Mendala – Tunnel Road

Mendala – Tunnel Road
by John Williams
Mendala are a five piece band
who hail from the Northern
Illawarra region.
On this CD four of the members
have written tracks and this shows
a cooperative spirit within the band.
They seem to enjoy making music
together and surely that’s what live
music should be about.
‘I Want You Back’ is a bloke
begging for his partner to come
back.
The second track ‘The Morning
Light’ is about waiting for the
morning when you can’t sleep due
to missing a loved one.
I enjoyed it.
‘Take Me Back to Byron Bay’ is
self explanatory.
The next track, ‘New Land’,
is another take on the convict
experience. I am excited that
artists are looking at our past as the
inspiration for new songs.
They deserve our support and
encouragement because if we forget
our past we diminish ourselves as a
nation.
‘December Sunset’ is a beautiful
track.
‘Gone’ is about someone leaving
but saying he will come back
someday.
I really enjoyed ‘New England
Highway’ about thoughts while on
a road trip. It has a slow, almost
monotonous sound which evokes
some of the long trips I have been
on.
‘Upwards from Here’ is about
getting on with life when you are
down. Leave the T.V. behind and
get out. You can only go “upwards
from here”.
‘Missing You’ is about a love that
just didn’t get off the ground.
‘Round The Bend’ and ‘Me
And Dog’ were two tracks I found
depressing without a lot of hope.
They both cover feelings in a strong
way and may not be to everyone’s
taste.
‘Something Else’ was more
uplifting and a good antidote to the
former songs’ depressing lyrics.
‘One Day at a Time’ fi nishes the
personal songs on this CD with a
positive note. Forget the past, it
can’t be changed. Keep plugging
away and you’ll get there in the end.
The CD also includes an
interesting interpretation of the
traditional track ‘The Drover’s
Dream’.
It features a solo singer with a
simple guitar backing as it may have
been sung around a campfi re in the
past.
Good luck to them for having a
go.
It is terrifi c to see singers
continuing to use our traditional
material. If it is not used it will surely
die and it’s too good to suffer that
fate.
If we don’t keep it alive who will?
Mendala have written very
personal songs and it is worth taking
the journey with them through some
lows and lots of highs.