Milliblog Weeklies – India’s only multilingual, weekly new music playlist. Week 37:
On | On | On
26 songs this week. Saavn gets it best, with the exception of the Coke Studio Pakistan Season 11, Episode 2 song that seems to be available only on YouTube. I have no idea why they haven’t made it available on any streaming platform so far. Apple Music *really* needs to catch up – even the soundtrack of Laila Majnu is not up yet on the platform (as of now). YouTube is… well… always playing catch-up, though it has one big advantage – it has the Coke Studio song!
A note on the songs in the playlist.
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Chonch Ladhiyaan, Dhayaanchand, Halla, Sacchi Mohabbat & Bijlee Giregi (Manmarziyaan, Amit Trivedi): Chonch Ladhiyaan is a delightful melody topped with Shellee’s lovely lyrics. Amit keeps the music simple and earthy, and the way Jazim Sharma and Harshdeep Kaur go ‘Nache’ is absolutely addictive. DhayaanChand, on the other hand, starts off on a sedate, standard-issue Punju note, but really kicks off when Nikhita Gandhi strolls in with ‘Jhalli Jhalli Jhalli’ and then keeps that energy on. In Halla, Amit’s choice of Jyoti Nooran pays him rich dividends. She carries the haunting and beautifully built song that gets progressively exciting. Sacchi Mohabbat should be the most conventional song of the soundtrack so far – a heart-felt and a bit filmy melody that gains enormously from Jonita Gandhi and Shahid Mallya’s singing. Bijlee Giregi too is Shellee’s show, with the rap lyrics offering a glowing introduction of the film’s lead female character. The hiphop’ish music is adequately entrancing, as is the singing by Devender Pal Singh and Babu Haabi.
Koi Gal Nai (Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi, Hindi): Shahid Mallaya and Piyush Mishra’s lead vocals, Mudassar Aziz’s rap, Abhilash Phukan’s guitar, and Sohail Sen’s steadily cool tune that mixes Punjabi lyrics, Piyush Mishra’s odd retro-style singing and everything else!
Nazar Na Lag Jaaye (Stree, Hindi): This is such a soft and pleasant song, almost being sung up close and personal by Ash King! Sachin-Jigar’s music, particularly Kalyan Baruah’s guitar and the percussion make a big difference.
Aahista, O’Meri Laila, Tum, Hafiz Hafiz, Sarphiri, Gayee Kaam Se, Lala Zula Zalio & Tum – Version (Laila Majnu, Hindi): Review of the full soundtrack: http://bit.ly/2MTk843
Gold Tamba (Batti Gul Meter Chalu, Hindi): A very competent recreation for 90s masala music, by Anu Malik who seems to be going through a resurrection of sorts, with films like this one, Yash Raj’s Sui Dhaga and Paltan.
Chogada (Loveratri, Hindi): Composers Lijo George and DJ Chetas take on a well-known, well-loved garba tune and concoct a wildly infectious and rhythmic version! Darshan Raval superb vocals rock the song, along with Asees Kaur’s.
Mele Mele (Padayottam, Malayalam): Prashant Pillai’s energetic tune gets a tremendous fillip from James Thakara’s terrific vocals.
Nee (Varathan, Malayalam): A wonderfully busy, almost-psychedelic sound by Sushin Shyam, with a fantastic rhythm and a lovely melody to go on top of it! Sreenath Bhasi and Nazriya Nazim are very good with the singing.
Kadalazham (Mandharam, Malayalam): After the fantastic Kanne Kanne, Mujeeb Majeed impresses again in the 2nd sing. The song starts off slow with Karthik’s softer, mellow opening, but picks up with Ziya Ul-Haq and Piyush Kapoor soaring phrases.
Zhumbad (Bogda, Marathi): Siddharth Mahadevan and his cousin Soumil Sringarpure continue to demonstrate great music sense that is a perfect extension to the Shankar Ehsaan Loy school of music. When the ebullient percussion-based chorus opens, it is so much like the trio’s music. When Siddharth leads the tune, it is distinctly Shankar-style.
Kannugale (Iruvudellava Bittu, Kannada): Standard-enough music and tune by Shridhar V. Sambhram, but what makes the song work is Sanjith Hegde’s (and Shashwathi Kashyap) fantastic vocals. He is truly on a roll this year.
Fashion (Karan Sehmbi, Punjabi): Catchy Punjabi pop with a lovely summery vibe. Rox A’s music is simple and hits all the right notes as far as a party track goes.
Rasha Mama (Coke Studio Pakistan, Season 11 Episode 2): The best of the 4-song set from episode 2. The song starts with Zarsanga’s, The Queen Of Pashtun Folklore, wonderfully earthy solo. Working on a traditional composition by Ustad Gul Zaman, Khumariyaan, the Pashto music band builds a fantastic new-age sound led by superb synth riff along with Gul Panra’s delightful rendition.
TOOTIMETOOTIMETOOTIME (The 1975): Easy-on-the-ear, tropical house meets Europop.
Promises (Calvin Harris, Sam Smith): Club-friendly, uptempo, with a sedate rhythm, Promises is an easy hit from the Calvin Harris music factory!
Happier (Marshmello, Bastille): The title is a misnomer if you scratch into the lyrics! The sound is catchy, though, with a brilliant EDM+pop mix.
