The debut album from Jeeti will definitely give him some well-deserved attention as he proves through this complication. He is the first member of the new group "The Late Night Project" to release an EP. The group recently signed Kam Bhamra who does two numbers on this album as well. The album features everything from pure desi sounds, bhangarage, and even a little hip hop, with the vocals of Master Rakesh, Ranjit Mani, and a Kuldeep Manak mix. It is just a few glitches away from actually being "Off the Hook."
The album starts off with the main tune that everybody has been talking about, "Aaja Soniye." It's got a very garage fever sound to it except for when it hits the chorus it goes into a desi beat, just like we saw with Sukshinder Shinda's "Soni Lagdi". I know a lot of people like that mixed touch to the song, but I personally find it annoying, because it throws the song out of equilibrium. Just when the listener is getting into the ecstatic energy of the song and awaiting the chorus; it cuts off into a completely different beat. However, the rest of the song is executed quite admirably. Sonny MC is not bad, nothing too special, much like most of the desi mc's these days. But Kam Bhamra's voice and exuberance really delivers this song to a next level. Overall, a very hot track produced to make a lot of noise. Good move placing it as the first song.
The next track "Sona Dil" kicks in with its tumbi to tell us it's a desi-based song quite effectively. Ranjit Mani is excellent as usual and really adds to the whole feel of the song. It is definitely a song made for the desi dance floors and is a great follow-up to the first track, not the best song, but not one made for the purpose of filling space.
"Sajna Veh Sajna" with Master Rakesh is a song that I have heard before, but can't presently remember exactly where. The vocals are taken from another popular song. It's got the desi hip hop sound to it that we have come accustomed to hearing after prominent albums like "Desi Hip Hop", obviously enough. However, I was disappointed to hear a sample used from some producer's page off mp3.com. Thankfully it is played lightly in the background and is not the main melody of the song. Even though it sounds a bit too busy from time to time although it's not a bad song.
The following track "Kuri Dil Te" takes after the first song in the album in its bhangarage favour. It's an exceptional song for the fans that enjoy that genre of music, but to those that have had enough it may not be so pleasing. Jeeti's production is brilliant on this one as on most songs in the album. The song has a very smooth and nonchalant feel to it making it one of my favorite tracks on the disc.
As seems to be the trend in the beginning of this album; after a garage track is a very desi track. The same applies here with "Mela" which will undoubtedly be smashing up desi dance floors everywhere. I can't listen to songs like these anywhere but when people are moving to them at desi jams. Overall, a track that serves its purpose as a straight from Punjab bhangra number.
The next song is "Dildara" sung by Meena Kumari who did a hilarious duet with Kam Bhamra on his last album with the song "Boliyan". There isn't a doubt in my mind that she's a great singer however this song doesn't allow her to portray all her skills. The monotony of the song is quite annoying and Kumari's singing needed some more variation in melody and pitch. It has a slightly hip-hop and RnB feel to it which is actually refreshing. Jeeti's production is almost flawless on this track too. He often enjoys ending his songs with the singer's voice echoing in the back. Not a bad track, but not one of the better ones.
The second Kam Bhamra track is "Nach" which has an irritating girl whispering "Aaja Sohnia" throughout the entire thing. At first I thought it was hot, but by about a minute and half into the song you realize how distasteful it actually is. Kam is quite good on this track, but not as good as he is in the first track. It has an overall desi feel to with a touch of hip hop, not a bad track, but nothing special.
The conclusion to this heavy album is "Manak Mix", which is basically as the title states a mix of Manak's vocals. The song is very jungle, garage, drum-n-bass oriented much like something you would hear in a Talvin Singh album. Jeeti uses Manak's voice phenomenally over the fast-paced rushing beats that almost seem out of place and at the same time reviving in this album. The song switches three minutes into it and ends off with a quick paced desi feel to it, carried by the dhol.
I really had no expectations going into this album except my impression of Kam Bhamra's "Gold Rush" which was quite good. But, Jeeti absolutely mashed things up with this album. The production throughout the album was great. All the tracks were generally quite good, but there was no real outstanding track that I would put on a mixtape, except for maybe "Kuri Dil Te". Jeeti could improve his sounds by making more memorable tracks and have some that truly standout. Overall, I give the album a 7.3 out of 10, because it is worth the price. Theirs not a lot of bhangra albums that I would urge people to purchase, but this is actually worth it as it has something for everyone.
Its artists like this guy that give people the impression that there is a lot of hope and talent in the bhangra scene still. At the young age of 21, Jeeti is somebody we can hope to see a lot more of. He is definitely a candidate for the best debut artist and best debut album of the year. Let's pray we hear more from the boys at "The Late Night Project." |