Thanks, Kalyan!
--- In [email protected], Kalyan K <kalyan...@...> wrote:
>
> Chord!! Thanks for the beautiful review..:-)
>
> Thanks,
> Kalyan K.
>
> On Mon, Jan 11, 2010 at 9:14 PM, ichord <purev...@...> wrote:
>
> >
> >
> > First of all, I do not support piracy. I wanted to wait until Tuesday
> > before hearing the songs and eventually writing a review, but the weaker
> > part of me got the upper hand this time and I caved in. Please forgive me. I
> > assure you that I did order the CD from Amazon and awaiting that in the
> > mail.
> >
> > If there's a distinct trend that I see in ARR's music over time, it's his
> > reduced emphasis on musical adventurism and acrobatics and increased
> > emphasis on subtle musical forms within a composition, often perceived
> > subjectively as "not living up to his own standards". I don't agree with
> > that notion since it's ARR who recreates his own standards with each
> > release, just like destroying his own ego before a compositional session.
> > The burden of responsibility to recognize this is up to the listener, who
> > may be challenged and confounded by expectations and biases, which is normal
> > and natural. Again, these are trends only and just from my observational
> > standpoint...nothing is black and white or exclusionary. This trend may be a
> > function of two forces: 1)Age (emphasizing more of a gestaltic perspective)
> > 2) Progressive evolution as part of a unique artist whose mindset is bent on
> > conceptual expansion and really trying hard to avoid being typecasted,
> > escaping from his own set trails to form new and distinct roads. The music
> > of VTV is a major step in AR's evolutionary process as an artist who's never
> > content with the status quo, or even his own previous success. Remember,
> > it's the artist over the entertainer, and in VTV, it's the pure artist
> > within ARR, even beyond musician, that is in the driver's seat. I will not
> > comment on the lyrics since I don't understand Tamil.
> >
> > 1) Omanna Penne:
> > Steady and soothing.....a composition that oozes with spiritualness and
> > introspection. I love how AR juxtaposes the Western rhythms with the
> > Carnatic raagas first by the female voice, and weaving throughout the
> > stylistic Nadaswaram, whose roots are deeply carnatic, but expressed so
> > universally in this track. Wonderful singing by Benny and the Nadaswaram
> > ending is surely a page from the Rehna Tu continuum outro. Nothing fancy in
> > this composition, but the feeling left behind is extrenmely elevating and
> > cleansing. Fantastic start. (8/10)
> >
> > 2) Anbil Avan:
> > ARR at his playful best. He must have had a lot of fun putting this track
> > together. There is nothing heavy or mindblowing about this track, but what
> > makes it work for me is the joyful innocence in the melody and the very
> > interesting sonic arrangements using a Shehnai type sound juxtaposed with a
> > church organ sound. The musical interlude that has this also has some very
> > nice, quick chord progressions that defy banality. The melody sticks easy
> > and would be a fun song to dance with. (7/10)
> >
> > 3) Vinnathaandi Varuvaayaa:
> > Wow......what a minimalistic impact! Minimalistic impact is something that
> > I have been missing from Rahman's ouevre in recent films, but here it is, in
> > its full glory and form. Using a minimalistic sound template for a title
> > song is quite bold and outside the box, but boy does it work for me!!! The
> > acoustic strings (guitar? harp?) along with vibes and small bells create
> > such a unique, peaceful ambience in this song that transports me into a
> > dreamlike world. Beautiful string additions in the mid section only add
> > depth to amazing vocals, chords, and heartfelt emotions in this gem, but
> > likely to be underrated track. Delicate, subtle, dreamy, ambient, soft,
> > restrained, soothing, warming.....I can go on and on..... Again, a track
> > doesn't have to be complex and adventursome to be powerful....this is the
> > genius of AR....he can create such a powerful ambience using minimal
> > quantity. (8/10)
> >
> > 4) Hosana:
> > There is no other composer in India who can arrange better than AR. In this
> > song, many of AR's strengths are showcased.....sound structure, layered,
> > thick, yet uncluttered arrangements, symphonic textures, haunting melody,
> > soothing ambience. The sound layers are so clean and crisp....that beautiful
> > strumming acoustic guitar is so nice!!! Also worthy of metion is the high
> > toned Scottish flavored flute and the subtle mandolin rhythms in sync with
> > the main rhythms, punctuated by the pulsating string sections. The female
> > choir with the angelic expression is one of the most beautiful choir sounds
> > I've heard. This song sticks to you and won't let go. A complete masterpiece
> > IMO that is one of the best songs that ARR has composed in recent years.
> > (9/10)
> >
> > 5) Kunnukkul Kannai
> > Another playful techno oriented track with some pleasing electronic
> > arrangements. The unique feature of this track for me are the string quartet
> > type rhythmic accents throughout that give this youth song a very Western
> > classical feel. Relatively simple by composition and sound, but again, a
> > nice dance number with good melody. Rahman not living up to his standards on
> > this one? Well, that's up to you to decide, but it's an enjoyable one for
> > me, though If I had to pick my least favorite in this soundtrack, it's this
> > one. (7/10)
> >
> > 6) Mannipaaya
> > I was looking forward to this song ever since I knew Shreya and AR would be
> > singing it, a romantic duet. The song has everything I could hope for in a
> > romantic duet....breathtaking melody, beautiful soundscapes, sophisticated
> > arrangements, gentle ambience, subtle symphonic artistry. I love the piano
> > backdrop and so many of the symphonic instruments can be heard in
> > isolation...oboe, clarinet, tympany, flute, etc. A very subtle masterpiece
> > in my opinion, that can only be appreciated by those with a certain musical
> > sensitivity and emotional open-ness, and of course, who like mushy romantic
> > numbers! The melody is quite drawn out with long contours, so it's not a
> > song that's easily melodically remembered the first time go, but certainly
> > sticks with you with repeated exposure. Strengths of this track...mood,
> > delicate arrangements, subtle artistry, certain melodic sections, innocence,
> > sincerity. One of the album's highlights for sure and I hope it's picturized
> > well (9/10)
> >
> > 7) Aaromale
> > Wow.....just wow!!! AR takes a page from the Pink Floyd era, but nothing
> > here is lifted or copied. Sensual, stylistic, clean acoustic guitar playing
> > along with passionate and mindblowing vocals by Alphonse make this track
> > simply mindblowing. What is so unique about this song is again, minimalistic
> > impact with sound, instruments, but also chordal architecture.......there
> > are only 2 alternating chords being used in the entire song!! Can you
> > believe it? The chorus part which begins with "Susti Susti" harks on raaga
> > Bhimpalas to create a magical effect....imagine...juxaposing a 2 chord
> > bluesy guitar riff with a raaga based melody.....only AR....only AR.... The
> > added percussions increasing the tempo only add to the intensity and
> > sinisterness to this pathbreaking and out of the box track. And man, what an
> > ending...the way the vocals fade out......oh man!!!! The ambience created is
> > just out of this world....it leaves me stunned, mesmerized, in awe.
> > (10/10)!!!
> >
> > General highlights of this album include minimalistic impact, originality,
> > very sophisticated and classy arrangements, incredibly strong ambience and
> > sound quality, and soothing influence. I don't think anyone will be
> > complaining about sound issues in this album like we saw for Blue, as ARR I
> > think paid a lot more attention to that aspect this time around, perhaps
> > keeping our "Blue" feedback in mind??? The soundtrack also has a wide range
> > of styles, sounds, musical forms that keep you interested. Because of the
> > highly international, situational, and somewhat unconventional nature of the
> > songs, these will only be appreciated most with time, post movie visuals,
> > and by those who are most open minded about music in general. Those who only
> > like the antara-mukhda type film songs will find the listening experience to
> > be awkward and just too esoteric. Also, except for the first track with
> > carnatic raagas, most of the rest of the album is void of obvious ethnic
> > Indian sounds/styles/forms, consistent with the international and more
> > universal musical approach. This again, may be a turn off to some. Like all
> > new ARR albums, esp. ones like this that have some unconventional and new
> > elements, it will take time to grow.
> >
> > My overall rating....9/10. A distinct highlight of ARR's career...one of
> > the very finest musical packages you will find anywhere in the world today,
> > not because of its complexity, wizzardry, or dynamics, but for sincerity,
> > ambience, mood, minimalism, subtlety, and overall spiritualness. A nice
> > instrumental track addition would have made this album perfect for me.
> >
> >
> >
>
