AR Rahman - The Rising

A.R. Rahman is the best known Indian film music producer at this time, and, if articles like this time magazine one are anything to go by, is well on his way to international renown. He's produced soundtracks for dozens of films, starting with the 1992 film Roja, compositions that are a unique mix of modern and classical music traditions.

The following two songs are from the movie The Rising, his latest work.


Al Maddath Maula
A Qawwali-style devotional song where, to be fair, Rahman doesn't vary much from the usual modus operandi - repeating phrases and tabla based rather boring rhythm - but which I still adore without reason, and I finally figured out why. It's because I love dichotomies, and while being a devotional hymn, the song still manages to sound sinister and tragic, as if it could also fit perfectly in a descent to madness soundtrack. Al Maddath Maula means help me god, and it has phrases like - god, is there going to be an even deeper darkness/ god, is there every going to be an end to this night - and there's this feeling that the answer is no, there isn't, the world isn't going to change, it's the person who's going to have to change, and the person knows it, that what they're praying for, really, is the strength to become something terrible so that they can stand up to it.

Rasiya
One of the sexiest songs I've heard in some time. I like how sinuous the whole thing is, how various melodies are twisted together, and I love the really low husky singer's voice (that's there for all of two lines *coughs*). The video for this was amazing.

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Conjure One - Extraordinary Ways

Conjure One is the brainchild of Rhys Fulber, formerly of Delirium and Frontline Assembly. Their first eponymous album is one of my favorite albums, and they recently released a new album, Extraordinary Ways.

I didn't like Extraordinary Ways as much as their first album, but I still can't say that I was disappointed. Conjure One has a distinctive sound that I've grown addicted to, trip-hop and synth-pop samplings with a lush, exotic ambiance and vocals that range from ethereal to operatic, and while the overall quality of this album is more uneven than the first, on that score it delivers.

These are the first and last tracks.


Endless Dream
A collaboration with Poe, one of the more synth-popish songs on the cd, reminiscent of Make A Wish.

Into The Escape
This song has a more exotic flavor, and the arrangement is weirdly beautiful.

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