Milliblog Weeklies – India’s only multilingual, weekly new music playlist. Week 18:
On Apple Music | On Saavn | On YouTube
15 songs this week. Apple Music has all 15 songs. Saavn is missing Sona and Ram’s Tori Surat and Kammara Sambhavam. YouTube playlist is missing a lot of songs – Tori surat, Prabhu ji (since it’s inside a jukebox; embedded below), all 3 songs by Pineapple Express (embedded as a jukebox below) and Kammara Sambhavam (inside a jukebox – embedded below).
A note on each song in the playlist.
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Tori surat (Indipop, Sona Mohapatra, Ram Sampath): Sona and Ram’s 2nd song from Lal Pari Mastani is a spritely reimagination of Amir Khurso’s Tori surat ke balhari. The sound is energetic and Sona’s rendition adds a special zing to Ram’s already punchy sound.
Prabhu ji (Hindi, High Jack): The best song from High Jack’s soundtrack, IMO, is Prabhu ji composed by Anurag Saikia. The one by Asees Kaur is my pick, with a lovely classical tune layered over frenetic dubstep. The lyrics by Akarsh Khurana add to the quirky mirth & irreverence.
One Kiss (Calvin Harris & Dua Lipa): Uptempo with a deep house beat that Calvin effortlessly slays. Dua Lipa’s easily recognizable voice and rendition lifts the song to a new high that’s already brimming with instant likeability.
Cloud 8.9, The Mad Song & Uplift (Progressive Metal, Uplift EP): The name Yogeendra Hariprasad may not fit Pineapple Express’ pulsating outburst of metal, but Yogi does. With the band’s vocalist Karthik Chennoji Rao, they produce a mesmerizing carnatic-metal melange in Cloud 8.9, with no lyrics (only free-form carnatic scatting!) but with an awesome mix from Bhargav Sarma and Ritwik Bhattacharya’s guitars, Arjun MPN’s flute, Shravan Sridhar’s violin and particularly incredibly drums by Gopi Shravan. The Mad Song is one similar lines, but comes loaded with a catchy Kannada hook, with Karthik’s splendid vocals. My favorite from the band’s debut EP is the title song, with what seems to me like Dhanashri raaga. The melody is straight out of composer Vidyasagar’s repertoire but the way the band layers in the metal is astounding!
Kangan (Punjabi, Harbajan Mann): Kangan is proof of the Oye Hoye man’s staying power! Composer Jatinder Shah mixes a heady Punjabi tune over what sounds distinctly like a Middle-Eastern base, and the combination works very easily.
Ghar se niklate hi (Amaal Mallik): The original by Rajesh Roshan is a cult classic. But the reimagination by Amaal Mallik is a very competent effort – it retains the soul of the original but packaged in a significantly modern way (though with new lyrics that seem shoehorned).
Vachaadayyo Saami (Telugu, Bharat Ane Nenu): The soundtrack of Mahesh Babu’s latest is standard-issue Devi Sri Prasad material. But this song stands out easily featuring Devi’s splendid sense of rhythm – jaunty and enjoyable, this case.
Doore Vazhikalil (Swathandriam Ardharathriyil): Jakes Bejoy, after a spate of substandard Tamil soundtracks, seems to be getting his mojo back! This song’s melody has a haunting Middle-eastern tinge. Shreekumar Vakkiyil’s soft voice contrasts interestingly with the ominous tune.
Thaa thinnam (Malayalam, Theevandi): Half of composer Kailas Menon’s job is done when he picks Job Kurien to sing! The melody built around a catchy very-Kerala hook gets a new life in Job’s excellent singing even as Kailas does an especially good job with the interludes.
Orey nila (Malayalam, BTech): Rahul Raj can compose such immersive and likeable melodies in his sleep now given his recent track record! That he has Nikhil Mathew singing it makes it even better, besides the beautiful flute-led outro. The video is a particularly good watch too!
Title song (Malayalam, Ranam): The 2nd song by Jakes Bejoy this week! Saint TFC’s Tamil-English rap is a clear highlight, with Jakes’ rhythmic backgrounds working well alongside. Ajaey Shravan, Jakes Bejoy & Neha S Nair’s main vocals are interesting, as is a jadhi-led interlude.
Njanoo ravoo (Malayalam, Kammara Sambhavam): The best song from the 3-song soundtrack. Gopi’s melody and interludes are enchanting, though the comparison with Sairat zaala ji is inevitable. Haricharan is his dependable self, while Divya S Menon adds a lovely dollop to the tune.
Va va vo (Malayalam, Mohanlal): Yes, that’s the film’s name! Tony Joseph’s music is pleasant, with a delightfully soft reggae’ish rhythm, a dreamy flute tribute to Omana thinkal, and excellent vocals particularly from Nithya Menen.