Founded by Melbourne based initiative Stargazed, an artist-run organisation led by Steph and Troy of post-rock group Fierce Mild, Stargazed Records intends to be the first of its kind in Australia. In the same way that Stargazed exists to encourage audio and visual collaboration between musicians and visual artists, the record label shares a strong focus on audio-visual collaboration as well as their artists’ overall appearance. Stargazed Records will also serve as a perfect companion to support all the unique and interesting work the Stargazed team does - including their festival and numerous projection installations.

Alongside the announcement of the new label comes the announcement of the first two signings to Stargazed Records. First up is Fierce Mild, who perfectly embody the Stargazed ethos with each live show playing out like a cinematic experience. And secondly is the weirdo pop of Nothinge, a project led by a masked madman who describes their music as “the amalgamation of every human personality, every distinct particular feature of the mind.”

To celebrate the news, we chatted with label manager Alex Kenny to find out all about Stargazed Records.

TJ: Want to tell us a little about yourself?

SR: My name is Alex. I'm 21 years old. I've been playing music since I was very young and have been writing music for about the past five years or so. I've also played in a couple of bands in the past two years, but they were so insignificant that I won't bother you with the details. Although in saying that, I do have plans to perform in another band some time soon - which I hope will be more significant than the others. *laughs* I have also recently completed and graduated from a music business degree which really opened my eyes to a lot of possibilities and ideas in music that I wouldn't have fathomed a few years ago.

What’s the story behind Stargazed Records?

So in my last year of studying, I did a subject where I had to intern with a business within the music industry. My lecturer made suggestions to the class as to what they could choose to do. What caught my attention was one option which was to work with a band called Fierce Mild in a sort of admin/PR role, which was where I met Troy who is the frontman. We got along almost straight away and I think we bonded over some Russian ambient trip-hop or something.

I suppose I must have done a decent job because after my internship was over, the band asked me to keep working with them, so, seeking an opportunity, I agreed to. They had been looking for a record label for ages and I think that because they are quite niche, they couldn't find one that would sign them. So they decided they wanted to start their own and asked me to manage it. They kind of threw me in the deep end with that, especially as they're all in their late twenties and I'm still a kid, but I appreciate the trust they have in me to be able to do the job. We settled on the name Stargazed Records as it relates to Troy and Steph (Fierce Mild's video artist)'s A/V collective Stargazed. 

The cross disciplinary nature of the label is really unique - what is it about combining audio and visuals that you believe is so captivating?

It's an appeal to the senses. In the medium of projection paired with music, it's almost like recreating a dream, or in some cases, a nightmare. You often get this kind of vivid feeling whilst watching some of the visuals while a band plays because it's like the projectionists provide the image whilst the musicians provide the soundtrack to the dream. It's a multisensory and sometimes interpersonal experience.

On that note, how important is collaboration for the Stargazed team?

Very important. Combining visual and aural elements is what the label is all about. 

You’ve burst out of the gates with Fierce Mild and Nothinge as the first two signings. Could you tell us a bit about these two acts and what drew you towards working with them?

They're both equally unique and fantastic as each other, but in very different ways.

Fierce Mild is a blend of art rock, progressive and psychedelic music paired with projections that look like they're straight out of David Lynch's Lost Highway. The music is equally intense as it is dreamy. Stephanie Peters' projections glue the entire project together and compliment the music perfectly.

Nothinge is tough to describe but simply put, they write pop songs that you can dance to, cry to, or just sit back and enjoy. Nothinge is unique because all of their members wear masks onstage and their music doesn't sound like many others. You have to give them a listen, particularly if you're a fan of artists like The Residents, Ariel Pink and John Maus among others.

What’s the rest of the year looking like for Stargazed Records? Anything we should keep an eye out for?

Fierce Mild are launching their first 7" on Saturday at Northcote Social Club and Nothinge is launching a new single at The Old Bar on Monday. I'm going to Sydney next week with Fierce Mild as they're playing a show as part of Vivid. From there, we have a record dropping in a month or too from an unannounced band, and then Fierce Mild and Nothinge's albums are coming out later this year. Also, we might be doing something in Melbourne Music Week, but that hasn't been totally sorted yet.