The south London, Mellah has my heart in a lovely music spin. Mellah is Liam Ramsden of Peckam, UK. I am totally digging his debut EP, Liminality. Every song is worthy of your ears, but “Nada” is a masterpiece for a debut. What is not to love about the snap of jarring lyrics and the rollicking and rolling melody. I especially appreciate the surprising harmonica which enters as the song builds in impact. After appreciating all of those elements, listen again and then dig deep into the hefty lyrics.
I dare you.
Mellah-Nada
“Morning rain evening dust,
Collect your name then pick your hearse,
What you say could make the best of us,
All the same your burning up,
Morning rain evening dust,
Forget your name then picture us,
All is fair in love and lust,
Haven’t you heard..?
It’s not enough,
It’s never enough,
The sweet with the rough,
haven’t you heard,
It’s always too much.
You get the feeling but the feeling ain’t right,
It lingers on until the end of the night,
Your head gets high but the load’s never light,
Haven’t you heard?
It’s passing you by,
It’s passing you by,
Sweet by and by,
Haven’t you heard,
Try as you might.
You dig for money but the money don’t show,
And all the while push the feeling down low,
Lay down your intention before you go,
Or hadn’t you heard?
Or didn’t you know? “
So now that you’ve listened, this is what I learned about the track.
“Nada’ is a song that Liam says “is about death. My father died a couple of years ago now; his sudden, unexpected departure paraded in front of me the stark inevitability of death, which I had never really been faced with before, and through it illuminated the immediacy and beauty of my own life. “Nada” is my memento mori if you like.”
Hypnotically raw and poignant, right? Hope you’ll support this artist.
Other essential listening tracks on the EP, “Old Friend” and “Greeney Blue”.
