"Just follow the bouncing ball."

Clendell Rundles

Long before SiennaBlu, Clendell Rundles was already living the life of a working musician.

Growing up in southern New Jersey during the golden age of funk and R&B, the self-taught bassist from a military family outside of Fort Dix developed a style that was impossible to ignore. His philosophy was simple: put the groove first and have fun! Every note landed squarely "on the one," driving the music with authority, soul, and the kind of pocket that can't be taught.

His stage presence became legendary among the musicians who knew him. While many bass players quietly disappeared into the background, Clendell seemed to fuel the entire room. The smile, the energy, the dancing, the unmistakable head bobbing—it was all part of the performance. Once he locked into a groove, the rest of the band barely needed monitors….

They had Clendell.

When his head started bouncing in time, everyone else knew exactly where the beat lived.

"Just follow the bouncing ball," became the running joke.

Those early years led to countless performances throughout the Northeast, including an appearance opening for Earth, Wind & Fire—an experience few young musicians ever forget.

Fate has a funny way of bringing old friends back together.

Back in the 1970s, Clendell's younger brother fronted one of the local bands that regularly crossed paths with another neighborhood group whose drummer happened to be a young James Coleman Miller. Neither of them could have imagined that decades later, nearly 1,600 miles away in Houston, Texas, they'd find themselves making music together again.

In 2005, Clendell joined the newly formed SiennaBlu alongside vocalist and lyricist Keith Luke while simultaneously playing in an R&B project with James. One evening after rehearsal, Clendell approached James with an unexpected question.

"We need a drummer."

James hesitated.

He had spent years playing funk, R&B, and blues—not modern rock.

Clendell simply smiled.

"Come try it."

That single invitation changed everything.

James joined the band, and almost overnight SiennaBlu's sound began to evolve. Instead of becoming just another rock band, the music took on unmistakable elements of funk, soul, blues, jazz, and progressive arrangements. The chemistry between Clendell's deep pocket, James's groove-oriented drumming, Corey Coleman Miller's adventurous guitar writing, and Keith Luke's storytelling became the heartbeat of the band.

During the next seven years, SiennaBlu would write, perform, and record a catalog of more than fifty original songs while appearing throughout the Houston music scene, including performances at Fitzgerald's, The Meridian, the Verizon Wireless Theatre, multiple appearances on Fox 26 Morning Show, and a second-place finish in Houston's Bodog Battle of the Bands.

Many of SiennaBlu's most adventurous musical moments began with Clendell. Working closely with Corey and James, he helped create some of the band's richest funk, jazz, and rhythm-driven passages—music that remains every bit as fresh today as when it was first recorded. Those performances will finally receive the attention they deserve- remixed and mastered as part of The SiennaBlu Project, with the upcoming release of the upcoming “Let Go” album.

To understand SiennaBlu is to understand the importance of its rhythm section.

Clendell didn't simply play bass.

He worked to shape the direction of the music.

Today, Clendell enjoys retirement in Bonita, California, where he owns and operates a special-event dove release company outside San Diego. Though miles now separate him from his Texas bandmates, his unmistakable groove—and the joy he brought into every rehearsal and every stage—remain woven into the DNA of SiennaBlu.

He didn't just play the groove. He became part of the soul of SiennaBlu.