How often do we scurry towards albums, that have more than 50% of the songs being fantastic? Not very often I'd say. Salaam-E-Ishq is yet another Shankar Ehsaan Loy fetish, that has been taken over by the whole nation. Kyon?
Lets start with the most sought after track, the title track! The title track carries that oh-so-fresh feeling that SEL are renowned for. As the shehnaaiyan play along smoothly, the chorus is set to their places. One is immediately reminded of that Kal Ho Na Ho hit, Maahi Ve. Sonu Nigam, Shreya Ghoshal, and Kunal Ganjawala are superb, and Sadhna Sargam comes in with her own special peice. As usual, Shankar Mahadevan features his heartfelt alaaps.
Definately a track to remember, but you don't need to remember it, because it'll stick with you with eeeeez... gauranteed!
Ya Rabba... now here's one thing we didn't see coming. Kailash Kher is known for his signature style of Sufi singing. One would be delighted after hearing his Ya Rabba. Sung mostly on a low scale, the deep chords and treble makes you swaaay. I was rather surprised from this track, kyunki its very different from the basic thought of SEL in my head. Nonetheless, lovely surprise.
Aankhon aankhon mein, baaton baaton mein... yess this is Adnan Sami's approach to the song, Dil Kya Kare. Because aankhon aankhon mein, you can totally imagine him pouring out his heart into the mic, and baaton baaton mein, chupke se he takes you into a whole new atmosphere, where only the acoustics strum in unison, the prucussion dances to an African rythm that will appeal to you so, and where the singer's voice reminds you of an overflowing glass of red red wine...mmm... pure bliss.
"Aww they sound so much in love!" That was my first thought when I listened to Mera Dil for the first time. Big time croonstar Shaan, and his lovely partner, Nihira Joshi, render a piece that will make you... hm... I don't know! It could make you dance, sing along, snap your fingers, tap your shoes, [fall in love ;)] Its definately a very peppy track that may blow your mind, or it may not. Jo bhi hain, it will definately make you give it another listen. The lovely duet makes you feel oh so young! Jawaani mere andar se chhut gayi yaar!
Sonu Nigam and Salman Khan. What else do you need! In Tenu Leke, Sonu is a playback singer for Salman Khan, but I feel that the two are so much in sync, you can imagine Salman Khan really singing it, or Sonu Nigam really acting it! Wah, kya jodi in this number. The easy-going tune and the strong use of various types of instruments mixes well, and creates a track that is nothing but fun. Oh yes, beware, this song gets stuck in the head for a loooong time!
So why the sweet sweet nothings in the review, and half a point off in the ratings? Kyunki one can't help but notice that the songs don't seem too new, because they sound slightly reptitive. This may be the one and only minus point I found. If anyone found my review too nice, then me too! But this is right from here (my heart) guys, give it a listen to know what its like to levitate! Its awesome!