Urumeen music review: Great mix of strong voices and arrangements

Urumeen, the debut film of Tamil director Sakthivel Perumalsamy starring of Jigarthanda and Soodhu Kavum fame, boasts an interesting soundtrack produced and scored by Achu Rajamani.

Promising to be a fantasy-thriller, Urumeen is slated for an August 14 release.

Baby Baby

A soft melody typical of a folk song, Baby Baby features the powerful voice of Anthony Daasan, whose presence really makes this song work. The catchy rhythmic arrangement as well as interesting guitar solos, rescue the beat from the regular riffs which, while good to listen to, don't exactly provide anything new to listeners.

Hey Umayaal

The masterful voice of talented veteran Vijay Yesudas is complemented with a wonderful violin score that, unusually, incorporates a slight R and B motif in its chords. Coupled with a joyful rhythm, this is a song for the lovesick and sentimental types among you. Excuse me while I go bawl my eyes out somewhere.

Siru Nadai

Perhaps the most foot-tapping track in the entire movie, Siru Nadai showcases singer Karthik's talent, whose melodious voice complements the strong score, led by the piano accompanied with violins, perfectly. An infectious tune for sure.

Yaadhum Oorae

An interesting prog-rock song which gradually shifts into a conventional rock and roll one, the screeching trumpets, sorrowful guitars and the badass double bass beats really makes this particular Achu arrangement stand out. With Guna, Kamalaja Rajagopal and Rohan Prakash lending their voices to this track, there is very little to be dissatisfied about. If Siru Nadai is the most foot-tapping tune, then Yaadhum Oorae certainly deserves the title of most interesting.

Siru Nadai (Reprise)

Roshini Suresh's soft yet distinct voice works exceptionally well with this unplugged version, which, with its soft, piano-led arrangement, provides a lovely contrast with some of Urumeen's more loud songs. Kavin's lyrics are wonderfully brought to life by Suresh's powerful voice.

Hey Umayaal (Unplugged)

Beginning with the gentle strumming of guitars, before the accompanying piano kicks it, this thoughtful melody showcases producer Achu's skill as a singer. A trained Carnatic singer, Achu plays with Kavin's lyrics extremely successfully; accompanied by alternate chord progression and a softer mixing in post-production. This results in a thoughtful track.

The excellent Yaadhum Oorae aside, the soundtrack of Urumeen doesn't exactly provide any new surprises to those familiar with Tamil cinema, or Achu's previous work in Telugu and Malayalam films. But that's not a criticism by any stretch of the imagination; the production quality is excellent, with remarkable lyrics and interesting musical compositions.

A special mention to Hey Umayaal, which is Yesudas' strongest performance in a while.