Who We Are

Departed Sounds is a new independent record label based in Melbourne, Australia. It was formed in late 2008 by two friends, Ashley Sambrooks of Melbourne publicity outlet Show Off Services and Andrew Keese of Melbourne band Andrew Keese & The Associates.

Created during the peak of chaos and confusion within the music industry, and partially as a response to the disparate nature of the traditional record label/artist relationship, Departed Sounds represents a new and extensive effort to bring together business and art without sacrificing one for the other.

Importantly (and somewhat in line with its name) the label’s structure marks a clear departure from the long established and increasingly outmoded industry model.

Instead of being based around self defeating principles of ownership and control, the label adheres to values of collaboration and freedom; collaboration with partner companies in the way it operates as a business and freedom in the sense that it gives its artists the power to create without hindrance, interference or manipulation of their sound or image.

While the older industry players rail against the extraordinary shifts in the consumption and distribution of music, Departed Sounds revels in the empowerment and opportunities that technology allows.

Departed Sounds views technology as something to be harnessed rather than tamed. The label’s website, which includes a fully automated online store selling vinyls, CDs and even single and multiple track MP3 files, is but one example of this belief in action.

In addition to this, Departed Sounds believes that for any label to survive, it must become more than a mere record company. To that end, the label is slowly making inroads into music publishing, with plans to broker independent licensing deals on behalf of its artists. The result of this will be that the artists see a far greater share of income than if they were with a publishing company and can have greater control on where and how their music is used.

And yet, despite its diverse interests, business acumen and technological proficiency, the label is wholly and solely about the music, a statement which, sadly, has become all too easy to mock.

The industry has relentlessly molded acts into what it perceives to be saleable products. This has lead to public dominance by those who burn brightly for a short time before fading into obscurity. Short term wins are prized over long term gains and the result, at least as it applies to the mainstream, is bland and disposable music which has no inner voice and no real heart.

Departed Sounds is interested in the other. Its roster is formed by acts which have longevity. Acts that are possessed of a rare kind of quality, timelessness and soul that can only come from dedicated artists creating honest and authentic work.

This does not, however, mean that these are niche artists nor that Departed Sounds aims to remain on the sidelines. The potential for wide public appeal is unquestionable. It is simply a matter of the acts being given the time, freedom and assistance to develop and grow.

With a sterling roster of critically and publicly lauded Melbourne bands and artists, including Gaslight Radio, Lindsay Phillips, Amaya Laucirica, Andrew Keese & The Associates, khancoban, Tobias Cummings and East Brunswick All Girl's Choir, the label’s insistence on quality and authenticity rings true.

These acts stand apart from the crowd. They are producing work which is by turns beautiful, edgy, dark and light and above all else, incredibly human.

Any new independent venture is limited by the lack of substantial financial backing. Departed Sounds is no exception to this and no stranger to physical and financial limitations.

But what the label lacks in finances, it more than makes up for in the passion, intelligence and dedication of its owners and the quality of its roster.

It is, after all, about the music.