'Love BreakUps Zindagi', Salim-Suleiman's Sprightly Selection
By MovieTalkies.com, 28 September 2011
3 / 5
(Ratings: Poor * Average ** Good *** Very Good**** Excellent *****)
With albums full of hits behind them, Salim-Suleiman are perhaps one of Hindi cinema's most successful music composing duos to emerge in the last decade. Through soundtracks like Kurbaan and Band Baaja Baaraat, the twosome have developed a trademark sound of their own while keeping their variety intact. Their latest release is Love BreakUps Zindagi, and it waits to be seen now, what the latest chapter in their prolific discography sounds like.
The upbeat strings of rozaana make for a rather interesting opening for the album. With guitars, accordions and a whole lot of sythesised beats, the track has an uplifting melody and Salim Merchant's vocals go perfectly with the feel of the number. The track has a very positive vibe and is a great start for the album. DJ A-Myth's remix of the track later down the playlist is pacier and more pumping, though the remix specialist doesn't make significant changes to the structure of the number.
With a whole host of singers, the likes of Sonu Nigam, Shreya Ghoshal, Salim Merchant and Shradha Pandit, rab rakha is probably the flagship number of the Love BreakUps Zindagi soundtrack. Immensely radio-friendly in its tune, the romantic, almost balladic track moves through a number of genres through its four and a half minutes, starting off in the typical Bollywood romance fashion, before moving into pop territory in the verses, then onto Punjabi devotional and even bhangra. The track is arranged accordingly in a varied way, bringing in dhols, flutes and keys as and when necessary.
Benny Dayal and Shradha Pandit come together on love love love, which has an almost reggae-ish feel in its sound. However, this one is something of a blot on the album, its melody undeniably similar to Jason Mraz' recent hit, I'm yours. Given that the track found quite a bit of airplay on Indian shores too, one has to wonder what the Merchant brothers were thinking when they put this one together.
However, Salim and Suleiman redeem themselves with the final entry on the album, chhayee ha tanhayee, which features the superb Shafqat Amanat Ali on lead vocals, with Shruti Pathak and Salim backing him up. The sufiana number, almost like a soft qawali in its feel, is exquisitely arranged, with a very prominent harmonium section. The track does move into pop territory at a few points, Shafqat's voice brings the track back to sufiana and gives the track a beautiful sound.
At just four tracks, Love BreakUps Zindagi is short work for Salim-Suleiman. Though the duo does trip at a point or two, for the most part, the composers stay on melodious grounds with the soundtrack. This may not be their best work by a long shot, but the album bears a clear Salim-Suleiman stamp and with a great set of voices populating its number, is good for more than a few listens…