Inside the Fairfield warehouse turned recording studio where King Gizzard, Cable Ties and Cosmic Psychos have laid down tracks.
Tucked away on the top floor of an old textile factory in Fairfield sits one of Melbourne’s best-kept sonic secrets.
A Secret Location Sound Recorders doesn’t advertise much. It doesn’t need to. For 16 years, the studio has been quietly churning out recordings for some of the city’s most vital artists, from King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard to Cable Ties, Grace Cummings to Private Function and just last month, Dr Sure’s Unusual Practice.
A Secret Location Sound Recordings, Fairfield
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Run by producer and engineer Paul Maybury, the space represents everything a musician-friendly studio should be: well-equipped, comfortable, and built on the principle that making records should be enjoyable.
Maybury’s path to running his own studio came from frustration as much as passion.
“I’ve been a musician all of my adult and some of my teen life,” he explains.
“When I’ve worked on recordings as a musician in various studios in the past, I often felt that the results and the process were not to my liking, or particularly musician friendly. I thought to myself, surely this whole recording engineer and producer game can’t be all that hard?”
Spoiler alert: it was harder than expected.
“Well I was wrong about that, but nonetheless, I was bitten by a bug and I am still obsessed.”
Starting with four-track cassette machines and borrowed microphones, he gradually built his skills and gear collection. Small digital recorders came next, then demos for other bands, eventually leading to work in proper tape-equipped studios on full albums.
The journey to Fairfield took a detour through one of Melbourne’s legendary music spaces.
“An opportunity to have a part share in a legendary punk party/studio/share house warehouse in East Brunswick came up, so I moved my meagre collection of clapped out equipment there, to add the 16 track tape machine and console they had,” Maybury recalls.
When that space folded, fortune smiled. “I looked around and was lucky enough to find my current space.”
That current space has since hosted an impressive roll call of Melbourne talent.
Beyond the names already mentioned, the studio has welcomed Cosmic Psychos, Ash, Porpoise Spit, Mach Pelican, Hacker, Bad Bangs, Hana Brenecki, Hoss, Biff, The Grinding Eyes, Tarcutta, Startime, Rocket Science, The Pink Tiles, Le Mini Joupe, Barbarion, Plastic Section, Thee Cha Cha Chas, SPAWN, Budd and The Prize.
Maybury notes these are just some of the highlights, mostly memorable because of how much fun was had.
What keeps him coming back after all these years? The magic of creation itself.
“I love working with young, and/or new bands that are just discovering their power, and are excited about the possibilities and collective creativity of working in a well equipped, comfortable space,” Maybury says. “
“I enjoy problem solving, and finding new ways to do things.
“I am absolutely addicted to the feeling you get when something just clicks, and suddenly there is new art in the world that didn’t exist until a few moment beforehand, created by collective energy. What joy!”
It’s that joy that permeates every session at A Secret Location. Rather than the slightly sterile, intimidating environments that Maybury experienced as a young musician, his studio offers something different: a space where the focus stays squarely on the music and the people making it. No ego, no unnecessary complications, just the tools and atmosphere needed to capture lightning in a bottle.
For a city with such a rich musical culture, spaces like A Secret Location prove essential. Sometimes the best work happens in converted textile factories in Fairfield, guided by someone who remembers what it felt like to be on the other side of the glass, hoping the person behind the desk actually gets it.
Sixteen years in, Maybury clearly still gets it. The bug that bit him all those years ago hasn’t let go, and Melbourne’s music scene is better for it. From punk bands discovering their power to established acts chasing new sounds, A Secret Location continues doing what it does best; helping artists capture those magical moments when collective energy becomes permanent art.
Bands keen to work with Maybury can reach out through the studio’s Facebook page or via [email protected].
Requirements? Just bring your energy and be ready to create something that didn’t exist until you walked through the door.
For more information, head here.
