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MUSIC: MUSINGS
REVERBERATIONS
A Musical Shame
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Lajja: Universal: Rs 55
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It must be difficult
to maintain originality when music directors churn out one album after
another on an assembly-line basis. Anu Malik's latest release Lajja, scores
for a film by Raj Kumar Santoshi, makes a good case study. And don't be
mistaken. The film is not based on Taslima Nasreen's controversial novel-only
the name is borrowed.
The first song in the album Aa hi jaiye by Chennai-based
singer Anuradha Sriram is a fast number interwoven with sargams and a
chorus. It is not very different from Yeh raat (Aks) and its use of rhythm
has a similar beat too. Sriram's voice has verve and exceptional range
covering all three octaves. Saajan ke ghar jana hain is a light dance
number by Alka Yagnik, Sonu Nigam and Richa Sharma, but one is left with
a feeling that Sharma's powerful voice could have been better exploited.
After a long break, Anuradha Paudwal's voice
is heard again in Kalyug ki Sita, a somewhat cliched ode to Indian womanhood.
The same song has been sung by classical singer Shubha Mudgal who tries
her hand at all forms of music, including playback singing. "Anu
Malik gave me the freedom to sing in my own style. Besides, it is challenging
to sing to someone else's tune," says Mudgal. But Malik has not handled
Mudgal's bass voice to best advantage. It is a high-pitched song in Manjh-Khamaj
raga where she struggles to reach the high notes. This number stands out
as a sore thumb in the album.
The last number by Lata Mangeshkar Kaun dagar
is set to a slow pace. No sparks of brilliance here either, despite Illayaraja's
score. A disappointing album.
—S. Sahaya Ranjit
SCREEN N SURF
Tune in to Folk
 Folk
music is the music of the masses and the true rhythm of India pulsates
in its myriad folk traditions. To know more about this diverse and rich
tradition, log on to the neatly designed website www.beatofindia.com.
Every season and every event has a folk song
associated with it-be it the birth of a child or a marriage or a funeral.
Clicking on the "Form" icon leads to a glossary of types of
songs. For example, Ropni is sung by women while they sow paddy or the
better known ones sung during the rains.
Folk singers tend to remain invisible. This
site remedies that by including a list with photographs of the singers.
It would have been more useful if their addresses and backgrounds were
also made available. The site also offers free tickets to concerts and
subscription to an e-newsletter on the happenings in the folk music world.
An exhaustive site.
—S. Sahaya Ranjit
HOT TRACK
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,
Lou Bega (BMG Crescendo; Rs 150)
 After
his rather tepid concert tour of India last year, it's tempting to dismiss
this man. Can't. If Lou Bega made you smile with A little bit of mambo
in 1999, the grin will give way to guffaws when you hear this album. Ladies
and Gentlemen is a 16-song collection that, if nothing else, will tickle
female listeners no end. Having told us already that he has got a girlfriend
everywhere ("... a girl in Paris, a girl in Rome, I even got a girl
in the Vatican dome ..."), he proceeds to make a far more candid
confession this time round. "I'm just a gigolo," he lets on
in the first track. And as if that weren't enough, he goes on to warm
the hearts of feminists with God is a woman, so that it's hard to figure
out whether to be irritated or amused with the crudeness of Baby keep
smiling ("I put on my glasses and tell you how sweet your ass is
...") But what the heck, the tunes are catchy, he even manages to
capture the old Pat Boon feel in some of the numbers. Wish he had it in
him to stir up an Indian crowd.
—Anna M.M.
Vetticad
Arrivals
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Nari Nari (BMG Crescendo; Rs 75)
Ten Egyptian numbers by Hisham Abbas set to Indian percussion instruments
and sitar.
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Classics Forever (HMV; Rs 40)
It's yesterday once more, Bollywood style. The album includes film
dialogues with songs.
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Melodies on Piano (Archies Music; Rs 60)
Piano rendition of Hindi film tunes by Preet Raj Singh. Good for
a quiet evening.
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Feng Shui (Times Music; Rs 295)
Lord Buddha's eight-fold path interpreted musically by Chinmaya
Dunster. Good health through good music.
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