GEAR UP FOR THE LIST OF SOME OF THE EXCITING SONGS RELEASED THIS NOVEMBER 2021 - CHECK NOW!

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Angayar Kanni

She is a wonderful artist, with a terrific voice and impressive composition skills, plus she’s a Music teacher at a well-known university. Sajna Vinish did impress me a year or so go worth a fabulous Malayalam number for Onam, and this time she picks up a famous Carnatic Composition by ‘Isai Arasu’ Shri Dandapani Desikar and refurbishes it into something glorious. The song is set in Raag Dharmavathi and reminds us of another super Tamil composition “Ododi Vandhen Kanna”.  The Jazz flavor with some Middle Eastern percussions is where Sajna showcases her abilities and it sounds like a brilliant recipe in unison. This is what I always claim, that if there is one way we all need to protect our age-old arts, it has to be presented in a more enjoyable and consumable format for the current generation. Sumesh Parameshwar has produced and plays the guitars and bass and it is just good enough to cause a rush of blood to the head hearing the strumming especially the basslines. The track is also produced by Sajna Sudheer and Jose George with Thanuj being the man behind the concept and direction. The actors in the video are Devaki Rajendran and Thasveer Muhammed. Listening to Sajna deliver this, fills my heart with joy, as there is also a wonderful element of female harmonies as we approach the end of the track. In my honest opinion, this is a lesson to Bollywood musicians who want to remix a song, they could do themselves a favor by understanding how an original can be re-created with amazing flavors and styles.

Enna Petha Devadhaiye

C Sathya is quickly emerging to become a composer to stand up and notice as it is like a brand name I certainly trust to produce some excellent music. He himself has sung this one and I am pleasantly surprised by how lovely he sounds in this track. Uma Devi has penned the lyrics glorifying the mother-child relationship. The use of the Tabla alongside the Keys works best for me. There is a hint of the influence of Desh Raag and it is Sathya himself who plays the Piano and Rhodes. Manikandan is spot on the bass guitars and all other stringed instruments which come into play especially the second interlude for some wonderful notes is played by Amal Raj. He also plays the violin solo and Shadab Rayeen of Bollywood fame has mixed and mastered the track. The track is not just a few melodious lines, with even the stanza composed with some distinct variations and lines

Hey Chaka Chakalathi

AR Rahman keeps himself busy with some musical projects on and off and this Bollywood director is a loyalist who always employs the Mozart of Madras for his musical scores. Atrangi Re is being released in Hindi and Tamil as well and the album has some decent numbers with this number is sung by Shreya Goshal being the biggest hit of the lot. The tune seems to have influences of the famous Carnatic Raagas Anandhabhairavi and Kaapi. Kareem Kamalakar is the star man with some fabulous solo on the flute that comes in multiple scales, styles, and layers. It is then one irresistible show by Shreya in a way only she can, and it is astounding how brilliant she sounds and gets every word’s pronunciation spot on. Yugabharathi has written the Tamil lyrics, and Hiral Viradia is the music supervisor. Rhythms play a vital role in the track thanks to Lakshman, Raju, Krishna Kishore, Ranjith, Hariprasadh, Tumba Raja and Vedha. The song also has a huge similarity with ‘Kuchi Kuchi Rakkama’ from Bombay. Mamabalam Siva plays the Nadaswaram in the first interlude and Balesh plays the Shehnai in the second interlude and Pradipto Sengupta plays the Dotara. There is the Chennai Orchestra & Sunshine Orchestra Conducted by Jerry Vincent with Score Transcription by Karthik Manickavasakam who have contributed too. All the additional Rhythm Programming is by T R Krishna Chetan, Kumaran Sivamani, Nakul Abhyankar. AR Rahman's usual sound engineers have worked in full flow here viz. Suresh Permal, Karthik Sekaran, Santhosh Dhayanithi, Dilshad Shabir Sheik, Hriday Gattani Riyasdeen Riyan, Aravind, Sivakumar S, Pradeep Menon, Aravind MS, Krishnan Subramanian. The track is Mixed By T R Krishna Chetan and Mastered By Suresh Permal.

Ilaiveyil ilaigalil

The first two words are uttered by Chinmayi and you can sense that it is set in Reethigowla raga. The veena plays along and, you can hear the similarity with “ Avala manam konda ragasiya” from Maestro’s “Chinna Kannan azhaikkiran”. Ronnie Raphael has composed, programmed, and arranged the track and after the opening lines, it’s Sumesh Parameshwar’s guitars and mandolin that set the instrumentals afoot. Sumesh also as usual provides terrific basslines. Sunil Kumars percussions are fantastic, sort of reminding me of “Thenmerku paruvakatru” by AR Rahman. The introduction of the Mridangam adds a wonderful element with Josy Alappuzha’s flute playing the second layer. Sathyaprakash wonderfully complements Chinmayi in this garden variety track which sticks very close to the raga framework. The track is Mixed and Mastered by Renjith Viswanathan. Josy also plays the saxophone with RP Bala writing the Tamil lyrics.

Kaadu

Salim and Sulaiman have been rocking the world with indie music and as much as they are brilliant composers, they also produce some of the best music created by many youngsters and well-known musicians. ‘Bhoomi’ is a great project that happens every year bringing out the best of Indian music from across India, and this year they have really spread their wings. Ricky Kej who has already won the Grammys before is nominated a second time and he is the song’s composer. Charan Raj is one of my favorite musicians today who spends all his time in the Kannada movie industry, and he is one of the producers and also vocalists here for this track. Arivu who took India by storm with “Enjoy Enjaami” has written the lyrics and also sung and rapped. The track is produced and arranged by Ricky, Charan, and Vanil Veigas. With Salim- Sulaiman being the executive producers. The rhythm and percussion section plays a key role in the track and it is all arranged by Darshan Doshi, with drums and percussion played by him but the Indian percussions we hear being played by Satyajit Jamsandekar & Sachin Bhangre. Rasika Shekar is a brilliant flutist and she has been featured many a time on this website, well here she is again playing the solo on the flute. The track talks about the environment and the importance of forests in our lives and the costs of destroying them. Rushad Mistry’s bass guitars support effectively with all the harmonies, flute, and percussions in the background. The track is mixed and mastered by Aftab Khan with assistance from Vatsal Chevli and recording by Hariharan. It is interesting but wonder why Bagpipes were used in the track.

Kaatrile Mudhal Isai

I have been hearing a lot about Ron Ethan Yohann for a while now but more so from a BGM angle, which to my mind is tougher than just songs. I loved his work in ‘Oppam’, Game Over’ and ‘Project Agni’ in Netflix’s Navarasa. This song is from a movie called ‘Vanam’. Ron and Shweta Mohan lend their vocals for this one that starts off with some very tantalizing Keys which are also played by the composer. Ron also plays the Synths and arranges and programs for the track. The texture, tempo very much remind me of Maestro’s “Oh Butterfly”. Napier Peter Naveen Kumar is just brilliant on the bass guitars and Joshua Sathya plays the Ukulele and acoustic guitars. The track is produced by R Rajesh, with recording, mixing, and mastering by Pon Abhishek Dharshan. Shweta’s entry into the verse further enhances the melody and she performs elegantly providing very subtle but tangible vibrato. The second interlude is a great score, with Keys, Strings, and the Harmonica. The lyrics are penned by S. Gnanakaravel. The whole song resembles the style of Ilaiyaraja’s works in the period after 2000.

"Magizhini - It's not my fault"

Govind Vasantha is that unstoppable force now, and as he motors along with more and more successes, he continues to adorn our lives with great musical content. Keerthana Vaidyanathan brings her A-game for this one and it probably will end up being one of the best vocals performances of 2021. The subject is a bold one showing love in a way that only now that we are slowly getting used to as a community, but kudos to the director VG Balasubramanian, his team, and actors Anagha and Gouri G Kishan.  especially for being true to their art and profession. The singing is aided by Keba Jeremiah’s exquisite guitars. Madhan Karky’s lyrics are extremely effective in conveying the message. Nikhil’s flute solos are subtle in the background and there are elements that make me assume that there are “Keeravani” raga influences in this track. There is a similarity to AR Rahman’s “Ennai Kanavillaye Netrodu” as well. The second interlude portion is just rocking literally, with electric guitars and rhythms showing his pedigree from Thaikkudam Bridge. The track is mixed and mastered by Rajan KS and the recording engineer is Avinash Satish. The last 90 seconds or so is very classical in delivery by Keerthana and that combines well with the background instrumentals.

Naan Pogum Thisaiyo

It's those boys from Sri Lanka again, after a terrific hit number called “Madhu Radhiye”, we have their next single sung by Humsini Rajesh. After the opening lines by Humsini, we have Krish Manoj and Nirosh Vijay amping up the tempo with a couple of beautiful energized lines. Smith Asher has composed, arranged, mixed, and mastered the track with Rahul Raj penning the words. The song is simple in structure but it has elements that keep you hooked on, and the programmed instrumentals too never fail to impress. 

"Orr Vali Uyire"

Niluckshan composes and produces this stunning tack sung by one of my favorite singers for reality contests in recent years, Rajaganapathy. We have Praveen Mashushanka on mixing and mastering duties. The Sarangi is something that is not picked for a track that usually is a love song but here the opening solo works well maybe because the tracks talk about pain and grief. Rajaganapathy has emotive vocals that also deliver the same message of pathos which also is effective thanks to B. Dev Samrat’s lyrics. Slowly as the song heads forward the Sarangi becomes a crucial component. The song lacks the usual structure having a Pallavi and anupallavi but the simple yet melodious lines do the trick.

Pallaanguzhi

He’s been impressive up until now with a couple of tracks that have been featured on this website before and this one involves one of my favorite Tamil singers at this moment. Well when you have these two together, then you have an output that is destined to excel.  Guna Balasubramanian’s melody is tailor-made for Malvi Sundaresan’s voice. Godfray Immanuel’s acoustic guitars are stroked delicately right through adding the element of romance. Lalit Talluri doesn’t need any introduction and he is at his usual best on the flute solo in the interludes, while Keith Peters’ bass lines keep the foundation of the strong and structured. Jegab Kaviraj is the lyricist, and hearing these beautiful words through Malvi’s vocals is just honey dripping non-stop. The track has some innate similarities to Vidyasagar’s “Azhagooril Poothavale”. The track is mixed and mastered by Visakh NB, with Hari also as a recording engineer.

Paramapadham(Snake & Ladder)

This is the name of the track and simply skyrockets to the top of the charts this week, leaving its 300+ competitors on the sidelines. This Tamil song is rich in every musical sense and I hope it inspires many bands and composers to look deeper within and try and get their best out in the open. Since 2019 December I have been following the work of Chennai Street band and their previous album had some pleasant and likable tunes which I featured, but if there was one complaint to nitpick it was that they lacked a little bit of variety. ‘Safarnama’ was a recent track released by the band and it already was an answer to my doubts, as the track had some lovely fusion bits and took me by surprise. Now comes this new track and I was floating in pleasure listening to the excellent live instruments and arrangements. The brass section and bass guitars are mind-blowing good, and even before the first words are uttered by Srihari Jagannathan, the lead vocalist, you will fall in love. Srihari also has produced and written lyrics that have an excellent message about life’s vagaries and even ridicule our superstitious beliefs. Adithya Gopi on bass guitars is having a ball as he does some finger magic which is irresistible. Goutham Healer’s hi-hat drum strokes at the beginning and right through on drums are splendid. Akshay Yesodharan and Renin Raphael play along with the acoustic guitars and every element keeps you hooked on and inspired. I just loved the line “oru thenga mela vekkara nambikkai ya , un mela vechhi paaru”, which translates into “ Just show the same amount of trust you keep on a coconut, on yourself” which is a sly below-the-belt hit on our superstitions. Just get up and before grooving and dancing clap your hands for 305 Horns who are playing the live Brass section, and it is one heck of a display, which took me back to the days of “Sususudio” by Phil Collins. Mike Cordone on Trumpets and Jesse McGinty on the Tenor Sax and Trombone keep the track’s energy ebullient. Let us not forget Sebastian Sathish’s role on the Synths and Keys and it becomes more apparent during the moments of silence from the brass section. Balaji Gopinath has arranged the brass and this role is indispensable. The outro is terrific with synths coming to take over and the engineers play a vital role as well with Vivek Thomas on mixing and mastering, with mix assistant Rahul Narayan and Lijesh Kumar on the recording.

Sidharipoga

This was a  wonderful surprise that really brought a huge smile to my face. I have never heard of Cheran or his compositions but as the song played out it looked it something coming from a seasoned campaigner. The Keys, bass guitars, harmonies were all wonderful bits and in various layers added to the beauty of the song. Issac Philip is the producer and Vignesh Jeyapal is the lyricist. The interlude has a wonderful humming giving the effect of a pop song, probably sung by Cheran himself. The guitars lay in the background, but once the humming ends, the Keys and the Violin solo in the foreground are beautifully played and arranged. The outro ending on the violin is an excellent topping on this cake. The track is mixed and mastered by Daniel Jefferson and Lokesh Vijayakumar is the song recording engineer.

'Thaniye'

After a terrific Tamil version of a Malayalam song last month from ‘Kurup’, we have one from the forthcoming release called ‘Minnal Murali’. Shaan Rahman has been on the down-low for a year or so, after the stupendous year of 2020, and this is a wonderful testament to that skill and finesse Shaan possesses.  He has arranged, composed, and programmed the track with lyrics written by Veronica. The strings employed are classy and elevate the impact of the track and Sravan Krishnakumar is credited with this wonderful addition to the song. Sreekanth Hariharan is gifted with a fabulous voice to instantly impress and he uses that to great effect in delivering the slow melody here. Haripriya alters between scales with immaculate ease especially in the line “Netru iravil oru kana, deva deva thoothana”. The track is mixed and mastered by Balu Thankachan, but the Tamil vocals alone are mixed by Midhun Anand. The keys are a constant presence and some of the other instruments also are programmed and arranged delightfully.

'Yetho Yetho'

Songs from other regional languages being also written in Tamil is a nice trend these days because movies are being simultaneously released in all these languages. Micky Meyer is hugely popular in Tollywood and this song is from Nani’s new movie. Chaitra Ambadipudi sings this one with absolute control and the scales she reaches are unimaginably high. Yet this is style and every note is delivered with authority. The English dance/EDM-styled segment goes very well with the rest of the song as well. K Soundararajan is the lyricist, and the song has an elaborate stanza as well which is as intriguing as the opening lines. It’s the vocal performance that stands out.