Special 26 Music Review

Special 26 Music
Music Direction : M. M. Kreem, Himesh Reshammiya
Lyrics : Irshad Kamil, Shabbir Ahmed

What I expected? :  M.M Kreem, of course some good melodies.

Tujh Sang Laage by KK and MM Kreem is beautiful, the serene Sufi-esque tune blended elegantly into qawaali-sh mode with feel good Hindustani arrangements, good lyrics and great singing! Good hear!
Gore Mukhde Pe by guest composer Himesh Reshammiya and sung by Aman Triikha, Shabab Sabri and Shreya Ghoshal is at most a very good song, what with a template Punjabi dance tune, lyrics and constant beats, it still manages to give a good romantic hear.!
Kaun Mera rightfully appears in three versions, love ballad, soft rock and unplugged sung by Chaithra Ambadipudi, Papon, and Sunidhi Chauhan respectively, each as mesmerizing as the other, Papon's version being my favorite! The short, effortless composition back lifted by simple arrangements and sonorous singing volunteers for three great hears.!
Mujh Mein Tu, essentially a powerful composition sung to perfection by Keerthi Sagathia and MM Kreem in two versions respectively gives another couple of great hears, ode to the brilliant melancholic tune, alluring jazz-rock-fusion arrangements(in Sagathia's version) and great lyrics.! Must hear(s) no. 2!
Dharpakad is situational, lyrics are quirky and definitely demands a repeat for the singing of Bappi Lahiri!

Verdict : M M Kreem steals the show with his sublime compositions which impress big time as standalones. Himesh is apparently a bit down in comparison, even then the album is definitely a deal worth every penny which is not to be missed.!

Must Hears! : Kaun Mera, Mujh Mein Tu(All Versions)

AVOIDABLE<POOR<BELOW AVG<AVERAGE<GOOD< VERYGOOD <EXCELLENT!<OUTSTANDING!

Race 2 Music Review

Race 2 Music
Music Direction : Pritam Chakraborty
Lyrics : Mayur Puri, Prashant Ingole &Yo Yo Honey Singh

What I expected? : Coz Pritam is in excellent form and the movie is the sequel to a musical chart buster, an out and out modern commercial outing.!

Lat Lag Gayi has Benny Dayal and Shalmali Kholgade kick starting the procedures with this not-so-appealing techno dance track filled with "lat-lag-gayi", "yeah-ah-ah-ye" loops and template beats. Might work hugely on screen but as standalone track, just good.
Be Intehaan by Atif Aslam and Sunidhi Chauhan, the Pehli Nazar substitute works in vain even with the feel good tune and standard arrangements mainly due to below average, ear throbbing singing by Atif and Sunidhi being utterly pointless. The song could have done wonders if it was sung by some other singers, say Arjit Singh and Shreya Ghoshal, but for the Atif tag it can actually work with the singing being fakely termed as 'soulful' even when the track remains average.
Remix is a fast paced DJ gimmick.
Be Intehaan(Unplugged) by Rahul Vaidya is mesmerizing, still a but conventional. Better than the original anyway!
Party on My Mind is ear splitting techno dance and right from the start, I'm counting "I've heard this before" parts of the song(technically 'Inspirations') hence the song is just worth a hear even with the energetic singing by KK, Yo Yo Honey Singh and Shefali Alvarez. Another one which might work on screen.
Remix remains remix.
Alla Duhai Hai by Atif Aslam, Vishal Dadlani and Anushka Manchanda is at last terrific, terrifically addictive rock-techno which follows the lines of Race Saanson Ki, but keeping its own identity engaging you from start to finish blending a huge deal of sound engineering techniques into the fair tune with powerful singing! Good hear and a thumps up!
Remix has a false tempo. Not very appealing.

Vedict : Not for Alla Duhai Hai, Race 2 was a pretty average fair for me. Even then it doesn't elevate the prospects of the album, since Alla Duhai hai comes under the situational song category. No doubt Pritam has worked on the album well, there is a fair deal of DJ ing done, but something is amiss and hence the album is worth a hear, nothing more. Just like Players in 2012, Pritam starts with a dud in 2013!

Must Hears! : None

AVOIDABLE<POOR<BELOW AVERAGE<AVERAGE<GOOD<VERY GOOD<EXCELLENT!<OUTSTANDING!

Akaash Vani Music Review

Akaash Vani Music
Music Direction : Hitesh Sonik
Lyrics : Luv Ranjan

What I expected? : Hitesh Sonik proved himself promising in Coke Studio Season Two. So expecting a good deal of melodies.

Pad Gaye Ji has KK and Sunidhi Chauhan at the helm of affairs, singing a slow rock composition which is rightfully pleasant on ears, mainly due to the endearing singing by both singers. Along the lines I felt a bit of Amit Trivedi in it, but might be my imagination, dunno, it was a good hear!
Crazy Lover : WTF was that?!! Stupid techno.! Stupid lyrics.! And what the hell was Vishal Dadlani and Sunidhi Chauhan doing there!? Skip!
Bas Mein aur Tu sung by Nikhil D'Souza  has a fair slow melancholic melody in it with the good singing giving it an upper lift! Nice hear.!
Bas Mein aur Tu Reprise has better arrangements, nothing more.
Rumani by Thomson Andrews and Shalmali Kholgade holds your attention for its out of the box approach in the singing and composition, the lazy-cool rendition, head swaying tune and the whimsical jazz-techno-rock arrangements.! Good hear!
Tera Mera Naam is another slow rock, this time by Shafqat Amanat Ali, of which's interludes I loved more than the singing or the tune. Average and worth a hear.

Verdict : Hitesh Sonik's debut gives an impression that he has worked more on the arrangements than the basic back bone of his songs. Good arrangements but average tune works against most tracks. I loved Rumani, and Pad Gaye ji was somewhat good too, but overall an average fair, which was sort of a let down. Could have delivered better, may be next time Hitesh!

Must Hears! : Rumani

AVOIDABLE<POOR<BELOW AVERAGE<AVERAGE<GOOD<VERY GOOD<EXCELLENT!<OUTSTANDING!

Table No. 21 Music Review

Table No. 21 Music
Music Direction : Gajendra Verma & Sachin Gupta

What I expected? : Good expectations from Sachin Gupta.

If you lie you die by Jaspreet Jazz and Neeraj Shridhar is the situational techno title track with occasional  voice over by Paresh Rawal. Nothing appealing.
O Sajna gives a better listen with Gajendra Verma and Puja Thaker singing a carefully crafted melody which is slow and fervid as a whole giving a good hear!
Mann Mera by Gajendra Verma turns out to be an average romantic number.
Both Remixes, of O Sajna and Mann Mera were unnecessary.

Verdict : Sachin Gupta disappoints with O Sajna being the only saving grace in this otherwise below average album.

Must Hears! : None

AVOIDABLE<POOR<BELOW AVERAGE<AVERAGE<GOOD<VERY GOOD<EXCELLENT!<OUTSTANDING!

Rajdhani Express Music Review

Rajdhani Express Music
Music Direction : Lahu-Madhav, Ritesh Nalini

What I expected? : Nothing

Koi Umeed(Western) by Hitesh Prasad is astoundingly a 10 minute long track with soft rock, fusion arrangements, melancholic slow feel and apt singing which is greatly appealingly to an extent but gets monotonous at some point. Good hear!
Koi Umeed(Indian) takes the tender ghazal route, brilliantly sung by Shahid Mallya with minimal Indian arrangements. Great hear!
Armaan Jagathi Hai even with the 80's styled background holds your attention, mainly due to the light melodious tune and feelful singing by Shaan! Good hear!
Tera Zikr(Female) showcases Madhusmita's passionate and intense vocals merged into a husky melodious romantic tune backed by simple but ample soft rock arrangements and good lyrics giving one hell of a track! Great hear!
Tera Zikr(Male) has Suresh Wadaker holding the mic which is as equally good as the other version, tender and a great hear!
Karta Hain Dil Se is definitely an age old romantic track, or it gives such a feel with Udit Narayan and the arrangements both in retro mode, something we usually gets in Mohd. Rafi songs, which is nevertheless good!
Mein Hoon Pathith is another old school track with assorted singers, slow and giving an average hear.

Verdict : This one belongs to that category of soundtracks "on which I don't have any expectations at all, but turns out to be immensely captivating.!" Rajdhani express has debutantes Lahu-Madhav and Ritesh Nalini churning out some feel good melodies rich in quality so that you tend to overlook the retro feel over them. Impressive work!

Must Hears! :  Koi Umeed(Indian), Tera Zikr(Female)

AVOIDABLE<POOR<BELOW AVERAGE<AVERAGE<GOOD<VERY GOOD<EXCELLENT!<OUTSTANDING!

Inkaar Music Review

Inkaar Music
Music Direction : Shantanu Moitra
Lyrics : Swanand Kirkire

What I expected? : Nothing

Darmiyan has certainly something wrong with it, don't know whether it is the lyrics, which is romantic, or the tune which is downright anthem-ish so that even Swanand Kirkire couldn't save it with his singing.
Inkaar(Theme) is a better listen with a nice brew of Keyboard, Guitars and Cello and the fabulous female voice.
Kuch Bhi Ho Sakta hai shows Suraj Jagan in his usual hard rock mode, catchy and nevertheless good!
Zindagi Ka Karobar by K. Mohan works well in blending that element of mystery to the fast paced, addictive composition, but with cliched arrangements.
Maula Tu Malik Hai by Shantanu Moitra and Swanand Kirkire tries hard to be appealing as a peppy sufi-sh song, but in vain.

Verdict : One of the weakest of Shantanu Moitra's works, he hasn't surely concentrated on this one. Average fair, with one or two songs occasionally appealing.

Must Hears : None

AVOIDABLE<POOR<BELOW AVERAGE<AVERAGE<GOOD<VERY GOOD<EXCELLENT!<OUTSTANDING!

Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola Music Review

Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola Music
Music Direction : Vishal Bharadwaj
Lyrics : Gulzar

What I expected? : From Vishal Bharadwaj, a bunch of quality songs which can be cherished for some long time.

Matru Ki Bijlee ka Mandola by Sukhwinder Singh and Ranjit Barot has been making airwaves already, the track being the quirky and engrossing title dance track which has quite a catchy and interesting orchestration with terrific singing, makes up for a great hear!
Khamaka by Prem Dehati is brilliant in every respect, the intelligent melodic tune, the sound, melancholic background, the choir like westersn chorus and Prem's tender and emotional singing mixed with very good lyrics. Great hear!
Oye Boy Charlie is definitely the craziest dance song encountered in recent times empowered by Rekha Bhardwaj, Shankar Mahadevan, and Mohit Chauhan singing their hearts out to this insanely funny piece of music back boned by striking desi orchestration which progressively goes up in level of interest! Great hear!
Lootnewale  just laps up the bizzareness of the soundtrack with Sukhwinder Singh and Master Saleem at the helm of affairs converting this to a total desi addictive stuff which demands multiple hears and a thumps up! Good hear!
Lootnewale Reprise by Sukhwinder Singh is just as good!
Shara-Rara-Ra  has been crafted around march-band arrangement setup with Prem Dehati singing this short and freaky track which totally gets you! Good hear!
Badal Uthiya is Rekha Bhardwaj magic all the way, her soulfulness heard throughout the simple tuned folk melody with Bengali lyrics and melancholic sound created by the use of sonorous Sitar all through the track! Great hear!
Badal Uthiya Reprise by Prem Dehati captures that somber feeling and emotion perfectly again!
Chaar Dina Ki  shows Pankaj Kapur, Imran Khan and Prem Dehati going bersek over another short band template which is nevertheless good!
Chor Police by Pankaj Kapur is in ditto mode as the previous track.
Nomvula by African Umoja provides the rave and interesting South African country music sound to the whole setup, which further increases the amusement!

Verdict : The soundtrack lives up to expectations and even when many tracks are highly situational, it manages to delight the listener with brilliant melodies like Khamka and Badal along with crazy stuff like Oye Boy and Lootnewale.! Vishal Bharadwaj comes up with a winner in this riveting and amusing soundtrack!

Must Hears! : Khamka, Badal, Oye Boy


AVERAGE<GOOD<VERY GOOD<EXCELLENT!<OUTSTANDING!

Mumbai Mirror Music Review

Mumbai Mirror Music
Music Direction : Anand Raj Anand, Amjad Nadeem

What I expected? : Nothing

Blunder by Rithu Pathak is kick ass, nicely orchestrated and energetically executed dance track with quirky lyrics.! Good Hear!
Mar Jawan Male by Sonu Nigam and Female by Sayanti Das, is one solid mesmerizing melody which takes your attention in no time and fixes you on the spot with the seeping emotion.! Grt hear!
Doom De Palakt and Govinda Ala Re are almost same, good and peppy orchestration with powerful singing.!
Thumka by Shreya is captivating due to the charismatic rendition of Shreya making this dance track a good hear.

Verdict : Mar jawan is excellent while all others are superbly composed and orchestrated. It came out of nowhere but Mumbai Mirror music is largely appealing!

Must Hears! : Mar Jawan Female

AVERAGE<GOOD<VERY GOOD<EXCELLENT!<OUTSTANDING!