We look back at the best album of 2003! It's been a fantastic year for desi music in terms of mainstream attention but keeping with the desi side of things that has made the best albums this year? Da Crew at desitunes4u got together to judge what they thought was the best by voting for their favourite albums. . The list excludes compilation efforts. We'll give you our top 10 in reverse order, with some comments on what we thought about the album!
10) Punjeeri by Sidhu from NYC, USA.
Gurdas Maan is the living legend of Bhangra, and with Punjeeri he returns back to folk music, which sounds very fresh. The album has very emotional tracks, which deals with common human problems, and by sharing them through his voice he lessens our sorrows. Moreover, the album is packed with such powerful tunes like 'Murh Murh Yaad Satave,' that you just return back to your native land by listening to it, and 'Sawari,' which gives you a good lesson on life. Overall it's a good album for all ages, and a definite for your collection that will always stay evergreen.
9) Most Wanted by Masaeb
This was more than a phenomenal effort from Hunterz, being his 2nd ever release. No Limits was his debut, which he produced and didn't sing one song and it was a hit. I was not expecting him to sing at all, but sing he did. This album was like giving Bhangra a shot of Nitrous oxide; it was just want our industry needed. Something new, and innovative, Bang! Wooash! In your face! The album starts with Punjabi pop flavour, and steadily evolves into straight Arabic vibes, which was awesome (Releh). He really experiments with sound, something which artists are too afraid to do these days. The album contains fourteen, yes fourteen original songs! This album has been two years in the making and it definitely shows, so in my opinion it is a must have, shame on you if you don't have an original copy.
8) Gal Sunja by Amen from Canada
As a world-renowned producer with bone crushing dhol beats and the master mind behind numerous desi hits; who would have figured that Sukshinder Shinda had a voice as well. What else does he have up his sleeve? This multi-talented individual's debut singing release "Gal Sunja" smashed it all over the world. This CD not only has an excellent variety of fusion, desi and house tracks but, once again, the production is brilliant. I like the fact that Jazzy B has helped by dubbing his background vocals in a number of tracks. This CD is a must have for your collection, especially if you love desi music!
7) Midas Touch II by DJ Dev
Malkit Singh returned this year with Midas Touch 2. It saw the pairing of Malkit and Ravi Bal being reunited. The best way to describe this album is to say that it is actually an album. Few singers manage to bring out an album where every song is good, but is not necessarily made for the dance floor. Saying that Midas Touch 2 boasted some absolute desi smash hits including Chal Hun, Putt Sardaran Da and Tootan Wale Koo. However, there was also a quality sentimental song in the form of the track Maa. The album was topped off by a remix of one of the greatest bhangra anthems - Mithe Ghanne. At the end of the day there were very few 12 track albums bought out by singers this year, which adhered to a high standard throughout. It's a strong comeback from the undisputed king of bhangra.
6) Reminisce by DJ Dev
Reminisce was a top album from a top producer. Aman Hayer has taken the music industry by storm, and has continued in the same vain as Sukshinder Shinda. Reminisce was a unique album as it did have something for everybody. From the dance floor smashes Gabroo Shakeen and Nach Di Dekh, to chilled out tunes Reminisce and Crush. Throw in a DnB remix of one of the biggest tunes of the year - Mitran Di Motor De, and you had a near perfect album. The album showcased a range of singers - and still there was no sign of the likes of Amar Arshi, who seems to make an appearance on every other album. There was even a Dhol instrumental, reminiscent of the Dhol Beat days. All in all one of the best produced albums of the year.
5) Unstoppable by Richard our very own desi gorrah.
It's a good mix of desi garage tunes and dirty bhangra tracks with anthems like 'Tenu Thakia', 'Buleeain' and 'Dil Diya Ranye' to get any crowd grooving. Rydem Ryder steals the show as star MC on 'Daru' and on the new mix of 'Putt Sardara Dhe', and with a variety of singers (including the RDB brothers themselves!). They showed a bit of variety as well with some slow tunes on the album as well. Unstoppable was definitely one of the hits of the year and as the title suggests RDB are most definitely unstoppable.
4) Café Mumbai by Randhawa from Chicago, USA.
Wow, what an album to wrap up the year 2003 that was a great and wonderful year for the bhangra industry. This album can be differing from other albums this year in many ways. It's got so much variety it's unreal with everything from Desi, Hindi, RnB, Arabic, Latino, Mc'ing, Jazz and even Opera! A different producer produces each track so you can say and each track has its own feeling, giving each mix a unique sound. Some of the biggest producers from the bhangra scene dropped some beats like Rishi Rich, who is doing well in the moment in the mainstream. DJ Swami also dropped a good raw bhangra/hip hop instrumental using some old skool tumbi samples from Kuldeep Manak on the track "Apna Sangeet". The album basically isn't your everyday album you hear now a days, it has alot to offer and a variety of genres on a massive 16 tracks!
3) Hanji by Amen
Bally Sagoo Hanji! It's my top album of the year. What can I say? Being a DJ and a
Producer myself Bally really showed us how your supposed to use his sagloops. I have heard enough tracks that have his loops in them but never have sounded good as the way Bally uses them. I am a huge traditional music listener, and Hanji did not disappoint me at all. From tracks like "Botallan Sharab Diyan" to the smash hit like "Billo Tera Dil Mangda". It's an excellent blend of traditional and fusion tracks. My favourite aspects of Hanji is the fact that the quality of the production. The mixes are clean and tight and one of the better mastered CD's that I have heard in quite a while.
2) Reality Check by Masaeb
Jassi Sidhu has a god given gift. That gift is such a melodious voice that his music can make the darkest day feel bright. Many of us thought we would never see him again after the farcical split of the real B21. Boy where we wrong. Not only did he come back, but also his debut album was certainly a Reality Check for two gentlemen living the B21 postal code area of Birmingham. Reality Check delivered that breath of fresh air our industry has been screaming out for, namely original music, no samples, and good use of mc's. Jassi's album caters for all tastes, from traditional, to garage, to hip-hop. If you only bought one album this year, it better have been this one.
1) Unda Da Influence by Richard
Dr Zeus has always been a great producer, but 'Unda The Influence' took his creative expertise to a higher level. 'It combines quality hip-hop grooves with original desi flavours and as always expected from Zeus, the production is out of this world. 'Kangna' and 'Ah Ni Kuria' were the main highlights but the whole album was brilliant. Like all well-produced material it gets better every time you listen to it and if Envy can hook Zeus up with the right people we could see him firmly planting desi footprints into the mainstream industry.
|
Top 10 Albums - 2003 |
|
No |
Cover |
Artist |
Album |
|
1 |
 |
Dr Zeus |
|
|
2 |
 |
Jassi Sidhu |
|
|
3 |
 |
Bally Sagoo |
|
|
4 |
 |
Taz |
|
|
5 |
 |
RDB |
|
|
6 |
 |
Aman Hayer |
Reminisce |
|
7 |
 |
Malkit Singh |
Midas Touch II |
|
8 |
 |
Sukshinder Shinda |
Gal Sunja |
|
9 |
 |
Hunterz |
Most Wanted |
|
10 |
 |
Gurdas Maan |
Punjeeri |
|
