Kadal - Music Review

The expectations on the music of every Mani Ratnam movie is sky high.Thanks to Ilayaraja for setting that standard even during his initial days. Rahman simply carried that to next level since Roja and never looked back till Ravanan and Kadal is no different.

Sithirai Nila is a lulabby rendered by Vijay Yesudoss is a nostalgic trip to ARR's "Azhagu Nilave from Pavithra, Kangalil from Uzhavan" days during when he used to experiment cool synth tones with simple soulful melodies. Vairamuthu's lyrics is at its imaginative best and for some reason reserves his best for Mani Ratnam these days. 

Moongil Thottam is cracking melody sung by Abhay Jodhpurkar and Harini. If at all Ilayaraja and ARR work together, the music probably will sound just like this song. The melody is very Ilayaraja'sque especially patterns like overlap singing with ARR orchestration. Overlapping singing to the lines in the end of the song "Moongil Thottam, Mooligai Vaasam, Neranja Mounam, Nee paadum geetham !!! Pournamni iravu, panivizhum kaadu, othayadi patha, unkooda podi nadai" is mesmerising. Vairamuthu's lyrics again is again its scintillating best. Abhay, after his outing with ARR in Godfather's Kannada remake, croons this song beautifully. Harini, once a highly successful associate of ARR, features in his album after a long time. This totally addictive song and the superb choice of singers makes it the best song of the album to me. MAGIC is one word !!!

Nenjukulle is the face of Kadal's music till now and gone viral soon after it is performed in MTV. Shakthishree Gopalan is a true find. Brilliant tone and character of her voice adds a fresh flavor to this cleverly tuned/orchestrated melody set to Vairamuthu's highly imaginative poem/lyrics. This beautiful humble melody is orchestrated with superb strings backed by beautiful guitars for a simple foot tapping rhythm. Simple is sweet.

Adiye sung by Indie pop singer Sid Sriram is innovative in its orchestration to a simple christian song. This typical Rahman fusion was sung brilliantly in the lines of Aromale is penned by Madhan Karky who carries his father's legacy pretty well. Karky is the most sought out lyricist in Tamil cinema today for his innovative usage of words which ranges from science to literature. After making debut in Shankar's movie, his association with Mani is only going to grow his confidence to the next level. Cracking song !!!

Anbin Vasale sung by well Haricharan along with Chennai choir. This christian devotional song's impact heavily relied on the choir and was packaged well. This Song reminds portions of his Kadam Kadam and Azadi from "Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgotten Hero" is probably a situational one to fit the movie. 

Magudi starts off with ever green percussion Thavil, which featured predominantly in Rahman's music during his initial days, slowly transforms into a trance song.This short song sung by Aaryan Dinesh Kanagaratnam is likely going to be used as a story telling song.

Eley Keechan sung by the master himself, a total surprise in the package for its ultra modern-techno innovative orchestration, captures the joy of Thoothukudi fishermen. A "John Denver blended with local folk" style is adapted to brand the singing of fishermen and brilliantly sung by AR Rahman. Karky has again excelled in lines even though the lines are domindated heavily by the music. The lines "Ema seela namma kadalamma alli tharra, aama seela ava vala veesi sirikura" are repeated in between the song is super catchy and a typical Rahman punch. A fun song that fits and exceeds the expectations for its freshness that brings along is sure to rock the charts for a while.

Verdict - A fresh, innovative, trend setting and experimenting album from Rahman which any typical Mani Ratnam - AR Rahman combination would promise, glorified with brilliant choice of singers, is all set to rule the charts for a long time. My favorites are Moongil Thottam, Nenjukulle, Eley Keechan, Adiye, Sithira Nila, Anbin Vasale and Magudi exactly in that order. Yes, I love this entire album !!!