You can listen to the songs here.

Pritam does spruce up the arrangement of the title song fairly well in the third edition of Dhoom, and Aditi Singh Sharma delivers an expectedly spirited performance on the vocals. But the core tune as such has never really impressed me much, and that works against the song here too. Unlike the Tata Young variant in part 1, the Arabic Version here differs from the first version only in lyrics. The singer Naya sounds exotic, that is all. And the Tap version has a lot of curious sounds, dominated obviously by the taps, but should be better watched than heard. Malang starts off threatening to sound like Touch Me from Dhoom 2, but thankfully builds on that familiar Arabic base taking a filmy qawwali route to produce much more entertaining results. Siddharth Mahadevan aces the singing in his first non-SEL song, alongside an equally fabulous Shilpa Rao. Sad the classical singers in the interlude haven’t been credited (Thanks to Jay Dhruv for sharing the CD credits; the classical singers are Shadab and Altamash Faridi and the Sabri brothers).

The composer’s trippy arrangement just about covers up for the dated tune of Kamli with ample help from Sunidhi Chauhan, though the weakness of the tune tells on the song on repeated listens. That sitar in the first interlude seems like Asad Khan at work. The arrangement rules Tu Hi Junoon as well; this time it is a brass-led one, with a neatly employed chorus. The tune isn’t great, but Mohit Chauhan infuses enough energy with his singing to bolster that. The combination of kids’ chorus (led by Shivam Mahadevan and Anish Sharma) and orchestral arrangement works well for the simple anthemic chant in Bande Hai Hum. Julius Packiam’s Dhoom 3 Overture begins as a piano-led instrumental version of Bande Hai but shifts gears in between, into another drab variant of the title song.

Dhoom 3. The best score that Pritam has produced for the Dhoom franchise, but one of his weaker soundtracks this year.

Music Aloud Rating: 7/10

Top Recos: Malang, Bande Hai Hum, Tu Hi Junoon

And another year comes to a close in about ten days. An year that was again very fruitful musically, some composers in particular being in exceptional form through the year. But we have not gone into a composer-wise analysis this time either, due to paucity of time. Instead we have just worked on the various song listings, and have four playlists of 25 songs each for you, one up from last year! Let’s take a look at the music then. The format, as usual, is Song Title (Movie) – Composer(s)|Singer(s)|Lyricist(s). And we have gone by the movie release year in every case.

Bollywood Top 25

Barring a couple of them, every leading composer had a fabulous 2013, composing at least one soundtrack of note. And below is our top 25 for the year. Needless to say, these are based on personal preferences and not on hit charts. Click on the individual song title to listen to it. There is also a playlist at the end of the section.

1 Manmarziyan (Lootera) – Amit Trivedi|Shilpa Rao, Amit Trivedi, Amitabh Bhattacharya|Amitabh Bhattacharya

2 O Rangrez (Bhaag Milkha Bhaag) – Shankar Ehsaan Loy|Shreya Ghoshal, Javed Bashir|Prasoon Joshi

3 Tere Mere Beech (Shuddh Desi Romance) – Sachin Jigar|Sunidhi Chauhan, Mohit Chauhan|Jaideep Sahni

4 Piya Milenge (Raanjhanaa) – A R Rahman|Sukhwinder Singh, KMMC Sufi Ensemble|Irshad Kamil

5 Manjha (Kai Po Che) – Amit Trivedi|Amit Trivedi|Swanand Kirkire

6 Murshid Khele Holi (D Day) – Shankar Ehsaan Loy|Munnawar Masoom, Javed Ali, Shankar Mahadevan, Gaurav Gupta, Rajiv Sundaresan, Mani Mahadevan, Raman Mahadevan|Niranjan Iyengar

7 Tum Hi Ho (Aashiqui 2) – Mithoon|Arijit Singh|Mithoon

8 Babaji Ki Booty (Go Goa Gone) – Sachin Jigar|Sachin Jigar|Amitabh Bhattacharya

9 Kabira (Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani) – Pritam|Rekha Bhardwaj, Tochi Raina|Amitabh Bhattacharya

10 Mera Yaar (Bhaag Milkha Bhaag) – Shankar Ehsaan Loy|Javed Bashir|Prasoon Joshi

11 Kaun Mera (Special 26) – M M Kreem|Papon|Irshad Kamil

12 Ambar Sariya (Fukrey) – Ram Sampath|Sona Mohapatra|Traditional folk lyrics

13 Sawar Loon (Lootera) – Amit Trivedi|Monali Thakur|Amitabh Bhattacharya20

14 Alvida (D Day) – Shankar Ehsaan Loy|Nikhil D’Souza, Shruti Haasan, Sukhwinder Singh|Niranjan Iyengar

15 Laal Ishq (Ram Leela) – Sanjay Leela Bhansali|Arijit Singh|Siddharth-Garima

16 Gulaabi (Shuddh Desi Romance) – Sachin Jigar|Jigar Saraiya, Priya Saraiya|Jaideep Sahni

17 Dil Ki Toh Lag Gayi (Nautanki Saala) – Mikey McCleary|Saba Azad|Kausar Munir

18 Janam Janam (Phata Poster Nikla Hero) – Pritam|Sunidhi Chauhan|Irshad Kamil

19 Tum Tak (Raanjhanaa) – A R Rahman|Javed Ali, Pooja Vaidyanath, Keerthi Sagathia|Irshad Kamil

20 Sapna Re Sapna (Ek Thi Daayan) – Vishal Bhardwaj|Padmanabh Gaikwad|Gulzar

21 Titli (Chennai Express) – Vishal Shekhar|Chinmayi, Gopi Sunder|Amitabh Bhattacharya

22 Badtameez Dil (Yeh Jawaan Hai Deewani) – Pritam|Benny Dayal, Shefali Alvares|Amitabh Bhattacharya

23 Khoon Choos Le (Go Goa Gone) – Sachin Jigar|Arjun Kanungo, Suraj Jagan & Priya Panchal|Amitabh Bhattacharya

24 Dil Kaagzi (Gippi) – Vishal Shekhar|Neeti Mohan|Anvita Dutt Guptan

25 Shubhaarambh (Kai Po Che) – Amit Trivedi|Shruti Pathak, Divya Kumar|Swanand Kirkire

Five more songs that fell just shy of the top 25 but deserve a mention.

26 Khamakha (Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola) – Vishal Bhardwaj|Vishal Bhardwaj, Prem Dehati|Gulzar

27 Slow Motion Angreza (Bhaag Milkha Bhaag) – Shankar Ehsaan Loy|Loy Mendonsa, Sukhwinder Singh|Prasoon Joshi

28 Yaaram (Ek Thi Daayan) – Vishal Bhardwaj|Sunidhi Chauhan, Clinton Cerejo|Gulzar

29 Ajnabi (Madras Cafe) – Shantanu Moitra|Zebunnisa Bangash|Zebunnisa Bangash

30 Out of Control – Choir Version (David) – Mikey McCleary|Various|Mikey McCleary

Playlist for the top 25:

Top 25 Malayalam film songs

So this is the bonus playlist this year. In all my previous roundups, I used to bundle up all film music I had heard outside of Bollywood into one common playlist. Turns out this year I had heard a lot of (good) Malayalam songs, a large enough number to summarize into a playlist of 25. So here goes.

1 Aathmaavil (Amen) – Prashant Pillai|Preethi Pillai, Swetha Mohan, Kavitha Mohan, Sankar Sharma|Kavalam Narayana Panicker

2 Thaazhvaaram (Thira) – Shaan Rahman|Hisham Abbas, Neha Nair|Anu Elizabeth Jose

3 Kaal Kuzhanju (Left Right Left) – Gopi Sunder|Murali Gopi|Rafeeq Ahmed

4 Kaatte Kaatte (Celluloid) – M Jayachandran|Vaikkom Vijayalakshmi, G Sreeram|Rafeeq Ahmed

5 Laalee Laalee (Kalimannu) – M Jayachandran|Mridula Warrier, Sudeep Kumar|O N V Kurup

6 Harthal Punk (North 24 Kaatham) – Govind Menon|Aneesh Krishnan, Govind Menon|Rafeeq Ahmed

7 Doore Doore (Neelaakaasham Pachakkadal Chuvanna Bhoomi) – Rex Vijayan|Suchith Suresan|Vinayak Sasikumar

8 Enithonnum (Celluloid) – M Jayachandran|Sithara|Engandiyoor Chandrasekharan

9 Hey Ithu Vazhi (Arikil Oraal) – Gopi Sunder|Indrajith, Chithra Iyer|Anu Elizabeth Jose

10 Thaazhe Nee (Thira) – Shaan Rahman|Job Kurien, Sachin Warrier, Sayanora Philip|Anu Elizabeth Jose

11 Doore Doore (Geethanjali) – Vidyasagar|Rajalakshmi|O N V Kurup

12 Ponnoonjalil (Aaru Sundarimaarude Kadha) – Deepak Dev|Chithra, Venugopal, Kalyani Menon|Kaithapram

13 Mazha Neertha (Anju Sundarikal) – Bijibal|Gayathri Ashok|Sunil Raj Sathya

14 Vattoli (Amen) – Prashant Pillai|Lucky Ali|Kavalam Narayana Panicker

15 Chenthalire (KQ) – Stephen Devassy|Benny Dayal, Shaktisree Gopalan|Rafeeq Ahmed

16 Porumo Porumo (North 24 Kaatham) – Govind Menon|Raghu Dixit, Bijibal|Rafeeq Ahmed

17 Shalabhamai (Kalimannu) – M Jayachandran|Shreya Ghoshal, Sudeep Kumar|O N V Kurup

18 Oru Mezhuthiriyude (Vishudhan) – Gopi Sunder|Shahabaz Aman, Mridula Warrier|Rafeeq Ahmed, Murugan Kaattaakkada

19 Kaayalinarike (Annayum Rasoolum) – K|Shahabaz Aman|Meppally Balan

20 Neerpalunkukal (Neelaakaasham Pachakkadal Chuvanna Bhoomi) – Rex Vijayan|Saju Sreenivas|Vinayak Sasikumar

21 Solomonum Shoshannayum (Amen) – Prashant Pillai|Preethi Pillai, V Sreekumar|P S Rafeeq

22 Kannaadi Chillil (Natholi Oru Cheriya Meenalla) – Abhijit Shylanath|Arvind Venugopal|Anu Elizabeth Jose

23 Shalabhamay (English) – Rex Vijayan|Neha Nair|Shibu Chakravarthy

24 Veyil Chilla (Zachariyayude Garbhinikal) – Vishnu-Sarath|Vishnu, Jyotsna|Engandiyoor Chandrasekharan

25 En Kani Malare (Philips and the Monkey Pen) – Rahul Subramaniam|Neha Venugopal|Siby Padiyara

And five other honorary mentions

26 Etho Saayaahna (10.30 AM Local Call) – Gopi Sunder|Sachin Warrier|Rafeeq Ahmed

27 Antha Naalil (Pattam Pole) – M Jayachandran|Madhu Balakrishnan, Harini|Annamalai

28 Koodeyirikkaam (Ezhu Sundara Raathrikal) - Prashant Pillai|Haricharan, Gayathri Ashok|Rafeeq Ahmed

29  Otta Thumbi (Pullippulikalum Aattinkuttiyum) - Vidyasagar|Shankar Mahadevan, Chithra|Sarath Vayalar

30 Akale (Left Right Left) – Gopi Sunder|Gopi Sunder|Rafeeq Ahmed

Playlist for the top 25:

Top 25 film songs from other languages

Now that Malayalam has gone into a list of its own, this playlist is comprised mostly of Tamil songs, with a smattering of Bengali and Telugu. The list is compiled from what I heard, so there is a chance this compilation might be missing some key soundtracks.

1 Moongil Thottam (Kadal) – A R Rahman|Abhay Jodhpurkar, Harini|Vairamuthu

2 Yenga Pona Raasa (Maryan) – A R Rahman|Shaktisree Gopalan|Kutti Revathi, A R Rahman

3 Aaha Kaadhal (Moondru Per Moondru Kaadhal) – Yuvan Shankar Raja|Nandini Srikar|Na. Muthukumar

4 Unnai Kaanaadhu (Vishwaroopam) – Shankar Ehsaan Loy|Kamal Haasan, Shankar Mahadevan|Kamal Haasan

5 Nenjukkulle (Kadal) – A R Rahman|Shaktisree Gopalan|Vairamuthu

6 Neela Evaru (Swamy Ra Ra) – Sunny M R|Arijit Singh|Krishna Chaitanya

7 Hey (Vanakkam Chennai) – Anirudh|Papon, Maria Roe Vincent|Na. Muthukumar

8 Kuru Kuru (Vathikkuchi) – Ghibran|Sundar Narayana Rao|Na. Muthukumar

9 Kallaale Senju (Chithiraiyil Nila Choru) – Ilayaraja|Haricharan|Vaalee

10 Ae Le Le (Naiyaandi) – Ghibran|Leon D’Souza, Sundar Narayana Rao|Arivumathi

11 Mor Bhabonare (Hawa Bodol) – Indradeep Dasgupta|Saptarishi Mukherjee, Sahana Bajpaie|Rabindranath Tagore

12 Vaazhkaiye (David) – Bramfatura|Siddharth Basrur|Mohan Rajan

13 Kaattukkulla Kannamoochi (Sutta Kadhai) – Madley Blues|Harish Venkat, Vijay Prakash, Harshitha Krishnan|Subu

14 Yedhukkaaga (Rummy) – D Imman|Santhosh Hariharan, A V Pooja|Yugabharathi

15 Din Khon Mapa (Hawa Bodol) – Indradeep Dasgupta|Arijit Singh|Angshuman Chakraborty

16 Elay Keechan (Kadal) – A R Rahman|A R Rahman, Vijaynarain Rangarajan, Suchith Suresan|Madhan Karky

17 Thuppaakki (Vishwaroopam) – Shankar Ehsaan Loy|Benny Dayal, Kamal Haasan|Vairamuthu, Asif Ali Beg

18 Kanave (David) – Anirudh|Anirudh|Mohan Rajan

19 Kanna Kanna (Vathikkuchi) – Ghibran|Sundar Narayana Rao|Arivumathi

20 Kaatru Veesum (Neram) – Rajesh Murugesan|Haricharan|Pradeep Palarr

21 Innum Konjam (Maryan) – A R Rahman|Swetha Mohan, Vijay Prakash|Kabilan, A R Rahman

22 Ananda Yaazhai (Thanga Meengal) – Yuvan Shankar Raja|Sriram Parthasarathy|Na. Muthukumar

23 Kafer Tomake (Goynar Baksho) – Debojyoti Mishra|Rupankar|Srijato

24 O Naadu Washington (Greeku Veerudu) – Thaman|SP Balasubramaniam

25 Adiyae Enna Raagam (Rummy) – D Imman|Abhay Jodhpurkar, Poornima Satish|Yugabharathi

Another five that missed out.

26 Angyaade (Raja Rani) – G V Prakash|Shaktisree Gopalan|Pa. Vijay

27 Pistah (Neram) – Rajesh Murugesan|Sabareesh Varma|Jagathi Sreekumar

28 Osaka Osaka (Vanakkam Chennai) – Anirudh|Anirudh, Pragathi Raviprasad|Madhan Karky

29 Megh Dutam (Satyanweshi) – Debojyoti Mishra|Srijan Chatterjee

30 Biriyani (Biriyani) – Yuvan Shankar Raja|Tanvi Shah, Bhavatharini, Vilasini|Gangai Amaren, Tanvi Shah

Top 25 Playlist:

Top 25 Non Film Songs

Since we already made a top 15 list for Coke Studio India, we have avoided that in this compilation. The non-film scene has seen a lot of top quality music this year; in the form of new albums and in TV shows – Dewarists, Sound Trippin’ and a new entrant to the scene down South, Music Mojo from Kappa TV. And while we know it is not the best thing to be ranking songs from totally different genres, there had to be some sort of a pecking order. Hence here it is. Not all songs are available for streaming online, so relevant links have been provided wherever possible.  And we have considered only original songs that came out this year.

1 Jag Changa (Jag Changa) – Raghu Dixit

2 Barsan Laage Nain (Attuned Spirits) – Vasuda Sharma

3 Khirama (Dewarists) – Lucky Ali, Prashant Pillai

4 Kodagana Koli (Jag Changa) – Raghu Dixit

5 Chekkele (Epic Shit) – Sanjeev Thomas, Baiju Dharmajan

6 Nain Matakka (Sound Trippin’) – Sneha Khanwalkar, Sneha Pandit

7 Soleil (Doppelganger) – Dualist Inquiry

8 Shaitaan (2) – Sifar

9 Alchemy (The Crossover) – Baiju Dharmajan

10 Yahweh (Big Big Joke) – Tough On Tobacco

11 Whole (The Tattva Trip) – Suraj Mani

12 Kaanaan Kannu (Music Mojo) – Job Kurian

13 Bliss (Bliss) – Arun Shenoy

14 Dhola (Attuned Spirits) – Vasuda Sharma

15 Saanware (Single) – Rushi Vakil, Aniket Khandekar

16 Baawri (Farida) – Abhijeet Sawant

17 Saiyon Asi (Shah Hussain Project) – Vasundhara Das

18 Longing (FluteTronics) – Naveen Kumar, Karsh Kale

19 Kaalan (Music Mojo) – Neha Nair

20 Amma (Jag Changa) – Raghu Dixit

21 Love Love Love (Big Big Joke) – Tough on Tobacco

22 Exile (Doppelganger) – Dualist Inquiry

23 Fish Rock (Music Mojo) – Thaikkudam Bridge

24 Tipush Tapush (Sound Trippin’) – Karsh Kale, Nucleya

25 Zamzayo (Epic Shit) – Sanjeev Thomas

The playlist:

And that rounds up the 2013 music scene for us! Here’s looking forward to an equally awesome 2014!

You can listen to the soundtrack here.

Vishal Bhardwaj and Gulzar’s adaptation of Begum Akhtar’s bhairavi-based dadra Hamari Atariya starts off sounding very ARR-eque, especially the chorus. The high point of the song is easily Rekha Bhardwaj’s singing (and of course Madhuri onscreen, once the full video is out). But for the guitars, the arrangement is strictly, albeit richly, conventional, and something about it makes the song tedious beyond a point. No such problems with Rekha’s second song Jagaave Saari Raina though (khamaaj raag I think), the lady nails the singing and Vishal (along with producer Simaab Sen) the arrangement – watch out for some awesome sitar by Niladri Kumar. And the short bols segment by Pt. Birju Maharaj is the icing on the cake! Dil Ka Mizaaj brings back that Dil Toh Bachcha Hai Ji combo, but this one takes a different route that is not as effective, but the result is still beautiful – particularly for the way the composer (Clinton Cerejo is the producer in this case) employs the strings and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan’s vocal range. The remix adds a bit too much of techno elements and makes it a noisy affair.

Tushar Parte’s fabulous guitar arrangements rule the sedate melody that is Zabaan Jale Hai, even as Rahat Fateh Ali Khan conveys the soulfulness in his familiar yet flawlessly nuanced manner. While Ishqiya had Ibn-e-Batuta, Dedh Ishqiya has Horn Ok Please (Pleej actually). It is Yo Yo Honey Singh this time with Sukhwinder Singh, and the results are pretty much the same – the energy from the singers is infectious, the song as such marginally entertaining. And since it is Yo Yo Honey Singh, there is also a rap section that wackily references Gulzar’s own legendary lyrics from Aandhi. Kya Hoga is as energetic as a qawwali gets, Vishal and Simaab getting an elaborate set of instruments going in the background while the vocalists – Master Saleem, Shahid Mallya, Jazim Sharma, Jamal Akbar – do a brilliant job on their part.

Dedh Ishqiya. Misses a gem like Dil Toh Bachcha Hai Ji, but as a soundtrack scores higher than its predecessor.

Music Aloud Rating: 8/10

Top Recos: Jagaave Saari Raina, Dil Ka Mizaaj, Kya Hoga

Producer/arranger credits:

Atariya – Clinton Cerejo, Hitesh Sonik, Simaab Sen

Dil ka Mizaaj – Clinton Cerejo

Zabaan Jale Hai – Guitar arrangement/production: Tushar Parte, Track production: Simaab Sen

Jagaave Saari Raina – Simaab Sen

Kya Hoga – Simaab Sen

Live rhythms for Atariya, Kya Hoga, Jagaave designed and arranged by Sanjiv Sen.

Starting on a majestic piano rendition a la Piano Guys (the African chant adds to the feel), Enthaara Enthaara is a 4 minutes 41 seconds long goose-bump fest! The piano is joined by the strings and the synth bass and percussion and myriad other ethereal sounds (lovely use of sitar in between), and then there is Shadab Faridi (that super-talented fellow who has perennially been sidelined to chorus in Bollywood; really happy Ghibran gave him lead vocals here) and Chinmayi carrying off the vocals like nobody’s business – this song is one hell of a keeper. More awesomeness follows with the Carnatic-based Kannukkul Pothivaippen (mix of ragas – one seems like hamir kalyani, one could be thodi) set to a curious arrangement that combines ghatam and jaltarang (or marimba/xylophone?) among other things, even as Charulatha Mani, Vijay Prakash, Sadhana Sargam and Dr. R. Ganesh do a fabulous job (loved that playful tone Charulatha takes on at one point towards the end) behind the mic. Assisted by an uncredited Bengali singer who sings some endearing folk bits, Yazin Nisar is at his soulful best rendering Yaaro Ival. In the background Ghibran goes about making outstanding use of violins; that second interlude is a beauty.

Rayile Ra’s grooviness makes interesting in parts, but the overdose of techno elements kills the fun more often than not. Even on vocals, Nivas, Haresh and Ashwitha do a fair job but the person leading them all, Bonnie Chakraborty, sounds oddly sub par. Of the three songs, Chillendra Chillendra is the one that Ghibran has most to contribute to in arrangement, and he does it very well too, just that he ends up making it sound very ARR (more like ARR via Amit Trivedi; Ha Raham from Aamir is what first came to mind). And doing a near-flawless rendition of the song are the composer’s favourite man Sundar Narayana Rao and Kaushiki Chakraborty, the only hitch being points where Sundar seems uncomfortably high-pitched. Khwaja Ji and Zikr are both traditional pieces and mostly Arifullah Shah Khalif-e-Rifayee and his group’s show, Ghibran keeps the arrangement keeps simple and minimal (Zikr is in fact the same piece of which ARR had done an adaptation for Bose The Forgotten Hero).

Composer Ghibran continues his amazing form in 2014 as well, pulling off another winner in Thirumanam Enum Nikkah.

Music Aloud Rating: 8.5/10

Top Recos: Enthaara Enthaara, Kannukkul Pothivaippen, Yaaro Ival

You can listen to the songs here.

Staying true to its generic title Punjabi Wedding Song, composers Vishal Shekhar keep the arrangement fairly generic and there is only so much the band baaja can keep you entertained, despite Sunidhi Chauhan and Benny Dayal’s energy. Pretty much the same story applies to Drama Queen, Shreya Ghoshal does an exuberant job on the vocals but the song is too heard-before. Will work on the dance floor may be. Shake It Like Shammi is well done though, with its imaginative incorporation of yesteryear references, and Benny Dayal carries off Amitabh Bhattacharya’s lines in style. Manchala has enough breeziness in its tune and arrangement (particularly liked the melodica and the backing vocals) to more than make up for the repeat feel. Shafqat Amanat Ali is flawlessly nuanced as usual, and he is supported excellently by Nupur Pant (debutant?). Ishq Bulaava too features some interesting elements in its arrangement, but the tune doesn’t quite work. Soulful singing by Sanam Puri and Shipra Goyal (debutant again?), however. The soundtrack’s undisputed winner is the immensely endearing Zehnaseeb, the first song between Vishal/Shekhar and Chinmayi whose title does not translate to butterfly! A simple, hummable tune, matchingly beautiful guitar-led arrangement and a spotless rendition by the lady along with Shekhar Ravjiani.

Hasee Toh Phasee. One awesome song and a couple of other decent tracks. Not a bad start to the year for Vishal Shekhar. Far from their best though.

Music Aloud Rating: 7/10

Top Recos: Zehnaseeb, Manchala, Shake It Like Shammi

Writing memorable lyrics has always been in an issue with bands from our country. Somehow lyrical prowess and musical abilities don’t go hand in hand in these parts of the world. But this situation is changing, as I write this more and more singer song-writers are appearing on the scene. Artists like Ankur Tewari and Gouri come into my mind.  But if your band doesn’t have a decent song writer or a good singer the best genre you can pick up is post rock. In the murky world of post rock mumbling and gibberish is considered accomplished lyrics as long as it sounds good. As someone said the only writing most post rock end up doing is naming their songs and albums.

COYH is the new EP from Deadstar (Nihal Anand says the soundcloud channel), a solo bedroom project. This EP is as post rock as it can get and sounds very well produced for a DIY work. The songs are very moody with occasional dopamine-inducing bursts which will keep the listener hooked to the songs.  Like most albums of this genre COYH provides excellent background music for boring day to day work.  It won’t wrestle for attention nor make you sing out loud inviting stares from your colleagues .It can keep you moored to the drab reality and at the same time allows for certain leaps of fantasy.  Most songs in the album are almost indistinguishable from each other and feel like one amorphous blob of sound.  This may be due to the presence of the Steve Reich-ish picking patterns employed almost in all songs.  This monotony is broken by the math rock styled title track, good reason why it is inserted in between the four other songs in the album.  If you are the type who like Sigur Ros and Mogwai, which now includes almost all of us who follow alternative/indie rock, do give this EP a listen. The whole album can be streamed below (link via @therunawaypoet).

You can listen to the songs here (link via @Prakshid)

Jashn-e-Ishqa comes with all the bells and whistles associated with the inspirational/hero intro mold of songs, anthemic feel and all. And it works like such songs do too (despite reminding of past such songs), what with Javed Ali and Shadab Faridi executing their part neatly as well. Rhythm of Jashn-e-Ishqa has Shadab doing an improv around the phrase in a short, BGM-type reprise. The folk rock mix in the dance track Tune Maari Entriyaan too is replete with familiar sounds (including a reference to the Tamil song Ennadi Muniyamma in the second interlude – wonder if the Tamil song was an original piece or based off a traditional folk tune). Again, the energy in the song and the rendition by KK, Vishal Dadlani and Neeti Mohan is sure to get the feet tapping. The opening Bengali refrain that Bappi Lahiri sings gets extended into a full song in a Bangla Version where Bappi da is joined by Monali Thakur. But for the Bengali lyrics and a short banter between the singers, everything else remains pretty much the same as the original version. For a movie titled Gunday the title song is surprisingly happy sounding, with a breezy arrangement featuring some lovely banjo. The composer Sohail Sen himself gets behind the mic for this one, alongside rapper Kinga Rhymes.

Asalaam-e-Ishqum has some super singing by Neha Bhasin, with Bappi Lahiri. The song as such fails to deliver though, falling prey to a middling arrangement. Despite Sohail’s jazzing up of the song, the dominant sound of Saaiyaan is that of the 90s and that makes it tedious after a while. Shahid Mallya’s soulful rendition does mitigate some of it though. Khusrau’s qawwali Mann Kunto Maula is adapted well by the composer in its classical version, giving it a regular qawwali treatment. Of course, it was eventually going to depend on how well the singers deliver, and Shadab and Altamash Faridi are outstanding in that department. The rock-based arrangement in the other version ends up sounding an odd mishmash though. Jiya is the best of the soundtrack, a haunting tune backed by an arrangement that sees a rich and beautiful melange of strings and exotic percussion. And on vocals there is the man with the golden touch Arijit Singh.

Gunday. Better than Sohail Sen’s last score way back in 2012 (which also was with YRF), but nothing brilliant.

Music Aloud Rating: 6.5/10

Top Recos: Jiya, Mann Kunto Maula, Jashn-e-Ishqa

Full soundtrack at the end of the post.

Presumably an ode to the drama company that has been the backdrop for most of Mannar Mathai & Co’s adventures, Urvashi Urvashi has Teenu Telence and Vijay Yesudas (and a second male voice too, from the sound of it) on the vocals while composer Rahul Raj whips up an arrangement that sees some trippy employment of synth and guitars (lovely bassline throughout), with a smattering of yesteryear sounds, including a brief Oraayiram Kinaakkalaal reference. But for Maqbool’s chanting of the title refrain, the short Sufi Reprise version of the song belongs to Josy who plays some lovely shehnai-like improvs on his soprano sax. The classical nuances of Mizhikaloro (abheri raga?) bring with them a familiar feel, but Haricharan’s singing and the interesting techno-based mix in the arrangement makes the song worth the while. Rahul’s arrangement is the star of Gathakalaporin, the composer bringing together all his orchestral resources in fabulous fashion with the ever-so-subtle references to Kalikkalam from Ramji Rao. The interludes are particularly brilliant. Afzal, Vipin Xavier and Tom Sebastian handle the vocals in this one. High point of the thematic Thirayane Thirayane is without doubt that winning reference to one of the best dialogue sequences from Mannar Mathai Speaking! That and some interesting elements in the arrangement (super use of strings again, this time some oud/saz as well) aside, the tune as such is pretty ordinary and the lyrics don’t help much either.  Sprightly rendition by Arun Alat, Nithin Raj and Lonely Doggy nevertheless.

The Ramji Rao Speaking series has featured some entertaining music in the past, Rahul Raj continues the tradition in Mannar Mathai Speaking 2.

Music Aloud Rating: 7.5/10

Top Recos: Gathakalaporin, Urvashi Urvashi, Mizhikaloro

Of Rahul Raj’s three songs for London Bridge, Kannaadi Vaathil is easily the best – a highly addictive tune set to a minimal arrangement highlighted by the acoustic guitar and twinkly synth bits, with the occasional outburst around the Venmukile bit. And there is Haricharan doing his bit with a flawless rendition (shades of kharaharapriya raga I felt, with possibly some reethigowla too, in that flute interlude played by Josy) of the song. Chinni Chinni’s ordinary tune bogs down the could-have-been-interesting song, with its Latino-infused arrangement and Yasin Nizar’s commendable singing. The London Bridge Theme plays strictly by theme rules; orchestrally opulent with strings and brass and operatic singing by Gitamba; and a Celtic twist in between which features a fab violin solo by Francis.

The remaining two songs of the soundtrack are composed by Sreevalsan J Menon, both markedly different from Rahul’s set in their sombre tone. Ennum Ninne is neatly arranged, and has a nice haunting tune. What doesn’t quite go with the whole thing though is Shaan’s decidedly non-Malayali rendition, both in his style and diction. Ven Megham fares much better, with a  more groovy arrangement and brilliant singing from Rachana John with good backing from Amal Antony and Deepu Nair.

London Bridge. Commendable effort from Rahul Raj and Sreevalsan J Menon.

Music Aloud Rating: 7/10

Top Recos: Kannaadi Vaathil, Ven Megham, London Bridge Theme

You can listen to the soundtrack here.

The standard qawwali format (with some mod additions, which have also become fairly regular now) of Hai Reham Hai Karam makes it a tad daunting. And Kailash Kher’s rendition, while commendable as expected, is again riddled with the all-too-familiar nuances that only add to the ennui. Thankfully the rest of the soundtrack fares much better. Tapas Relia keeps the arrangement fairly simple in Sun Sugana Re, the folksy charm of the tune is more than enough to work its magic on you. The flute (the brilliant Paras Nath) and shehnai (Yogesh More) deserve a special mention though. The singers Suchi and Ankita Joshi take care of the rest with a fabulous effort. The composer makes lovely use of Paras’ flute in the beautifully tuned Sun Ri Baavli as well, in an otherwise guitar-led arrangement. And it wouldn’t come as a surprise that Papon does a brilliant job of delivering Manoj Yadav’s lines. The movie’s leading lady Monali Thakur gets the semi-classical piece Aa Ghar Chalein Hum and she handles the nuanced singing neatly, even as Dilshad Khan rules the backdrop with some fab sarangi playing.

Their combination may not have worked well last time, but Tapas Relia delivers a short, sweet score for Nagesh Kukunoor in Lakshmi.

Music Aloud Rating: 7.5/10

Top Recos: Sun Sugana Re, Sun Ri Baavli, Aa Ghar Chalein Hum

Full audio jukebox at the end of the review.

The highlight of Patakha Guddi is without doubt the two vocal powerhouses Jyoti and Sultana Nooran, debuting for Rahman with their effortlessly nuanced delivery of the folk track. The tune takes some curious twists and turns – sinister for most part, with the occasional lighter digressions around the title hook heralded by the lovely flute from Naveen (don’t know whether Kumar or Iyer, both have played in the movie apparently). The arrangement is otherwise a fairly standard techno Punjabi mix, nothing particularly exceptional. But that is no matter because it gets more than evened out by the awesomeness that happens in the Male Version! An interesting combo of guitars and harmonium accompanies A R Rahman in this one, before the dholaks kick in taking the song to qawwali mode for a brief while, again around the title hook. But just after the middle of the song happens the real twist – Prasanna Ramaswamy with a minute-long solo (probably the first time the man is playing a non-carnatic piece for ARR) while ARR takes the backseat, chipping in with the occasional chants. And just like that it is done, the song continuing on as if nothing happened, ending pretty much the way it started. It could be the theme of the song, it could be the percussion, Maahi Ve took me back to Imtiaz’s own Aao Milo Chale. But the song is Rahman’s own, and beautifully so with that breezy mix of strings and keys that complements Irshad Kamil’s lines very well. The composer is on the vocals here too, backed by Maria Roe Vincent, Rhea Raphael, Neeti (Mohan?) and Dorairaju. Kahaan Hoon Main belongs to the JTYJN/Jhootha Hi Sahi league, both the tune and the arrangement bearing a strong flavour thereof. What you want to watch out for though is the top notch singing by Rahman-debutant (of which there are lots in this soundtrack, by the way) Jonita Gandhi.

Jonita has a second song in the soundtrack, Implosive Silence, a song that on first hear gave me the impression of a corrupted version – it sounds quite like a track in reverse! Then I read Rahman’s note on the track – “a musical piece that tries to capture the sounds in Alia’s character’s head” – and it started making sense, the muted humming and everything. Very esoteric-sounding this, one that should make for a very interesting watching in the movie. The overdose of techno elements in Wanna Mash Up? turned me off the song for most part. Liked the singing by Kash, Krissy & Suvi Suresh though. The remaining three songs of the soundtrack are all based on 7 beats cycle, a structure that more often than not produced some beautiful pieces. And these three only further cement that fact. First there is the sufi song Tu Kuja, a song that in classic ARR style I found unimpressive on the initial couple of listens but am totally addicted to now. Sure, the synth elements do dilute the devout feel a bit, but the tune and Sunidhi Chauhan’s delivery of it have enough sincerity in them to make you fall in love with this. The other two songs look at capitalizing on the lullaby aspect of the beats cycle. Heera has Shweta Pandit soulfully crooning Sant Kabir’s dohe to a soothing arrangement. An arrangement that sees some fabulous violin solos and tin whistles and santoor sounds layered over a glorious expanse of strings. Finally there is Sooha Saaha. The piece that, despite all the brilliance in offer so far, counts for me (at this point) as THE song of the soundtrack. This one is a lullaby, a genre that ARR hasn’t visited in a long time – and the man makes up for that, big time! Once again the underlying layer of strings goes a long way in making this song the beauty that it is. And the soft flute strains, the ukulele-strumming by Haniya Aslam of Zeb and Haniya. It gets even better in the last one minute when the violins go into a frenetic overdrive, all the while staying strictly in the background. The vocals are led by the other half of Zeb and Haniya, Zebunnisa Bangash, singing her second Bollywood song after Ajnabi (Madras Café) last year. And she carries it off superbly, with a cameo from Alia Bhatt who though not flawless, does an endearing rendition that goes perfectly with the mood of this one.

Highway. The A R Rahman-Imtiaz Ali-Irshad Kamil team delivers yet another musical treat! Totally worth the wait (ok may be not this long a wait next time).

Music Aloud Rating: 9/10

Top Recos: Sooha Saaha, Heera, Patakha Guddi(Male), Tu Kuja, Maahi Ve

You can listen to the soundtrack here (link via @Prakshid).

As you would imagine looking at the title and might have seen in the promos, I’m Just Pakaoed is the hero’s musical rant about his frustration in life, something that lyricist Amitabh Bhattacharya conveys in an imaginatively wacky manner in just over 2.5 minutes. And Shankar Ehsaan Loy resort to a rock sound for the arrangement, heavy on guitars. The star of the song though is Siddharth Mahadevan, sounding way more mature than he did in his past songs and absolutely nailing the rendition, growling effects and everything! Kaboom also has the vocalist in top form, Anushka Manchanda rendering the attitude-loaded lines with practiced elan. The song however isn’t quite top drawer. The heavy percussion-laden arrangement of Khushfehmiyan kind of contrasts with the melodic piece that the song is, and it is the contrast that makes the song work. Well that and the singing – more of the backing vocalists than of Shankar Mahadevan actually, particularly love the point where they kick in around the Khushfehmiyan bit. And stripped off all these embellishments, the Unplugged version doesn’t have the same impact.

SEL’s arrangement rules the pensive Baat Kya Hai and makes up for the weak tune, even as Clinton Cerejo sings his heart out. Watch out for that mildly classical-flavored (abheri raga?) synth solo towards the end. The retro jazz flavour is captured beautifully in Sheher Mera – the double bass, the horns and some lovely whistling. Complementing all this is the spotless singing by Thomson Andrews (the man seems to specialise in this type of songs, the last I remember hearing him is in Rumaani from Akaashvaani). And like with many soundtracks in recent times, the top song in One By Two also goes to Arijit Singh. Khuda Na Kasta has Arijit treading on Shankar Mahadevan’s territory and pulling it off superbly (though Shankar does pitch in with one of his trademark alaaps in between)! And the song just cements SEL’s reliability when it comes to classical-based songs – the trio employing the brooding keeravani raga (as confirmed by @msundr, @techrsr & @krishashok. Ashok adds that there is also some natabhairavi in the second half) here to a rock setting, and throwing in some Arabic elements here and there – the result is a thoroughly addictive piece!

So after a brilliant run in 2013, Shankar Ehsaan Loy get off to an equally killer start in 2014 with One By Two. Such a pity the soundtrack got a raw deal on the marketing front.

Music Aloud Rating: 8/10

Top Recos: Khuda Na Kasta, I’m Just Pakaoed, Sheher Mera

With its sing along-ish folk tune and a matchingly light-hearted treatment by Shaan Rahman (particularly loved the staccato harmonium/accordion notes and mandolin), Mandaarame is a fun listen, neatly sung by the composer with Job Kurian. Ee Mazha Megham is of the Thattathin Marayathu kind – sweet melody that is kept short enough to have you wanting more of it. The arrangement starts off soft, adorned by some glorious flute phrases off and on, before switching to rock mode in the last one minute. And the icing on the cake is Remya Nambeeshan’s beautiful rendition. Mounam Cherum Neram too has an instantly endearing melody that is complemented beautifully by the composer with a soothing background that sees some nice touches like the sarangi. Hesham Abdul Wahab and Rinu Razak are spotless with their singing, Hesham in particular producing some brilliant improvisations towards the end. The alternate version of the song titled Sneham Cherum Neram is different only in its unplugged orchestration; and that this one has Hesham presenting more of his alaaps. The soundtrack’s best is the one where Shaan joins hands with his favourite partner, Vineeth Sreenivasan. Kaattu Mooliyo’s groovy tune gets a fabulous arrangement led by the saxophone. The backing vocals add an additional layer of allure to the already commendable rendition by Vineeth.

In some ways Ohm Shanthi Oshaana is like a reprise of Thattathin Marayathu – simple, mostly short, strongly melody-oriented. And the result is another winner from composer Shaan Rahman.

Music Aloud Rating: 8/10

Top Recos: Kaattu Mooliyo, Mounam Cherum Neram, Ee Mazha Megham

The Punjabi-ness of London Thumakda has enough life in it to help mitigate the very familiar Amit Trivedi sound it carries about it. Labh Janjua does an expectedly exuberant rendition of it with Sonu and Neha Kakkar in tow. Badra Bahaar starts off on a majestic brass section before turning on the déjà vu mode, but some fabulous arrangement from Amit ensures that you are grooving to it soon. The composer makes some deft use of strings here, a combination of rock guitars with classical style guitars (Sanjoy Das at work I suppose) and sitar playing out some lovely abheri/bhimpalasi raga flavoured bits. The composer himself does the vocals in this one. O Gujariya is spunky enough to work well as a party track, and party song specialist Shefali Alvares has the vocals section neatly covered alongside Nikhil D’Souza. Only the other day was I saying that Arijit Singh has now sung quality songs for pretty much every leading composer, and people pointed out that ARR and Amit Trivedi are left. Well the Amit Trivedi part gets taken care of in Taake Jhanke, a happy singalong-ish track built on a guitar-led rock base. The singer is at his reliable best rendering Anvita Dutt’s lines, joined well by the (uncredited) backing vocalists around the title hook.

Jugni and Kinare belong to the Udaan line of songs. Jugni more so, with Anvita’s lyrics implying a flight into freedom and a fairly comparable song structure. The fact that Amit himself sings the song adds to the feeling. In Kinare however the composer brings more variety into the proceedings, the sitar and trumpet in particular add a fab new element to the song. Mohan Kannan is flawless as ever singing this one – a pity he doesn’t get employed much by other composers. Amit sticks to a minimal synth background in the short melancholic Punjabi piece Ranjha, letting the debutant singer Rupesh Kumar Ram take the centre stage. Which he does in style, with a heartfelt rendition. And that leaves us with the song of the soundtrack – Harjaiyaan. A song that clearly belongs to the league of Pareshaan and Shubhaarambh. A gradual, haunting buildup to that title hook, adorned en route by the dotara (I assume, by the Bengali folk feel it evokes) playing over an ambient synth-strings background, and the sudden eruption of percussive elements just after the hook, joined by the trumpet and some more intriguing sounds (awesome bass line as well) in due course. And nailing the singing part is Nandini Srikar, returning to Bollywood after over a year (singing that is, she did the vocal arrangement for Dhuaan from D Day) with ample assistance from the (once again uncredited) backing vocalists (backing vocals have been done by Nandini herself apparently).

Queen. Amit Trivedi treads familiar soundscapes and yet produces an engaging set of songs. That’s three top soundtracks in Hindi just a month into 2014!

Music Aloud Rating: 8/10

Top Recos: Harjaiyaan, Taake Jhanke, Badra Bahaar

You can listen to the soundtrack at the end of the review (link via @Prakshid)

The overdose of techno elements makes the Punjabi dance number Harry’s Not a Brahmachari a cacophonous affair. Good job by the vocalists Divya Kumar and Jazzy B though. Not that much of all this would matter in the discotheques. The Original Song version isn’t much different in its effect, just that the techno elements are presented slightly differently. Oh and that’s not all, there is also a Remix! What value it adds in this case though, I have no clue. The second dance track is more imaginatively handled, Pritam reprising his own Pyaar Karke Pachtaaya but this time with lyricist Mayur Puri turning it into a married man’s woes – Tauba Main Vyah Karke Pachtaaya. The arrangement features some fab use of shehnai, built around the wedding template. On the vocals, Shahid Mallya is in top form delivering a well-nuanced, energetic performance. The rap-styled wifely rant by Poorvi Koutish is annoying at times though. The Punjabi Version has the lyrics more Punjabicized, and Arif Lohar in the lead, otherwise follows the original version pretty much. Desi Romance is a curious concoction – a breezy Pritam-standard melody that takes on techno-laden remix-y twists in between. Suchi and Arijit are flawless in their singing, Suchi being particularly brilliant.

Where the music of Shaadi Ke Side Effects really scores though is in the other half. Pritam gets the movie’s main man Farhan Akhtar to croon Yahaan Wahaan, a rendition in which his voice is interestingly devoid of the characteristic rough edges. And then there is a very likeable melody that is given the right treatment by the composer. Farhan sounds more like his usual self in the Reprise Version which features a spruced up arrangement, neat electric guitar solos and all. With its festive arrangement rich on brass and violins and Nikhil Paul George, Neeti Mohan and Mili Nair’s fluent rendition of the groovy tune, Tumse Pyaar Ho Gaya is one delightfully addictive package! In the end comes Bawla Sa Sapna – Swanand Kirkire’s cute story of Sapna and his son Sapnu, conveyed exceptionally well by Mohit Chauhan. In keeping with the fairy tale theme Pritam lends the arrangement a dreamy quality led by the strings, and an interesting Caribbean undertone. You would think the song couldn’t sound any better, but you would be wrong. Because The Children Come To Sing led by Diva and give a thoroughly endearing rendition of the same piece, especially because the lyrics go so beautifully with the kids’ voices. Finally there is Ahista Ahista by guest composer Mikey McCleary and written by Ankur Tewari. Superbly arranged by Mikey, making splendid use of strings. Where it gets a raw deal though is in Farhan Akhtar‘s singing of the song.

Shaadi Ke Side Effects.  Pritam trumps his own work in the first part (Pyaar Ke Side Effects) with a well-crafted set of songs.

Music Aloud Rating: 8/10

Top Recos: Bawla Sa Sapna, Tumse Pyaar Ho Gaya, Yahaan Wahaan

After that very well-made debut LP last year titled Doppelganger (which we had reviewed by the way), Delhi-based musician Sahej Bakshi aka Dualist Inquiry is out with his compilation titled SUBTERRA. Apart from a “Dal Lake” remix of his own Isoterra from Doppelganger (that has some neatly imagined santoor incorporation), the album features seven other electronica outfits – Nikhil Kaul or Frame/Frame, DJ Su Real, DJ Jai Nanok Vaswani, Rohan Hastak’s Big City Harmonics, Sanaya Ardeshir aka Sandunes, Madboy/Mink of Saba Azad and Imaad Shah, and Sky Rabbit frontman Raxit Tewari’s Your Chin. The artwork for the compilation has been done by Harikrishnan B Panicker.

The album is up for free download, on Dualist Inquiry’s bandcamp page seen below. Just give your email ID, get the download link, groove to the music!

 

So as we hinted to you on our fourth birthday, here’s unveiling the first of our initiatives for this fifth year of Music Aloud, our Mixtape series in association with OKListen. What we plan to do as part of this, is to pick and choose a playlist comprised of our favorite from OKListen’s collection in a particular genre, and make that playlist available for you at a much discounted price. And we start with one of our most loved genres, Indian classical/folk-based fusion. We shall be coming out with a new playlist every month. The intention is essentially to provide you with means to sample an artist’s work, and buy more of his/her music if you appreciate. Even in this playlist most of what you pay shall go to the artist. OKListen accepts payment through international credit cards too, apart from the Indian credit and debit cards (just so people outside India know).

You can access the compilation by clicking here. 

Those who follow us on any of our channels would know that we are particular about the quality of music we recommend, and you have that guarantee with these playlists as well. Then again, you always have the song previews on the page to be doubly sure. This opening volume of our series features songs from Oikyotaan, Agam, Baiju Dharmajan, Sanjay Diveccha, Kaav, La Pongal, Karnatriix, Praashekh Borkar, Ravi Iyer, Emergence.

So here’s hoping that you will extend your support to this idea of ours as well, and help us introduce you to a lot more new and exciting artists from the independent music world!

Oh, and free beers to @cookydoh and @to_soham for their help with the artwork. Thanks a ton guys!

PS: We were supposed to announce this on 13th Feb itself, but could not due to some technical issues at our end. Apologies for the delay. But better late than never, and all that.

Continuing with our efforts to expose our readers to new artists and quality music, we announce another monthly series, something we have christened On Sound Cloud 9. As you may have guessed, this series would involve us compiling a playlist of nine soundcloud tracks every month. Since we already have a themed thing going in mixtape, these soundcloud playlists will be cross-genre – classical to fusion to blues to rock, anything goes. And from across time – you might find songs that are as long as two years old – the idea is to shed some light on songs that deserve a listen irrespective of when they came out. And from across languages. Not necessarily original compositions either, might just be covers we find interesting. To sum up, a fairly random mix of good music.

And if you know of any artist/track that you feel needs to be heard more, you are always welcome to give us a shout on twitter, facebook or response[at]musicaloud[dot]com. For now, hope you will enjoy this opening edition of On Sound Cloud 9!

Over a month since we launched our Mixtape Series with OK Listen, and we have received an awesome response from the lot of you! Hence, here is presenting volume 2 of the series, Metal Aloud. Though the title says metal, the playlist features songs from across rock and metal bands. The bands featured in this edition are:

Parvaaz

Sifar

Scribe

Goddess Gagged

Blakc

Heretic

Bevar Sea

Slain

Zygnema 

and Skrat.

So.. Enjoy the compilation then.

You can access the playlist clicking here.

Thank you all for an awesome response to the opening edition of On Sound Cloud 9! We promised a monthly series, and in keeping with that here is volume 2. The mix is once again random, and the download permissions are as set by the individual uploader.

As we said before, if you know of any artist/track from soundcloud you find deserving to be heard more, do give us a shout on twitter, facebook or response[at]musicaloud[dot]com!

Enjoy the music then!