Sinhala pop should improve on its own identity -Mahinda

Chamikara WEERASINGHE

THE influence of Mahinda Bandara’s music has brought the Sri Lankan music scene into focus with the need to improve on a style of our own with the available music fragments.

“The style I am talking about here may not be exclusively ours. What I am saying here is that Sinhala pop should sound a fraction different from other styles but there should remain the essential Sinhala character in music so that we may be recognised in the art,” says Mahinda.

He was met by “In Tune” last week at Neco studio, Nugegoda, where he was at a recording.

“Our popular music should move beyond playing covers of European and Hindi songs, to playing our originals with a Sri Lankan touch,” he said.

Mahinda Bandara made his presence to music with a guitar on his back in the mid 70s. The instrument, electric guitar, continues to sing with promise beneath Mahinda’s fingers on stage or in studio as it has been for the last three decades.

He has played, composed and recorded music for many popular artists in Sri Lanka.

He used to be the lead guitarist of Fortunes under the leadership of late music director Stanly Peiris.

Mahinda does not seem to grow old physically or mentally as long as he stays on music.

This is how the lead guitar idol of Sri Lankan oriental pop explained his background and story.

The beginning

“My grandfather was a music teacher at Heywood Fine Arts College, a lecturer on Tabla. Mother, a grade A light singer at Radio Ceylon. Uncle, a tablist.

We had an English mandolin at home.

I was only seven or eight when I played that instrument. We had many instruments at home but it was stringed instruments that attracted me the most.

I was 12 when the trend of band music was surfacing in the 70s. The bands like the Moonstones were up and coming. So with this influence, we also formed a band called the Swinging Blooms.

My first performance came in 1971 at Bogambara carnival. The best band then was The Hummingbirds, my uncle, Sumith Kodituwakku was in that band. Susil Perera was on drums and Clament Perera was there. They were very good players and we had to cope with their calibre.

Competition now and then

I think they were invaluable players and competition for playing or making music was very tough those days than one can imagine today. The competition today is nothing compared to those days.

There were very good music groups, bands like Jetliners and Spit Fires with the best of players that you will ever see. They were not just playing at the time they were setting up musical trends.

We got their influence and had to cope with their calibre which means a tough challenge. There were bands like Beatles revolutionising music in Britain at the time and here the local boys doing the same to the Sri Lankan music.

These were skilled players and our competition was to be like them.

Influence

I was much inspired by the playing of many guitarists in the 70s including guitarists Dixon Gunawardena of Super Golden Chimes. He was different from others that his playing was smooth and soft.

I liked his style. There was Padmasiri Ruparatna who was playing lead guitar in that band. His style was also good, explained Mahinda Bandara.

Talent

“I think I had a good ear. I had that ability to register musical sounds in my head in one take. We did not have any cassette players at the time. The memory did it all. I was a teacher unto myself,” the self-taught guitarist said.

Technology

We have achieved a great deal by virtue of modern technology. But by the same token we haven’t been able to produce worthy players or singers owing to the same because more than 90 per cent of the players have become overly dependent on technology.

They have become so dependent on technology that they do not want to create anything. If they want a style there is software at hand. This has caused a vacuum of artists with musicianship.

I had the best of my time as a recording artist during the 70s. I had the chance to be among the senior musicians and directors like Stanley Peiris, Claude Fernando and M.K. Roksamy.

To play with them was like participating in a music workshop. I learnt a lot from them about musical arrangements, melody composing, chords application. It helped us to come a long way.

Music today

I think music has deteriorated in quality than it has developed. In the early day we have good voices and good players. Melodies have dipped in quality, lyrics have dipped in quality.

Earlier musicians wanted to cater for an understanding audience.

Their target was to produce their tracks to a discerning audience.

Modern music is based on “youth” and “glamour”. This is what they sell with video clips costing more money than to cut a track.

I must say that this has become the practice of some media establishments that hey are also on the look out for “youth”.

They do not care about a decent performance if that should be a live musical programme. They do not care about the clientele who is watching or the quality of their production.

We are definitely making “music achcharu” by mixing Western and oriental sounds. You cannot call a song a hip hop song just because there is a rapping section in the middle of that song.

“It is not hip hop. I must say there is a lot of wrong labelling behind the entire scene and this is the result of a lack of knowledge in the youngsters.

young artists are more inclined to take a palkaviya and sing it with a rap section and call it a hip hop track. This has given a new face to Palkaviya. But who is enjoying these tracks except for a few Colombo fans,” Mahinda asked.

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Dinu to sing Jazz

Chamikara WEERASINGHE

VERSATILE singer and YA TV award winner for vocals on best tsunami song, Dinu Sanjuna is back home from Dubai before the lapse of her singing contract to perform at Palm Beach Hotel in Dubai with Spark.

The vocalist left for Dubai on October 21 to join the outfit to perform with, but has returned to the country earlier than she was expected after a few months.

“My job was to sing and I did not want my singing to suffer at the cost of the band’s internal problems,” said Dinu.

“Alright, I enjoyed singing there, made a few friends and earned a few bucks for my upkeep. However, I just had to come back to Sri Lanka before things getting any worse,” she said.

It has been learnt that Sparks’s bassist Shaman and Drummer Ruben have also come to Sri Lanka from Dubai.

Meanwhile, Dinu seemed to have changed both musically and physically after the tour.

She has put on weight and has become fairer for her physical part and she is keen to sing jazz for her musical part.

Dinu has a repertoire to sing pop, rock, soul, western classics or any other styles including oriental classics (of course she has got her Visharada degree for North Indian Music).

But to take up “jazz” means a total eclipse from her current disposition as a pop icon.

“I know I can do this. I have always believed that a singer should be able to sing any style,” said Dinu.

“But I know that is too good to be true, there may be styles which a singer cannot do, for instance there are some Arabian songs I like, but I simply cannot sing them,” she explained.

“But jazz, I can do it,” she said thoughtfully.

She also hinted that she was preparing to produce a CD. I am not in a hurry, but I am prepared,” she added.

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Wolfmother hoping to further rock ambitions on new CD

AFTER taking home a best hard rock performance Grammy for its song “Woman” two weeks ago, Wolfmother is beginning to think about its follow-up to its 2006 self-titled debut.

“We are looking forward,” singer/guitarist Andrew Stockdale tells Billboard.com. “We have a few songs that are getting in the pipeline to get worked on. We just recorded a song in Vancouver, so that’s pretty exciting. It’s called ‘Love Attacker.’ It’s the first (new) song in the year-and-a-half since we recorded the album.”

Stockdale says the riff-driven, chaotic and loud rock song, which recently entered the band’s nightly set list, is slated to be on the next album, which he hopes to have out in early 2008.

In terms of sound and direction, Stockdale doesn’t foresee a major departure from the debut, which drew comparisons to Led Zeppelin and the White Stripes.

“In some ways, just kind of a continuation of what we did on the first one with that sound and that approach and that style of rock’n’roll,” Stockdale says. “To just go even further. I guess I just want to rediscover what I love about rock’n’roll and what I love about music.”

However, Wolfmother’s touring cycle for the debut includes a few more legs. The Australian power trio will soon return to its homeland for some gigs before playing European festivals later this spring and yet another Stateside run. The band isn’t expected to get serious about the next album until mid-summer.

Also in the mix is a live DVD release, which Stockdale guesses will come out before the next album. It has yet to be decided if the project will be based around existing footage or an upcoming show.