On today’s episode I’m chatting with my Chasing Ghosts bandmate Chris O’Neil. When thinking of people to have as guests on the show Chris was definitely at the top of that list. He’s seriously one of the most creative and talented people I know. He’s one of those guys that can do everything… really well. An excellent pianist, guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and we get into all that in our conversation.. but what I was really interested in is his business FrostFire Audio and his studio setup in South Melbourne. This is where he records soundtracks, audio, voice-overs and sound effects for video games, television commercials, film etc.. and has worked with some of the world’s biggest brands like Google, Panasonic, Yamaha, Honda, BBC, Konami, UNIQLO and heaps more. And as I record this he is trekking through Nepal with a group of fundraisers to help build a school. So, not only is he a super talented guy, he’s another absolute legend of a human being. Links to everything can be found in the show notes at thewritersblock.co and don’t forget to check Chris out on Instagram at @chrisoneilffa or on his website at frostfireaudio.com.au…

On today’s episode I sit down with the amazing Alabama Blonde, who is a Melbourne based fashion designer, creative director, musician and artist. You can find her on Instagram at @alabamablonde , spelled exactly as it sounds, and I highly recommend you check out her website at www.alabamablonde.com . Now, if you’re anything like me and know absolutely nothing about fashion design then you probably already have this image concocted in your brain of what it is, what it’s about and what it looks like.. but trust me when I say Alabama Blonde as a brand is the complete opposite…and you only need to check out her social media or the introduction video on her website to see exactly what I’m talking about. She’s an incredibly talented artist who, as she puts it, has lived many lives like a cat…and I really really enjoyed our conversation. As per usual, any links to stuff we talk about you can find on the show notes at www.thewritersblock.co . Hope you enjoy it!…

On today’s show I chat with my good friend Michael Donahue. Michael is the National Services Manager at the Drug and Alcohol Education Specialists. Taken from their website, their aim is "to further increase individuals, families and communities understanding of alcohol, drugs & well-being to reduce harm". Michael goes into detail a little further into what it is exactly that he does, but I wanted to mention the name of the company because not once during our conversation did we mention it! Now if I was better at these conversations that would’ve been the first thing I asked. All part of the learning experience I guess. So you’ve probably guessed by now that this is not the typical Writer’s Block episode today. In fact, we recorded this in an office at the Goodlife Gym in Sandringham, which is where Michael and I both train out of. Now I wanted to have Michael on for a number of reasons, firstly he’s just one of those dudes that instantly makes you feel good.. just from being around him. You know those people. He just oozes positivity. He’s a great bloke, he’s a sick musician, he’s had a pretty open battle with depression and now he travels around the country spreading the word and making the world a better place. Check him out @michaeldonahue on IG and look him up on Facebook under the same name. I really enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do to.…

This episode is with my new friend Jayszun Vanderwerff… but most people call him Jay.. for simplicity’s sake. Australian born to a Dutch immigrant family Jay is a luthier residing in Lara, which is just outside of Geelong here in Victoria. For those that don’t know what a luthier is… it’s someone who builds guitars. Jay first came onto my radar after discovering his Instagram profile last year and, being a guitarist myself, I quickly became a fan of his work. Jay was nice enough to put together a rad looking (and even better sounding) guitar for me to use on a run of shows I'm doing with Melbourne band Area-7 and it has been a dream to play! You can find clips of the Teletron on his Instagram or my personal one, @azbce . He's got an incredible story which I KNOW you're going to love and appreciate... everything from growing up in a rough area of NZ, failing every subject at school and being thrown in and out of detention centres. After finding his way as a guitar technician and session guitarist he has toured and worked with some of the world's biggest rock and pop acts including U2, Bon Jovi, ACDC, Blink-182, Hillary Duff, Avril Lavigne and more. Then there was the high level security work... serving as personal security to nearly every rapper you can imagine.. Mos Def, Phaeroh Monch, and even Henry Rollins. This conversation was full of highlights and some extremely low points and I found it incredibly inspiring. Not only is Jay an amazing luthier, gaining the respect and appreciation from some of the world's elite, he's also an entrepreneur, a wealth of knowledge and an incredible human being. If you're a guitarist, a fan of music, or any type of creative artist, you are going to pull a lot of value from this episode. The only place you can reach out to Jay is on his Instagram , @templeguitars but he's very active on there, posting great videos and pictures of his builds. Definitely worth checking out! And as per usual links to other things we cover in the episode can be found on the show notes at thewritersblock.co Enjoy!…

On this episode of the podcast I sit down with one of the country’s most highly regarded and respected music photographers, Kane Hibberd. He’s shot magazine covers, record sleeves, and if you’ve been to a live gig here in Australia over the past 10 years, chances are you’ve seen him at the front of the stage (or even on the stage) taking photos. He’s been commissioned by all of the major record companies and a few years back he self-produced the wildly acclaimed 450-page hardcover Soundwave Festival coffee table book, which is full of iconic photos from the festival. He’s shot some of the world’s biggest artists including Parkway Drive, The Amity Affliction, Peaches, Paramore, Bloc Party, Dave Grohl, AFI and Tonight Alive, and his work has featured on the covers of Rolling Stone, Metal Hammer, Australian Guitar mag, Blunt, Alternative Press and the list goes on… and on. You can check out his work on his website theartofcapture.com and his store which you can find at www.kanyelens.com Check him out on the socials… IG and Twitter is Kanye_lens and you can find him on facebook at facebook.com/theartofcapture And as per usual, these links and links to other things we cover in the episode will up on the show notes at thewritersblock.co Hope you enjoy it!…

Travis Price is an internationally respected commercial illustrator from Ballarat here in Victoria. With more than 20 years of experience working as a creative across all mediums he is currently represented by the illustrious Jacky Winter Group (who have an incredible roster of artists) and has built a reputation as a leader in the Australian illustration industry. Trav has worked nationally and internationally for some of the most innovative advertising agencies and clothing labels…and I’ll just give you an idea of some of the brands and companys that Trav has worked on projects for… you might recognize a few of these… Sony, Intel, Jack Daniels, Big M, Virgin, FedEx, Commonwealth Bank, Comedy Channel, ABC, Vodafone, Island Def Jam Records, Warner Music, Nike, Santa Cruz, Mambo, Converse, Johnny Cupcakes, Blink-182, Eddie Vedder, Pixies and so so much more. You can find Trav on the socials @travispriceillustraion on IG and FB, @byprice on Twitter, and www.travisprice.com.au . Enjoy!…

My very first guest is a guy I’ve known for around 10 years now. Born and raised in Ballarat, Victoria, Dan Kerby is the current drummer in my band Behind Crimson Eyes, he also drums in the number 1 platinum selling punk band 28 Days, he has this drummer/dj project called BagsVsDK and he’s also the live drummer for multi platinum selling Aussie hip hop act Bliss N’ Eso. Huge. How huge? Bliss N’ Eso’s “Circus Under The Stars” tour was the highest selling Australian hip hop tour of all time back in 2014. Along with still currently playing in all 4 acts he has successfully started his own teaching school, “DK Drums Academy” which he teaches out of his studio located at Kindred Studios here in Melbourne, as well as teaching out of his studio in Ballarat. I went into his Melbourne studio a few weeks ago to have a chat about his setup there, what it’s like working in a creative environment such as Kindred and what he’s learned from his students and how they’ve inspired him creatively.…