Artist: Tajdar Junaid

Album: What colour is your raindrop?

Label: Independent

 Release Date: 17 Aug 2013

Songs: 10

Noteworthy: Aisle & Ekta Golpo

Collaborating with 18 musicians to create an album that is interesting, quirky and all the right things for pop, Tajdar Junaid’s album was in the making since 2012. Released earlier this year, the album promised a myriad of musicians coming together and in harmony, they did.

Tajdar, a multitalented music heavyweight is singer-songwriter and composer-producer alike. On this album, his debut LP, he has managed to include collaborations as wide as a Greg Johnson and a Junaid Ahmad. He has also managed to incorporate the fun young pop that everyone loves, a mild electric flair and a strong carnatic background to his music. And this is no wonder, judging his background in music reads like a PR sheet of the music industry. From Karsh Kale to Fred White (Acoustic Alchemy), who mixed the album, Tajdar has supporters and collaborators who enrich his music beautifully. His genre, pop, is ideal, letting him blend his experiments with his grand successes. s

Coming to the songs on the album ‘What colour is your raindrop’. The 10 songs are quite an achievement as a whole, but are more an achievement in the individuality. You have the interesting, you have the light but what is nice is you also have the upbeat and groovy, something many artists have tried to achieve but failed. Though I know is a lilting tune while Mockingbird (feat. Greg Johnson) has a great quirky feel to it. What caught me by surprise was Dastaan. It is melodious, with instruments used to a mighty advantage, with al almost Rajastani flair to the song. You almost feel like you are at the Desert Festival.

With an incredibly beautiful beginning, having a massive mix of instruments that sounds  so incredible, it makes you take a pause and guess each one, Aisle is something that I haven’t in a long time. It is a beautiful mix as is What colour is your rainbow which is like a love song, though it would have been nice to hear someone sing along with the music. Like Dastaan, The first year is slow and melodious with an innate sadness to it. Aamna is slow and not as lovely as The first year or Dastaan and Prelude to Poland, while nice in tune is slightly repetitive and seems to borrow heavily from Aamna. It might be the other way around but I heard Aamna first.  Out of the remaining two, Yadon ki Pari (feat. Junaid Ahmad) has a very interesting start and the transitions in the song are smooth, but noteworthy is its electric flair. All the songs have a very distinct flavour to them, and except one or two, actually sound pretty unique. The only worrying note I felt was that there wasn’t anything that was signature Tajdar that stood out and I feel if he manages that, his album will go over the edge.

Having said that, the final number Ekta Golpo (feat.Anusheh Anadil & Satyaki) has an incredible guitar start and something of a signature to it. A lovely Bengali song, it sounds like the celebration of life, without having to understand a word!