We’re celebrating 22 years of Edge Radio with a massive fundraiser gig at Altar this November. In the lead up, we’re introducing some of the incredible Tasmanian artists playing the show – and first up is Q.E.
The experimental pop project of Jacky Collyer, Q.E. feels like a dream you can’t quite shake. The music is atmospheric and emotional in the best possible way.
Meet Q.E.
Q.E. makes music the way some people make sense of the world – by embracing the mess of it all. It’s a project that moves between electronic experimentation and raw emotion, pulling threads from different styles and eras and weaving them into something entirely its own.
When the band – Jacky Collyer, Damien Kingston (guitar), Hamish Houston (bass), and Tom Robb (drums) – take the stage, things start to shift. The air thickens. The audience listens differently. You don’t just hear Q.E., you feel it.
Her Agenda
Growing up surrounded by American pop culture with the iconic streets and places like New York City, Jacky noticed something about the way we hear music from other places.
“We’ve grown up buying into other cultures and revering them.” She told us. “But we never do that with our own places.”
It points to how we often undervalue local culture. She wants to change that. It’s her weird agenda to make it right.
That idea runs quietly through Q.E.’s music, finding beauty in familiar landscapes and giving local places the same emotional weight we usually reserve for faraway ones.
New Release: “Bottled Up”
Q.E.’s latest single “Bottled Up” continues Jacky’s fascination with turning complex ideas into vivid sound. This time, she’s exploring the emotional weight of environmental collapse — how it feels to live through it, and how to translate that feeling into music. The track builds slowly, layering tension and texture until it becomes something both intimate and immense.
From Studio Project to Live Band
Q.E. began as a solo electronic project, but it soon evolved into something bigger.
“At first it felt strange,” Jacky admits. “I was used to working alone, building tracks electronically. Then I asked Tom to play drums, he suggested Damien, and we brought Hamish on board — suddenly it was a full live band.”
The shift opened up new creative possibilities.
“It’s really liberating — I can imagine something wild, and the band can bring it to life.”
Together, they’re now finishing Q.E.’s debut album, due later this year. And yes, there’s talk of recording one song using a full-sized organ. Because why not?
About Jacky Collyer
At the centre of Q.E. is Jacky Collyer, a sound designer, producer, and composer based here in nipaluna/Hobart.
She’s toured internationally, scored films, designed sound for theatre, and teaches Music Technology at the University of Tasmania, where she’s also completing a PhD in spatial audio composition.
Jacky’s music builds immersive sound worlds that draw listeners in. She’s won a Tasmanian Theatre Award for Sound Design, and created works for Mona Foma and the Cardinia Art Society. Whether it’s a theatre piece or an experimental pop song, her work invites you to listen deeply and feel something unexpected.
What’s Next For Q.E.
Jacky’s next project pushes the boundaries even further, with her PhD. She’s focussing on spatial audio and 3D sound in a particular space using an active field control system.
Which is essentially fancy surround sound, like in a cinema, but with many, many more speakers.
This will be a Q.E. gig in 3D sound, a live show at the Ian Potter Recital Hall. “It will sound like being inside the album,” she told us. “We’ll have the full band, a choir, and sound moving all around the space. It’ll be immersive in every direction.” It’s an ambitious blend of art, science, and sound — and a glimpse of where live music could be headed next.
Catch Q.E. Live at Edge Radio’s 22-Year Fundraiser Concert
You can catch Q.E. live at Edge Radio’s 22-Year Fundraiser Gig on Saturday 15 November at Altar, alongside a stacked lineup of local favourites — Teens, Spooky Eyes, and Baltimöre Charlót & The Experience .
Come celebrate two decades (and a bit) of independent radio, live music, and creative community.
Grab your tickets early at Altar — and get ready to experience something truly unique.