Kumki Stomps over Thaandavam and Maatran's Audio

Recently, there have been three high profile audio launches in the Tamil Music industry. D.Imman's Kumki with it's Raja'istic vintage feel pitted against GV's Thaandavam and Harris's Maatran!

The good thing was that all these songs could be instantly assessed on the first hearing. Hearable, Good, mindblowing, Familiar, Pathetic.....etc...etc...

First we will run through GVP's Thaandavam.

Being his 25th movie in a short career span, people had a lot of expectations on this album. Personally, i believe it did not rise up to the occasion. May be GV is caught up with his new found Bollywood commitments (Gangs of Wasseypur, Joker! ). The album lacks the magic which Veyyil, Kireedom or Madrasipattinam had....Oru Paadhi Kadhavu,Yaaradi Mohini and Adhikaalai Pookal are all passable. Haricharan, Rahul Nambiar and GVP have sung these songs very well. GV's voice is getting better and better every album. Uyirin Uyire's forte is the vocals section courtesy GV, Saindhavi and Sathyaprakash. But this song gives you most of the satisfaction and lacks in some areas. Nothing to write about 'Will you be there'. must be some cliched requirement for Amy Jackson. SPB croons the "Shiva Thaandavam" . Noisy arrangements and heavy processing.... Personally,did not like it much. But the Veteran's vocal energy reminds of his grandeur and mastery.

On the whole, GV's Thaandavam is decent but fails to get people's feet moving. RATING: 3/5

 

Decent but not inspiring

The second competitor is Harris Jayaraj's Maatran.

K.V. Anand and Harris return after Ayan and Ko, to continue their Tamil cinema partnership. Everyone must have had a greater idea about the perception of HJ's music after the 'Harris Jayaraj for Dummies' which went viral on social media.

Ayan had a 'Vizhi Moodi'. Ko had an 'Ennamo Yaedho'. Maatran IMHO misses that ideal chartbuster.
Rettai Kathirae could have been the case study for the 'Dummies soundcloud', cause it falls into the Krishh template. Nothing worth writing about!

Kaal Mulaitha Poovae makes Javed Ali sound a bit like Udit Narayan. Nice to hear Mahalakshmi Iyer's voice after a long time.

Theeyae Theeyae is in the 'Honey Honey' and 'Aga Naga' genre. But the song is rich in tones and voices. It packs a punch and will be popular on the dancefloors. Tonality and programming are the strengths for this song.


Naani Koni and Yaaro Yaaro were very Ordinary and disappointed me despite being rendered by some of my favorite singers - Karthik, Vijay Prakash and Shreya Goshal.

Verdict: This album is nothing compared to other KVA-Suriya-HJ combos... RATING: 2/5

Tyre "Maatran" Socks "Maatran"...LOL

Kumki made a lot of positive news due to the alliance between Prabhu Solomon and Vikram Prabhu (Prabhu's son). The audio launch was graced by Superstar and Ulaganayagan. D.Imman got the stage for his album and he does not disappoint one bit.

The songs have a very heavy Raja Influence. Some are on the borderline of 'inspirations' but the feel of the songs take us back to the eighties at times.....

Heavy appreciation to all the singers...Ayayayoooo Ananthamey sung by Haricharan is truly mesemerizing.
D.Imman's Onnum puriyala is very pleasing to the ears. The 'Raja' bass lines in the background are superb.

Sollitaley Ava Kaadhalae will be the biggest hit in this album. The arrangements reminded me of Roopkumar Rathod's 'Tuj mein Rab dhiktha hai'... but the tune is very catchy and Shreya Goshal's voice is like divine nectar. Ranjith shows his command over melody (usually known for heavier songs).

My favorite track in this album is Nee Yeppo Pulae sung by our Aaromale Alphons Joseph. After hearing his voice in a progessive rock track, it was refreshing to hear the singer in a folk track. And the octaves and notes reached by him can only be experienced while hearing the track. Semma High! Semma Powerful!

"A Lady and the Violin " is a nice instrumental, but comparisons are inevitably made with the Isai Gnani....

Kumki's audio is nice to hear....Forget the similarity and enjoy the Isai Gnani influence...
This album stomps over Thaandavam and Maatran like a Wild Elephant!

RATING: 4.5 / 5

The Wild Elephant triumphs!

தாம் தூம் (dhaam dhoom) Harris Jayaraj?Ada paavi!!!

Before i write this review, let me make one thing clear to everyone who might be reading this review......In my opinion Harris Jayaraj has stopped giving genuine good compositions after Laysa Laysa, which was one of his premier movies, so u can imagine how much mediocrity has prevailed since then, not to mention the frequent (peeeeeeeeeeep peep peep CLICK!) i.e XEROX technique....I've tried my best to listen to all the songs of Dhaam Dhoom with an unprejudiced mindset to give a fair assessment (man i had to get drunk for that[:D])....lets begin with.....

1.SAKIYAE (Bombay Jayashree, Krishh):

Frankly i'm bored with the cliche usage of BJ by HJ in his music, but she has sung this song well...but the start of this song and the main Sakiyae line is very similar to Pani Thuli from Kanda Naa mudhal, and certain usage of instruments seem to sound very familiar......the chord transitions sound effect are sounding like Illayaraja's a keys at times.....the pitch transition at the end of the song is pretty ok.....Krishh bores us with his same feeble voice and his chorus can get monotonous......Perhaps this track is one of the best in this album......RATING:6.8/10

2.AZHIYILAE (Haricharan):

This song starts off well with Haricharan singin it beautifully, but the tune is so predictable and even tone deaf people can figure certain parts out.....This song is like a modern devotional Bhajan at times.....Great Potential was there in this track, but for some reason HJ decides to keep this song short and i guess he didnt work too much on this track....wasted oppurtunity!!!....
RATING:6.9/10

3.ANBE ENANBE ( Harish Raghavander):

This is song is totally obnoxious for the sheer reason that the first basic tune in this song is the same as Loosu Penne from Vallavan!!!! i couldnt believe it , but its true.....This is song however is boosted by Harish Raghavander who has sung a decent song after a long time.....I'm sick of the same choir girls....HJ music sounds like goin to a same church every sunday!!!However i like the usage of violin in this song.....Latter half of the tune is better but still not impressive on the whole..RATING:5.3/10

4.UYAALALO (Kailash Kher, Sujatha):

Song starts like Varaagha Nadhi from sangamam......then we hear an avg folk tune with some gibberish in between.....beats like Adangakka (anniyan)......The punjabi 'Oho's sound like they have been pasted from Rang De Basanti.....lol! Basically as i said its a very average track.....Kailash Kher has sung it with a lot of energy...his tamil pronunciations are gettin better and better....Listen to this track once, thats all!!! RATING: 3.5/10

5.THIKKU THIKKU (Sayanora Philip, Benny):

When you hear this song, u think about Maaricham from Sillendru oru Kadhal till the humming stops, then a nerrupae sikku mukki style start beginning....the thikku thikku line's tune is similar to Hello miss imsaiye(unnale Unnale)'s second stanza........ but the ' thom thom' line gets really irritating....first G.V prakash copies Akon 's Smack that in polladhavan, and now its HJ, who tries to fool us by changing the beat alone......The second fiddle interlude sounds like HJ's song Para para pattam poochi from Majnu......The Positives of this song are however the vocals....Benny seems to be maturing as a singer with every song...Sayanora Philip has got one of the most sexiest voices i've heard....She adds the extra punch to this song......This is a decent Dance track though with the Grind'like beats....RATING:5/10 (2 bonus points for vocals)[:D]

6.PUDHU PUDHU (Suchitra,Benny,Guna):

What happens when HJ tries to stop xeroxing and tries to make an own genuine composition?
......Simple answer.......this can get you Freakin KILLED!!!!!!!!!!!! This is one of the worst songs i've ever heard and unfortunately HJ seems to not taken this from anywhere but his mental workhouse!!!!Seriously HJ, either u have no music in you or u were drunk along with Suchitra during the making of this song......yes folks, thats how Suchi sounds......like a girl mutterin rubbish after her first Hangover due to 6 shots of tequilla!!!!!!!!!!! The vocals in this song can seriously cause a rash!!!!itch! itch!........i understand that when u mix different styles , u get Fusion, but all HJ achieves with this song is Confusion!!!!(especially the sudden yogi b'like bit in the second stanza).
Even HJ's hardcore fans would ask him 'HJ WHAT WERE U TRYING????'
If anyone has the patience to listen to this song fully for the first time without causing a road rage scenario, they are great!!!My rating system cant give a zero so..........RATING:0.1/10

OVERALL VERDICT:

• This album seriously disappoints most people.....2 or 3 potential tracks are there but totally wasted ......Probably Sakiyae and Thikku thikku will enter the chartbuster list for a while.....

• Dhaam Dhoom's music will appeal to only those people who are HJ worshippers or have those who dont have much knowledge in music.

• Thank God that Jeeva didnt have listen to this album especially that 'Pudhu Pudhu' song.........

• On the whole,my rating for this album will be 5/10.