Milliblog Weeklies – India’s only multilingual, weekly new music playlist. Week 31:
On Apple Music | On Saavn | On YouTube
One more packed musical week – 28 songs! All 3 platforms come up short, though Saavn is the best among the 3. Please do read the notes and do check out the ones that are YouTube-only (Njan Communist, Hope For A Change and the 2 Coke Studio songs) and the Apple Music-only (Achint & The Khan Brothers)
A note on the songs in the playlist.
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Pardesiya (Soorma, Hindi): Ehsaan Noorani (making his singing debut!!) opens Pardesiya and hands it over to Shehnaz Akhtar, starts off like a prayer and literally turns into one when Hemant Brijwasi joins in! A lovely song from the trio!
Reppalaninda, Pillaa Raa & Manasunipatti (RX100, Telugu): I got curious about this film’s music earlier because it was credited to Tunemeone! I then figured it’s a studio in Hyderabad and the composer is Chaitan Bharadwaj. Pillaa Raa is my favorite from the promising soundtrack, with Anurag Kulkarni breezing through the energetic ballad. Reppalaninda sounds a lot like DSP’s sound, with that catchy rhythm and excellent singing by Haricharan. Manasunipatti blends the violin notes so well with the captivating rhythm, with Haricharan and Umaneha in great form. The bridge from the anupallavi to pallavi is particularly very good. Chaitan shows a lot of promise in his debut. Would love to see how he’d build on it now.
Shaakuntle Sikkalu, Kannu Kannu & Ele Vayasina (Naduve Antaravirali, Kannada): Very listenable soundtrack by Manikanth Kadri, Read the full review here: http://bit.ly/2lSgj3j
SoulMate (Justin Timberlake): Justin’s latest album, Man Of The Woods, was just in February! A new single, already? The single is a nice-enough, groovy-enough, catchy-enough affair. The laidback rhythm and superb production (by Drake’s Nineteen85) is top notch.
Chan Kitthan (Indipop, Punjabi): The dependable combo of Rochak Kohli and Ayushmann Khurrana strikes yet again! Taking on a well-loved classic song, Rochak makes a solid attempt to give it his own flavor, and Ayushmann’s earthy delivery, as usual, is the strongpoint.
Tere Naal Nachna (Nawabzaade, Hindi): Looks like T-series is loading this film starring non-names with one starry song after another! Badshah takes on Yo Yo Honey Singh’s preferred route of making ‘spirited’ music and rolls it along with Sunanda Sharma effortlessly.
Cha Cha Charey (Party, Tamil): 1st surprise – the music is NOT by Yuvan Shankar Raja. 2nd surprise – thankfully, it is by the underrated Premgi Amaran. This single could have easily been composed by Yuvan – one groovy, glitzy party track sung with verve by brothers Suriya and Karthi.
Kaadhal Gaana (Raja Ranguski, Tamil): Yuvan’s very competent recent soundtrack. Read the review here: http://bit.ly/2u5dmRF
Kabiskabaa Coco – The Gibberish Song, Thittam Poda Theriyala & Gun-In Kadhal (Kolamaavu Kokila, Tamil): Fantastic soundtrack by Anirudh. Read the full album review here: http://bit.ly/2IW4Ics
Vaa Vaa Kaama, Kalavarame (Tamizh Padam 2, Tamil): The ultimate ‘EngaLa vechu kaamidi keemidi seyyaliye?’ question! Full album review here: http://bit.ly/2tYSZ7C
Dheemthana Thomthana (Happy Wedding, Telugu): Shakthikanth Karthick, who was very good in Fida, but only ok’ish in Nela Ticket, produces a neat single here. He adds a nice and groovy mod version of the traditional ‘mangalya dharanam’ wedding tune, in nadaswaram.
Haalu Haalu (Oru Pazhaya Bomb Kadha, Malayalam): Composer Arunraj, who recently impressed with Snehapoompadathe, from Ningal Camara Nireekshanathilaanu, has an instantly catchy song here. The repetitive musical phrase and the energy of the song makes it a winner!
Spark a Fire Songs (Shalmali Kholgade, Indipop): Shalmali Kholgade and her friends Riya, Simran, Pratiksha and Neha are having fun and it shows! A song straight out of the Veere Di Wedding vibe, but was missing in that film’s soundtrack. Easy-on-the-ears, Mikey McCleary sound.
Ninnadhe Hessarannu, Manase & Roo (Yel Yel Aledaru) (Trataka, Kannada): Composer Arun Suradhaa’s songs (4th composed by Shivaganesh) easily lift this little-known soundtrack. Ninnadhe Hessarannu is Vandana Srinivasan’s show, as much as Manase being Nandini Srikar’s splendid show. The former’s breezy and likeable melody, and the latter’s sweeping, mysterious sound with a wonderful, ominous chorus make them memorable. Roo is the most commercial and filmy of the 3 songs, but is a great listen as well, with a foot-tapping lilt and a psychedelic vibe.
Njan Communist (Indipop, Malayalam): The tune and sound is very reminiscent of Shaan Rahman’s repertoire. Not too take anything away from Hesham Abdul Wahab, he employs Kollam Ajith’s violin very effectively and produces a punchy melody, and sings it too really well. The video, produced almost like a movie in one music video, is a great watch too.
Hope For A Change (Tapas Roy, Indipop): Tapas Roy and Joell Mukherjii’s mandolin-guitar duet is a heady, mesmerizing affair. Tapas, as always, literally makes his mandolin talk and sing, within the tune’s structure. The highly engaging composition is Yanni’esque.
Hichki, Saavan Mod Muhara & Railgaadi (Achint & The Khan Brothers, Indipop): This is one of the most impressive pop albums I have heard in recent times. The way Achint Thakkar layers in his eclectic fusion on The Khan Brothers’ earthy Rajasthani folk is phenomenal. Railgaadi is a simple and straight intro the kind of fusion he attempts, but it comes out best in Hichki, when Achint adds the punchy sound after the first half minute (Aavey hichki). The energy is even better in Saavan Mod Muhara, with Achint amping his orchestration significantly!
Pareek & Faqeera (Coke Studio Explorer): The prelude to the new season of Coke Studio Pakistan, called Coke Studio Explorer launched last week! It’s a 5-episode music travelogue where producers Zohaib Kazi and Noori’s Ali Hamza travel to different parts of Pakistan and discover folk music and singers. The format reminds one of Dewarists, while the local music artists’ collaboration seems straight out of MTV Sound Trippin’. The first is from the Kalash Valley, located in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, sung by Ariana and Amrina. The song, Pareek (meaning Let’s Go), is a folk love song that gets a superb electronic backing, in line with Zohaib’s musical sensibilities. The second song, Faqeera, featuring the voices of brother-sister duo of Shamu Bai and Vishnu is almost Rajasthani in sound and feel, given its Sindhi folk origin. Absolutely mesmerizing tune, and equally fantastic orchestration that accentuates the folk tune with its electronic sounds, benjo chords and dholak rhythm.