Thom O’Leary – one of the brains behind Non DJ Electronic Musicians of Melbourne – found himself in this predicament many times when wearing his other creative hat as songwriter, singer and keyboard player for Zen Robotic. He loves the broader Melbourne music scene, he loves his genre and he knew the key ingredient missing was unity.
He had a simple idea that went from a Facebook group to much more months. “In October of 2015, I started [the] Facebook group called Non DJ Electronic Musicians of Melbourne,” O’Leary says. “At the time I was trying to find similar acts for my own band Zen Robotic to play shows with ,and I also wanted to foster more of a community spirit within electronic music in Melbourne. Over the past 18 months the group’s growth has defied my expectations.”
With a sister site popping up for the Sydney live electronic music community, the page began a conversation that grew into a twice weekly night. “In August last year we held our first Non DJ Electronic Showcase and I initially thought we would hold a showcase every six months,” he says. “However, there was unprecedented demand from acts wanting to participate in these events and solid attendances at the first few showcases. Now Simon Quinn, Kieran Bahlmann and I are now organising both a Saturday night event and a Wednesday night event each month at Tago Mago in Thornbury.”
The name of the group is a definition in and of itself. These folks play electronic music live, sans DJs, and you’re not likely to see them popping up in any clubs.
“Our group is made up of a wide range of electronic acts,” he says. “From full electronic bands that have bassists, drummers and keyboard players, to modular synth players and artists who perform using electronic hardware such as launch pads.”
This diversity comes as no surprise to O’Leary, who is proud of the breadth of creativity in this city. “It’s really strong,” he says. “After having done some travelling, I think it’s the best music scene not just in Australia but in the entire southern hemisphere. I’ve been a part of hard rock and metal bands in the past, I’ve also performed in stage musicals, and I also have an interest in all musical genres. So I have a strong awareness of how diverse and fantastic Melbourne’s music scene is. As a musician there’s nowhere else in Australia that I’d prefer to live.”
An important part of the movement is fostering a sense of community and while Melbourne has community on a larger scale, O’Leary and co were trying to fill a gap in their own, smaller community.
“One twig is easily broken,” he says. “But a bundle of twigs can’t be; developing a strong electronic music community allows all of the individual acts involved to achieve more than we would otherwise.”
After planning for one showcase every six months, the group are readying for the group’s 6th monthly event at Tago Mago. “This Saturday night’s showcase will be headlined by Kalacoma, they’re a five piece trip hop band and one of most exciting electronic acts around,” he says. “They’ll be joined in a very solid line up that also includes The Safety Word, Disco Computer, Leipzig Lab, Phoenix Manson, Ben Willis and Catherine Meeson.”
Considering the group has already grown faster than hoped, what’s on the upcoming Non DJ Electronic Musicians of Melbourne calendar? “On the June 3, we’re having a special Dark Showcase which will exclusively feature dark electronic acts,” he says. “From June we’ll also start holding a regular Wednesday night event which will be in the style of an electronic open mic. If anyone is interested in performing, join the Facebook group Non DJ Electronic Musicians of Melbourne and you’ll find more details there.”
By Krissi Weiss
