Ek: The Power of One – Music Review

ek-the-power-of-oneAfter a debacle that was Apna Sapna Money Money, Sangeeth Sivan returns this year with Ek – The Power of One. Apna Sapna.. didn’t have much to say on the music front either in spite of Pritam, with just one really good song, Dil Mein Baji Guitar, which sadly turned out a rip-off. So it wasn’t with much hope that I started off with Ek.. which again has Pritam scoring the music.

Sambhale

Albums without Punjabi songs are becoming such a rarity these days!! While Straight belonged to that elite league, Ek.. starts off straight with a quintessential Bhangra-rap. Sukhwinder and Sunidhi are as impeccable as ever on the vocals but the tune and orchestration sounds so repetitive that you lose interest right at the beginning.

Bang Bang

Now this is more of a Pritam song. While slightly reminiscent of Race Saanson Ki, this one is more of a poor cousin of that number. The rather crude vocals by Rana Mazumder are a major factor in rendering the song so, apart from various other factors. Wonder why the regular favourite for such songs, Neeraj Sridhar, wasn’t chosen.

Sona Lagda

This one is the recreation of a traditional Punjabi song. I haven’t the original song, but this version doesn’t sound Punjabi at all, rather a 90s Bollywood song. Shashwati has done a good job on vocals. The name Shashwati might not ring any bell but most of you must have heard and more specifically seen the videos of her famous songs like Kaanta Laga, Kaliyon Ka Chaman etc!! The flute interludes are quite attractive. Not so attractive however is the remix of the song by K&G, which sees an excess of electronica.

Tum Saath Ho

Unmistakably Pritam, this song reminds one strongly of his erstwhile songs like Tu Hi Meri Shab Hai. Again a surprise entry here is Abhijeet with Shreya Ghoshal as opposed to the expected KK. To be fair to Abhijeet however, he has done total justice to the song with his flawless rendition. Nevertheless, the increased tempo somehow steals away some of the beauty of the song. Tu Hi Meri.. had the perfect pace for such a mood and this song would have done well to follow the same pace.
Finally Ek.. did live up to my (lack of) expectations!!On a positive note Ek – The Power of One is definitely a better musical than Apna Sapna Money Money!! But that doesn’t help its cause much. Surely Pritam is capable of much more than this. And given that there is a better album in Straight, you would do well to avoid Ek...

Tags: , , , , , , , ,