Artist: Fariha Pervez***

Album: Abhi Abhi

While she may be famous for being one of the country's most prominent female singers, Fariha Pervez has been known for being a hit amongst her fans for some of her Punjabi numbers. Perhaps she has been trying to focus on breaking this Punjabi-singer image because she has now managed to bring the attention to a very different sound this time round with her album Abhi Abhi.

The album has a more upbeat and melodious sound, with a wide array of her famous love songs as well. But she has decided to mix up her sweet-sounding vocals with some hip-hoppish music, as well as some techno. This may soon become a shaadi album, as it's not just one song out of the total of the 12 songs, but quite a few that will soon be heard playing at every mehndi.

The first song, ‘Nachi Ja’ is perhaps the perfect example of this, as the tune is pretty addictive. The song has bhangra along with some electronic sounds of an electronic guitar in the background, and dhol as well. It falls into the genre of Bollywood flick's title song, 'Dil Bole Hadippa', and is instantly likeable. It's definitely a perfect shaadi song, while Fariha has managed to make the song much more fun by the way she has sung it: she clearly sounds like she is enjoying singing this one.

Another song that has perhaps the catchiest beat is ‘Teray Liye’, which has taken inspiration from Turkish beats, with a Turkish flute playing in the background, but the song is very hip hop. Another song that perhaps has the same fresh hip hop sound is ‘Dil Bolay’, very reminiscent of early Golmaal days, the Bollywood flick which had perhaps the coolest laidback choreography and the song was just as chilled out.

While there may be some upbeat dancey songs, there are some of the same love songs we have perhaps heard many times before from Fariha. They may be her expertise, but compared to the other more happening tracks in the album, the slower melodies have fallen flat.

Tracks like ‘Mein Unn Bin’ and ‘Rab Janay’ are perhaps the only tracks that don't create a spark, no matter how many times they are heard. Perhaps it's because they sound a tad bit too familiar.

However, ‘Mahiya Teray Pyaar Mein’ has been sung beautifully, and the song is very soothing. The soft acoustic guitar adds to the serenity, and this love song gains our approval.

The title track, ‘Abhi Abhi’, is not powerful enough to be considered the title track of this album; while it's a good listen, it isn't very memorable. However, the song is also remixed in the end. This remix is catchy and definitely more fun to listen to.

Finally, there is also a touch of techno, and the third track of the album, ‘Iss Pyaar Mein’ is perhaps one of the best tracks. The song is yet another love song, but the beat and the rhythm of the song is much more upbeat and electronic. It sounds very Indian; the latest trend of remixing every slow love song of the movie to make a remixed number, prepared for the dance floor at every party. ‘Iss Pyaar Mein’ perhaps falls into that category. While it's very different to most of Fariha's songs, this song might help her in attracting a wider audience this time, as her album is very diverse. There is a song for everyone.

For the ones who like the usual Punjabi bhangra stuff, there is the first track ‘Nachi Ja’; for those who like more mellow tracks, there are songs like ‘Rab Janay’ and ‘Mahiya Teray Pyaar Mein’, there is also a tribute to Michael Jackson! The song is called and takes inspiration from Michael's song, 'Thriller'.

Finally, the album is wrapped with a remix of the dangerously famous song, ‘Bo Kata’, which perhaps every kite-loving basant-celebrating individual must know. The song came out a decade ago, and was Fariha's rise to stardom. While the original tune is the best version of this song, the remix is a good way of keeping the song fresh in everyone's mind.

The lyrical content of Abhi Abhi is not very strong, because it becomes repetitive. The songs are mostly love songs and that is the only place where there is no diversity. But we appreciate the fact that Fariha has a lot of projects up her sleeve, as she has only recently produced a duet alongside Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, titled 'Koi Diya', which is also an interesting collaboration. All in all, this album is fun and chirpy, and a definite must for all Fariha Pervez fans. Even those who aren't Fariha Pervez fans should listen to it once; they might just change their minds.