The Xpose 2014 User Music Review

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5 ratings

5 Excellent

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Critics Review

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Reviews

atheistt_sinha

The Xpose Review

deepak_baluni

what a class work by HR I love this album too much close to my heart. luv u HR

koushik_gupta

Himesh ji's one of the best work till date.Classy album.It is not a easy task to create soundtrack…

dhaivatraval

There is never disappoinment when u see Himesh reshammiya in music director

Bollywood Hungama

Music: Himesh Reshammiya Lyrics: Sameer Anjaan, Shabbir Ahmed & Kumaar Music Label: T-Series…

Music: Himesh Reshammiya Lyrics: Sameer Anjaan, Shabbir Ahmed & Kumaar Music Label: T-Series Expectations: The expectations from Himesh Reshammiya fans are humongous, to say the least. And his detractors are expecting him to crash while realizing in private that an inspired Himesh is capable of separating the men from the boys in today's scenario. The music assignment is quite challenging though - the flavour of the '60s and '70s is needed without the songs sounding dated. Music: A relentless yet smooth R.D. Burman-esque beat that underlies 'Ice cream' (with Himesh Reshammiya and Yo Yo Honey Singh) and the silken vocals of Palak Muchhal (who is getting better by the song), carry the track to above-average levels despite the heavy (and deliberate) derivation. Honey Singh's limited presence may not be liked by his fans, but Himesh delivers big time in a 'normal' octave. This is the 2014 mass-friendly number that is an R.D. Burman tribute, done with panache. The second song, 'Dard dilon ke' (Mohammed Irfan) is weightier, intensely melodious and haunts long after it is over, as does its piano riff. All the (clear) resemblances to 'Tum hi ho' (Aashiqui 2) are forgiven or quickly forgotten, because this song emerges as a much more accomplished composition vocally and musically. Sameer Anjaan's lyrics are simple and heartfelt. Irfan gets into soulful andaz and delivers the languorous yet rhythmic song well, so we wonder even more why he is trying to imitate Arijit Singh in the older song! The layering done by the 'punching' (digital joining) of the vocals at junctures may be intended as a smart editing of the track, but lends an unnecessary fake touch to this song, giving a feel that the melody is synthesized from multiple recordings. This was avoidable to both maintain the soul of the song and the feel of the decades in which the film is set. One more small grouse: why are the Hindi 'da' (as in dil), 'ja' (as in 'jaane') and 'ta' (as in 'tera) syllables wrongly and unnaturally over-emphasized? Is this some recording freak or a new and unwholesome technical trend that has been seen in many albums since last year? But as we all know, a good composition always overshadows the other kinks and flaws, and this song proves it. Also, we cannot fathom why this 'sad' (as in its mood) song has a strange reprise ('Dard dilon ke'- Remix), in which Neeti Mohan sings a few lines, including the name of the film's title name and we have a faster rendition with even more patchy 'joined' segments. The pace even makes the song sound almost like a happy number! Taking a limited lyrical leaf out of Sahir Ludhianvi's book, Himesh fashions the uber-soft and haunting 'Hai apna dil to awara' (Himesh, Yo Yo Honey Singh) that keeps the listener afloat within its smoothly fluid melody. Like most of the songs here, the arrangements and sound are impeccable, even if not always faithful to the '60s. A sure sign of this is the fact that the songs do not hurt the ear at full volume. Also, as with all genuinely intelligent Hindi film composers, the vocals are crystal-clear, dominating over the orchestration in the mixing and mastering. The next (and multi-singer) track, 'Catch me if you can' (Himesh Reshammiya-Mika Singh-Mohit Chauhan-Neeti Mohan- Shubhangi Tiwari- Shalmali Kholgade) is in some kind of rock-and-roll zone, with a whiff of R.D. again. Mohit is untraceable here, however, but Neeti stands out in the crowd. Likeable when it lasts, the song lacks recall value. 'Surroor' (Himesh Reshammiya-Yo Yo Honey Singh- Shalmali Kholgade) is too modern in its lyrics and compositional pattern to pass off as anywhere near a '60s melody. The piano, flute and guitar intertwine in the smooth musical interludes, though we wish that the song was more filled-in (like film music in the '60s) rather than being clearly and obviously created with the constraints of a keyboard. There is an intangible aura of Himesh's neglected but brilliant score in 2012's Dangerous Isshq in the feel of this composition. Though not believing in the myth that songs 'grow' on the listener (as always, very rare exceptions prove the rule!), we do admit that the song sounds better in subsequent hearings, but again it does not linger. 'Surroor (Arabic Mix)' mildly innovates with typical Oriental beats. 'Sheeshe ka samundar' (Ankit Tiwari) is caringly created, with a praiseworthy attempt at using classical Indian nuances fused with the guitar and piano. The song whisks you actually to the '80s, although the high-pitched segments could have been avoided and the 'cross-line' (which brings the antara back to the mukhda) kept conventional keeping in mind the timeframe of this story. The lyrics (Sameer Anjaan) are poignant but the metaphors tend to get uneven sometimes, and somehow the line 'Iss duniya mein jo bhi gaya / Woh to gaya' sounds too inelegant for that more poetically evolved and literary period! And why does Ankit too intentionally sing the Arijit Singh way, considering his individual touch? The Rekha Bhardwaj reprise of this song is more placidly and expertly sung, with some additional classical flourishes. The tabla is to die for, a typical Himesh touch that we have heard in his raag - based songs before in films like Karzzzz and Kajraare. The various other remixes and 'The Xpose Mashup' fail to contribute anything creative, ditto the 'Theme of Xpose - Theme Music', in which Neeti reprises some lines in her version of 'Dard dilon ke' and Irrfan Khan recites some verse from 'Sheeshe ka samundar'. Multiple smaller influences, notably of Shankar-Jaikishan and even the '70s American rocker Dr. Hook are heard on the score in quick bits and pieces. Missing here, however, are major influences from those eras like Ravi, O.P. Nayyar, Kalyanji-Anandji and Laxmikant-Pyarelal. Overall: Here again as in two other recent soundtracks, we have 10-plus tracks - this is an 18-track album. However, only eight tracks are original songs, of which there are reprise versions for two, so that leaves us with six compositions. However, the difference here is that Himesh Reshammiya nurtures the compositions and so the result is slightly above average. A good album, and let's not crib that it is not great. Not many albums come to this level, though we expected much more from an amalgam of the past with the master hit-maker of today! Our Pick: 'Ice Cream', 'Dard dilon ke', 'Hai apna dil to awara', 'Sheeshe ka samundar'

Malay786

Awesome album, Just Unbelievable !!! It's really hard to believe that in such a lull in Bollywood…

The Xpose

Release date: 16 May, 2014