How sad is this the reviewer likes to go back for MJ's voice and not AR's..
--- In [email protected], Bivin Chandra <bivinchan...@...> wrote: > > What can be said about AR Rahman that hasn't been said before? Here's > something: His vocals don't cut it. Honestly, it's upsetting to have a > legendary composer push himself as a vocalist when there are great singers > around. A minor clarification - 'great' does not mean Sukhwinder Singh. Also, > it's obvious Rahman's trying very hard to put himself out there as a > vocalist, since he has 'handpicked' songs he has sung on.Percussion is king > on Jiya Se Jiya, a lovable tune dampened by AR Rahman's voice right from the > start. Khalballi is a wonderful example of how some music should released > without vocals. Ever wished you could choke someone by just thinking about > it?Meherbaan from Ada's soundtrack is a classy song. The music is perfect, > and after a long time Rahman's voice sounds bearable. Surprisingly, it sounds > alright even when he goes higher on this one. Dil Se has kick*ss music, > there's plenty going on and it all fits right in. For those who > long for the Rahman of yore, you'll find some of him in here. Ek Mohabbat > 'Vote For Taj' is like the other songs on the compilation... well composed. > Almost every track is Rahman attempting to show his mellow side, which is > terrible for this collection because there's very little here that actually > 'connects'. By the time Pray For Me Brother comes on, you're ready to toss > the CD case at someone just to start a fight out of sheer boredom.The > fabulous Bombay Theme overshadows everything else on this compilation. Not > only has Rahman done the music a huge favour by not singing, but the > composition is also excellent. Bombay Theme is the only song on this > collection that is full of soul. The rest is stuff that will be praised to > death because it has Rahman's name on it.The instrumental version of Pray For > Me Brother sounds better than the original, but may very well be played while > you're having free lunch at a wedding. It's pretty pointless to have > a Club Mix of Jiya Se Jiya, and it's even more stupid to make something like > that, but then everyone wants to make money, yes?My only beef with Rahman is > that his singing is dull. He's bloody good at composing music, and manages to > sing with sincerity. But sincerity does not always ensure quality.'A Journey > Through Anthems', the CD says, but how many of these tracks can actually be > called 'anthems'? Sorry to break it to you, but except for Bombay Theme, > there is nothing else on this CD that comes close to being an anthem.What use > is a compilation that doesn't feature some of the artiste's best work? Is it > an attempt at showcasing his lesser known songs? Or is it an effective > money-squeezing exercise, considering fanboys will buy it anyway?The biggest > question here is, how many musicians who sing about peace and hugs actually > care? Do musicians and music labels not know everyone cannot be fooled and > some people can actually tell when an artiste is > cementing his popularity among the public that doesn't know better? It's > really not that hard to recognise a poseur, y'know?VERDICTMaybe the best of > Rahman's work has been kept aside for future compilations. Neat way of > ensuring the cash never stops flowing, but too obvious. And way too > pretentious.. I bet all your Michael Jackson CDs have been dusted, so just > continue spinning 'em if you want to listen to songs about peace.RATING: 2.5/5 > http://buzz18.in.com/reviews/music/music-review-connections/139782/0 >
