Music Review (Fusion Album): Indosoul

Music Review (Fusion Album): Indosoul
Music Composer: Karthick Iyer live

Boundless, starts with a solo mridangam piece and turns out to be a musical interplay between Sumesh Narayanan's Mridangam and Karthick Iyer's violin interspersed well with the drums and guitars. Song reaches the crescendo and turns out to be a feast for listeners. Although shortest track in the album, the output is thoroughly enjoyable and paves the way for more awesomeness. In Clown's Junket, initial one minute Vikram Vivekanand shows his prowess with the guitar in a contemporary pop'ish manner and then Karthick Iyer's enters foray and steals the show with the hummable violin accompanied by Sumesh's percussion. Karthick's violin traverse from sombre to upbeat mood aided well by the percussions. Mid Air is a brilliant energetic concoction of electric violin, mridangam, drums and electric guitar. Only grouse is electric guitar work didn't gel well with the flow of the tune in the middle in an otherwise commendable fusion instrumental. The best of the lot is undeniably Saranga Convergence starts off in a mild note by Karthick Iyer for initial 2 minutes but soon screeching offbeat sound from the electric guitar. Things get much better with konnakol by Sumesh and Karthick Iyer ends the song in a blissful violin. Overall seven minutes of blissful listen in the album. At the theatres is the only vocal track of the album sung by Karthick Iyer starts off with nod along guitar riffs from Vikram and then Karthick enters with playing the base tune of the song in violin. Loved the way Karthick imbibed the Carnatic touch to the English lyrics. In the second half of the song tamil lyrics and in the background percussions dominate the sounds. Once again Karthick ends the song in a wonderful manner. Rejoicing in Raghuvamsa is true to its title where every instrumental is played in the sprightly mood especially violin supported by other instruments. Wonderful end to the album.


Verdict:  Wonderful Carnatic fusion  debut album from Karthick Iyer. Must listen for all music lovers.


Album Credits

Performed by Karthick Iyer Live
Violins/Vocals/Lyrics - Karthick Iyer
Guitars - Vikram Vivekanand
Bass guitar - Naveen Napier
Mridangam/percussion - Sumesh Narayanan
Drums - Ramkumar Kanakarajan
Percussion(At the Theatres) - Allwyn Paul

Mixed by Biju James, Bob Phukan
Mastered by Andy Bartow
Recorded at VGP studios, Aura Studios

Pick of the Album: All tracks.

You can listen to the full album here

Music Review (Hindi): Guddu Rangeela
Music Composer: Amit Trivedi

The Title song is signature Amit trivedi's tune with the nice folkish touches and sung well by composer itself along with Divya Kumar. The second interlude gives much-needed digression for the tune which flows monotonous and languishing. Remix version of the song is comparatively much better because of the peppiness and remix didn't go overboard unlike normal remix tracks. Sooiyan is mindbogglingly brilliant due to effectual singing of folkish tune by Arijit Singh and Chinmayi especially when the lead singers singing Sooiyan Sooiyan. Amit trivedi arranges the song with nice guitar work and brief banjo in the second interlude. Chinmayi got the second melodic track Sahebaan and this time too she aces in singing while Shahid Mallya joins her for brief time. Orchestration wise Amit uses esraj (which was used brilliantly in Kai po che too) quite beautifully and Mallya's rendition towards the end deserves special mention. Maata Ka email is the weakest song in the soundtrack composed by director Subhash Kapoor itself and one can simply skip the soundtrack.

Verdict: Amit delivers two engaging melodies after stupendous Bombay Velvet for Guddu Rangeela.

My rating:7.5/10

Pick of the Album: Sooiyan Sooiyan, Sahebaan, Guddu Rangeela

Music Review (Tamil): Papanasam
Music Composer : M Ghibran

Yeya En Kottikkaaraa, wonderful folksy melodic duet sung in an effectual although somewhat with strained vocals by Sundar Narayana Rao and scintillating Malavika's vocals to bolster the beautiful tune. Ghibran's strength is weaving the simple tune with his brilliant layered orchestration and it is evident in this song also. Soothing Ghatam along with mesmerizing flute section while sweeping symphonic strings rules the background throughout the song. Only grouse is orchestration goes overboard in certain portions in an otherwise pleasant track. Vinaa Vinaa rides mainly on the Hariharan's vocal powerhouse and the man owns the song throughout with his soul stirring vocals. Ghibran's orchestration adds more gloominess to the track and minimal orchestration apart from sporadic frenzy rockish second interlude. Ghibran's penchant for strings is apparent in this song also. Ghibran kept the theme track simple and the base tune is orchestrated to evoke different moods with ample support from violin in the background. Ghibran does considerably better in Kill for life and instrumental  brings out the vengefulness quite effectually and set the mood for the situation well. The bond of family is usual sweeping instrumental and its passable enough for the situation while a sinking car is an intriguing one and towards the end, the tone of the sound is particularly racy. Overall wonderful listen. The police Investigation is also mysterious and haunting while Ghibran's brilliant  use of symphonic strings deserves a special mention which quite fits the bill perfectly. Ghibran ends the soundtrack with This is me -Suyambulingam where instrumental reaches crescendo and its perfect end to the soundtrack.

Verdict: Ghibran delivers brilliant soundscape which is required for the drama thriller movie and also made only two vocal tracks in the album  also enjoyable within the limited framework required for the movies of this genre.

My rating: 8/10

Pick of the Album: Yeya En Kotikkaaraa, Sinking car, Kill for life, The police Investigation.

Music Review(Tamil): Rajini Murugan
Music Composer: Imman

Title track is usual mediocre hero introduction song and tune is passable at its best.Arrangements have composer's stamp all over it dominated by thumping energetic percussion with occasional folk touches and classical guitar solo in the second interlude. Song's major impetus is Sivakarthikeyan's enthusiastic vocals.After a middling start to the album Imman scores with his trademark melody Un Mela Oru Kannu which starts like Kayal song and arrangements also reminiscent of composer's early works. Singers Jithinraj and Mahalakshmi Iyer mitigates those minor grouses and makes this song enjoyable till it lasts with their vocals.Aavi Parakkum Teakadai is another mediocre and dredged from Imman's stockpile of tunes. Imman's  arrangements also pale and lacks any wit despite enough support from V M Mahalingam and Badava Gopi. Only solace being a violin solo in the second interlude in an otherwise weakest track in the album.Jigiru Jigiru adds as another conventional folk song from Imman and tone of most of the songs in this album becomes monotonous. Diwakar and Kaplana Ragavendar tries to push the confined framework in which song traverse but their vocals too didn't help much either. Sivakathikeyan's screen presence and dance movements in the visual only makes this work.Though the song has traditional Imman's arrangements, famous one-liner in the lyrics and releasing Yennamma Ippadi Panreengalaema as a single makes gave enough push to makes this instantly likeable compared to other songs in the album. Imman did a wonderful and commendable job as a singer too. At last club mix version of Yennadi Ippadi Panreengalaema gives much-needed digression from the repetitive feel of the album. However, this song also appears forceful and rap portions by Aryan dhinesh also passable and the song ends without any significant impact on the listeners.

Verdict: Overall Rajini Murugan soundtrack is average work from the composer given its much hype around the movie and it's far behind the  enjoyable Ponram-Imman's previous work.

My rating: 6.5/10

Pick of the album: Yennamma Ippadi Panreengalaema, Un Mela oru kannu

Music Review (Tamil): Indru Netru Naalai

Music Composer: HipHop Tamizha

In Iphone 6 Nee endral, Hip Hop Aadhi confined to his forte which sounds similar to his solo music songs and his debut Aambala album. However, synthesised Nathaswaram sound and sporadic Thavil mix stands out amidst the potpourri of sounds. Only grouse is heard- before-feel of the tune takes the fun out of the song. Indru Netru Naalai's highlight is classical orchestration with sarangi, veena in the backdrop of  grand string sections. Icing to the cake is Shankar Mahadevan's classical prowess in singing bolstered amply by Aalaap Raju's effectual vocals. Overall, winner of the album and it’s totally radical shift from composer's style. Aadhi tweaked the title track's melancholic tune in Kadhale Kadhale into spirited one and an additional bonus is Padmalatha's charming vocals with classical touches. Aadhi arranged the song mostly with synthesized sound and flute sounds in the interludes are blissful to hear.Hip Hop Aadhi returns to his domain of songs with Naane Than Raja and the highlight is entertaining percussions and other sounds. However, processing of Anthony Dassan's voice irks a lot and tune too didn't support enough the orchestration created by Hip Hop Aadhi. Theme song starts like a title track but reaches the crescendo with brilliant use of string sections and live drums.However, dubstep portion of the same title track tune appears forceful and discordant with the theme.

Verdict: Hip Hop Thamizha's sophomore soundtrack didn't offer much variety and rides mainly on the brilliant title track composition.

My Rating: 7.25/10

Pick of the Album: Indru Netru Naalai, Kadhale Kadhale

P.S: Edited version of the review is available here.

Music Review (Telugu); Baahubali
Music Composer: M M Keeravani

Sivuni Anna's grand orchestration peaks with majestic percussion towards the end and mounima's folky rendition is an additional bonus to the track. Rhythmic tune gels well with the expansive arrangements. Pacha bottasi's tune and orchestration take us back in time while Karthik and Damini bolstered the song with their impeccable vocals. Mamatata Thalli is the wonderful melange of painful mellow and extensive orchestration. Keeravani's symphonic arrangements with strings and flute sounds makes this song an arresting piece.Nippula Swasa ga once again Keeravani does magic with symphonic arrangements and surely music will elevate the grand visuals in the movie. More than the tune, violins and trumpet rules the track. Manohari carries the tribal ambience around it with wonderful percussion accentuating the effect while Keeravani aces in churning out a hummable tune and Mohanu Bagaraju along with Revanth delivers their part well. Dhivara mixes the periodic filmy tune with contemporary sounds and Ramya Behera's scintillating vocals aids the song very much. Chorus band pop like portions are enchanting and the song's English version is more westernised Jazzy one along with sequencing sounds makes this  better compared to Telugu version. Ramya Behera's singing is a great asset to the track. Geetha Madhuri's soulful rendition and wailing violin to support her makes an impact in Jeeva Nadhi despite being a short one.

Verdict: M M Keeravni's soundtrack for Baahubali stays true to the aura around the movie - Grand and majestic.

My rating: 7.75/10

Pick of the Album: Dhivara, Manohari, Sivuni Anna

Music Review (Tamil): Trisha Illana Nayanthara

Music Composer: G V Prakash

Album starts off with Bittu Padam Di, dynamic mediocre  kuthu number with guitar riffs giving slight nod to yesteryear sensual numbers and lyrics features famous ‘virgin payan sabam’ along with other love failure lines. Adhik Ravichandran is apt for the tone of the song and sounds similar to GV Prakash Kumar. Mutham Kodutha Mayakkari starts with Ilayaraja’sh background but soon digressed into an enticing combination of dubstep and Thavil sound throughout the song. Yuvan Shankar Raja sounds good, however tune appears to be on flipside which didn’t gel well with the other interesting sounds in the song. G V Prakash and his better half Saindhavi comes together to croon another wonderful melody Yenachu Yedhachu and this too will have a reputed place in their combination. GV Prakash arrangements with flute in the first interlude, violin solos along with mild percussions in the second interlude and other synth sounds deserves special mention. Dakalti too suffers from tepid tune amidst many fusion sounds throughout the song. Andrea Jeramiah, Gana Bala and other singers bolstered the mediocre tune with their vocals, however that too fails to clasp the listeners for four and half minute. Song features lyrics which are sub-standard and cringe worthy.

G V Prakash nails the Rain Dance A Tin Theme tune with thumping percussion and Tin whistle  sounds peppered with sweeping strings sections. Overall Rain dance A tin theme elevates the mood of the soundtrack as a whole.Title Song also works wonderfully for its enticing Nadaswaram and Thavil combination and remix of yesteryear famous tune and hilarious lyrics adds further to its quirky tone of the arrangements. However dubstep portion towards the end appears discordant with flow of the song.

Verdict: GV Prakash creates offbeat enticing fusion sounds in some of the songs to suit the movie’s genre, However, tunes by GVP doesn’t support the ambience created by him  which results in average soundtrack from composer.

My rating: 7/10

Pick of the Album: Yenachu Yedhachu, Rain Dance a Tin theme, Mutham Kodutha Mayakkari.

Music Review (Tamil): Maari
Music Composer: Anirudh

Bagulu odayum dagulu maari raucous kuthu crooned by Dhanush who sounds totally different. The fabulous string section is the only memorable portion in this short jarring track. Don'u Don'u is an engaging duet delivered with contrasting vocals of Anirudh and Alisha Thomas and composer loaded the song with techno sound which goes overboard sometimes. In Maari Thara local, vocals and lyrics subdued by more loud and jarring orchestration and the song will appease Dhanush fans onscreen. Wonderful brass sections are ram shackled by unwanted amplification of sound. Vineeth Srinivasan's debut genre in Tamil is not same as his forte in Malayalam. Here Anirudh makes him to sing funky 80's rock. Brilliant guitar riffs, strings, brass sections with Dhanush's hilarious lyrics makes Oru vidha aasai best in the album. Thappa than theriyum follows usual template which fails to engage the listeners and interludes too tried and tested umpteen times by Anirudh. Maari swag is too short to make an impact and it's an extension of Thara local song.

Verdict: Overall below average album from Anirudh- Dhanush combo and the soundtrack is also weakest music in director Balaji Mohan's (Kadhalil Sodhapuvathu eppadi and Vaayai Moodi Pesavum fame) repertoire.

My rating:7/10

Pick of the Album: Don'u Don'u, Oru vidha Aasai

Music Review(Hindi) :ABCD2

Music Composer: Sachin Jigar

Sachin Jigar starts the dance-themed soundtrack with Bezubaan which lives up to its theme with its adequately punchy percussions preceded by an intriguing prelude and ends in high note. Vishal Dadlani oozes out enough verve in rapping portions while Anushka Manchanda and Madhav Krishna handles the remaining portions. Sun Saathiya is another engaging melody where everything works beautifully here from velvety vocals of Priya Saraiya and fast paced classically inclined Divya Kumar's portions. Sachin Jigar's orchestration with piano and blissful violins in the interludes adds further awesomeness to the track. Chunar is Arijit show all the way and surprise package is Veena (or classical guitar) and Mridingam in the interludes. Happy Bday is foot tapping bday bash song which is enjoyable till it lasts. Thanks to the singer's verve from start till end along with an uncredited female chorus and some of the song's portions reminiscent of  composer's previous party outings nevertheless enjoyable. Mika Singh's nasalized rendition aside, its Sachin Jigar's offbeat sounds along with different mood switchover in the track Happy hour is commendable. If you hold my hand has predictable pop tune sung in an effectual manner by Benny Dayal and overall passable track in this album. Divya Kumar is brilliant in Hey Ganaraya which starts off too serenely but turns into a frenzied engaging Ganesh Bhajan. Thanks to the percussion and arrangements by Sachin Jigar. Naach Meri Jaan is techno dance track and it's adequately engaging because of the vocals of Benny Dayal, Shalmali Kolgade, Siddharth Basrur and Rimi Nique. Tattoo is also listenable only because of the voclas of Shefali Alvares. Vande Mataram starts off well with Tanishka Sanghvi's singing (voice behind Laadli) but turns out into a  routine dance track apart from some engaging interludes and also 7 minutes long track didn't quite fit perfectly with listeners mood. So results in a strictly functional track which may work with visual.

Verdict: Sachin Jigar's ABCD2 is engaging soundtrack with most of the songs are grand and enjoyable and flows in tandem with genre of the movie.

My rating:8.25/10

Pick of the Album: Sun Saathiya, Hey Ganaraya, Happy Birthday, Chunar

Music Review (Hindi): Hamari Adhuri Kahaani
Music Composer: Mithoon, Jeet Ganguly, Ami Mishra

Title song rides mainly on soulful heart-felt rendition by Arijit Singh and Jeet Ganguly adorned the song with piano, violins and flute in orchestration. However, the song is bit lengthy and also song didn't rise up to the level of Tum hi ho. Humnava by Mithoon reminds many his earlier compositions and Papon rendering the song in pitch-perfect manner with classical touches. Hasi is comparatively better thanks to the guitar riffs - drums combo and gives much-needed digression for the soundtrack. Hasi's another version has orchestration smoothed out with piano, flute and complemented by a sweet rendition of Shreya Goshal. Yeh Kaisi Jagah is best of the soundtrack with wonderful orchestration especially flute and ably supported by other scintillating sounds especially percussion in the second interlude. Tune by Jeet Ganguly also beautiful and sung well by Deepali Sathe. Aalaps by an uncredited male singer (Jeet Ganguly??)  along with mesmerising flute portions are splendid.

Verdict: Hamari Adhuri Kahaani treads on the Mohit Suri's Aashiqui 2 soundscape and lovers of Aashiqui 2 soundtrack will surely love this one too.

My rating: 7/10

Pick of the Album: Yeh Kaisi Jagah, Hasi(both versions), Humnava

Music Review (Tamil): Demonte Colony

Music Review (Tamil): Demonte Colony
Music composer : Keba Jeramiah 

Vaada Vaa Machi has an undeniable Anirudh's composition stamp all over it and the feel gets further accentuated by Anirudh's vocals. However, cult Thalaivar dialogue and guitars in the prelude along with enticing nathaswaram work  throughout the song deserve special mention.The passable tune is the minor grouse in this composition.Keba Jeramiah shows his prowess in guitar work with Dummy Piece and Imman rendered the song with enough liveliness and his fangled rendition aids the song very well. Apart from guitar work, brass sections, country styled sax,  percussion elements, acapella by playback chorus are also enjoyable.Trap of the beast sticks true to the title of the song with frenzy, brilliant guitar work by Keba Jeramiah. Arunraja Kamaraj tries to bring out the beast in his voice, but lyrics got totally sabotaged. Ranina Reddy fared better in that aspect by maintaining a fair balance in rendition and feel.Mystery unfolds, expansive theme with grand intimidating piano in the start and ends in a high note with exploding guitar work. Icing on the cake is surely Andrea Jeremiah's stunning backing vocals although confined to mostly humming.The curse of Demonte is another neat instrumental theme by Keba Jeremiah where sweeping string sounds steal the show. Surely this will appeal much better with visuals.

Verdict: Keba Jeremiah's debut soundtrack is short, confined well within the genre of the movie. Although album sans any standout track, instrumental theme delivered by Keba surely will elevate the mood of the visual.

My rating: 7.5/10

Pick of the Album: Dummy Piece, Mystery unfolds, Trap of the beast

P.s: edited version of the review is available here

Music Review (Tamil) : Inimey Ippadithan

Music Review (Tamil) : Inimey Ippadithan

Music Composer: Santosh Kumar Dayanidhi

Album starts with Aathula Oru Kaal, funny mild kuthu track and Gana Vinoth's lyrics adds more wittiness to the song. VTV Ganesh's voiceover towards the end is a nice touch to the proceedings. Mahalingam, Thalapathi's Deva'sh vocals and Sapta's humming goes in tandem with the mood of the song. Overall passable, casual start to the album. Athana Azhagayum is cool, trendy youthful number in the track which switches from melodic start to hilariously worded rap portions by Sofia Ashraf to frenzy guitar towards the end. Varun Parandhaman did a commendable work in the vocals and Santosh's mixing and programming deserves special mention. Azhaga Aanazhaga starts off as a pure Carnatic tune, but it's a funky mix of faux classical tune crooned by Harini and hilariously worded portions taken care by composer itself behind the mic. Once again, Santosh excels in mixing flute portions along with folky percussion beats throughout the song.Inimey Ippadithan is another cool breezy romantic track and rides mainly on the vocals of ever reliable Karthik and Aishwarya and singers is pitch perfect in their rendition especially Aishwarya. Santosh's arrangements quite remind Harris Jayaraj number, however an enjoyable tune makes up for that. Retro'ish humming sound in the start of the song is nice touch. Paatha Oru Lookula is tailor-made song for Gaana Bala and he hardly fails to deliver songs in this genre. However this song is too conventional which makes it laborious listen and fails to hold listeners till the end. Overall, least impressive song in the album. Thaedi Odinen is an upbeat peppy number with exquisite Nadhaswaram- thavil mix in the interludes and catchy tune which is rendered in an effortless manner by Aalappu Raju. Santosh creates beautiful ambience with his sounds to complement Aalap raju's singing.

Verdict: Santosh Kumar Dayanidhi makes a cool and confident debut in Inimey Ippadithan with enjoyable set of melodies.

Pick of the Album:  Inimey Ippadithan, Athana Azhagayum, Thaedi Odinen.

My Rating: 7.25/10

P.S: Edited version of the review will be available here.

Music Review (Telugu): Kick 2

Music Review (Telugu): Kick 2
Music Composer: Thaman

Mummy's tune traverse along the familiar adara adara from Dookudu, however, on the positive note it's Bhole's spirited rendition although heavily autotuned. Jonita Gandhi along with Thaman crooned for the sufi styled duet Nuvve Nuvve and Thaman embellished the tune with wonderful tabla, Rahman'ish flute and strings in the interludes. Particularly liked the singing of Jonita, this song may be Kick 2's Gore Gore. Surely will rock the charts. Janda Pai Kappi Raju is also engaging listen largely due to energetic folk rhythmic tune and the group of singers did a commendable job. Thaman's arrangements is also enticing with veena in the interludes supported by ghatams throughout the song. Masthani is a signature tune from Thaman and has composer's stamp all over it (initial humming also reminds some of his previous songs). Song fails to hold the listener despite enough support from Deepak and Mansi. Temple song is brilliant for its tempo change from fast paced mode to sweet melodic towards the end accompanied by grand orchestration throughout the song. Title song is heavily templatized Telugu item song in every aspect barring flute in the interludes and sung with enough verve by Spoorthi and Simha.

Verdict: Kick 2, likeable soundtrack and quite a listenable follow-up for the Sequel from Thaman with two standout tracks.

My rating:7.25/10

Pick of the Album: Nuvve Nuvve, Temple song, Janda Pai Kappi Raju