High School Musical 2
Director : Kenny Ortega
Music Director: John Stewart, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
previous_music_reviews("CBEFF8");After a rocking High School Musical 1, High School Musical 2 does promise to offer more than the original. Unfortunately, it doesn`t really stand true to everyone`s expectations.
This movie album consists of two CDs - the first one with three originals and three mix versions of the originals. The second CD contains nine original sound tracks and one Sharpay Version of the original track Dhun Hai Teri Saason Mein.
From the first track, All for one from the forthcoming movie Aaja Nachle comes as a surprise which opens the track listing on the first CD. The mix and OST version of this song sung by Arijit Singh, Earl Edgar D, Raja Hasan, Shilpa Rao, Tarannum Malik is pretty tolerable. The lyrics by Sameer are a breeze. But, both songs are very unlikely to be liked and appreciated by the audience that`s expecting hip and retro High School tracks.
Chhoti Si, sung by Aditi Singh Sharma, Akriti Kakkar, Neumon Pinto, Raman Mahadevan is quite a good track to listen to. But it has some typical expected beats which definitely wouldn`t make it the crowd favourite. The chorus sounds like a gang of college students singing which gives it a good feel. The mix version sounds a little better than the original; but even this track is simply a-one-time listen! But hats off to the lyrics!
Ud Chale, by June Banerjee, Shankar Mahadevan, Vishal Dadlani sounds like some inspirational track. Sameer has done a beautiful job with the lyrics. The alternate male female voice takes away the essence of the song and the importance of the background score. Also, there is a little mismatch with the male and female voices which becomes quite prominent as the song progresses.
As with all the mix versions of this first CD, the mix version of Ud Chale as well is simply extra beats and extra effects to the original. There is nothing which would make it an absolute club-mix kind of a track worth playing at pubs/FMs on Saturday Nights!
After three original and three mix versions in the first CD, the second CD opens with the voice of Naresh Kamath and Sunidhi Chauhan. Sunidhi opens the track Dhun Teri Saason Mein with a never before sparkle in her voice. A track with a complete Western touch in the accent and good, light beats; this track does start appealing as it progresses. The male and female voices overlap in the middle of the song giving it a very fresh feel. The Sharpay version of the song by Shweta Pandit and Naresh Kamath starts off on a very lively note and sails through well with the upbeat tune and catchy composition.
Ek Hai Hum begins with very Indian beats but moves on to a rock and roll beat with little tinges of Indian beats all through the song. The voices of Hrishikesh Kamerkar, Naresh Kamath, Neuman Pinto, Sunidhi Chauhan sound unexpectedly peppy all through the track. The music eats up the lyrics and the vocals which make the song sound earsplitting though.
The next track Fabulous by Shweta Pandit is the kind of track that any girl-band would love to sing for their gig. The music of this track sounds very similar to other tracks probably because of the similarity in the plot and composition. Nevertheless, this song is better than the rest so far!
Following Fabulous is Kuch Kar Le Aao by Hrishikesh Kamerkar, Naresh Kamath, Satya Hinduja, Sunidhi Chauhan. The most striking feature of this song is that the singers can`t be individually recognised, it is a group effort all-through! The lyrics may be beautiful but unfortunately, are totally lost because of high-end beats and unclear vocals.
Kya Mast Hai Life begins off in a very Rang De Basanti`ish mood. With female vocals by Shweta Pandit and Sunidhi Chauhan and male vocals by Naresh Kamath and Neuman Pinto; this song is distinctly different from the others because of the least overlap of voices. The beats are good and so is the chorus. All in all, good listening experience!
Main Nachu Na sung by Hrishikesh Kamerkar and Neuman Pinto sounds weird initially because of the absence of a female voice but the song does well for itself with good beats accompanied by great voices. The sound of the song is very retro because of which it could well have a long shelf life.
Mujhe Jaana Hoga by Naresh Kamath and Sunidhi Chauhan is the only soft track of the album. It is more of an interactive song with Sunidhi beautifully starting it off. When Naresh Kamath joins it, it feels like an icing on the cake. Soft beats with emphasis on the lyrics and the singer is what adds on to the beauty of the song. This is one track that can be heard again and again; yet not thinning the feel of the song.
The next track Rozana once again by Sunidhi Chauhan and Naresh Kamath is a better version of Mujhe Jaana Hoga as far as the lyrics are concerned, but because of the extra unnecessary beats it once again doesn`t give that pleasurable feel.
The last track of the album Yeh Vaada Hai by Naresh Kamath does promise to be a good track and stays up to the expectations as well. It begins with a very trendy feel. Naresh gives a very rock band kind of a voice to the song, thus making inclining it more towards the youth. The end of the song is what gives the album a final wrapping touch.
