Fairies, Ghosts, and Stoker

At 4ZZZ, we acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we broadcast. We pay our respects to the elders past, present, and emerging of the Turrbal and Jagera people. We acknowledge that their sovereignty over this land was never ceded,

and we stand in solidarity with them.

You're listening to Transmission on 4ZZZ, amplifying the trans and gender diverse community of Meanjin, Brisbane and beyond. Woo! You're listening to Transmission on 4ZZZ. My name is Ez Keaton.

My name's Hazel, she/her.

And we vibing in the studio this morning. Thank you so much, by the way, to everyone who, you know, messaged me to say welcome back to being on air last week after my hiatus.

So sweet.

Yeah, it was sweet.

It's very nice to hear your voice back on the airwaves. Oh, thank you. As always.

I mean, it's weird. Like, I didn't know anyone listened.

It does feel like that when you— there was that time a wonderful listener sent in— actually, no, sorry, hand-delivered to us drawn artworks.

Oh, that's right. They're upstairs in the pigeonhole.

Yeah, yeah. Based on— I mean, mine's at home. And based— I took that right home. Based on how they pictured us to look based on our voices. And I gotta say, like, that was a real earth-shattering moment because it was literally like, there's people listening?

And there's people listening and thinking about what we look like.

I know, I thought I was talking into the void this whole time.

Yeah, yeah. I think Rae, which funnily enough has been depicted as some kind of furry animal.

Yes, like a dog, I believe.

Yeah, and I was like, that's strangely accurate.

No, it works. It works. I was depicted as some sort of pixie fairy situation.

Nailed it! Nailed it! Absolutely.

Made me very happy.

That's right. In case you didn't know, listener, Hazel is a fairy.

I've been told this when I was very young as well.

You're just fluttering around.

Yeah, yeah. Oh, you know, back in Ipswich State Schools, you know. Yeah,

yeah.

There's a fairy over there.

Yeah, yeah, definitely as a compliment.

Yeah, that's how my brain's remembered it, so.

Rewrite that one quick.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Anywho, glad to be here with you, Hazel, and I'm glad to be back. Uh, we've got the week in community news. We've got kind of a pretty packed episode, um, and, uh, we're gonna be doing a live reading of the news today. Sure are. Uh, and there's quite a few things to go through. I'll just give, um, like a trigger warning and like content warning for transgender diverse listeners. We're gonna touch on, you know, some pretty big world politics as well as local politics today. Some of it is grim, some of it is great. Um, so, uh, just look after yourselves, and if you need to, uh, Q Life is out there for you, so you can head to www.qlife.org.au. qlife.com.au, and they're a local org that provides mental health support and crisis support via message, text message, or you can call them from 3 PM to 9 PM every day. So if you need any extra support, please do so. Hazel, would you like to take it away?

Yeah, so this week in community news for October 26th, brought to you by Gender Health Australia, we'll start with international. US Supreme Court blocks restrictions on trans prison healthcare. The United States Supreme Court has refused to allow the Trump administration administration to immediately enforce restrictions on gender-affirming healthcare for transgender people in federal prisons, leaving a lower court order in place while the case continues through the courts. The challenged policy would have ended access to hormone therapy, gender-affirming medical treatments, and other accommodations for trans inmates, following a broader executive order targeting transgender rights. In a rare recent win for trans rights advocates, the court rejected the administration's emergency appeal, meaning transgender prisoners will continue to receive gender-affirming care for now. Civil rights Trans rights organisations say the decision will prevent significant harm to trans inmates while the legal challenge to the policy proceeds.

That's good. That's great. Yeah.

I mean, I'm happy to hear that.

Yeah, me too.

The New Zealand High Court overturns puberty blocker ban.

Yo! That's big news.

This is fantastic. New Zealand's High Court has ruled the government's ban on new prescriptions of puberty blockers for young people with gender dysphoria was unlawful, finding officials failed to properly consult affected communities, including trans and gender diverse young people. Makes me sad. They didn't consult with them?

What?

That's so unheard of. The court has also found restrictions unlawfully discriminated against gender-diverse youth and breached rights protections by treating them differently from other young people who can access puberty blockers for other medical conditions. Judges noted that trans people face significantly higher risks of poor mental health outcomes, including self-harm and suicide, and concluded that a complete ban on access for new patients was a disproportionate response. This decision is being welcomed by advocates as a major victory for evidence-based healthcare and the rights of trans young people.

Yay!

Nice to see somewhere reach that conclusion. That's nice.

Yes. And I wonder what this means for our class action that's happening here in Queensland around Dim Nichols— sorry, Tim Nichols, um, and, and his actions.

So there is— yeah, there's at least some international precedent set about responses to this

now. Yes, exactly. Uh, in national news, WA moves to end LGBTQIA+ discrimination in religious schools. So the WA government has unveiled major reforms to the state's Equal Opportunity Act that would prevent religious schools from discriminating against students and staff based on their sexuality, while also strengthening protections for people with disabilities. Under the proposed laws, religious schools would no longer be able to expel students or sack teachers because they are LGBTQIA+, although religious institutions would still be able to give preference based, uh, on religion. So Attorney General Tony Booty— Buddy? Described the changes as the biggest overhaul of the state's anti-discrimination laws in more than 40 years, with additional protections planned for people experiencing homelessness, domestic violence, pregnancy, or breastfeeding. Advocates have welcomed the reforms as a significant step towards ensuring all Western Australians can participate in education and public life free from discrimination.

That is fantastic to hear.

It is so good.

So pretty long overdue as well. Yeah.

Oh, I mean, full Yeah,

absolutely.

Uh, and local— in local news, um, if you didn't already know and you rocked up to New Farm Park on Saturday, uh, you may have been just wet and disappointed. Um, Brisbane Pride Rally and Fair Day was postponed due to the weather, uh, and Brisbane Pride have announced the postponement of its 2026 rally in March, and Fair Day was obviously due to the adverse weather conditions, with organizers saying the safety and well-being of community members, performers, stallholders, volunteers, and event staff must come first. While acknowledging the disappointment many people will have felt, Brisbane Pride says it remains committed to bringing the community together and will provide further updates on rescheduling arrangements through its official networks— sorry, channels. In the meantime, celebrations continued at the Wickham over the weekend, as well as River Pride still went ahead. I'm sure if you are in the queer community and all over the socials, you will have seen all of that there. But also, they have moved the Pride rally, march, and fair day to Saturday the 7th of November. So put that in your calendar. And that is also the same for Meanjin's People's Pride. They will be doing the same thing.

Excellent, very happy to hear that. I attended that river— Oh, you did? Yes, I was on one of the boats.

With Brodie?

With Brodie, indeed. How was it? Brodie of Transmission and also Queer Radio on Wednesday nights. It was a blast. And maybe I'm biased, but it was a fully catered boat, so I had plenty of red wine. and it was a fantastic time. We were all soaked to the bone and completely wet, but we were completely filled with sort of queer pride and queer energy. It was fantastic.

We were damp with joy.

Yeah, positively moist with satisfaction.

That's it!

Yes! But it was a great time, it was really, really fun. I really loved it.

Yeah, yeah, and I'm sure Wet was extra wet that Saturday night too.

I bet they would have been, yeah. It gives a new meaning to the other Melt event that happened on Friday night, which was Swamp Dogs.

Oh, and I went and that was swampy.

It was swampy, I bet.

Yes, it was. It was humid, it was sticky, it was clammy. Yeah. It was great. Yeah. And yeah, there's just been so much going on. I love Melt Festival. I feel like this is the best one yet. I don't know, I'm like, just because I like the lineup is amazing.

I mean, even with the postponing, it's doing really good so far, this Melt Festival.

Honestly, it's the best one because Transmission have a live show.

We certainly do. Hey, Ez, when is that live show happening? That's a great question.

Hazel, when are we gonna be doing a show together live at Studio 188? I'm pretty sure it's November 5th, which is about 2 weeks from now, less than 2 weeks from now. I'm so excited. We've got Still Full from Lunch and Two Mouth.

And Two Mouth.

Yeah. And a panel.

And a panel. Folks, if you're a fan of Banshees, or if you're a fan of The Cave-In, and you wanna know about how these people cultivate safe and inclusive spaces for trans community, then you're gonna wanna come along down to Studio 188, just a little bit south and to the west of Brisbane. because you're going to be catching a panel with them and these 2 amazing performances. The tickets are incredibly affordable, folks. If you go to Studio 188, you can find them and tag along. It's a small-scale event, so there's only so many tickets available. So if you are interested, highly recommend going. And hey, a little bonus, Ez and I will be there.

Yeah, you can see us bouncing off each other live in the flesh.

No, no, not that live.

Okay, maybe not exactly like that, but you'll definitely see just how fairy-like Hazel is. Yes, that's true. Okay, cool. Well, yeah, come along to that. The antidote, the antidote to fascism is community. That is our, uh, our line for the event. So yeah, come along. Yeah. Uh, also, uh, the wonderful Asher and Grace from Trans Social Arts Club has been messaging me this last week, um, talking about, uh, their creative social group that they have, which they run for trans, non-binary, and gender-diverse people here in Meanjin. Um, and I'm just gonna read a little bit of their blurb. We, we run relaxed, beginner-friendly arts workshops designed to help people create, connect, and make— and meet new friends. Our events are made primarily for trans people, with supportive allies welcome too. TSAC is all about building a genuine third space for trans community, somewhere outside work and home where you can hang out, try something new, and feel comfortable being yourself. Come experiment, get a little messy, and celebrate queer creativity with us. We'd love to see you at a workshop. And they have a bunch of workshops. If you're familiar with Melt, they did, uh, have one yesterday, uh, on the 25th of October, which was a beginner's cartooning workshop. But upcoming, they've got learn to sew workshop on the 31st of December— sorry, October. So if you've got somewhere to be on Halloween, or you don't have anywhere to be, go learn some sewing. And there's also another beginner's cartooning workshop on the 1st of November. But what you can do is head over to their Instagram, which is @tsacmiangin, Trans Social Arts Club Miangin, and follow them there for all the updates. And you can join in. Fantastic. Love trans spaces.

Amazing. I'm very happy to hear that. And I'm gonna go follow them right now, actually.

You totally should.

Because I'm very excited about that.

And you know what? If you don't like art for some reason, and that's okay, not everyone's into drawing, or maybe they feel a bit self-conscious and it's not your vibe.

Fine.

But maybe you like to be loud with your body and like to perform. Yes. Because there's the Trans Theatre Symposium. Yeah, I know.

Go on.

Gasp.

How do I get in there?

Let me in. The 29th and 31st of October at the Brisbane Powerhouse Local Q&A whom we know and love so well, Thea Revenu and the lovely Sev Forst.

Oh my God.

Yeah, absolutely. Uh, running Masterclass Trans and, uh, Masterclass on Trans Directing and Dramaturgy, uh, with Dino Demetrius, uh, which is a leading trans director and the artistic director of the Trans Theatre Festival. Their award-winning work has marked them as a true innovator in exploring trans dramaturgies and forms. In this 2-hour masterclass, Dino invites participants into a deep dive into what it is. What is trans dramaturgy? So yeah, you can explore and, you know, shape your stories, space, lens, and process in ways that move beyond representation. So that sounds absolutely amazing. You can check that out on the Brisbane Powerhouse website and tag along.

That's so fantastic. Gosh, love the Powerhouse, love Meltfest, love all these events. This is so exciting.

It is exciting. I'm so excited. You're listening to Transmission on 4ZZZ. It's my happy hour. Happy morning. My name's Ez, he/him.

I'm Hazel, she/her.

And we're going to jump into a discussion about a particular decision that— oh my gosh, I've completely blanked on the Premier's name.

Tim Nicholls?

No.

That's not the Premier?

That is not the Premier. That's the Health Minister.

Yep.

Chris Afool. Chris Afool.

Chris Afool. That's his name.

Uh, has appointed a new, uh, Minister for Child Safety. Um, she's also not just the Minister of Child Safety— that seems to be what most of the media is focusing on— but she is actually in charge of families, domestic violence, child safety, disability, carers, communities, disaster recovery, and importantly to our show, she's also now the Minister for LGBTQI+ Affairs. Her name is Amanda Stoker. And Amanda Stoker is a— I don't want to say terrible person, but I—

So we'll move

on.

She does not have a resplendent— she does not have a resplendent career history when it comes to the rights of LGBTQIA+ individuals.

Yeah, yeah.

As far as it goes, she's behind on cis women's rights and she's behind on cis gay people's rights, let alone when we start getting into the murkier territory of trans rights.

Yeah, she used to be a commentator for Sky News, if that says anything. Mm-hmm.

She famously stated that being gay was a choice. That's right. And I think relevant as well to queer health as well, she is extremely anti-abortion as well.

Yep, she has been quoted saying that she— her belief is a transgender agenda is forcing everyday Australians to reject objective truth Um, she's highlighted concerns over the need to keep women's sport for women, as well as the need to protect children from hormone treatment and surgical procedures. Um, Senator Stoker— well, when she was a senator— uh, also advocated that people should have the right to teach their children that gender isn't something we can choose. Hmm. Funny that, I did choose something. Hmm. Um, she also believes that, uh, sexuality is also a personal choice. Hmm. This is the— so she's the— oh my God. She's the MP for LGBT. She doesn't even believe we exist!

And, and I mean, like, child safety as well. It's hard to feel like she's a suitable person for child safety when it comes to trans kids, when she has the feeling that those kids either don't exist or are making decisions that are harmful to all of society, and therefore making a boogeyman out of them as well.

Yeah, I, I think we are about to head into a very, very, um, dire stage in Queensland, uh, under—

Unfortunately, yeah.

Uh, Stoker. So, um, I was reading some news articles this morning, just sort of gathering and collecting myself around chatting about her, and, um, almost, almost all the news articles, including like the Star Observer, um, is like weirdly framing it quite positively and people commenting quite positively,

right?

Um, no, this is not good news. I don't know what the hell the media is doing, but this is definitely not good news. This woman does not have our interests in mind. She certainly doesn't have children's interests in mind. Mm-hmm. And I don't know, anyone who's worked for Sky News— I don't know, maybe it's because of my media background, but I just, I'm like, no! Yes.

So anyway, this is a

problem. So we're just gonna keep some tabs on her, and I just want to make sure that you're all looking out after yourselves. And because I'm all about pro-choice and Children by Choice. I actually had a letter in the transmission pigeonhole that I will share with you from Children by Choice, which is— what did they say? We want to rewrite the narrative of who accesses abortions. In Your Words gives people a safe space to share experiences that are often left unspoken. These are stories told honestly and in their own words, show the strength, courage, and resilience of our community. By reading them, we can break the silence, build understanding, and remind everyone that no one has to face their challenges alone. Children by Choice aims to highlight diverse voices and acknowledge the additional barriers the transgender community face in accessing reproductive healthcare. And for more information about In Your Own Words, to download any digital resources and social media assets, you can submit a story, or even to read published stories, you can head to childrenbychoice.org.au/getinvolved/getyourstoryinyourwords. I'll put the link in the show notes as well, and so you can take a look if you're if you want to submit or have a read.

That's very fantastic. And Children by Choice is a fantastic organization as well.

They are!

Doing one of the, one of the most direct goods for the reproductive health of everyone in our state. And also just like, you know, I appreciate their forward and incredibly trans-affirming position in a very niche subject, which is reproductive healthcare for trans people. There's a lot that people do not understand about that, even within communities.

Yeah.

And, uh, it frankly, it, it deserves a lot more support and care because this is stuff that can be life-threatening. This is stuff that can do a lot of, a lot of harm if you don't have the proper knowledge around it, you know.

Particularly if you are, you know, choosing to have children and you're, uh, um, not so sure. Like, if you're a trans person who takes hormones, it's always good to consult your GP before you start looking at these processes because, you know, there are additional factors that may contribute to the health and well-being of your unborn child and things like this.

Frankly, also just good to know that people in the healthcare profession can learn more as well.

Yeah.

Because it really does sort of change your view on things when you hear a healthcare professional say that they're concerned about trans women's access to abortions.

Yeah. You have to like go cross-eyed thinking about that.

Yeah, it sort of implies a drastic lack of understanding. Yeah, absolutely. That needs to be targeted at the root.

It does, it does. So yeah, you know, if you want to learn more, childrenbychoice.org.au, check it out. Also, there is a petition that would be great to get people to sign. If you go to the Queensland, like, parliament.qld.gov.au and look up 4694-26, this is the Protect LGBTIQ+ Inclusion in Queensland State Education. And so the petition— So the petition of residents of the state of Queensland draws to the attention of the House that LGBTQ+ staff and students deserve to feel safe, respected, and included in state school Uh, there has been some statistics, uh, come out recently around evidence, uh, for Australians to— yeah, sort of, we need them to show support for people who are working in the education sector, but also just kids who are in school. Uh, do you want to read out some of these stats?

Sure. I mean, 46%, so that's almost half of LGBTIQ+ workers experience discrimination at work. And the workers include— the workers in inclusive teams were 4 times less likely to leave organizations. Additionally, 60% of LGBTQIA+ young people felt unsafe or uncomfortable at school because of their sexuality or gender identity. That is the majority of them. Then 28% of LGBTQIA+ young people experienced verbal harassment at school, and 10%— that's 1 in 10— of young people attempted suicide in the previous year, compared with 3.8% of young people generally. This is a pretty alarming and tragic state of affairs. Yes, it is. For our schooling and work systems. So, Queensland's Anti-Discrimination Act of 1991 protects people from discrimination based on sexuality, gender identity, and sex characteristics. Queensland Government's Pride in Our Communities 2024-2032 strategy also supports inclusion and belonging. Workplace inclusion programs for the Department of Education staff were separate from classroom teaching, and the Australian Curriculum Version 9.0 separately supports inclusive teaching, including recognition of diversity.

Long sigh. I feel like by the time we get to the end of this 2024 to 2032 strategy, um, with the amount of backwards things happening, uh, that it may not— maybe worse than when it started. But, um, that's okay, we've got Amanda Stoker, she'll fix it up.

Well, this is why we have these petitions. So exactly, encourage you again, please go check out the petition. Again, the petition number is 4694- Please go sign it, go voice your opinions, call your local representatives and inform them how strongly you feel about this. That does work. That does help. We have a voice and the government is obligated to listen to it, and when they don't, they are not doing their job. Absolutely. This is why these systems are in place. So please, while we keep our tabs out and are upset with things like Amanda Stoker's updated promoted position, We also need to understand that we have a chance to do stuff about this, and things like this petition, and also by attending Pride, attending Magadhan People's Pride, attending these marches. This is what makes them learn what we want, what we need as people, and also to respect that we are participants in this society just as equally as anyone who is cisgender, who is straight, who is anything other than what we are.

Totally, absolutely. And yeah, also, if you can't— if you can't remember those numbers, numbers. We'll chuck the link for this petition as well in the show notes for you. We're about to enter into a phone conversation soon.

A phone call?

Yeah.

Who are we calling on the phone?

We're calling Milo Hartill, who is putting on an incredible event at the Bright Side this Wednesday. So podcast listeners, apologies, you've missed out. But—

My bad.

You're still gonna listen to how great it's gonna be anyway. So yeah, yeah, so this will be at the Bright Side. I don't want to talk too much about it, but I will say Okay, it involves 2 pianos.

And these 2 pianos, are they peaceful?

No.

Are they perhaps—

I think they're clashing.

They're clashing?

Clashing.

My God, so these pianos will be dueling each other.

They'll be dueling.

And everyone is watching those pianos duel. That sounds crazy.

And also, these clashing pianos involve the Australian Conservation Foundation.

And what are we conserving?

I don't know, we should ask Milo.

You're right. What am I asking you for when we're gonna have the expert on the line? Exactly. Very shortly.

Totally. You know what? We're about to have a chat with the incredible Milo Hartle, who's not currently in Meanjin, Brisbane, but I believe is calling from Sydney? Melbourne? Melbourne! Melbourne!

Calling up from Nam. How are you?

I'm bloody wonderful, thanks. How are

y'all? Fantastic.

Yeah, better now. How are you?

Let's go around in circles.

How are you, Ez?

I'm well. I'm having a good time.

Oh my God. Yeah. Yay!

I think people will also have an even more better time by going to an event that you have coming up this week, Milo.

I sure do. Well, not really me. I'm just facilitating, and I will be the personality hire, if you will. But it is the Australian Conservation Foundation is putting on a Clash of the Keys up in good old Brizzy to raise a bit of awareness about saving Scott Reef while also giving everybody a Bloody great time having a boogie and a dance.

Oh my gosh, that sounds good. That sounds so good. Tell us a bit more about these Clash of the Keys. What does this entail?

Um, to be fair with you, I don't 100% know because I'm going to find out on the day. But essentially, it's like two people. It's like you know. Have you ever seen like a like a back-to-back DJ set where it's two DJs kind of working together and sort of battling for who's got the best transitions and stuff like that?

Absolutely. You're talking to Trans Radio.

These people know it. We know. Oh, we know transitions. Um, fists up, I'm an ally. Um, but, but it's going to be kind of like that but with pianos. So it's like a, a back-to-back set, but, but it's pianos and live music rather than mixing in like a beat or whatever. I'm not a DJ, I'm just a diva. But that's what I've heard.

That sounds exceptional. That is going to be a real display of of like musical proficiency and energy and just like, I imagine so fun between those 2 musicians.

Oh yeah, I bet. I mean, I have been asked to partake. You might hear a little song from me at some point in the mix. Oh my God, what? Yeah, I know, music theater trained. If the people from Brizzy don't know, I did go to VCA, which is like our, the con, which, you know, hopefully some of those skills will come through in my set or I'll have one too many martinis and then it'll be, Entertaining for very different reasons.

What I'm hearing is it's a win-win-win-win. There's, there's going to be no way that this will turn out badly. It's going to be a good time no matter what the results are.

Exactly, exactly. And I do believe that the audience can potentially hop up and do a little sing-song.

Oh my God.

Or are able to just be like, hey, Clash of the Keys people, can you play this song?

Oh, that's so fun.

Oh wow, open to the crowd. I love this.

Yeah, so it's gonna be, it's gonna be live music. It's gonna be a duel between live musicians, and it's going to be a little bit karaoke and a little bit theater as well.

Come on, it's the best of all worlds.

Yeah, and, and for a great cause. Like, could you not think of anything more awesome? Yeah,

yeah, literally. Well, yeah, it's for saving Scott Reef, which is this really beautiful reef. Um, it's one of the lesser-known natural wonders because it's not close enough to humanity that we can monetize it. Oh, which, which I, I would assume— I would assume that's in, in my opinion, that is not the opinion of of ACF or the Triple V. Disclaimer, disclaimer.

It's a reflection of the status quo. I see what you're saying.

Exactly. But it is 270 kilometres off of the Kimberley coast in Western Australia. And it is a really, really cool coral reef system. And it's really ecologically significant because it has a lot of species that aren't really found anywhere else. Like there is a species of green sea turtle that this is their only place that they can lay their eggs and do their thang and chill out in the in-between seasons, and they also migrate through there. Wow. But Woodside wants to put all of that at risk by drilling a massive hole in it that very potentially could bring what is described as catastrophic harm to that region of the ocean and this beautiful reef.

Okay, all right. How do we buy tickets? How do we, how do we come along and save Scott Reef?

Well, if you wanted to buy tickets, you can find those tickets in my bio @miloheartill. Um, I've got the link right there in my Linktree. Um, the Australian Conservation Foundation's Instagram, which is just @ozconservation, you can find the link to tickets in there. Um, also, if you just looked up Clash of the Keys and Brisbane and ACF, it would absolutely come up in good old Google.

Fantastic. Fantastic.

And for the local listeners, I'm just gonna say for you, it's at the Brightside. That's gonna be in Fortitude Valley. It's gonna be on Wednesday the 28th at 7 PM. Gosh, that is so exciting. I, I am genuinely excited, and I'm so excited too that it's gonna support one of the many ecological wonders of Australia that hopefully we can keep from being plundered like so many others. I mean, we really are the land of endemic species, so to do more to protect them those would be so special.

Literally. Well, it's also like, the reef is 15 million years old. Like, what happened to respect your elders, guys? Let's just, let's just let the reef do its thing, and you can pillage for resources another sector. Surely Woodside at least leave this one alone.

Yeah, yeah, obviously just this reef.

Go to the coral reef, it's fine over there. I'm kidding. Of course.

If they move to another reef, you know damn well that we would be planning another incredible event that can raise awareness while also everyone gets to have a sing and a boogie.

Amen. Sounds good. But for this one, for this wood reef, we can all participate in protecting it by going to Clash of the Clees— Keys. Clash

of the Clees.

Great. Jack, that's the next event, Clash of the Clees.

Yeah, exactly. I've accidentally spoiled it. I'm sorry.

Well, thank you so much, Milo, for coming and chatting about about this. Uh, and

no problem.

And, um, yeah, we'll see you all at, uh, The Bright Side on Wednesday.

Yeah, see you at The Bright Side, y'all. Thanks so much for having me.

No worries, it's been a pleasure.

Bye-bye.

QLife is Australia's first nationally oriented counseling and referral service for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex, or LGBTI, people. QLife provides peer-supported telephone and web-based services to diverse people of all They help callers with a range of issues relating to sexuality and gender, including coming out, as well as more general issues such as relationship problems. So remember, you can call the QLife line daily from 5:30 PM till 10:30 PM on 1800 184 527, and for online chat and support, go to qlife.org.au.

You're listening to Transmission on 4ZZZ. Please, uh, welcome to the studio, Tommy. How you doing?

Hey, I'm good. Thanks for having me. I love this place, so whenever I come here, I feel special.

That's so kind of you. Thank you very much.

Um, so I'm glad you're here. Um, I'm Edis, he/him, by the way.

I'm Hazel, she/her. Tommy?

Tom, he/they.

Wonderful.

Delightful. Uh, I am a massive fan of your music.

Wow.

Uh, I say that because I, I, I find myself listening to your music, and then I find I find myself transported to all these different kinds of, I guess, soundscapes, literal spaces in my mind, and I just find it just really relaxing. Just so transformative.

Yeah, I'm a big fan of how you use old non-musical clips as ways to frame and to elevate the content of the otherwise sort of more vibes-based tracks. I've thought that's always been the thing that makes them really distinct from a lot of the other sort of lo-fi stuff that comes through 4ZZZ, and I really, really like that. And oftentimes I'll just find like your music is such a good middle ground that as a radio host as well, it is just infinitely applicable to any show that you're going like, I need something from high energy to low, I need to go from rock to rap, I need something. And your music is always a great glue between things. It's beautiful. It's really good stuff.

Wow.

And how are you?

Yeah.

Now this is when you talk about us.

I'm good. You can keep talking. But like, it's just so nice. Like, I love coming here and I love the people who are involved in this community. And it's weird because I live a disabled life of chronic illness and rest. And a lot of the time I'm just at home by myself with my dog and I see my family, and I chat with friends online, and that's about it because I have to do a lot of resting in order to achieve the basics of what I want to achieve in my life right now. Um, so then when I come on air here, it's just, it's just like so good because the— yeah, like people who I'm, you know, just meeting or meeting again, talking about my music in a way that is like so real. Like, like what you mentioned, the spaces, the idea of spaces is— and that's actually like right there. I used to be a theater maker before I, uh, like had a medical retirement, let's say, as they call it in the insurance industry. And the, um, uh, theater is all about moments in spaces with people. And a lot of people think of, um, you know that, that saying like, um, art is how we decorate space, music's how we decorate time? Mm. I just always think that that's got something in it, but it's just quite oversimplistic because When you've got 2 speakers or headphones and you've got a stereo spread to mix into, you are making spaces that people can slide into, can get into. And I've always been someone who like is transported imaginatively places, like way too easily all the time. And yeah, so I like to think that it's like a little bit of theatre coming into my music, curating spaces where stories are told that we experience things through music, through sound. And yeah, the samples pulling on spoken word and documentary samples and just anything, they give that kind of context to this, to the music. They give people that kind of framing that you talked about. So like you literally both just said like 2 of the key things that I've been thinking about with this release.

Well, it's translating.

Yeah, I think that's a testament to how well you deliver the content. concepts.

That's— that makes me happy because, you know, like, that's the goal, like, for someone to walk away having experienced your work and say, this is what I experienced. And it's the same thing that you were going for, like, hmm.

Oh my God, the thing inside me came out right. Yes. It came out right.

Yeah. My, like, wild, like, ideas were tangible to other people.

Absolutely.

It's nice.

It's really interesting to hear You said that you see this as a theater influence on you that's coming out in your approach to making this music.

Yeah, I was a sound designer.

Right, okay, so that makes sense.

Amongst other things.

My experience with theater in the past has told me that everything is extremely details-oriented. There's a lot of interrelation. Like, theater, much like many arts, but I think in a very specific way, is an art where things are being stitched throughout the whole process. Yeah. Things you're adding at the very end are acting as bridges between things from the very start.

And it's a multi-arc form.

Yes. So when you're using these like spoken word aspects, all kinds of samples, is the samples you're building the music out of also connected to where those spoken word samples and stuff come from? Like, what's the choices making there?

I'm a very conceptual person. I think it just comes from my neurodivergence and the way I I like experience things, feel things, assign meaning to things. Everything is like symbolic or has a story. So yeah, every choice, every single choice has an intention. That doesn't mean I make with intention at the lead. I'm making initially, it's particularly the musical part, instinctually just following a thread and just seeing where it takes me.

Gotcha.

But once I've like found an idea in there, in the thing made and go, oh, that reminds me of this, or that reminds me of that film, or it reminds me of that sample. And that's like, yeah, so I didn't start off making a Halloween album called Ghosts. I just made a track that reminded me of a scene in a Studio Ghibli film where there's kids dressed up as ghosts and dancing in a graveyard. And I was like, oh, that's the vibe.

You're like, how do I make this vibe? Yeah.

So you work kind of retroactively? In a way, like it's a 2-part process where you have the instinctive creating and then the retroactive story building.

And that's how I work in the rehearsal room too, making theatre, is we have— we start with just some simple concepts or ideas or even like just music or whatever, improvised material, and then have a look at the material and go, what is that? What does it remind you of? What story does he think it tells? And then you can— it's like dominoes, you know, like, so it just kind of cascades.

Yeah.

How did you end up in theatre? What drew you to theatre?

My parents are teachers, but they're also artists. So they're from the UK, from Northern England, and they came here in '75 and worked in schools in regional Queensland, Mackay and Rockhampton. Shout out Yui and Darramball people. They are the were like, they were like singers, musicians. They got involved in the Mackay Musical Comedy Players. And so I was just hanging around rehearsal rooms for doing community musicals from like the age of 5. My first musical in the Mackay Entertainment Centre was Fiddler on the Roof, where I was a village boy. Wow. Yeah, anyway, so basically like from an early age I've never not been involved in theatre. And then I went to Well, yeah, I did drama in Year 12, and it just so happened that was a really just like talented group of people, friends of mine, most of them a year above me. They went and did QUT drama, early 2000s. And like, I, I was like a bit of— I was a bit of a ratbag, like, like, and not particularly good with the academic side of things. Um, thank you, undiagnosed ADHD.

Yeah.

And, um, my friend Jeff Jeffrey, he was just like, you should study this course, that's what we're doing, it's fun, you can be in my show, it starts rehearsals in February. Like, so I started rehearsals for his show before I'd even started uni. And, um, yeah, we used to go down to the basement of the QUT Kelvin Grove Library where there was like a Pro Tools setup. Mm-hmm. This was like 2002, and we'd take records down there and sample them. And, um, there was like an automated DigiDesign console with the faders that went, you know, like up and down themselves. I was, I was in heaven. Um, and then we'd, yeah, do sound design stuff and then take it to— this is back when students could book any space at any time for any reason. It's really hard for student theater these days.

It's definitely not how it is now.

No. So we could just do it, we could just do whatever we wanted and just book rooms on the weekend, make things. Um, it was good, it was a good environment for us, and we made, we made heaps of cool shows. And that's how I ended up becoming an artist working in theater and sound design.

That's super cool. So like the impetus for you starting theater as a career in your early adulthood was literally parallel to you being a sampling-based artist with your music as well.

Yeah. And that goes back to sitting in front of my parents' Sharp hi-fi, listening to their records over and over again. Once I put Nutri-Grain in the tape deck, because the Nutri-Grain is the same shape as a tape.

Oh, it is, huh? With the little holes and like— yeah.

I did not expect to be talking about that. But speaking of ghosts though, like, my mum's dad, he was a youth theater director in a tiny village in North— in East Lancashire, Northern England,

right?

Um, he actually— he worked in a bank his whole life, and I, I thank him for that because he kind of allowed my mother to go to university and, um, therefore me to go So yeah, it is every— did I mention I'm very conceptual?

We've picked up some hints. We've seen some signs.

I'm not sure.

Yeah, that's— I mean, that's really, really, really interesting.

This all translates in your music, like your story, your family, your familial story as well. Also, I feel that because I think, like, you know, Transmission— I listen to a lot of artists a lot, and I like always try to find like unusual sounds, but also like up-and-coming artists. and different vibes. And I remember stumbling across your first record with Tommy Beats in the database here. And yeah, and I was just like, I listened to the full thing from beginning to end, which I don't always do with everything that comes out. I also don't have time, but—

Nobody does. I

was just like, this is amazing. And I write a lot of rap. I like to write lyrics, and I found myself being like, this is the first time I've listened to music where I could actually feel like I'm in time with this. Well, you know what, so it's really nice.

It— like, I wish— I kind of wish I was a rapper, but I've just made the decision never to do it because, like, I'm a white— I'm a white person, and I just— I just think that— I just think that—

Hey, Macklemore's alright.

Yeah, he wrote One Love. Same love? Same When I was in 3rd grade, I thought I was gay.

That's it?

Because I could draw.

Yeah.

That's what everyone tells you. Black guy rapping.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

That's what everyone tells you. But the, um, and they might be right, but the, um, you know, like, I, in my mind, every single one of my songs is a rap instrumental. So like in the late '90s, um, when I started listening to rap music, I had like a few CDs CDs, but back then they give you a second disc with the instrumentals, and I would love that so much. Um, I don't know why, I just love the music and the composition and— yeah, and the vibe. And

you also, you get an opportunity to see the techniques way clearer when you listen to the instrumentals.

And, and the artists are still— even though they're instrumental, they are storytelling. The way they use samples, it means something. Every— again, every choice, it means something, um, you, you sample the piece hoping that there's just at least one person out there who'll hear it and go, oh, like, I know that.

This is the groundwork for what— yeah, literally. Yeah, yeah, the foundation.

And it's like, man, that is— because it's about—

That's how I feel about your music.

It's not just about the vibes, the energy, um, the party. It's— those artists are, are like highly— work highly conceptually. And, um, so yeah, like all my tracks. Like someone actually said to me when I was giving me feedback on 216, they were like, you know, there's a lot of just verse and chorus, verse and chorus. And I'm like, yeah, but I want— somebody's going to be at home rapping on that.

Yeah. And that's the language, right? Like that's how these songs are produced. That's the language of this type of music. Yeah.

So projects in the future, if anyone is or anyone out there—

I'm listening.

Wants to rap on one of my tracks, I'm going to eventually, I'm going make a compilation of these 3 albums that I've done.

Amazing.

With rappers.

Oh, that'll be great. Yes. Local rappers. You absolutely—

Well, you're in the right place to find artists.

Yeah.

You're in the right building.

There are some shows in particular on Zed that are absolutely worth networking with to try and find that kind of community. Yeah, totally.

And I just think there's just so many good rappers around here. Like, it's the kind of scene that I just love to just keep in touch with, like the young rappers in their late teens, early 20s.

Yeah.

They just blow me away.

Meandrin's got a really strong rap scene.

Very talented.

It does not get enough credit for how good it is out here.

Oh, it doesn't get enough credit for anything except for like horrible governments.

Oh yes, we talked about that earlier in the episode. We're gonna play a song from yours and come back and keep chatting. I wanna play Ghost. Do you want to tell the listeners a little bit about, or anything about this song before I hit play?

Well, yeah, I'm going to keep it brief. If you don't know about the concept of hauntology, look it up. It's the idea that, that history haunts the present. Ooh. And, and the future is made by the kind of rubbing up against of those 2 things.

I got chills.

Even the things that we do not want to revisit will haunt us.

haunt us. That's just one of many things I could say about that track.

Yeah.

Okay. Love it. Okay, we're hitting play. This is Ghosts, Tom Browning. You're listening to Transmission on 4ZZZ.

Do you believe in ghosts? I do, and you will too when you come to this theater. That's a record. Now brace yourself as we take you across the threshold of our haunted mansion.

I'm not scared. Me neither. I'm not scared either.

When you see the ghosts, you'll be given a supernatural viewer like this, which will enable you to penetrate into the spirit world. It'll let you see all of our weird, wonderful, and wildly assorted ghosts. Ghosts. Ghosts. Ghosts. Ghosts. Ghosts. Ghosts. Ghosts. Ghosts. Ghosts. Ghosts. Ghosts. When you see the ghosts, you'll be given a supernatural viewer like this, which will enable you to penetrate into the spirit world. It'll let you see all of our weird, wonderful, and wildly assorted ghosts. Ghosts, ghosts, ghosts, ghosts, ghosts, ghosts, ghosts, ghosts, ghosts, ghosts, ghosts. Now brace yourself as we take you across the threshold of our haunted mansion.

I'm not scared. Me neither. I'm not scared either.

Uh, my name is Ez. Hee hee. Him.

Hey, little she/her

Tom. He/they.

And we're chatting with Tom about soundscapes and music and their incredible new album. Uh, when is it out?

Right at this very moment.

It's out now?

Yeah, today is the day.

Oh my God,

we did it! It's screaming on Bandcamp.

Screaming?

Uh, I mean streaming.

Oh, spooky.

That was a joke.

Nice and spooky. I get it.

I have to tell everybody When I tell a joke, I have to tell them that it was a joke.

Oh yeah, I'm so bad at irony too. It doesn't come out right in the, in the tone.

And it's a Halloween album that you've conveniently timed.

That's right. It's, um, once I realized it was like called Ghosts and had spooky beats, I knew it was a Halloween album. Problem was that this was 2 years ago and I had like a month to—

You're like, not enough time.

Yeah, last year was a write-off, and I'm not just talking about music.

No, I get

you. Agreed.

So you had to really let this one simmer.

This one— this year is how I dealt with this year being a write-off.

I like that. So this is a Halloween album 2 years in the conceptual making.

Yeah.

Really brewing in a witch's pot of vintagey sounds.

Yeah, it's— yeah, it's— that's been how it's been with my music. like, I've got these 3 releases I've released over the past 3 years. And it's because of my disability, it's been a case of like, when they are finished, that when I can finish them, they will be finished. And there's no— I've got a kind of phrase in my disability life called, it's like, pushing is poison.

Yes.

Because it will literally hurt me in my body. My nervous system cannot take the pressure. So don't do that. No, no, I mean, I think we should all do that less.

Yeah, I think definitely—

I think the whole economy is based around that, the concept of pushing is poison and no one cares.

Yeah, well, that's capitalism, baby.

Yeah,

we're gonna head off pretty soon, and I just love your music so much. We're gonna play a track of yours called Gnomes. Tell me, tell me why Gnomes.

Yeah, so anyone of a certain vintage may recognize some of the spoken samples in this track from a series called Kingdom of the Gnomes, or in the US, David the Gnome.

David the Gnome?

Yeah.

Okay.

Gnomes are— I think they're a kind of folklore that's worth checking in with because gnomes are like noble creatures that are like custodians of country.

Wow.

And they work with their environment and with the other creatures around them to kind of maintain a kind of balance. I think we all need a bit of that.

Yeah, that sounds like what humans were, which at one time, custodians of the land.

Maybe we all came from gnomes.

Who gnomes?

Who gnomes?

I think that's a good sign to end the show.

Yeah, once it gets a little aimless like that.

Yeah. Otherwise people are going to ghost us.

Oh, there it is. Well done.

Okay. Well, Tommy, it's been so great having you here.

Hey, thanks for having me on. It's been heaps of fun. It's been a joy. And hi to everyone out there. Yeah. Honestly, Ghosts is a Halloween album for everyone. My 5-year-old daughter said to me like, Dad, do not play this for little kids because it's too scary. But everyone else, you good.

Wow.

Okay, so yeah, if you— if like, if you or your family are into spooky things and you're looking for something to listen to this Halloween, this is— no, this is why this is here.

No under 5s.

Yeah,

or sensitive souls, you know.

Sensitive souls, of course. Um, and again, that's Tommy Beats Online with an H.

That's right.

And

Tommy underscore Tommy Beats on Insta.

Yep.

And, um, if you look up Tommy Beats Bandcamp, you'll find my page where you can listen to and purchase the EP for a bargain, $6.66.

Yeah, do it.

Oh, okay. For that alone, I'm buying it today.

Yeah, we have to support our local artists and support Tom to continue making these extraordinary soundscapes. We're gonna listen to Gnomes. Thank you so much for tuning in to Transmission, and we'll see you all next week. Yeah,

bye.

What? You've never seen a gnome? Well, they're all around us. Just take a closer look. The most wonderful thing of all is that this world is the stuff that dreams are made of. So come with me to the world of the gnome. You must be really sipping. You're sympathetic to gnomes, otherwise you wouldn't be here. This, I know, is the first time you've met us, but we know you humans very well. There's some things I've been meaning to talk to you about. What's the idea of coming into our peaceful forest and blasting away with your noisy guns at every You kill every animal you see. And of course, you make the water so dirty the fish can't live in it. And the air is so full of smoke nobody can breathe. I think maybe we could help you too, if we got to know each other better. Perhaps some of our love and respect would rub off on you. Love for our fellow creatures, respect for the beautiful planet we share.

Yes, the flash in the sky.

I hardly know where to begin to paint for you a word picture of the strange scene before my eyes. Something moving, solid metal, kind of a shield-like affair rising up out of the cylinder. It's standing on legs, actually rearing up on a sort of metal framework. Now it's reaching above the trees and the searchlights are on it. Hold on!

Thanks for listening to Transcendental Mysteries. Catch us every Monday live on 4ZZZ from 10 AM, or listen to our podcast on the Community Radio Plus app.