Milliblog Weeklies – India’s only multilingual, weekly new music playlist.
Week 80: On JioSaavn | On YouTube
15 songs this week. JioSaavn is missing 4 – Manase Muttaala from Aadi Lakshmi Purana, Maayathe by Charles Nazareth, Rathrimazha from Porkkalam and Anuraga Kilivathil from Shubarathri. YouTube is missing 4 too, but not the same 4 
Siriki – Kaappaan (Harris Jayaraj) – Tamil: Nothing seems to have changed in Harris’ music and parts of it continues to sound like the faux-folk music that A R Rahman concocted when he began composing for films. Many of the phrases in this song sound like bits and pieces of Harris’ own songs and that has been comfortably and adequately addressed as an advantage than a disadvantage by fans. And yet, this does sound good, enhancing the Harris-Suriya track record. The steady rhythm that doesn’t deviate, the quality of singing work in its favor, besides the simple, hummable tune.
Nee Vaanavilla, Onnumilla, Oru Naal, Aadai Theme – Aadai (Oorka, Marti Bharath) – Tamil: Oorka’s film debut song is clearly modelled on a classic rock template. And roping in Shakthisree Gopalan seems perfect given her range and handling. The ending, in particular, is very good, where the searing guitars pave way for a somber finale. Onnumilla too is by Oorka and like in Nee Vaanavilla, the lyrics are worth noting (by Bharath Sankar). The song continues the band’s rock sound and is racier, with a pulsating finish. Oru Naal, composed by Marti Bharath and sung by Pradeep Kumar, is a fantastic composition too… easily makes you wonder who this Marti Bharath is! Marti Bharat, of course, is Chennai-based producer and keyboardist who founded the band Sapta. Oru Naal isn’t typical of Sapta’s electronic music, but the musical flourishes are as good. In Pradeep’s accomplished singing, the moody track is a great listen. Aadai Theme is (finally) by Pradeep Kumar! Incredibly poignant and sweeping orchestration featuring a string quartet from Budapest. I believe there’s another song composed by Pradeep Kumar in the soundtrack (called Thoppi) that is sung by Vijainarain (who has turned composer recently, for the Santhanam starrer Dagaalty) that will be released after the film’s release. Really looking forward to that one.
Naanum Neeyum & Endha Poovum – Unarvu (Nakul Abhayankar) – Tamil: Naanum Neeyum clearly depends on singer Karthik’s fantastic skills and he delivers, expectedly. Nakul’s composition soars after the pallavi using that beautiful nadaswaram interlude, though I couldn’t help hearing the chorus voice pronouncing it as ‘unarvu’ instead of ‘uNarvu’. Nakul’s tune for the anupallavi is very good too, backed by a racy guitar backdrop. Endha Poovum is a simple, catchy song that’s easy on the ear. Nakul’s singing is very good, though Ramya Bhat pronouncing ‘Thannan thaniyai’ as ‘Thannan ThaNiyaai’ irks.
Seetha Kalyanam – Ranarangam (Prashant Pillai) – Telugu: Director Sudheer Varma has worked extensively by composer Sunny M.R (Swamy Ra Ra, Dohchay and Keshava; and I working with Ajaneesh for the Telugu version of Kirrak Party made sense since the Kannada original was by the same composer). So, it’s a surprise he chose Prashant Pillai for Ranarangam – not that I’m complaining at all (more like wondering – doesn’t Sunny want to focus on his solo career too, and is he content with working with Pritam in Bollywood?). Prashant’s reimagining of Thyagaraja’s classic melody set in raaga Shankarabharanam is typical of his fusion – with a fantastic nadaswaram layer in the backdrop and an ambient chorus. Sreehari K singing tops the song, of course.
Manase Muttaala – Aadi Lakshmi Purana (Anup Bhandari) – Kannada: I first noticed the 4-song soundtrack of the film 2-3 weeks ago on Saavn, but before I could listen to them over that weekend, the album vanished! Then, one song, Boom Boom, surfaced as a single – I didn’t like it much. Now, I see 3 songs on Saavn but they are marked as ‘unavailable’. The 2nd single from the film, Manase Muttaala, is a much better affair by Anup. It uses a whimsically paced tune that goes from Latino ballad-style to a faster vaudevillian’ish sound and back. The singing, led by Vijay Prakash, also features Supriya Lohith, Aishwarya Rangarajan and Anup Bhandari himself. Vijay, of course, is brilliant.
Maayathe – Charles Nazareth (Malayalam): Charles Nazareth’s music is an enchanting experiment that works precisely because it traverses an unusually constructed tune. Gowry Lekshmi’s part in the melody is in striking contrast to Charles’ own parts and that interplay is stunning! The electronic sounds that envelop the tune are beautifully imagined too!
Kaatum – Luca (Sooraj S Kurup) – Malayalam: Yet another impressive song from Luca! Sooraj sings this one too and given its pulsating sounds, fits perfectly for the melody. Not just that, he features as the singer in the video too! Do I see a future for Sooraj as an actor too? Of course
Rathrimazha – Porkkalam (Sunil Pallippuram) – Malayalam: The melody seemed like Vidyasagar’s Thankathinkal from Indraprastham all over again! Brindavana Saaranga/Hamir Kalyani raaga? It continues to be wonderful, though
Anuraga Kilivathil – Shubarathri (Bijibal) – Malayalam: Do I sense a trace of Sahana raaga in the melody? That could be my trigger to like it instantly. Glad to have Bijibal back in the composing mix.
Imagination – Foster The People: Adequately trippy and psychedelic! The singing goes with that too, with a chorus that soars equally well.
Señorita – Camila Cabello, Shawn Mendes: This is pop aimed at a massive billboard hit and one that delivers too, with a sensual video to boot!