It absolutely baffles me that although Australia has so many channels to support upcoming musicians (eg. festival opportunities, music-dedicated radio stations, music bloggers (hello!) and music magazines/street presses), the music industry is still overwhelmingly male-dominated.
I have been particularly curious as to why the electronic music space hasn’t seen more female producers being given the support and recognition they deserve, so I felt the need to create this little list to bring some very talented ladies that I have come across to the forefront. I was even startled in my research for this just how many amazing female producers I found suggested from overseas (particularly from the UK), yet somehow much fewer here. So please, enjoy, and most of all – spread the word!
Ok, so I may have even cheated from the very start of this list – I don’t know if I’d called Eves The Behavior an exclusively electronic producer as her genre certainly touches pop, but her heavy synth sound does generate a very electronic feel. She has synesthesia, seeing colours when she experiences music, which might explain why her tracks are so emotionally charged. She has described her latest track “TV” as being a “dark, murky green”. Have a listen:
I stumbled across Melbourne singer-songwriter MYAMI on triple j unearthed the other day and was incredibly impressed by the amount of thought that has gone into her track “Soldier”, a collab with producer Wayfarer. It’s subtle, restrained, yet powerful. It’s the only song of hers I can find right now, but if it’s anything to go off, I can say she is certainly destined for big things.
You may have heard JOY joining forces with Peking Duk for a Like A Version cover of “Take Me Over” – and if so, you’d know she’s gentle yet controlled in her style. Her original songs are even more beautiful, and with collabs like that under her belt, it’s safe to say we will be hearing a lot more from her in the coming years.
Of all the lovely ladies on this list, Alison Wonderland is probably the most widely known, with a harder style, and she’s the artist that everyone seems to have an opinion about. But whatever your thoughts are about her, there is no doubt she is making waves and playing with the big fish in the industry – so all the power in the world to you AW. She’s just released her first album, Run, so there are plenty of tracks for you to check out.
Last year she was all over the Australian music scene, constantly touring and releasing singles, even doing a trip to the US, but this year it seems she’s been awfully quiet. That being said, she did release this song a couple of weeks ago, so maybe it’s all a sign that she’s got some new big things in the works:
After seeing Airling support James Vincent McMorrow, I’m convinced that she’s gonna be a big thing, and when she releases tender collabs with Japanese Wallpaper like “Forces”, you can’t help but love her:
Also, if you haven’t checked out Tkay Maidza yet, you’d better go do that.
But this list is by no means exhaustive! Please write back and tell me which female producers you’ve been loving at the moment. Or if you’re an artist wanting to get featured, please do drop us an email at editors.vinylgarden@gmail.com! Happy listening all!
By Erin Rooney
Vinyl Garden 