'David' album review: Not the usual Bollywood song-and-dance

Bejoy Nambiar’s David, set for release in February this year, has landed in controversy as the Sindhi community has expressed displeasure over the picturisation of the Sufi song Dama Dum Mast Kalandar. The song plays in the background of the trailer that has scenes of violence and love making. But it is not because of the controversy, but the eclectic mix of sounds that David makes an impression. The album has fifteen songs, composed by nine different composers and sung by a line-up of artists ranging from Rekha Bhardwaj, Bramfatura to Anirudh Ravichander. As a result, the one album, packs in various genres of music. [caption id=“attachment_596526” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Image courtesy: Facebook[/caption] When you think about Dama Dum Mast Kalandar, written by Sufi poet Amir Khusro and sung by various artists over the years, the first thing that comes to mind is Abida Parveen with her deep, husky voice. Though one can’t compare the David version to that, it would be unfair to, this song composed by Mikey McCleary and sung by Rekha Bhardwaj, does much justice with a refreshing mix of qawwali and later with the electric guitar and drums. The rock version of the song too is quite impressive. Tore Matware Naina, composed by Maatibaani and sung by Shweta Pandit, is another example of fusion with classical vocals based on guitar and drums. Remo Fernandes brings a dash of Goan folk with Maria Pitache. It has his trademark use of the Spanish guitar. This number is one of the more colourful ones in the album, starting on a slow tempo and then picking up pace. A slower instrumental number, Light House Symphony, also composed by Fernandes adds a soulful touch to the album. Ghum Huye (The Theme Of David) by Bramfatura, a dubstep number is in sync with the dark theme of the movie, another example of the trend of increasing use of electronic dance music, especially dubstep, in mainstream Hindi films. Another very dark number is Ya Husain, composed by Mikey McCleary and sung by Lucky Ali, with chants of Hasan, Husain is haunting and has something absolutely sinister about it. Anirudh Ravichander, of the Kolaveri Di fame fails to re-create the magic with his song Yu Hi Re, which is bland compared to the rest of the songs in the album. Rab Di, composed by Prashant Pillai and sung by Karthik, has two versions, the folksy original one is certainly better than the dubstep remix. Out of Control, composed by Mikey McCleary and sung by Nikhil D’Souza and Preeti Pillai, too has two different versions, both with soothing lyrics and music. D’Souza and Pillai very beautifully bring out the intensity of the song with their mellow, yet steady vocals. Bandhay by Modern Mafia is a good example in Indian Punk Rock. Reminiscent of Bhaag DK Bose from Delhi Belly, the song is packed with clever lyrics and upbeat music. Saurabh Roy’s Three Kills is a heavy rock number that you would see teenagers blast in their cars and head bang to. It adds to the variety in the soundtrack of the film. With a heady mix of rock, folk, qawwali and dubstep, David makes a great album, one that Bollywood has not seen in recent times. The soundtrack grows on the listener and is certainly a cut above the regular Bollywood song and dance routine.