ROCKSTAR redefines the outlook of Indian music- Review

Oh! A.R.Rahman, thou art the ROCKSTAR!

 The thing with A.R.Rahman, is for no fault of his, he makes people expect something different every time with bated breath. He gives the ardent music buffs, the oxygen to breathe; churns out chart-busters every single time with little effort in terms of publicizing it. His music speaks a million words.  His track record is always on the upswing and that is why even a teaser promo trends in Twitter. Imtiaz Ali's penchant and eye for quality music is blatantly evident when one listens to the tracks of Rockstar.
The three instrumentals - Dichotomy of fame, Tango for Taj and Meeting place are connoisseur's delight. Simply magical and mellifluous is 'Tango for Taj', and 'Dichotomy of Fame' is sure to stimulate goosebumps on your anatomy. 
'Phir se ud chala' is the perfect start to the album, that ably rides to the senses of the listener thanks to Mohit Chauhan's wonderful rendition. It is further accentuated by the soothing strings of Mandolin/Guitar giving a new dimension to the number. The gradual tint and the late take off is something that makes this linger long in the mind. A breezy romantic ballad, deserves attention.
The next track is the slow, anthemic ' Jho Bhi Main' rendered sincerely by Mohit Chauhan. The song has a moody-rock feel to it and thus ends up being a part of the soulful rock. The fact that A.R.R has made this one as lively as possible, with the 'yaya..' deserves special mention. 2 minutes into the song, Mohit gives his best and the outcome is that the listener invariably nods in appreciation. With a Pink Floyd-ish touch, this song is essentially a winner and has brand ARR stamped all over it.
'Katiya karoo' reminds one of Rang De Basanti and the brilliance of Harshdeep Kaur is conspicuous throughout the song. The song interspersed with guitar and desi beats is sure to be lapped up by the masses from north and south. The striking feature about this track is how beautifully A.R.R maintains the tempo and doesn't deviate from the native feel. Put those Punjabi dancing shoes on. Its time to 'ting-a-ling-a-ling'
If one thought Rahman has given his best with 'Khwaja mere khwaja'- think twice. Prepare for another divine ride filled with pure bliss. If God were listening to this, He sure would wear a smile on his visage. ' Kun Faya Kun' probably has to be the best Sufi compositions in mainstream cinema after 'Khwaja mere khwja ' and 'Arziyan' ( Delhi 6) . The popular adage -'Music breaks all religious barriers'; and this song stands testimony to that. Ohhhhh.. the trio of Rahman, Javed Ali and Mohit makes you feel in peace with the world. A masterpiece from the magician.
'Sheher Mein' is one of those rare conversational songs that doesn't make you hit the skip button. This  is a peppy song which needs to be appreciated for the editing, sprinkled with dialogues and the amazing use of a gimmicky tune. Sung by Karthik (not sure which one) later improvised by a simply fantastic Mohit Chauhan makes you go search for words. Watch out for the brief pause at 2:33 and the subsequent pick up. Genius at work.
'Hawa Hawa' is the litmus test for Mohit Chauhan, as this sees him lending his voice for a Spanish/Mexican/Arabic feel good  number. It reminds one of 'Udi Udi' from Guzaarish. The groovy voice of Mohit helps him pass the test with very less effort. This track probably is the experimental one of the lot, as one cannot fathom at this point how the song finds a place in Jordan's career.
The true pain, frustration ( I guess so) of a rock artist is brought out profoundly by 'Aur Ho', that takes Mohit Chauhan's credentials to unprecedented levels. The honest pensive touch works wonders for the song. This song starts of with a highly haunting chorus that beautifully paves way for Mohit's dramatic high pitch singing. A.R.Rahman's perfect choice of instruments and the decision to give the singer more scope than the bgm, to bring out the emotion makes it seem a classic.
'Tum Ko' probably is the seemingly weak link in the album, as it falls short of creating an impact for no mistake of its; blame it on the ingenuity and grandiose of the other tracks. This song gives a very south indian melody feel to it, more so due to the rendition by Kavitha Subramanium than anything else. The romantic feel is not at all hampered by the use of tablas and thus can be termed as a pleasant outing for the singer.
'Naadan Parindey' is the perfect homecoming number for a rock star. Rahman jumps into the action and make us groove to the sheer magic in his music. The song reverberates with energy, zeal after a slow orchestrated beginning. The brilliant use of acoustics, strings intervened between Mohit and Rahman's scintillating rendition makes you hit the replay button. One dhamaal number is 'Naadan Parindey'. Watch out for the guitar solo from 4:28, sure to bring you down to your knee.
'Tum ho' reminds one of 'Waiting for you' ( Jootha hi Sahi) and shows us that the slow, romantic Rahman is alive and kicking. Another confirmation that versatility is his middle name. Haven't I mentioned enough about Mohit Chauhan? I will continue to do so. He has got to be one of the finest singers of this generation. The enthralling usage of piano, which has become quite a rarity nowadays gives full monty to this song.
 The next track is the one that has caught people's imagination far and beyond. Rahman sucks us into his music from start to finish in this track ' Sadda Haq'. Orianthi ( Michael Jackson's guitarist) joining hands with A.R.Rahman has winner written in bold, all over it. The songs engulfs us thanks to the anthem feel running throughout. It is actually a Stoner Anthem. If you haven't head banged before, this will make you do it. For once, a song makes the adrenaline rush through the body and makes you pump out in high decibel the addictive ' Sadda Haq, Aithe Rakh'. The song has the energy, anger, frustration arranged proficiently in a hardcore rock package that makes one go crazy.
The lyrics like: ''Oh! Eco friendly, the protector of nature; I am also nature (where is my protection) " and " How can you preach the truth, whilst you can't stomach it!" gives a radical and rebellious feel- true elements of a rock star. This song is a slap on the face of hypocrites.

Bottomline : No house-mix. No lounge mix. No multiple versions. 14 unadulterated out-of-the world tracks. The one year wait has bore fruits of immense flavor that has Rahmanism embedded all over it. A rare occurrence when the director's idea and the music director's feel sync big time, giving the ardent music followers of this generation, their holy grail of sorts. You have outdone yourself. *Take a bow, A.R.Rahman, again*