Photograph by: Stefan Duscio
Series curated by: Daniel Perlin

Melbourne is a relatively young city, having only been a happening metropolis since the Victorian Gold Rush of the 1850s. After 160 years it still bubbles with the enthusiasm of a city still finding its voice. This vibrancy is no better exemplified than in the city's thriving and immense music scene.

Even after recent surges in the cost of living, quality of life in Melbourne remains incredibly high making it somewhat of a Mecca for creative types from all over Australia. State and federal government have always funded and supported the creation and performance of music in Melbourne, which means that even the most obscure and obtuse of sounds are able to find an avenue into the public consciousness.

The music we have collated for this mix come from a tiny microcosm within Melbourne's vast musical terrain. This is the sound of the city that we live and breathe as made by the people around us. These artists all share a similar musical ideology, an intricacy of touch, a fondness for experimentation and an inherent sense of place.

We selected music without lyrics or a defined narrative, thus leaving its interpretation and geographical significance to the ears of the beholder. From bedroom studios and warehouses of inner city Melbourne made on synthesisers, samplers, tape and drum machines, this audio is intimate, tactile and transporting.

It will swim around in your head and out into the streets around you.
Cameron Bird & Gus Franklin

Tracklist

Skylight – Haima
Did You Cry Yet? – Jeremy Dower
Windows 1971 – Letraset
Last Cloud – Sam Perry
Wannado – HaGus
Lighthouse (Live at The Worker's Club) – Ev 'n Shags
Havoc Jeweler – Son of Icewoman
Stars Align – Qua
I Don't Think They're Coming – Donza
Mo' Manoeuvres – Slomo Speedboat
Speaker Milk – Crumbs
Relaxation tape (Excerpt) – The Avalanches
Strange Nostalgia For The Future – Cut Copy
Fantastic Valleys – Midnight Juggernauts
Epithet – The Night Terrors
Cosmic Pond – John Lee
Chain of Lagoons – Matthew Brown
Warm Wind – Hawktale
Night Dunes – Ben Browning

Check out all the Mixtapes in the series.

Having met in art school in Melbourne in 2000, Gus Franklin and Cameron Bird have collaborated musically in the pop group Architecture in Helsinki since 2002.