Weekly Earworm (06/09/2020)

Dil Bechera (Hindi): AR Rahman: Never Say Goodbye: The guitar-laden track and the final single release of the wonderful album reaches a crescendo when Rahman brilliantly brings Taare Ginn to this sweeping song sung by AR Ameen. Though the track has nothing extraordinary to offer, the track is an engaging listen from the composer.

Amazon Prime Music Hyderabad Gig (Telugu): Vivek Sagar: Sanchari: Amazon Prime music Hyderabad Gig's sounds mostly align with the respective composer's film sounds starting from Gopi Sundar to Ghibran. Vivek Sagar brings out his signature kickass bluegrassy sound to this indie future also. The result is an absolutely enjoyable one an easily best of the lot from this lineup. The mandolin and banjo's gleeful soundscape and Thanathitha loop sound more like a Malayalam song.

Mudhal Nee Mudivum Nee (Tamil): Darbuka Siva: Mudhal Nee Mudivum Nee: Darbuka Siva - Sid Sriram - Thamarai combo comes together once again and the result is another stunner which sounds like an extension of Maruvarthai and Hey Nijame. It's a pleasure to see that Composer's note has been added to the song's description and definitely Debasmita Bhattacharya's sarod gives a beautiful classical texture to the song. Thamarai's poetic lyrics are icing on the cake and one wishes that she gets to write more.

Paris Paris: Amit Trivedi: Inda Somabanam, Enge En Santhosham, Padaigal Illai Endru: Inda Somabanam sounds like an equivalent of Hungama Ho gaya from the Original. The song is an intoxicating fun song with the crazy mix while Vijay Prakash and Vidya Vox sound to be having fun with the singing. Surprisingly Telugu jukebox doesn't have this song. Padaigal Illai Endru equivalent of Kinare and Enge En Santhosam rides mainly on the Superlative vocals by Shashaa Tripathi and Haricharan respectively. Especially Enge En Santhosham's pulsating pop makes it work.

Indumathi (Malayalam): Gopi Sundar: Gopi Sundar brilliantly conceives the semi-classical tune with the synth backdrop and Sithara Krishnakumar's vocal is simply outstanding. Though the rap sounds to be discordant with the overall tone of the song, the tune, and the vocals make this one a compelling Onam song.

Pick of the album: Mudhal Nee Mudivum Nee, Sanchari, Inda Somabanam

Weekly Earworm - Week 14 (26/07/2020)

French Biryani (Kannada): Vasuki Vaibhav: Bengaluru Song: Vasuki Vaibhav who surprises now and then comes up with the rap song dedicating to Bengaluru. The lyrics by the composer himself along with Avinash Balekkala are definitely top-notch which brings in Bengaluru's unique Silkboard traffic, EMI babbles, and much more. Kavaludari fame Aditi Sagar aces the vocal portions. The only grouse is the relatively less catchy tune.

Doctor (Tamil): Anirudh: Chellamma: Anirudh ensures that the song makes enough attention by dropping in the Tiktok ban and Sivakarthikeyan's colloquial lyrics make it loop worthy despite the hackneyed tune from the composer. The only solace is Jonita Gandhi's refreshing rendition and definitely, Anirudh should utilize other male singers.

Ghibran Spiritual Series: Ghibran: Tandanana Ahi: The bowli Raga based Annamaacharya's son innate beauty gets amplified with Ghibran's stupendous arrangements.  This raga is mainly associated with the calm and pious quality but Ghibran gave the dark orchestric sounds in the background with the brilliant violin solos and lush strings. Sowmya Mahadevan is top-notch with her rendition. Till now this is the best one from this series.

Amazon Prime music Hyderabad gig (Telugu): Gopi Sundar: Chilippi Choopu: Chilippi Choopu is a trademark Gopi Sundar track and neat arrangements from the composer remind us of the composer's numerous songs. Though the track is not great, the tune gets relatively better with the Charanam portions and one wishes that someone else could have sung this song.

Uma Mageshwara Ugra Roopasya (Telugu): Bijibal: Aanaandam, Repavalu: Bijibal wonderfully adapted composer's own Mounanagal but churned out totally delectable different song which fits beautifully in Telugu movie with Rehman's lyrics. Gowtham Bharadwaj and especially Soumya Ramakrishnan's classical tinged singing elevates the song further. Bijibal adorns the tune with the lovely assortment of instruments lead by Rajesh Cherthala's flute and Shruthiraj's percussions. Theliveyil comes as Repavalu with slight tweaks in tune as well as arrangements but the sweetness of the tune lingers after the song ends also.

Shakuntala Devi (Hindi): Sachin-Jigar: Pass Nahi Toh Fail Nahi, Rani Hindustani, Jhilmil Piya, Paheli: Sachin-Jigar creates the wonderful short album for Shakuntala Devi and that too with all-female singers which is rare in Bollywood these days. Sunidhi Chauhan easily wins the soundtrack with the retro Rani Hindustani and punchy Pass Nahi Toh Fail Nahi while Monali Thakur sizzles in the jazzy Jhilmil Piya. Paheli is comparatively simple and restrained, however, Shreya aces the song with her saccharine coated voice.

Soorarai Pottru (Tamil): GV Prakash Kumar: Kaattu Payale: Kaattu Payale is an interesting as well as kind of odd tune but it sounds much better with Dhee's rustic vocals as well as Snehan's intriguing choice of words. The lovely tune in En Mundhiyila sorugi Vacha makes listeners to loop this song further.

Yaara (Hindi): Ankit Tiwari: Bhedi: The dark and mystical flow of the tune possibly Revathi Raga definitely gels well with the Rock core base conceived by Ankit Tiwari. Ankit Tiwari and Aishwarya Majmudar singing definitely help the song. Apart from the screeching guitars, the lovely classical twist in the arrangements is a delight.

Pick of the Week: Kaattu Payale, Shakuntala Devi Full Album, Bhedi

 

Music Review (Hindi): Dil Bechara

Music Review (Hindi): Dil Bechara

Music Composer: Rahman

In the title track, Rahman packs a wonderful carefree relaxed title song under three minutes backed by more informal guitar strums by Keba Jeremiah and Rahman infuses more liveliness to Amitabh Bhattacharya's colloquial lines while slight techno detour in the interlude sounds out of place. However, the tone of the track makes it for a lovely listen. Composer churns out more punchy Friendzone track out of Dil Bechara and it fails to impress except for the listenable variations in the interludes. The more awesomeness follows in Taare Gin starts with the whispery vocals of Shreya Goshal and along with Mohit Chauhan, Rahman takes the listeners to the musical high. The lush strings followed by the violin solos in the interlude give the song dreamy tone. Rahman throws in lovely piano cues in the Antara and the thoroughly endearing second half where Shreya Goshal follows the string sections while Mohit Chauhan effortlessly reaches the pitch.

Rahman once again flourishes with the assortment of sounds for Khulke Jeene Ka and the glossy tune comes as a lovely listen. Composer wonderfully overlayed Shashaa Tripati and Arijit Singh vocals almost throughout the track and it gets better especially with the title hook. The sweeping lush arrangements with the steady conga rhythm and the occasional peekaboo by flutes make it another winning track in the album. In Main Tumhara, Rahman builds up the track beautifully with the calm hymnal tone backed by Hriday Gittani who returns to Hindi song in Rahman's album after the stunning debut with the composer in Lekar Hum Deewana Dil. The atmospheric track mainly relies on the lead singer's effectual vocals and Rahman accentuates their voices with the lovely piano keys in the background.

In Maskhari, Hriday Gittani is joined by the stupendous Sunidhi Chauhan after Tu Kuja in Highway. The boisterous song once again features the myriad lovely plucked instruments and composer throws in a surprise with the delightful mix of Kanjira. The folk melody gets a lovely twist, especially when both the lead singers join to sing the title hook. Rahman brings in his exotic world music in Alfreeda where he ropes in Palestinian Singer Sana Moussa who collaborated with the composer for Muhammed Messenger of God. Raja Kumari ably supports Sana with her rap portions while the composer does his magic in the arrangements to conjure the sensational Middle Eastern rhythms.

Rahman turns into retro Jazz mood for Mera Naam Kizie and with the ample oboe cues thrown throughout the track, it will hardly fail. Poorvi Koutish who featured in Rahman's 99 easily scores with her feeble vocals and aces when the verse goes as Kizie. Rahman weaves his magic with the musical nuggets in the interlude and ends the track in a stunning manner with the one-minute long oboe/clarinet solo. Rahman ends the soundtrack fittingly with the instrumental track Horizon of Saudade brimming with melancholy musical cues akin to the title and the magical violin ends the lovely album.

Verdict: After 99, Rahman produces another cracker of an album in Hindi. The diverse soundtrack has joyful easily listenable melodies and the musical surprises peppered throughout the soundtrack. The decisive lightness in the tone of the soundtrack aside, Rahman's brilliance is in full display with respect to the arrangements.

My rating: 9/10

Pick of the Album: Taare Gin, Khulke Jeena Ka, Maskhari, Mera Naam Kizie

Weekly Earworm - Week 13 (06/07/2020)

After a long time continuing the music column in the blog. I couldn't post it because got stuck in the village area with very less network connectivity and also very fewer music releases nowadays. But since the independent music by many composers and movies getting released directly in OTT results in the new music frequently. It's definitely good news albeit with fewer disappointments because Ghibran and Amit Trivedi's recent independent singles fare tad lower than their prolific movie scores/albums.

AR Rahman's Thumbi Thullal and M Jayachandran's beautiful poetic melodies for Sufiyum Sujatayum soar high this week along with Arivu's effective Hashtag Justice.

Cobra (Tamil): A R Rahman: Thumbi Thullalo: The celebratory wedding song starts with the myriad classical sounds with Asad Khan's Sitar paves way for the percussion sounds. The complex tune easily trumps the arrangements and Shreya Goshal aces the tune effortlessly and her vocals added more beauty to the tune with the improvisations when the lyrics flow as Thaniye or Thumbi Thullalo bit. Vivek's lyrics fall flat compared to the beautiful tune Rahman envisages while Nakul Abhyankar ably supports Shreya.

Sufiyum Sujatayum (Malayalam): M Jayachandran: Vathikkalu Vellaripravu: Jayachandran churn out a mind-bogglingly beautiful tune accompanied by a lovely assortment of exotic sounds. Nithya Mammen aces the tune and the second interlude played with Duduk is an absolute stunner. The Sufi tune undeniably adds another dimension to the overall soundscape. Sudeep Palanad composes Alhamdullilah and the lovely chant-like melody is peppered with once again middle Eastern arrangements which work to the song's favour.

Hashtag Justice (Tamil): Arivu: Arivu is one of the independent singers whose songs reflect the social injustice happening around us and questions them effectually with his lyrics. The mix of rap and hip-hop ensures that the song reverberates along with the youth listeners. Hashtag justice is also one of the song which talks about police brutality.

Ghibran Spiritual Series: Muthai Tharu, Om Namachivaya Om: Among the 4 singles released by Ghibran on the Spiritual series, Om Namachivaya Om and Muthai Tharu stand out. Ghibran is phenomenal with the Budapest Orchestra and though it can easily serve as a separate standalone track, punchy singing of the Muthai Tharu's tune by Ananthu make it a good listen. This track makes me revisit Pradeep Kumar's exemplary work in the Arunagiri Perumale album. In Om Namachivaya Om, the powerful tune rendered by Gold Devaraj and Ghibran is once again spot on with respect to the arrangements.

Bhanumathi and Ramakrishna (Telugu): Shravan Bharadwaj: Love-O Ishq-o Mix, Alavate Ledhemo: Shravan Bharadwaj is one of the few composers in Telugu who consistently delivers minimum guarantee soundtrack and this new OTT release also belongs to the same category. Though nothing extraordinary, cheerful vibe accompanied by lovely guitar solos in Love-O Ishq-O mix and hypnotic mix in Alavate Ledhemo works perfectly. Especially Hemachandra is splendid with respect to the vocals in the former song.

Chowki (Kannada): Shakeel Ahmed: Rangina Mane, Kavithe Kavithe:  Rangina Mane carries the brooding atmosphere throughout the track and the rock flavoured arrangement blends well with the dark theme of the song. Priya Yadav easily aces the tune while Kavithe Kavithe's retro-sounding tune benefits a lot from Rajesh Krishnan's pitch-perfect vocals.

Friendship (Tamil): DM Udhayakumar: Superstar Anthem: The debut song for DM Udhayakumar has everything in the list to garner enough attention. Superstar anthem, Harbhajan Singh debut, Simbu to croon the anthem and Gowtham R's lyrics which is a mishmash of Rajini's iconic dialogues and film persona. Despite the questionable tune, these factors warrant a complete listen and the rock base to clasp the listener till the end.

Music Review (Hindi): 99 Songs

Music Review (Hindi): 99 Songs
Music Composer: Rahman

99 Songs is an upcoming Hindi language musical romance film directed by Vishwesh Krishnamoorthy and Co-written and produced by Rahman. The soundtrack is composed by Rahman himself and it is one of the albums which was in the pipeline for many years. Rahman easily wins in the soundtrack with 14 tracks loaded with a rich variety of enjoyable tunes.

Shashwat Singh appears to be the lead singer of 99 songs featuring in 6 songs and Rahman gives him some of the best songs in the soundtrack. O Aashiqa and Sofia surely will feature in the top songs of the soundtrack. In O Aashiqa, Rahman has woven the melody beautifully using the key chanting phrase Oh Jiya Toh Oh Jiya. Shashwat Singh is in stellar form and the track reaches crescendo around 3 minutes mark with the chorus pitching in along with the lead singer's high pitched rendition. Rahman segues Sai Shirdi song in the middle of the song. Rahman uses the Sai Shirdi Sai song which he released for the new year last year and the serene tune is delivered exceptionally by Bela Shende. Though the tune is not effectual as a standalone, Rahman adorns the track with the effectual arrangements led by Sai Saravanam's Tabla and Kareem Kamalakkar's flute. Bela Shende outscores herself with the effective lullaby O Mera Chand and the tune though relatively treads along the familiar territory, the serene feel provided by the tune is a blissful one. Rahman blends Sai Sai chorus with this track also and the lovely flute in the arrangements will definitely calm the listener's mind.

Sofia is a lush melody which starts in a gentle manner backed by Keba Jeremiah's wonderful guitar strums. The gentle flute strains and the breezy melody paves way for the kick-ass vocal harmonies by Arjun Chandy towards the end giving the terrific finish to this beautiful song. Nayi Nayi is the fast-paced song in the album but the track is more generic pop song material single-handedly prodded by Shashwat singh. The arrangements are strictly confined to the hard rock genre with the brief lovely Tabla cameo in the middle of the track. Another fast-paced track is Veere Kadh de with the uncanny Maaro Maaro vibes with the percussions in the prelude. Though the rap by thoughtsfornow didn't work as expected, the track is an interesting attempt by the composer despite the multiple elements of the track didn't blend well as expected.

Shashaa Tirupati enters the show with the two tracks Humnawaa and Soja Soja. The former is the lovely melody and the terrific arrangements by Rahman outscore the main melody especially the lovely interplay between Shashaa Tirupati's humming and the piano. The track definitely warrants multiple listen especially for the brilliance displayed by Rahman with the background piano score. Armaan Malik delivers the melody part adequately well. Shashaa Tirupati's riotous singing in Soja Soja is definitely the highlight of this fun track and she sounds like Rekha Baradwaj especially with the phrase Raat Hogayi. Rahman once again wins over with the jazzy arrangements with the terrific mix of piano and the brass ensemble. Rahman peppered the song with the glass opening sounds and Shashaa Tirupati effectually shifts the tone between whispery vocals and thunderous blast aided by the wonderful brass sounds.

Contrary to popular opinion, Jwalamukhi is one of the weak songs of the album despite featuring Arijit Singh in the lead vocals, the tune is pretty much standard material with nothing excites much and Arijit's vocals falls flat. The track's female version crooned by Poorvi Koutish fares better especially because of the punchy rendition in contrast with Arijit's sombre rendition. Rahman props up the background too with the electronic synth soundscape. Teri Nazaar is the lovely throwback from Rahman's early days especially sounds more like Gowarikar's collaboration. Though the track has nothing extraordinary to offer, the tune is highly enjoyable for its nostalgic factor and Shashwat Singh's rendition. The album's other highlight is the delightful classical track Gori Godh Bari and without any doubt, the three leading singers Alka yagnik, Anuradha Sriram and Shweta Mohan behind the mic are the star of this lovely tune. Rahman adorns the tune with the rich classical sounds of Sarod, Sitar and Tabla. Going by the title Voice without words, one thought that may be instrumental but the whispery words of Poorva Koutish are packed with the hypnotic arrangements. But Rahman ends the whopping 14 song soundtrack with The Oracle which starts with the gentle piano keys before Kareem Kamalakkar's flute gives company to the lovely piano setup by the Rahman himself.

Verdict: 99 songs is Rahman's thoroughly immersive diverse soundtrack in Bollywood after a long time. The whopping 14 song soundtrack is a nostalgic blend of good old Rahman melodies as well as composer leaves his own touch backed by an exceptional set of singers.

My Rating: 9/10

Pick of the Album: Sofia, O Aashiqa, Gori Godh Bari, Soja Soja, Humnawa

Music Review (Tamil): Master

Music Review (Tamil): Master
Music Composer: Anirudh Ravichander

Anirudh extends his Marana Mass/Chumma Kizhi structured song and tries to milk its success with the gibberish lyrics threw in by Gana Balachander in Vaathi coming. The hook bit is definitely catchy and easy dance portion but overall it turns out to be a pedestrian listen mainly because of its overused tone especially in the past two albums of Anirudh. Andha Kanna Paathakka is in lines of Tharam Maara single in terms of tune but Anirudh did exceptional work with an intriguing synth sounds in the arrangements supported by Keba Jeremiah's guitar. Though Vignesh Shivn's lyrics pointed at heroine/ generally female gaze on the protagonist, Anirudh roped in Yuvan Shankar Raja and he delivers adequately. The tune is tailor-made for Anirudh's vocals going by the composer's earlier works.


Kutti story is easily best of the album with its colloquial lyrics by Arun Raja Kamaraj and Vijay delivering it big time with his casual tone which perfectly suits with the on-screen persona of Vijay. Anirudh kept the tune simple with the catchy rhythm beats and the Tanglish lyrics reminds us of the Anirudh's viral Kolaveri. Quit Pannuda is a refreshing composition from the composer. The song starts off with a trance-like sound indicating the intoxicated state and turns into a lovely sax solo before plunges into an energetic soft rock towards the second half. The minor quibble with respect to Anirudh vocals aside, the track is a winner definitely. Polakkattum Para Para starts with Vijay Sethupathi's dialogue and veers into the rustic folk song in the vocals of Santosh Narayanan and the singer easily sails off the tune with occasional thunderous laughs. Anirudh spruces up the arrangements with the consistent use of folk percussions and the tune may blend well with the visuals. Arivu and Anirudh are in stunning form with Vaathi Raid and the lyrics by Arivu is lit especially the timely usage of Vaathi 'Raid'. The astounding energy with which Arivu delivered deserves special mention and the track definitely matches the vibes Neruppu da created during its release. Arivu's rap forms the backbone of this heady and an exhilarating song. Master album features the two short tracks beat of Master and Pona Pogattum. Both the tracks are strictly situational while the former instrumental track dominated by percussions scores over the Vinith's emotional track Pona Pogattum.

Verdict: Anirudh easily delivered his best among his recent outings for the mass films with the vibrant soundtrack led by Vaathi Raid. Though the fact that predominant tracks in the album are sung by the composers itself and also no female singers is a bit of dampener, Anirudh ensures that the album is a joyous ride with the highly engaging set of tracks.

My Rating: 8/10

Pick of the Album: Vaathi Raid, Kutti Story, Quit Pannuda

P.S You can listen to the songs on Youtube

Weekly Earworm - Week 12

Weekly Earworm - Week 12 

Plan Panni Pannanum (Tamil): Yuvan Shankar Raja: Kanave Urave: The Deja Vu factor aside, Yuvan Shankar Raja's Kanave Urave rides on Shreya Goshal's vocals. Yuvan kept the arrangements neat and simple by giving Babu's strings dominant space and the gentle rhythm structure to complement Shreya's rendition.

Love Story (Telugu): Pawan Ch: Ay Pilla: Ay Pilla is a quintessential Sekhar Kammula song where the director brings out Mickey J Meyer's musical sensibilities throughout the song. Nevertheless, the tune by Pawan is lovely with lovely string arrangements in the background and Haricharan behind the mic pulls off the singing part impeccably.

Master (Tamil): Anirudh Ravichander: Vaathi Coming: Anirudh milking his Chuma Kizhi and Marana Mass structure for Vijay's Vaathi coming also with the gibberish lyrics. But despite the catchy bit, the song turns out to be tiresome listen and the visuals may work well with the song.

Uppena (Telugu): Devi Sri Prasad: Dhak Dhak Dhak: DeviSri Prasad digresses from his usual template sounds when Sukumar involves in the project and Dhak Dhak belongs to the category. Though the concept reminds us of the Prashant Pillai's wonderful Ayalathe in Angamaly diaries, DSP's Dhak Dhak has its own charm with the lovely violin solo towards the end.

VakeelSaab (Telugu): Thaman: Maguva Maguva: After Samajavaragamana, Thaman tries to repeat the success of the song with the similarly structured song and roping in Sid Sriram to sing. Though, the tune falls flat compares to Samajavaragamana, Thaman makes up for it with the lovely arrangements in the background.

V (Telugu): Amit Trivedi: Vasthunna Vachesthunna, Manasu Maree: Amit Trivedi's solo Telugu album after the multilingual Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy and going by the two songs released, Amit Trivedi did a spectacular job especially the lovely Vasthunna Vachesthunna. Though Amit Trivedi's singing is a minor grouse in both the songs, the tunes make up for it. Vasthunna Vachesthunna phrase is definitely explosive one and Shreya Goshal aces the rendition. Manasu Maree features the lovely Saxophone and the tune is quintessential Amit Trivedi's territory while Shashaa Tripati did a wonderful work with her rendition as always.

Pick of the Week: Vasthunna Vachesthunna, Ay Pilla, Manasu Maree

Weekly Earworm - Week 11 (29/02/2020)

Weekly Earworm - Week 11 (29/02/2020)

Kombu Vacha Singamda (Tamil): Dhibu Ninan Thomas: Pesadha Mozhiye: The lilting melody composed by Dhibu Ninan Thomas of Kanna fame is a lovely listen and not sure whether because of Harisankar's association, the track has the Malayalam vibes nevertheless lovely melody strengthened by Chinmayi and Harisankar's exceptional singing.

Pandrikku Nandri Solli (Tamil): Suren Vikhash: Panni Sela, Title Track: Indie composer debuts as a composer for the wacky album which screams the indie vibes throughout the album backed by hilarious lyrics especially Sofia Ashraf's rap portions. Pani Sela's bluegrassy arrangements in the backdrop of wonderful Diptanshu Roy's (who is also part of Suren Vikhas's band) Mandolin is an enjoyable listen while Benny Dayal delivers the song with his cool tone. Suren Vikhash turns into a jazzy mode for Kal Irundha and the lyrics by Arul Theeran are lit especially with the hilarious verses. Sophia Ashraf returns for another trippy song Sethanda Sekaru with the fabulous kid's chorus and Maarten Visser's solo saxophone bits in the interludes. The title track is another crazy mix and Bala Araan does his bit this time with the rollicking lyrics which goes as Nee varutha Meenu Thottuka beeru while the arrangements are in a parallel universe with the brilliant mix of Punya Srinivas's Veena which borders on the brooding tone totally in another extreme with the lyrics.

Hit (Telugu): Vivek Sagar: Ventaade Gaayam: Vivek Sagar continuous to churn out the edgy compositions and Ventaade Gaayam's jazzy sombre backdrop is elevated by Mohana Bhogaraju's evocative vocals.

Popcorn Monkey Tiger (Kannada): Charan Raj: Psychedelic Maaye, Maadeva: Charan Raj delivers the two vocal tracks for the slick movie Popcorn Monkey Tiger. The kaleidoscopic and trippy soundscape of both the track makes this one an enjoyable listen while Sanjith Hegde aces the vocals with his swag.

Kappela (Malayalam): Sushin Shyam: Kannil: Sushin Shyam comes back with another beautiful guitar-laden melody and the gentle acoustic guitar strums by Sandeep Mohan elevates the total mood of the song. Swetha Mohan is impressive as always with her rendition ably supported by another fine singer Sooraj Santosh. 

Pick of the Week: Kannil, Pandrikku Nandri Solli, Panni sela

Weekly Earworm - 09/02/2020

Weekly Earworm- Week 10 (09/02/2020)


Takkar (Tamil): Nivas K Prasanna: Maragatha Maalai: Nivas's tune takes some time to seep in but eventually turns out to be the beautiful song and credits go to the superlative rendition by Pradeep Kumar and Vijay Yesudas while Chinmayi steals the show with the dreamy vocals. Nivas kept the arrangements racy especially loved the flute bits by Navin Iyer.

World Famous Lover (Tamil/Telugu): Gopi Sundar: My Love: Though the trailer received mixed responses, the first single by Gopi Sundar takes back to the composer's Bangalore Days album. The track rides on the Sumesh Parameshvar's splendid guitar work throughout while Saindhavi/Ramya Behera aces it with their whispery rendition in the respective languages.

Titanic (Tamil): Nivas K Prasanna: Kaalamum Kettu Pochu, Sila Naal: Nivas K Prasanna delivers an enjoyable Carnatic Rock fusion based on Shanmukhapriya Raga possibly in Kaalamum Kettu Pochu while Mohan Rajan's amusing interesting lyrics make this one an enjoyable listen till it lasts. After Thegidi, Nivas K Prasanna collaborates with Abhay Jodhpurkar and the composer hands over the lovely semi-classical ballad which singer aces brilliantly. The serene arrangements with the mishmash of flute bits, soft rock drums and Abhay's sargams in the first interlude is a delightful touch form the composer.

Miss India (Telugu): Thaman S: Kotthaga Kotthaga: Thaman continues to revamp his musical style and largely deviated from his Percussion dominated music but still the autotuning of the composer's own vocals irks a lot. Shreya Goshal's breezy rendition and Kamalakar's flute solos compensate a lot for Thaman's processed vocals and the hummable tune makes this one works.

Gaandu Kannamma (Tamil): Vivek-Mervin: After Orasaadha, Vivek-Mervin returns with another single Gaandu Kannamma and as expected the tune is incredibly accessible one which is more than enough to stay on the charts for sure. Though Ku Karthik's lyrics took some time to seep in, it fits well with the overall relaxed mood of the tune.

Jaanu (Telugu): Govind Vasantha:

Govind Vasantha retains the original tunes for  Anantham (Anthaadhi), Komma Veedi (Iravingu Theevai), Classic show-stopper Oohale (Kaadhale Kaadhale) and the tunes are equally mesmerising in the Telugu also. Oohale's prelude starts with the Hindustani Piya Balmora and followed by the original stunner tune and the track still continues to be a stunner.

The Life of Ram is the only song in the soundtrack where Pradeep Kumar is involved whereas he sang almost all the songs in Tamil. Govind Vasantha brilliantly adapted the Life of Ram and Violin usage around the 2-minute mark deserves special mention which serves as the hook of the tune. The composer retains the Thaaney Thaaney hook which blends in well with the tune. Naa Kale Kalai, the equivalent of Yaen which speaks about the heartbreak and the vibe is lovely in Brinda's vocals. Inthena is another beautifully tweaked version of Vasantha Kaalangal which is the favourite from the Tamil soundtrack. Inthena also dominated by the guitar strums which tugs your heart and the melancholic mood along with the beautiful soundscape will make anyone fall in love with this composition. Pranam, the equivalent of Thabangale and the guitar strums by Keba Jeremiah lingers in the listener's mind after it ends also. Once again Chinmayi and Govind Vasantha are top-notch with their rendition.

Dharala Prabhu (Tamil): Oorka: Aaha Ooho: After Onnumilla from Aadai, Oorka composes another soft rock-based song on similar lines for Dharala Prabhu. The track starts in a punchy engaging manner but soon fizzles out towards the Charanam while Pradeep Kumar shines with his bass guitar and Bharath Shankar aces the rendition comfortably.

Choosi Choodagaane (Telugu): Gopi Sundar: Venakane Unna: Gopi Sundar cleverly tweaks his signature elements and conceived the gorgeous melody in Venakane Unna. Chinmayi's presence in the mic gives the familiar vibe especially with the hear before feel of the tune but the singer aces the rendition impeccably.

P.S: You can listen to the songs as a playlist in Youtube

Music Review (Tamil): Seeru

Music Review (Tamil): Seeru
Music Composer: Imman

Shivam Mahadevan debuts as a singer in Tamil with Vaa Vasuki and the vocals have undeniable traces of Shankar Mahadevan especially when he goes as Vaa Vasuki. Though the tune sounds commonplace, the track engages until it lasts mainly due to vocals despite autotuning at certain places. Kannaala Poduraaley has tiring lyrics from both Viveka and RJ Vijay tries hard to make the jokes amusing. However, Nakash Aziz easily sells this song with his sprightly rendition despite the tune and arrangements from Imman are strictly functional one dominated by Imman's signature racy percussions.

The soundtrack's undeniable highlight is Sevvanthiye and Imman does his best when he channels his Inner Ilayaraja and the composer brings back the memories of Aanandha Ragam from Panneer Pushpangal. The track begins with the lovely solo violin prelude by Karthik Iyer and Thirumoorthy aces the song with his pitch-perfect rendition. The female version's arrangements sound jarring especially with the incoherent mixing of Veena and jazzy soundscape intermittently. However, Vaikom Vijayalakshmi fits the bill perfectly and complements Male version impeccably. Among the two short tracks, Vasana Poochenda sounds better with all the composer elements intact along with the breezy rendition by Rajaganapathy while Ignite the fire theme sounds predictable and passes muster. One wishes that Imman could have turned Vasana Poochenda into the full-fledged track rather than under two-minute short song.

Verdict: Barring the single gem of the album in the form of Sevvanthiye, Imman's score for Seeru rides on the predictable set of tunes.

My Rating: 6.5/10

Pick of the Album: Sevvanthiye (male version), Vaa Vasuki

P.S You can listen to the songs in JioSaavn. The edited version of the review is published in Moviecrow.

Music Review (Updated) - 2019

To make music reviews more noticeable and easy to navigate each review, thought will classify each review as follows based on the rating in my blog

BA - less than 7 (Below Average Album)

A - less than 8 (Average Album)

AA - less than 9 (Above Average Album)

E - 9 and above (Excellent Album)

• Sarvam Thaala Mayam (E), Natasaarvabhowma (A), Mr Majnu (AA), Kanne Kalaimaane (BA), Vandhaa Rajavaathaan Varuven (BA), Mehandi Circus (AA)
• Bell Bottom  (AA), LKG (A), Mithai (AA), Sonchiriya (A)
• Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota  (AA), Majili (AA)
• Kanchana 3  (BA), Jersey (E), House Owner (AA)
• Maharshi  (BA)
• Sindhubaadh (A), Sivappu Manjal Patchai (A),Raatchasi (A), Pon Manickavel (A), Oh Baby (A)
• Dear Comrade (E), Kaappaan (A), Kennedy Club (BA), Rakshasudu (A)
• Namma Veettu Pillai (A)
• Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy (A), Lungi (A), Adithya Varma (AA)
• Thippara Meesam (A), Darbar (BA)
• Pattas (A)

Music Review (Tamil): Pattas

Music Review (Tamil): Pattas
Music Composer: Vivek-Mervin

Puthu Suriyan's tune treads on the dependable tune structure backed by rousing string arrangements with quite enough anthemic moments with respect to the soundscape. Anuradha Sriram holds the song and it's delightful to listen to her song after quite a lot of time and the composer duo wonderfully employed backing vocals while Uma Devi marks her presence with her lyrics. The song gets more engaging in the instrumental version titled A Mother's love and fittingly done by Chennai Strings Orchestra and Nathan's woodwinds. Chill bro caters to the mass audience with the easily likeable tune despite Vivek Siva's patchy questionable lyrics. Vivek Mervin mixes in the background everything from kuthu percussions to EDM techno sounds while Dhanush easily sails off the tune with his enthusiastic vocals.

Jigidi Killadi once again suffers from the random lyrics by Vivek but satisfactory tune in the hands of Anirudh's dependable vocals make this one works. Vivek Mervin kept the background neat and simple loaded with techno sounds which work to the song's favour. Morattu Tamizhan da's oft-repeated tune structure doesn't hamper the fun quotient of the song mainly because of the verve of the composer duo's vocals. The grand celebratory soundscape is prodded by Maxwell's brass sections and vivek's lyrics easily blends well with the mass tone of the song and serves well with the tune. Piriyadha Enna's prelude guitar work by Keba Jeremiah lies comfortably in Yuvan Shankar Raja's territory but followed by an adequately listenable tune which fizzles out very soon. Vijay Yesudas and Niranjana try hard to make this droning tune work but the track fails to engage the listener. Mavane's hard rock grungy soundscape hark back the listeners to Kabali's Neruppu Da especially the extensive punchy Thalai Nimiru phrase. The track's undeniable highlight is the ultra energetic Rap portions in the second half by Arivu while Vivek Siva ably supports him with his vocals.

Verdict: Vivek Mervin continues to produce easily accessible energetic tracks despite nothing extraordinary to offer.

My Rating: 7.5/10

Pick of the Album: Mavane, Morattu Tamizhan, Puthu Suriyan

P.S The edited version of the review is published in Moviecrow. You can listen to the songs in Youtube

Music Review (Tamil): Darbar

Music Review (Tamil): Darbar
Music Composer: Anirudh Ravichander

If Marana Mass from Petta is an extension to Raman Aandalum Ravanan Aandalum, then Chumma Kizhi turns out to be an inspiration from Thani Koda Eduthu. But the song didn't work despite SPB's singing and the song lacks a punch required for a Rajini introduction soundtrack. The percussion-heavy track falls further flat with the Vivek's uninspirational lyrics. Tharam Maara single is in lines with Ullaala from Petta and the Goan rhythm is engaging and breaths a fresh air until Vivek's lyrics dampens down the proceedings. Anirudh's earnest singing for the colloquial random lyrics makes this one a listenable one from the album. Dumm Dumm tune meanders without any instant catchy factor attached with the song. However, Anirudh shines in the resonant arrangements in the interludes especially the violin bits while Nakash Aziz infuses much energy required for the celebratory song with his vocals. Overall, though the song sounds enjoyable until it lasts, definitely not a memorable one.

After Katravai Patravai in Kaala, Yogi B comes back for another Rajini song Thani Vazhi and the fans of the singer may like this song but the track comes off as a random hodgepodge of sounds which doesn't cohesively build up into an enjoyable song. The only exciting aspect of the song is the suspenseful prelude around which the song is conceived. Thalaivar theme which is high on percussion falls flat without much to offer while similar to Petta Villain theme is much exciting one. Though the track sounds like an extension to Singaram Theme from Petta, the haunting and sinister effect created from mostly the strings is engaging stuff from the composer.

Verdict: Darbar is an unentertaining Rajini soundtrack. Anirudh struggles hard to deliver the mass album which he did it to some extent in Petta.

My Rating: 6.5/10

Pick of the Album: Tharam Maara Single, Villain Theme

The edited version of the review is published in Moviecrow.