Milliblog Weeklies – India’s only multilingual, weekly new music playlist.
Week 89: On | On
15 songs this week. Both JioSaavn and YouTube playlists have all the songs. This is a rare feat!
Ganga Tori Leher – Sharma And The Besharams: The song is a Bhojpuri song that Vasuda Sharma sang a few years back. She now uses the song as the first single in her band’s (Sharma And The Besharams) upcoming album, बीdesi. While a 2nd single has also surfaced (; not too impressive), Ganga sure stays very listenable. It has a lively folk lilt and Vasuda’s singing, and the Euphoria-style Indipop sound makes for a fantastic listen.
Ik Mulaqaat Unplugged – Dream Girl (Meet Bros) – Hindi: This is such a good version of the earlier so-very-Nusrat-Fateh-Ali-Khan’ish track that I’m baffled Zee didn’t consider releasing this first! When you have a singing star, why not get his song to take center-stage first?
Sandakari Neethan – Sangathamizhan (Vivek-Mervin) – Tamil: I quite like Vivek-Mervin’s body of work. They have a firm pulse on what is usually massy and deliver consistently. This melody is broadly likeable though not something worth raving about. But their choice of singer pays them very well. Anirudh’s casually breezy vocals make this song a lot more interesting than what it should be.
Vennilavu Peythalinja – Ittymaani Made In China (Kailas Menon) – Malayalam: I went back to Tenali’s Swasame more than once while listening to this song. Very early-Rahman and very listenably pleasant.
[Back In Time] Dhumthanakkadi – Mullavalliyum Thenmaavum (Ouseppachan) – Malayalam: Mullavalliyum Thenmaavum is a 2003 movie and I stumbled on this song by chance back in that period… and was besotted! Ouseppachan’s tune is wildly unpredictable and unconventional. The pallavi is rather short, lasting just a minute, but even within that traverses the lively Dhumthanakkadi phrase and the dreamy ‘Yelelo’ phrase in an unusual mix. The anupallavi and charanam are similar (as is usual), but both end in such an exuberant line… and this line is the song’s literal high point – the catchiest! And intriguingly, till this catchy phrase appears in the charanam, and that too towards its end, the 3 actors in the song’s video dance separately, on their own, without each other! Only towards the end do they dance together!
Dear Future Self (Hands Up) – Fall Out Boy ft. Wyclef Jean: One heck of a catchy song, featuring a cool surf-rock/guitar riff. And an ice cream overdose in the video 🙂
Donna, Leader Of The Landslide & Gloria – III (The The Lumineers): It may be unfair to review or like only 3 songs from The Lumineers’ new album since they have imagined it as a 10-track concept album on addiction and its effects, composed of three chapters that follows the fictitious Sparks family. But, musically, I liked 3 songs more than the others, though the whole album is worth playing together. Donna, the opener, is the most soulful and almost ethereal, with the sparse piano backing (the piano soars beautifully mid-way, by the way) and Wesley Schultz’s wistful and hugely impactful singing. Leader Of The Landslide starts off pensively with a soft guitar plucks but bursts out with a punch mid-way. Gloria, about the life of the family’s matriarch Gloria. Musically it took me to Soul Asylum’s Runaway Train and melodically, to Scorpions’ Under The Same Sun, though lyrically, it is far more darker.
Genetics – Meghan Trainor: What you’d expect from Meghan and more. Very catchy vocal production and a cool electronic sound that consistently engages.
Shine, Survivor & Extraordinary Being – Real Life (Emeli Sande): Emeli’s new album is more of what you’d expect from her – gospel soul-infused, upbeat and hugely optimistic songs. Shine is perhaps the best song that exemplifies this style with a lead up to the explosive chorus. Survivor aims even higher, with a sprawling organ-infused gospel chorus, while the retro funk in Extraordinary Being is incredibly enjoyable.
Que Calor – Major Lazer featuring J Balvin, El Alfa: Major Lazer is now the trio of Diplo, Walshy Fire, and Ape Drums. Dominican dembow (a Jamaican musical rhythm) artist El Alfa joins the trio, along with Colombian reggaeton singer J Balvin. The result is a heady world music dance floor earworm.
Mother – Charlie Puth: What a surprisingly Michael Jackson’ish track by Puth!!
