Hobart’s rapid growth is made evident by construction cranes, closed highway lanes and crowded houses.
 
The city’s thriving underground music scene has emerged amid the chaos.
 
While punk, art-punk and eclectic music styles have appeared and established themselves firmly in the local Hobart soundscape identity, underground electronic music has largely gone unnoticed as a unique facet of the music scene.
 
The compilation CD ‘Synthesthesia 7000’ is a collection of songs by contemporary underground electronic artists based in Hobart.
 
The idea for the CD came to musician Graham Meredith (Atomic Deluxe, Warning Will Robinson) over a beer at a gig with fellow band member Craig Clarke
 
In early November 2018 Meredith and Clarke began approaching artists interested in recording songs for the CD release.
 
With the help of Cubbyhouse Records’ founder Peter “Pit” MacPherson, Clarke and Meredith collected and mixed 29 tracks of local electronic artists for the CD by the first day of December 2018 - a remarkable completion time of just three weeks.
 
‘Synthesthesia 7000’ feature tracks by post-modern progressive rabble rousers Dreamcast, darkwave deep-thinker Starklane and ambient solo producer Slumber. Beautiful ambient instrumentals from Arrdhu, Raymond Scottwalker and Soil bring the Chill to the vibe. Renowned artists such as Filthy Little Star and Baltimore have taken an opportunity to develop music divergent of their usual sound for the CD.
 
Soundscape tracks from Sisters Akousmatica and Julia Drouhin bring the sounds of radio waves, village sounds and ambient places in a wonderful collage of stereo spatiality. Energetic buzz saw night club tracks from Pixius, hdot and tVitch get the joint pounding, as well as D&B experimental tracks by others to increase the heart rate. There is something here to please everyone on this collection.

Release: January 12, 2018, Cubbyhouse Records
Words: Imogen Elliott

Palm Springs began in 2014, previously releasing on Palm Springsteen Records. It remains a solo song-writing project for Erica Dunn (Mod Con, Tropical Fuck Storm) who, on this release, employed the help of two long time companions Paul Pirie and Steph Hughes. The project responds in spirit to deep outsider folk sentiments and recalls heroes of the genre; Karen Dalton, Pip Proud and Hopkins/Bradley to name a few references.

The bulk of the tape was recorded after Dunn was accepted into an artist’s residency program in upstate New York in June 2017. To document this period of focused writing, Dunn approached NYHED studios in the Lower East Side NYC in the month that followed. Owned and operated by Matt and Rocío Verda-Ray, the small studio preferences analogue equipment and recording to tape, which suited the Palm Springs aesthetic perfectly. Seven tracks were completed in a 10-hour burst, with an aim to capture a song without overthinking or extrapolation. What results are very raw and immediate takes. Back home in Melbourne and eager to complete the project, a final song was recorded to tape at Phaedra Studios with John Lee in September 2018.

Release: November 20th, 2018, Tender Collection
​Words: Tender Collection

This collection of catchy tunes is brought to you by the youth record label Olinda Groove and features the music of talented emerging artists all 18 years or younger, from Taroona High School, Kingston High School and Hobart College. 
 
Olinda Groove Records is a not-for-profit independent record label based at Hobart College operated by young people with a passion for the music industry.
 
The project was funded by the Department of Education and produced by Bianca Birt and Ian Parsons.

Release: November 27th, Olinda Groove Records

Tom Fowkes' honest and intimate live performances have earned him spots at The Falls Music and Arts Festival, Junction Arts Festival, Taste of Tasmania, Festivalé and Party in the Paddock. In 2017, he reached the semi-finals of the prestigious International Songwriting Competition. 

Fowkes worked closely with Zarven Kara and David Venter to produce his scintillating debut album Sad To Light, which was launched at a cosy show at the Kingsway Bar in Launceston.

It is a journey of the heart, and sometimes the head; he hopes you find something in there, whether revealing or relieving, that contributes to you in some way.

Release: River Twin Records, November 23rd, 2018

Cyanide Thornton have shared their stunning debut self-titled album via Bedroom Suck / Remote Control.

Featuring members of Two Steps On The Water, the band was founded in early 2016 and have been steadily gaining traction in Melbourne’s alternative rock circuits.


While incorporating elements of folk and rock, Cyanide Thornton transcends its composite parts, moving into a space of raw emotion and fierce determination. Ellah Blake (drums) and David Pesavento (bass) provide understated yet resolute punctuation for each song, holding together the music with a remarkable tenderness and affection, and providing a cradle for Sienna Thornton’s masterful and harrowing lyrics and guitar work. Thornton’s voice is at once wistful and melancholic, painting narratives with a tender immediacy. The album evokes a sense of magical realism, with its lyrics transforming painfully human experiences of love and loss into magical and ethereal moments.
​
Cyanide Thornton is a record wreathed in tenderness, honesty and intimacy, and will guide you from the dark corners of your mind to somewhere unearthly and supernatural.

Release: November 9th, 2018, Bedroom Suck Records
Words: Bedroom Suck/Remote Control

Hurricane Youth are a Launceston four-piece made up of Trent Buchanan, Matt Smith, Alex Whitmore and Alex Tyson.
 
They released their debut EP, A Change In Weather, in 2017, and since then have been working hard to ready their debut album Breathe In, Breathe Out for release. Recorded at the Rat Palace with Nic White, the album showcases the honest lyrics, thick, heavy guitars, and thumping drums that the band are known for.
 
Over the last couple of years, Hurricane Youth have supported bands such as The Bennies, The Hard Aches, Polish Club and Slowly Slowly, and will shortly head to the mainland to tour in celebration of the album release.

Release: Independent, November 15th, 2018