Dinesh Moylan – Beautiful Place

“Beautiful Place” is a dash of folk, whorls of world and a streak or two of blues blended with unquie acoustic guitar, honest singing and tasteful production.
Dinesh Moylan – Beautiful Place
Review by Chris Spencer
Moylan hails from the South Coast of NSW, and has played previously in bands such as Blue Roots based in Cobargo. He has also recorded a previous album Doing the Dishes in 1996. On this CD, Dinesh sings and plays electric and acoustic guitar, bass, keyboards, djembe, harmonica and other percussion instruments. He has also recorded, mixed and mastered the album himself. At least you’d think he got the sound he was seeking and there would have been no arguments with the producer. Bhavit contributes mandolin and violin and three other people are credited providing background vocals. Moylan doesn’t have a distinctive voice; it’s pleasant and admirably while putting the voice right up front in the mix so that it’s easy to hear the lyrics. Okay, so what is Dinesh communicating to us about in his lyrics? The title track is a medium-paced ballad with acoustic guitar and bongos describing a special place; “Full Steam Ahead” is about the arrogance of the owners of the Titanic (it’s written in almost a traditional folk style); “Apartheid of the Mind” is one of the standout songs, dealing with terrorism and racism (it has a piano and drum arrangement – the only song on the album to feature drums); “Little Johnny’s Town”, another stronger song is a poke at the conservatism of the likes of John Howard and the song has a bit of bite (the use of electric guitar is well done, perhaps showing Moylan’s background in a rock band); “Spread the Light” is an anti-war song; another highlight of the album is “Odysseus and the Sea Nymph”, with its eerie background sounds; “Like Li Po” and “the Mountain” are environmental songs. Like many similar singer songwriters, Moylan has difficulties varying the tempo and structure of his songs. There are subtle nuances within each song that after repeated listens or at higher volume become more apparent. However, the sameness of the songs towards the end of the CD, make listening a little tedious and one’s concentration wanes. There are no memorable melodies, no changes of rhythm, no let up in the seriousness and intensity of the songs and words. If you want a CD of laid back, intense songs to set a mood or atmosphere, this album could be just the thing.