Nene is a sweepingly pleasant reggae-based track that sounds good, but doesn’t go beyond the genre’s conventions. The title song has a flamboyant sound, but strangely the same Jackson-styled rhythm...
Continue reading...Dhammu (Music review), Telugu – MM Keeravani
Despite the ennui-ridden kuthu rhythm, O lilli is a rocking affair; Baba Sehgal nails it with his enthusiastic vocals. With grand, bombastic orchestration and strong Jackson influence, Ruler is mighty...
Continue reading...Jannat 2 (Music review), Hindi – Pritam
Shafqat and Rahat’s Tu hi mera and Tera deedar hua, respectively, are like songs usually assigned to them – lilting sufi’ish sounds, but not clutter-breaking. KK is extraordinary in the...
Continue reading...Sollakathai (Music review), Tamil – Ramesh Vinayagam
Athimara thoppinela makes fabulous use of children’s voices and even the tune is a joyous riot, enthusiastically orchestrated. Chinmayi and Ramesh Vinayagam’s Yaarodum idhuvarai seems like a gorgeously modern take...
Continue reading...III (Music review), Indipop – Rabbi
Ganga‘s country’ish drawl and wonderful guitaring are enticing, as it always had been, since this is a much-heard Rabbi song from shows like MTV Unplugged. Cabaret Weimar, despite evoking intriguing...
Continue reading...The Silent Sea (Music review), Indipop – Advaita
Tremor, Meinda ishq and Spinning build on the Indian’ness of their momentum in very similar ways; if Tremor uses a vocal route to make this addition to tantalizing effect, with...
Continue reading...Call Me Rashid (Music review), Indipop – Rashid Ali
There are two outstanding facets of Rashid Ali’s debut album – one, the kind of exotic tunes that Rashid consistently delivers; and two, Keith Peters’ guitar, that almost becomes a...
Continue reading...Ivan Megharoopan (Music review), Malayalam – Sharreth
Remya Nambeesan singer avatar, with that intentionally coarse folk diction, is surprisingly consummate in Aandelonde nere! Yesudas excels in the highly tuneful, retro-styled Anuragini, while Swetha Mohan’s Nisha surabhi seems...
Continue reading...Durbine Chokh Rakhbo Na (Indipop), Anupam Roy
Rondhre rondhre paap’s highlights are Anupam wonderful vocals and Rajkumar Sengupta’s superb 12 bar blues guitar. Tistaan 2‘s classical rock tune is endearing, while the unique 7/8 beat in Bijli...
Continue reading...Vaazhkai DJ (Indipop), Benny Dayal
Vaa ingey has a distinct George Michael flavor (think Star People’s Forthright Mix) – despite heavy auto-tuning, the song is addictive. Kankaatchi too is excessively vocoded, but Benny’s overall mix...
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