/> Rating: ***

EXPECTATIONS

When a film comes with 'dance' as its theme, there are indeed good expectations of at least the soundtrack being good.

Even though Fast Forward doesn't have stars per se, the film makes one look forward to good music due to three reasons - a) The man at the helm of affairs is Akbar Sami who has come up with quite a few DJ mixes in the past, b) The film's producer is Anjum Rizvi who has made A Wednesday earlier and c) The film's genre - dance and more of dance. Irshad Kamil and Shabbir Ahmed are the lyricists.

MUSIC

First to arrive is 'Taali Bajao' [Fast Forward Mix] which gets into the act from the very first second. A number which comes with a lot of funk, it is a 'Sona Family' track which is just perfect for a club outing.

A number which is made of English and Hindi lyrics, 'Taali Bajao' is a foot tapping number which indeed makes one clap along. The number sets the mood right and makes one get a hang of the genre of the film as well as the soundtrack.

Strictly for the youngsters, it gets it's target audiences on board there and then.

There is an about turn immediately after with the arrival of 'Aankhon Ki Baat'. A quintessential romantic number that has an edge to it mainly due to the arrangements and the way it has been orchestrated, this duet by Shaan and Pamela Jain is quite easy on ears.

Belonging to the good old Bollywood world of feel good mushy tracks, 'Aankhon Ki Baat' is a sweet number that should go down well with those in love. Later Amitabh Bhattacharya sings a solo 'remix' version of the same song which sounds even better as a club outing.

Zubin, who is yet to recreate the magic of 'Ya Ali' [Gangster] three years after the song was heard first, gets a solo for himself in the form of 'Dil Mein Junoon'. A spirited number that reminds one of 'Subah Subah' [I See You], 'Dil Mein Junoon' goes well with the young mood of the film and justifies it's presence in the album.

It's back to mush and romance with 'Tum Jo Mile' that has Shaan and Shweta Pandit coming together for a duet. Yet again, it's the 'spirited' feel that remains consistent throughout the film's soundtrack that makes 'Tum Jo Mile' another track which makes for a good listening.

In fact the way Shaan sings the track, it makes one immediately relate the song with Saif Ali Khan. The song has a brief English interlude with a chorus chipping in which further adds value to the song. Shweta arrives on the scene two minutes into the song and makes one wonder why her voice is not heard more often?

Kunal Ganjawala gets a solo for himself and gets behind the mike for 'Namm Nigahon Se' which arrives only in its 'remix' version.

Though the song has a sad feel to it, Akbar Sami ensures that it is not a 'sad outing' per se. Instead he keeps the composition and arrangements peppy enough to not let any boredom seep in.

Though the song starts off a little slowly, the moment it hits the rhythm, it leaves an impact. A situational track which goes well with the overall flow of the album.

'Rangli Se Rangli' doesn't quite have an enticing beginning to it but presses the right buttons the moment it gets into the rhythm with the arrival of 'Naach rabba naach'!

A dance number that moves at a frantic pace and has slight Middle East touch to it, this number sung by Ali may not be the best in the league of other numbers in 'Fast Forward' but is not a bad hear at all. One looks forward to how the number appears on screen.

Last to come is the title track 'Fast Forward' which is ~4 minutes of sheer dance floor piece that has in it to make people wear their dancing shoes.

Akbar Sami himself comes behind the mike to croon just two words - 'Fast Forward' - with the real fun starting once the track hits the 100 seconds mark. This is the point where one gets to witness vintage DJ Akbar Sami!

Rest of the album comprises of some other dance-mix numbers from non-film albums. 'Glassy', 'Rise Up Feat. Jaba', 'Mundiyan To Bach Ke' and 'Nachna Onda Nei' may not be a part of the movie but as a part of the album, all of these lend a complete feel.

OVERALL

Fast Forward throws in a pleasant surprise. One did expected a decent soundtrack from the film but what one gets to hear are a bunch of tracks that may not turn out to be chartbusters in isolation but collectively lend Fast Forward some good respectability.

Now future of this album would solely depend upon how far does the film manage to leave an impact at the box office.

OUR PICK(S)

Taali Bajao, Aankhon Ki Baat, Tum Jo Mile