Best Indian tracks of the week - 5th September 2021
This is the weeks best music from across the nation. Music from every state written in every language, composed as a part of Movies and by Indie artists is listened to and after analyzing more than 250 tracks released in the week ending 5th September 2021, I have rated and reviewed the 15 absolute best tracks in the country. This is truly India's ONLY multilingual music review and music curation page. Week after week , without any breaks you will get the review and links to the best work from musicians all over the country.
Find the full playlist of 15 tracks on SPOTIFY
1. Pensarte
Listen to this track and you will know the kind of talent that exists in the space o music today in India. This track is an automatic chart-topper and it gets one of the highest scores ever by me for singing. Sanjeeta Bhattacharya is probably the busiest artist today juggling a career in acting, modeling and music as we all would have seen her in recent ads by Colgate and Netflx's "Feel Like Ishq". Her greatest asset is her vocal delivery, and check her "Everything's fine" released a couple of years ago. Sanjeeta is a trained Hindustani vocalist but she is exploring genres of music that extend beyond geographical boundaries. Here she composes a soothing ballad and written in Spanish as Pensarte means "thinking of you". She credits Viayra Rivera Carino who worked with her in writing it. This track has Kaushik Manikandan on the guitar and Raag Sethi on the bass but they both play their role perfectly acting as the support cast to Sanjeeta's singing. This is a part of Compass Box Studio's Volume 3 collection of tracks produced by them and it has two more excellent tracks which I will talk about. I don't follow Spanish but I can sense hat she is singing it with impeccable diction and if you love music, none of the words matter. Sanjeeta takes you on a ride that has only ups and this is like a masterclass in singing and she must be applauded for composing this as well. Towards the end she includes the segment called "Zaidi Zaidi" which is apparently a Bulgarian folk tune and then you realize what the world of music has to offer. The team at Compass Box and Raag Sethi especially have to be thanked for bring such music to us constantly. The track is mixed by Protyay Chakraborty and Raag has engineered and produced it.
The two other tracks I loved were "Baarish" by Aariz Saiyed who happens to be a stand up comedian, film-maker and musician. This track is all about some splendid violins by Protyay Chakraborty, Jyotirmay Menon on the drums, Chirag Todi on guitars and Meera Desai on the back up vocals. Its a fun track that feels like getting drenched in a nice welcome rain.
Finally I love "We Shall Arrive" which is a sober serenading lullaby styled track composed and performed by Abhi Tambe from Bengaluru who was part of band called " Lounge Piranha". This is very much like an American Country song with Shankar Iyer in the guitar, Meera Desai on the backup vocals and Protyay once again creating some magic on the violin.
2. Paani
This is a very unique track which has elements you will want to focus on every time you hear. Madhav Agarwal has composed, written produced and performed. His vocals are just way too effective in capturing your attention and the message he wants to deliver is impossible to neglect thanks to the vehicle we call singing. The beats are very different and they almost feel like the tapping of the window or knocking of the door but the rustic nature of it works. The Baansuri played by Kartikeya Vashist feels like a remedy to all our sins and illnesses. There are even multiple layers to the Baansuri and it feels like you will surrender to its power. Kabir Agarwal is splendid on the electric bass and you can hear it all through. The portion where Madhav sings in falsetto is remarkable, and it sounds like a sufi styled AR Rahman track which is terrific compliment in itself. The video was shot by Bhumanyu Nehra featuring the flowy, eye-catching dance moves by Seher Noor Mehra.
3. Chukkula Melam
Mani Sharma is a man on a mission and he has been is terrific form with songs in my list every other week and the best part is that all of them show some diverse style. This is from the album " Sridevi Soda Center" and has Anurag Kulkarni is top-notch form. The track is mixed and mastered by SV Ranjith with recording by Vickey. The guitars, harmonium and the Tabla start things off and then it is all Anurag's show. There is quite a lot of programming on the keyboards and it all comes together well. The Shehnai in the interlude is splendid and it fills your heart with joy. Anurag sings the verse with terrific ease and I love how the song ends in the charanam and lands on the pallavi. Kalyan Chakravarthy is the lyricist and V Venkateswarlu is the music co-ordinator. The secon interlude is a rock interlude with the electric guitar and drums, showcasing Mani Sharma's potential.
4. Miles to Coltrane
Leave it to "The Revisit Project" when you want the best Jazz productions to come out of India. They are are band with some of the most talented musicians that India can be proud of and here they show you why. They have roped in Delhi based singer songwriter Chetan Dominic Awasthi a.k.a. Chezin and boy does he actually nail the vocals with Thor's hammer. The song itself is a dedication to Jazz geniuses of yesteryear, Miles Davis the trumpeter, and John Coltrane the saxophonist. Abhay Sharma is the on the sax here and he is a wonder who will just lift your spirits up with his performance. Not just that Abhay also is the man behind the lyrics and the composition of this track just like any of "The Revisit Project" creations. Chezin is on fire here right through as he reminds me of Michael Jackson especially his style of making these stylized vibratos especially the way he does after "Heard of Her". Karan Wadhwa is on his own trip making these splendid contributions on the bass guitar and Kanu Gangahar is on the guitar. Rythem Bansal is on the keys , and in the middle you will hear a super solo sax display by Abhay who simply sizzles. Vrnda Dhar is the female vocalist who is providing the back up here. Aditya Bhagavatula plays the drums and Varun Rajasekharan he percussions which all become very key to the success of this track. Mukul Jain mixes, records and masters the track and Navya Baranwal makes a debut for The Revisit Project as the person in-charge of making this animated video.
5. Mele Vaanil
Rahul Subramanian has been in the business of music-making for a while now , composing for many movie albums in Malayalam, and this one is a testament to his ability. Vijay Yesudas is the singer and he is the ideal choice for this melody. Nikhil Ram's flute interventions are substantial and perfectly timed along with the acoustic guitars and bass guitars by another stalwart in Sumesh Parameshwar. The strings section becomes an essential element of the song thanks to Cochin Strings constituting Francis, Erald, Jain and Josekutty. The background vocals of female chorus sounds lovely during the verse comprised of Badhra, Narayanani and Nanda, and there is quite a lot of lovely humming as well. Sai Prakash does a fabulous job of mixing along with Balu Thankachan on mixing duties. The track is engineered by Nandagopan V and the songs creative excellence emerges as a result of Rahul's programming and arrangements. Joe Paul is the lyricist and Vipin Lal plays the percussion.
6. Eventide
She is one of the best vocalists we have in our country today, let us not debate too much on that. Anoushka Maskey is the sizzler from Sikkim and once again proof that North East is the musical hub of India, if I may say so. She is a singer songwriter who can play the guitar and she just weaves magical threads with every note. Here she sings eventide which was composed by Anoushka and Cosmic Grooves whose original name is Pranay Bakshi, amusic producer from Mumbai. The song is about maybe a leaf out of Anoushka's book dealing with the dullness of life when dreams are placed on the back-burner. The bass guitars by Sahil Mathew which are fantastic all along in the second layer, and the drums along with the electric guitar sounds make this one enjoyable track. Swapneal Chatterjee is the music video director.
7. Vacation
Graduating from the level of just college students playing music Kitanu the 5 member band release their self-tilted debut EP with 3 tracks and I found "Vacation" to be the pick of the lot. All the composition, arrangements, recording and production are by the band. Ok when you read all this, just play the track and don't be confused if you hear the Sarod in the rock genre, well that is A+ for creativity and A+ for execution as well. Rohan Prasanna plays the Sarod with Omkar Raghupatruni on the electric guitars and they combine so well. Guru Ganapathi plays the drums with style and the buzzing bass guitars are played by Arman Handa. Siddhant Sarkar is the vocalist and he is par excellence delivering with passion words he himself has penned. The track is mixed Omkar and mastered by Marc Felish. At the 3rd minute mark enjoy the grooviness of the guitars and drums in the foreground with the Sarod playing backup.
8. Morning Star
Raise you hands to applaud one of the finest singer-composers we have in Anupam Roy. His greatest assets are how he can compose contemporary music, also infusing good old melody as well. He also can alternate between a bangla single and an English one and to me his music always resembles bengali kheer kadam with layers of greatness. If you notice, many english songs by Indians, have an unnatural american accent, but that is the only way it sounds good. However Anupam can sing these words with more of a Desi style but he still renders it beautifully and effectively and that is something. he has composed, written and sung this electronic pop. There is a lot of Lo-fi influences and the whole team needs to be congratulated like Shomi Chatterjee on mixing and mastering, Subhajit Mukherjee the producer, Sayan Ghosh who recorded the vocals. Gairik Sarkar has made the video. This is a total trance-like track that is worth your time.
9. Tu Na Aaya
Mansa-Elroy as they come together and create music, this looks like a solid team. Mansa Jimmy has written the lyrics and sung this beautiful number, and all the composition and arrangements come under the realm of Elroy Vincent's contributions. There is some influence of Raag Behag in my opinion, with a heavy focus on harmonies and strings section. The whole atmosphere cerated here makes me remember Lukka Chuppi by AR Rahman. Now that I think of it there could also be some element of Raag Maand somewhere in here. Angeline Vincent, Elna Maria Vincent Sangeatha Jacob, Vineetha Jacob, Megha Lijo, Santa Sebastian form the harmonies team. The amazing strings we hear are by Joy Joseph and Anson Francis. John Joseph plays the acoustic guitar, Swaroop Sunil is on the electric guitar and Rithik Valsan accompanies on the indispensable bass guitar. The Cajon is played by Rahul Shenai and while Fredy Johnson mixes the track, Krishna Prasad masters it.
10. Baavre Faqir
The very first sound f the Harmonium makes me think maybe this is set in Raag Bageshree , and even when Kanwar Grewal outstandingly soars into the higher scales. Then as the song just progresses a but I now begin to wonder If it has influences of Raag kafi or Karaharapriya in Carnatic. William Koti plays the guitars in this delightful fusion of sorts and you can hear the savvy strumming. Bhai Manna Singh is the composer with lyrics by Dr. Harnoor Randhawa. Farry and Team (Pankaj, Jatin and Tinka) provide the perfect rhythm and a lot of variety in the instruments. Jyoti Nooran is the female lead vocalist with Nazamjeet Singh and Kasamjeet Singh as assistant vocalists. This is a truly sensational punjabi folk fusion number that will captivate you. Raman Khan is on the backing vocals, and the track is mixed and mastered by Aftab Khan.
11. Blinded
There can be only one good thing about toxic breakups or any breakup for that matter. It ends up becoming the fodder for something great like a terrific song by an artist and millions tend to live through their own experiences by listening to the song and viscerally enjoying it. It is not just those words that can do the trick, although Nidhi Wagle needs to be commended for whatever she's written. The song lives on through the notes and singing and instrumental garnish as well and maybe that is why "Blinded" opens your eyes and ears into something wonderful and as the person responsible for writing, composing and singing this track she deserves all the praise and I am just not saying that blindly. The track is produced by Dev Modi with Nishant Mantoo mixing and mastering the track. The chorus plays a nice role and we have Perrin Mehtta, Alvina D'souza and Elaneer. There is a lot of keyboard programming which works well to create the background sounds like the fading electric guitar and drums and keys. Nidhi's voice is emotive like she is actually feeling the pain of that girl who feels cheated and the falsetto tones are priceless as well. Sharmishtha does the cover art and Athharv Nageshkar has done the lyrical video.
12. Ovotaar
Shankuraj Konwar is a beast of a singer and I first heard him singing for an indie track last year composed by another giant Anurag Saikia called "Kukuha". Similarly this one is a splendid number, which gets thoroughly enjoyable as we progress. The message is almost like wanting the Kalki avataar to take human form and cleanse the earth of its bad practices and sins. Aswekeepsearching is a post-rock band formed in Ahmedabad and they have now combined with Shankuraj for this track. The track is produced by the band with recording done by Shankuraj as well. We have Udippan Sarmah on vocals and guitars, Robert Alex on the bass guitars, Sambit Chatterjee on drums and percussions. Shankuraj sings with such a delectable voice and words in Assamese sound even better when he sings them. The back up harmonies also sound great and a lot of credit goes to the mixing and mastering by Adhraj Singh. Vishal Gore does the video and animation, with assistance from Datta S. Nilotpal does the lyrics animation and artwork is by Tanaya Sharma. When I hear it I get a feeling there is some Bhimplasi Raag influence hidden somewhere.
13. Tearing me Open
Type the name "Aditi Iyer" on Google and you will end up with loads of articles calling her a child prodigy and teen nightingale. She is still a teenager who knows what she wants and she feels her purpose in life is to sing. So here is her debut EP "Dollhouse" with 4 very likable track, and I particularly found this one the most interesting. The song is written by Aditi and Ryan Benyo and the duo combine and compose the track as well. Ryan produces the track and the label is that of Big Beat India. Anushree Chatterjee does the artwork design. Aditi sings the song with a nice attitude and some chutzpah though I will love to hear her explore a wider range and newer styles in the future, because it is never wrong to expect and demand more from a powerhouse of talent. Do check out the EP and I am sure you will like more than just this track.
14. Khairmangde
Let us not even bother figuring out what to write about PSB. IN teh world of music we say that SPB ( SP Balasubramanian) needs no expansion or introduction and maybe PSB (Pratibha Singh Baghel) falls in that category as well. She is an exponent of Ghazal music and has been singing some glorious Bollywood numbers as well and you may include this in that category. Experienced composer Shantanu Dutta composes this track. Seema Saini is the lyricist for the track and we have Meggha VA Baalii as the music supervisor. The two pros of Bollwyood Eric Pillai and Michael Pillai get involved in the mixing and mastering of the track with the latter assisting. No song is complete even if you have the most splendid singer and that is why we have masterminds like Tapas Roy playing the Mandolin, Tar and Bouzouki in all the interludes. Shomu Seal plays the acoustic guitars while Tejas Vinchurkar stings you delightfully with his flute solos. Shantanu produces and arranges the track while Pranjal and Pankaj Borah record all the live instruments and vocals.
15. Follow
The last track
Author
I write album and song reviews of Tamil music every month for Behindwoods. You can also call me a sports nut, especially football, and I used to write articles on sportskeeda.com. I am a die-hard Argentina football fan and have travelled to South Africa and Russia to witness the FIFA world cup games. It is not just music, I love movies as well and you will find me quoting dialogues and moments from a lot of movies, as I believe every movie teaches me something new about life itself.