DJ Munks.com

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Kunal Kohli has not written, produced or directed a movie in over two years now with Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic being the last one that did well at the box office. A gap of two years..?? Not at all surprising with Kunal because all his movies are done with a gap of 2 years. He does not necessarily always come out with a good final product but Break Ke Baad does look like it could be an entertaining hit at the box office. Directed by Kunal Kohli’s old assistant Danish Aslam making his directorial debut with current Bollywood heartthrobs Imran Khan & Deepika Padukone, this movie sure has the potential and the look to make an impact closer to Christmas this year.

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One of my all time favourite lyricists – Prasoon Joshi is back to mainstream big budget movies after a while. His last big budget movies included Ghajini & Delhi-6 that were fantastic on the music front with Mr. Rahman’s involvement. This time the man with the magic pen teams up with hugely talented Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Singing Superstar boys Vishal Shekhar. They are already on a roll this year with hit soundtracks including I Hate Luv Storys and Anjaana Anjaani. The guys are brilliant and know how to make the hits. With Prasoon Joshi’s lyrics to add on, I have really high expectations from the OST of Break Ke Baad.

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REVIEW

Track 1 – Adhoore – Rock star Vishal’s vocals are always a good option for the opening of an album. His vocal texture suits the modern international look going around in Bollywood these days. Supporting him on the mic is Alyssa Mendonsa who does a good job too. The composition & sound of this song is quite similar to Anjaana Anjaani in the main chorus. Did not expect Vishal-Shekhar to run out of ideas. But nonetheless I don’t see the harm in reusing a tested formula that works with some fresh new lyrics by Prasoon Joshi. The lyrics, music & vocals are not path-breaking but the song works and will be heavy on radio. A hit.. not a super hit! 7/10.

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Track 2 – Ajab Leher – A very cool start to the song by funky Sax by Rhys D’souza & electric guitar. It sets the tone for a light fun song with a very catchy element to it. The overall composition & instrumentation of the song is fantastic and very modern American pop jazz. The lyrics are perfectly set in this music. Even though they are fun they still carry a bit of complexity in them that Prasoon delivers fantastically. Neeraj Sridhar’s vocals are banging and cool with backing vocals by Vishal & Shekhar themselves. This is a much better song that does not take long to grow on you. 7.5/10.

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Track 3 – Dhoop Ke Makaan – If you concentrate on the vocals of this song you will appreciate the sheer talent that Prasoon is. The song is about inspirations & motivation and it does just that to future writers. The music & composition are not aspirational but work for the song. It lacks innovation & feels like Vishal-Shekhar decided to play it safe. Although they do mix a brilliant guitar solo in the 2nd chorus. The vocals are by Shekhar & Sunidhi Chauchan with backing vocals by Caralisa Monteiro & Mikey McCleary. An average song unless you let the vocals inspire you. 7/10.

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Track 4 – Dooriyan Hain Zaroori – Don’t know where I last heard the voice of Monica Dogra Could be a new entry into Bollywood… and quite a pleasant one. She is very good & has a range from a soft voice to that of a rock chick. It takes some talent to stand next to Vishal on a rock song!! She totally has it.. This is a very catch Indian-rock song & could easily rock a venue like Rang Bhavan in Mumbai or a Hard Rock venue in UK. The electric guitar work & solo’s are fantastic. The lyrics and composition are versatile & show the great relationship between Prasoon & Vishal-Shekhar. I recommend this song. 7.5/10.

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Track 5 – Main Jiyoonga – Nikhil D’souza is clearly the best male vocal lead entering into Bollywood this year. With a line up of hits including movies like Aisha, Anjaana Anjaani, Crook & now Break Ke Baad. This time he delivers a theatrical feel good song with some exciting drumming by Mr. Gino Banks himself. Some excellent guitar work again on the music front in a composition that could easily work for a musical theatre show. Some good lyrics to this song as well. It is not your normal big hit song.. but I like it. 7.5/10.

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Track 6 – Don’t Worry About Me – What a song..!! Vishal pushes everyone away on this song. He takes the pen from Prasoon, takes a keyboard & tells Shekhar + musicians to rest the day off.. and also gets up on the mic. The man is brilliant in all the roles on this purely English song. This is not Bollywood anymore and I strongly suggest releasing this song in International markets on your regular English radio channels. It will get lost in India as I know no radio or TV will play it. It is different & not mainstream but I can imagine listening to this on XFM or Heart FM in the UK. A song with true potential. Well done to Vishal!! 7.5/10.

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Track 7 – Adhoore (Remix) – Remixed by Abhijit Vaghani who doesn’t sound like a DJ but sure knows how to rock a club with a proper tune. This is a good remix that I can’t find any reason to criticize. It is not cheesy or sluggish and has a good rhythm to it. It will surely make you dance… and I will surely play it in my sets. This is as good as the original. 7/10.

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Track 8 – Dhoop Ke Makaan (Acoustic) - You have to listen to this song!!! Shekhar has completely redone the vocals and they are simply BRILLIANT!! Plus the guitar work by Hitesh Sonik is exemplary. This is now perhaps the best song on the album and much better than the original. 8.5/10.

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FINAL WORD

Quite Good – 7.5/10

Break Ke Baad is a decently good album. It comes in the league of Anjaana Anjaani and is almost similar in many aspects but better in some. It has a similar sound to the music which comes from Vishal-Shekhar but the tone & variety of the album is different which comes from new director Danish Aslam. The types of song in the OST have a good variation to it spanning over different genres. The aspect that this album is very prominently better in is the lyrics that come from the genius of Prasoon Joshi. All the respect to him. Listen to Break Ke Baad and it will grow on you. It has no massive hit song to go by but for the UK audience it sure has something for everyone. OST on T-Series.

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Sajid Nadiadwala is back after kind of a flop movie earlier this year in Housefull. Even though Housefull did well with its collections at the box office it still was a terrible movie.. But now he has teamed up with director Siddharth Anand who has made hit modern romance movies like Bachna Ae Haseeno, Salaam Namaste and Ta Ra Rum Pum. Thus Anjaana Anjaani could turn things around for Sajid with a hit that would be even appreciated by the audiences. The trailer looks like it could do the trick with super talented Ranbir Kapoor and super hot Priyanka Chopra leading the way.

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Vishal Shekhar have already had a big musical hit this year with I Hate Luv Storys and so the expectations are really high on the musical front for something new and different. They surely have the calibre and Vishal’s voice to create some magic… but what scares me is looking at the list of lyricists involved here for a total of 9 songs. Does it give a music director & the movie director variety with the songs or makes it difficult to get the right sound with the inconsistency? Let us listen and find out..

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REVIEW

Track 1 – Anjaana Anjaani Ki Kahani – The title song is definitely new not similar to anything that I think I have heard before. Although the start seems a little disappointing with English lyrics, the chorus is very catchy and you will instantly like it. It has the big sound with a full band including elements of rock, dance and brass. It is an upbeat song and will work well in the international circuit on radio stations and Bollywood dance parties… that is the beauty of Vishal-Shekhar’s composition! Lyrics by Neelesh Misra are average but modern and fun. We first heard singer Nikhil D’souza on the song Sham in the movie Aisha and we loved him. Knew he had a long way to go and here he is opening Vishal-Shekhar’s big budget movie with Monali Thakur supporting him on the female vocals. 7/10 for all the fun this song projects.

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Track 2 – Hairat – Vishal-Shekhar show how mature their music is with a modern global audience appeal. The music of this song could easily be used on a big budget Hollywood movie OST in the background of a suspense thriller.. with English lyrics ofcourse. But here Vishal shows not just how mature his music is but also his lyrics are. The wording and rhymes are perfect and the work of a pro. ‘Long time hiding’ but ‘never forgotten’ singer Lucky Ali delivers a performance to remember. His voice texture brings a different energy and flavour to the song. Love this song as the perfect high speed drive song. 7.5/10.

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Track 3 – Aas Paas Khuda – An OST for a romantic movie would be incomplete without Rahat Fateh Ali Khan’s voice.. His Sufiana voice works magically on your listening senses. Although this is nothing compared to his other hits but it has it’s own feel. What doesn’t work too well here is the composition of the song. It is outdated and not unique. The instrumentation is average too. Saving the day a little are Vishal & Shekhar’s lyrics which too are not the best. 6/10.

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Track 4 – Tumse Hi Tumse – Three lyricists on this song!! Amitabh Bhattacharya & Anvitta Dutt have written the main lyrics while Shekhar sings it for them. Caralisa Monteiro has written and sung the English lyrics. I really like the vocals and lyrics of this song but the song doesn’t click for me overall.. and that is because of the arrangement. The rock instrumentation is something that I am not sure about was the best musical fit. Well that is just my opinion but something doesn’t make this song click and it becomes an average song. 6.5/10.

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Track 5 – Tujhe Bhula Diya – The start of this song is mesmerising with Shruti Pathaks voice and some innovative guitar strumming. What a come back on the composition and arrangement tactics! Fantastic and truly brilliant!! The bits of Qawalli thrown in on the bridge comes in beautifully.. especially after acoustic main stanzas. The music shifts into three different arrangements seamlessly with excellent classical instrumentation. The Punjabi lyrics at the start followed by the main lyrics are the work of Kumaar and Vishal himself again. They are very good and singer Mohit Chauhan’s harmonic vocals forces you to take notice of them. An overall great song.. 8/10.

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Track 6 – I Feel Good – This is a Vishal Dadlani song with his vocals, his lyrics and his music. Shilpa Rao who recently delivered a mind blowing performance in the song Nain Parindey in Lafangey Parindey joins Vishal on the vocals. Her presence helps but not much.. this is still an average song with another rock English lyrics song. The guitar solos in the bridge make it better but not enough. Only thing worth noticing is Shilpa Rao’s work who usually sings classical song and now delivers a rock chick song. 6.5/10.

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Track 7 – Anjaana Anjaani – This song starts off with very soothing music with ambient flutes and Shilpa Rao’s deep voice on the vocals with Vishal accompanying her again. The they do work well together and you can appreciate the pair as you hear them together in more songs. I love the lyrics by Kausar Munir & Irshad Kamil. Musically it is very well mixed and arranged with lounge taking on rock in the chorus. Innovative but this song needs to be heard a little too many times for it to grow on you. 7/10.

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Track 8 – Tujhe Bhula Diya (Remix) – The only remix on the album is by Abhijit Vaghani who has done an excellent job of making this great song a little different & upbeat. He has given it a twist with a piano melody and a trance feel. He has still managed to keep the traditional elements including a harmonium solo which goes almost dry without a beat which is very brave to play on a trance dance floor. Respect to this mix.. 8/10.

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Track 9 – Aas Paas Khuda (Unplugged) – So I guess I was right with the fact that the musical composition wasn’t working for the original song above. When you hear this unplugged version it sounds totally different and you really appreciate the beauty of it. What you appreciate more is the beauty of voices.. and this includes a feature by Shruti Pathak. Fantastic version! 7/10.

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FINAL WORD

Above Average – 7/10

Anjaana Anjaani has no bad song and no really good song. It is a bunch of average and above average songs with Tujhe Bhula Diya & Hairat being my favourite songs that truly stand out. Title song Anjaana Anjaani Ki Kahani is catchy and different too but not stunning. Is it the influence of too many lyricists? I don’t think so.. I think it is a Siddharth Anand thing. He usually has a couple of big songs in his movies with other average songs that don’t fight for too much attention. Maybe it is his weird strategy of his or just plain bad luck! Vishal-Shekhar do an decently good job like they always do but the influence of Vishal’s rock background is truly evident and maybe overused. Overall I would still recommend you buy this album as a whole. OST available on T-Series.

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Yash Raj films is back with Aditya Chopra producing NEW YORK with a highly commercial cast of John Abraham, Katrina Kaif, Neil Nitin Mukesh & Irrfan Khan. The movie is directed by Kabir Khan who’s last directorial venture Kabul Express was a flop with average reviews & a couple of decent songs on the OST. But with New York your expectations are bound to be higher as it is first of all a Yash Raj movie.. then has the hottest cast in Bollywood right now.. is based in the most glamorous city in the world.. plus it has Pritam doing the music.. All in all it has commercial written all over it !!

But on the other side the agenda of the movie gets you wondering if New York is a commercial music hit maker.. If you don’t know what the movie is about.. have a look at the wallpaper above..

Cant spot it..?? Look closer…

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Yup.. so you spot the ghost of twin towers there & so you know the movie is about 9/11. Not really about the attack but the after effects on the life’s of 3 Muslim students in New York. I still expect the OST to be bright & fun with a few elements of romance & a few serious songs.. Lets find out if it actually sums up to our commercial value expectations..

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REVIEW

Track 1 – Hai Junoon – Doesn’t sound like the start of a commercial album.. Well maybe it’s not then..!! KK renders his soulful Yaaron style vocals but the overall performance is average all thanks to simple & average music composition by Pritam. It has the typical soft college rock style which might go with the movie story but is overdone & cliche in the music market.. Lyrics by story writer Sandeep Srivastava are good & hold the other elements together making it a fun listen.. but with nothing special.. 5.5/10 .

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Track 2 – Mere Sang – Another non-commercial song..! The flow of this album is telling me it is more of a off-beat serious style of a album rather than a fun up-beat Yash Raj type.

Sunidhi Chauhan sings this song using her softer tone & sublime style. It’s not the best side of her & sounds monotonous. Composition style & arrangement by Pritam are just about the same as Track 1 & million’s of other such songs. It lacks innovation.. not just on the music side but also on the lyrics by Sandeep. It’s a decent one time listen but you may not like to come back to it.. 5/10 .

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Track 3 – Tune Jo Na Kaha – Finally something different with still on the down-beat lounge style… n I like that style..   Mohit Chauhan’s voice does something to a song.. it creates a vibe & gives it the depth of feelings. A romantic ballad with good lyrics that are perfect for a chilled out evening, sitting in the balcony in moon light.. Try it   The composition is simple with a good arrangement of backing vocals, light string instruments & a neat flute solo. Overall the track works for me.. 7/10.

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Track 4 – Aye Saaye Mere – The Persian style of this song is the work of Pankaj Awasthi. He has composed & sung this song as well. It’s the song with a message that would play in the background half way through the movie in a sad sequence. Very situational with an intense vibe. The lyrics are by Junaid Wasi & are pretty good with a traditional poetic feel to it. It’s a good song but lacks commercial appeal because of it’s theatrical situational feel. Listen to the lyrics carefully.. “Na Koi Kaala Na Koi Gora.. Ik Rang hi Sabhi ko rang de“. 6/10 .

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Track 5 – Hai Junoon (Remix) – Remixed by Julius Packiam. I have never heard his work before but this is a good start. He plays around well with KK’s vocal harmonies at the start & concentrates on his vocals throughout the mix which is a good relief. The beat is simple & makes the original more fun to listen to. The song now has this energy that it needs to go with the feel & lyrics of the song. 6.5/10 .

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Track 6 – Mere Sang (Remix) – Julius does a decent job trying to revive this dead track. I dint enjoy the original at all.. but this is bareable. There is not much scope in the original to play around with & the best creative element that Julius could come up was to add a subtle tabla sample throughout with ‘Hai Junoon‘ shouts which mix well. 5.5/10.

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Track 7 – Sam’s Theme – Sam is John Abraham in the movie. The theme makes his character sound like a serious & troubled guy.. Doesn’t go very well with John’s glamorous girl man looks & charm. Sound like he is experimenting.. lol. Good in a way.. as we’ll come to know if he can act.. !

Caralisa Monteiro’s classic vocal harmonies are truly amazing while our remix man Julius Packiam shows he’s not just the one with beats. He can surely compose & deliver good theme music to the standards of Yash Raj films which is a common feature in most of their movies. I like this classic music piece as it has some really good orchestra work. 7.5/10.

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Track 8 – New York Theme – Electric guitar’s with tribal drums give this instrumental the intense feel that describes the movie for us.. NO it’s not a fun commercial film.. but rather a serious flick with a message to convey. Sounds like something I have heard before. 6/10.

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FINAL WORD

Average – 5.5/10

The soundtrack for New York is nothing special. It does not even have the basic elements of a Yash Raj movie. No fun dance tunes, no big romantic numbers & no Bollywood style biggies either. An off beat non-commercial album totally opposite to our expectations.. and it is not even outstanding in it’s off beat category. Ignore this OST as am sure you can do without it in your collection.

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