Kabali Songs - Music Review 

Akilan Nagarajan | Reviewpuram

Santhosh Narayanan catapulted to the big league of music directors as soon as Pa. Ranjith's confirmed him for Rajinikanth's Kabali. Due to commercial reasons, the past directors of Rajini's movies have mostly opted to go with AR Rahman. The big question is whether Santhosh Narayanan will stick with experimental music or yield to the popular pressure. The album has a total of 5 songs with one being a semi-theme track.

Ulagam Oruvanukka: (Listen here)

Singers: Ananthu, Santhosh Narayanan, Gaana Bala | Lyrics: Kabilan, RAP : Vivek &  Roshan Jamrock

With “Ulagam Oruvanukka”, the makers have made a statement right at the start of the album – That everything is going to be different around the Superstar this time around. Not the usual SPB intro, and definitely not one where Thalaivar speaks to the audience. Uncanny rap and minimal fusion bits make this is a prominent detour from the legacy of Superstar intro songs.

Maya Nadhi (Listen here)  ✔

Singers: Ananthu, Pradeep Kumar, Swetha Mohan | Lyrics: Uma Devi

“Maya Nadhi” is the track that completes a Santhosh Narayanan album. The quintessential Pradeep Kumar melody that works for its light-handedness and pleasing interludes. A track that is pleasing on the very first listen.

Veera Thurandhara (Listen here) ✔

Singers: Pradeep Kumar, Gana Bala, Lawrence R | Lyrics : Uma Devi

Gaana Bala, (along with Lawrence R and Pradeep Kumar) makes his jazz-filled presence in the album with “VeeraThurandhara”. This is a track that seems like slow buildup from start to end, with no actual payoff as one would expect. It takes us back to the times of “Jigarthanda”, with an animated undertone. It is a welcome sign to see Gaana Bala sign in a non-gaana style. The song has catchy elements (repeat of 'thunthun tharara') throughout. The triple gun shots punctuate to wrap up the album strongly (hint of MIA "Paper planes")

Vaanam Paarthen (Listen here)

Singer: Pradeep Kumar | Lyrics: Kabilan

“Vaanam Paarthen” is a pathos-ridden track within the composer’s template. Pradeep Kumar lends his soothing rendition to a track that is simplistic in arrangements, and hopeful on the emotions.

Neruppuda (Listen here) ✔

RAP and Lyrical verses: Arunraja Kamaraj | Dialogues/adlib verses: Shri Rajinikanth

The one thing you need to get right in a gangster film or any other film that revolves around a singular character’s exploits, is the theme music. Santhosh Narayanan gets it more than right here, with “Neruppu Da”. The track goes all guns blazing in giving a tune to remember and celebrate. The atmosphere the track creates is electric, quite literally, as the guitar riffs keep raging in the background. Thalaivar’s baritone takes the energy to whole new levels of awesomeness. The occasional whistles provide a very Ennio Morricone feel to the track, making it a track with true international appeal.

Verdict

On the whole, this is an album of low magnitude, one that goes really offbeat in staying true to its maternal content. “Maya Nadhi” and “Neruppu Da” encompass all the emotions of the Santhosh Narayanan genre. The very scale is grounded as compared to Thalaivar’s discography over the past two decades. The album does look like it has a template, with a melody, an intro and a theme music, but it sounds very much rooted to the core of the film. It is more of a Santhosh Narayanan album than a Rajinikanth album.

Rating: 3.25/5

Listen to Kabali Songs