Coming up on October 2nd is the highly anticipated film from Dharma Productions titled Wake Up Sid, directed by newcomer Ayan Mukerji. The film stars the new jodi of Ranbir Kapoor and Konkona Sen Sharma, and fans are excited to see these two tremendously talented actors together on screen. Ranbir plays Sid, who is a young, carefree guy just out of college. He has no responsibilities and wants none. Konkona, as Aisha, is an ambitious girl who moves to Mumbai to realize her dream of becoming a writer. What happens next is the story of Wake Up Sid. To keep up with and compliment the young and fresh feel of the film, the masters of the soundtrack Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy (SEL) were brought in. The entire album is very Western in feel with a mixture of pop, rock and even a bit of country/western thrown in. Lyrics are by Javed Akhtar and songs are performed by Shankar Mahadevan, Clinton Cerejo, Uday Benegal, Kavita Seth and Amitabh Bhattacharya. So does the music have a new fresh vibe? Read on to find out!
From the first notes of Wake Up Sid! you know this is going to be a good song. Once again SEL come up with a new sound and it is brilliant. A mix of pop and rock, the track has great energy to it. The arrangement of the instruments is excellent and has many different layers. Of course, Shankar Mahadevan is in good voice. If you have seen the video that goes with it you know how well it plays on screen. Though in parts the phrasing did remind me a bit of Rock On!!, it is just a passing thought. There is lots of progression in tempo and feeling. Definitely one you are going to have on replay and be bouncing around in your room to. (Not that I ever do that!)
Wake Up Sid! (Club Mix) has the requisite remix speeding-up-of-the-tempo, but it also is simpler – more of a focus on Shankar’s great vocals on the stanzas – and the music is pared down. Like Shankar’s vocals, more of the individual instruments have their say alone, which I liked quite a lot. This one has more of a jam feeling, like they are all just having fun playing ‘Wake Up Sid’. It would stand alone as a great song, so give this one a listen, too!
Kya Karoon? has Clinton Cerejo at the mic with very pretty back up music. The interesting thing is that the music has a laid back feeling to it, but his vocals are actually pretty fast – it makes for an interesting sound. Another wonderful track, this is very Western in flavor with a country/western twang to it. They could have done away with all the repetitive do do do-sssss, but they ‘do’ fit into the aspect of the song. Clinton Cerejo has a very smooth quality to his voice and was a terrific choice for the vocal. Like the ‘Wake Up Sid! (Club Mix)’, this one has the feeling of the musicians and singers jamming together and it makes for a good song.
Shankar Mahadevan comes back with Aaj Kal Zindagi and he really is perfect for this Western track that has a fab pop-rock balance. This one is opposite of ‘Kya Karoon?’ – his voice is very laid back, but the back up music is very fast. I do wish the back drumming had changed it up a bit; that would have added an extra layer. It is his voice that stands out and makes the song – I love to listen to him sing! Can’t wait to see what is happening on screen during this track.
Life Is Crazy with Uday Benegal & Shankar Mahadevan is a very upbeat song with a great mixture of vocal and music. Both singers are wonderful and I love the inflection they give to the lyrics. The Life is Crazy stanza is great. Overall it is just a happy, well-put-together song that will get your energy up!
Iktara is my personal favorite of all the tracks. It starts with a beautiful acoustic guitar intro and then Kavita Seth’s gorgeous voice comes in. Amitabh Bhattacharya was wonderful as well, and the instrumental sections were fabulous. This song surrounds you with its composition and music that has a brilliant fullness. Love the chorus, love the singers, love the instruments, love every note! This one went on my Bollyfavs playlist right away.
With each new soundtrack SEL try to come up with a new sound, and once again they have achieved it on Wake Up Sid. The country-western vibe to ‘Kya Karoon’ is a bit surprising but it does work. Like the film, the music is full of energy and fun, and is a great album to listen to. Be sure and get your CD and put it on replay while you wait for the film to release.
