G)
Vanakkam has a bloody unconventional tune for a song that aims to be an anthem and it reaches anthemic proportions precisely for that, I think!
Rangeele – Kailasa (IndiPop)
Sadly, the new Kailasa album is a massive disappointment and a far cry from their fabulous earlier albums! The only thing that sticks is the title song. Some consolation!
Kya hai mohabbat & Aaromale – Ekk Deewana Tha (Hindi – A R Rahman)
Rahman’s high pitched vocals work in favor of this song, even as Aaromale’s bizarre choice of lyrics in Hindi is a serious deterrent – I wonder if original Malayalam lyrics would have suited it perfectly!
