There are many things at festivals that unite people who don’t know each other – standing in the mosh pit dancing to the same song, running out of sunscreen and thanking a random reveller as they douse you in theirs, asking someone if they want to get in on the dim-sims with you because you just don’t think you can stomach three – but nothing compares to the Mambo Nod.
The Mambo Nod is that smile followed by a quick nod when you see someone else wearing one of the OG loud shirts. It is an acknowledgement to each other that you know what’s up. That you know you’re both wearing more than just a colourful shirt, you’re wearing a historic piece of artwork; an icon of rebellion from a day gone by.
A rare trio of Mombassa’s in the wild.
It was day three of Falls Festival in Marion Bay and I was scampering around my tent trying to figure out what to wear. My go-to Reg Mombassa shirt that depicted the ‘Australian Beer Tree’ had seen a little too much beer and tree the night before, so that was a no-go. Instead I opted for my ‘Transformer’ shirt, an homage to the telegraph pole, also by Reg Mombassa.
“Telegraph poles are the tree of man singing in the wind. Cathedral spires of wood and wire that shimmer in the wind,” Mombassa says.
“This shirt’ll do,” I said.
It was coming up to lunchtime in Marion Bay and I had spotted more Mambo Loud
Shirts in the wild than I had in a whole year on the city streets. On the hill above the main stage there were thousands of people sitting with a cold Cascade Blue (Tassie’s version of a Mambo Bitter) and I was wandering up it. Out of nowhere I heard the joyful cry of a youthful bloke who was about a hundred meters away, and when I looked up I could see he was running towards me. When he was about fifty metres away I heard an older, more grunty, but equally as elated voice coming my way. It was yelling “Oiiiiii!”
Both these blokes were wearing the exact same loud shirt as me – Reg Mombassa’s
‘Transformer’ – and on the middle of the main stage hill, in front of thousands of people, we danced around each other like startled chickens as we gave each other the Mambo Nod. Statistics from the University of Mambo suggest that the chance of us all running into each other wearing the exact same twenty-five-year-old shirt is roughly one in a bazillion. We all caught our breath, told each other we’re aware of the significance of what has happened, poured a beer down our throats, and quickly got a photo for the Mambo Museum of Natural History.
Loud Shirts were the original unisex beach wear. Pic by Amy Whitfield.
When Mambo started producing the Loud Shirt range in 1994 it became a crowd favourite, a staple for those who dared to stand out. The shirts are emblazoned with colourful – and often profound – graphics, representing a counterculture to the countries right-wing. When the Mambo brand exchanged hands in 2000 the loud shirt range was discontinued by the company’s new owners, but the damage had already been done. Taking pride of place in the closet of so many Australia blokes and gals was the fabled Mambo Loud Shirt.
Jonno’s Loud Shirt selection chilling after another gruelling festival.
Now over 25 years since the first Mambo Loud Shirts were produced, the items remain
hotter than ever with collectors of all ages doing whatever they can to get their hands on the iconic piece of Australian history. Some of the Loud Shirts have a resale value of over four hundred dollars, so time to dig to the back of your Dad’s closet and see if you can find his Mambo Loud shirt still covered in grease from the ‘02 family BBQ. That being said, I encourage you never to sell it – wear it! Let the shirt become a family heirloom as it is passed down through your family from one legend to another. For now, wear it proudly at every BBQ, festival, or inappropriate occasion you can find, and you too can be a recipient of the all-powerful, all-knowing Mambo Nod.