The People of CX Magazine

Our little family of tech-obsessed writers has grown considerably over the last few years, despite, and almost because of, the pandemic slowdown. The subsequent recovery and massive increase in activity meant we had to scramble to put enough bodies on the job to keep the mag and the web working as they should, and now the team is bigger than ever!

So, in this ‘People Issue’, we introduce our people, helping you to put a face to the bylines.

Jason Allen – Owner and Publisher

I got my Bachelor of Music majoring in composition at The University of Adelaide’s Elder Conservatorium in 1995. I followed that up by moving to Melbourne in 1996 and talking on a much more practical Graduate Diploma in Contemporary Music Technology at LaTrobe University, which oriented my way around a mixing desk (at least in a studio!). I started out mixing my friend’s bands up and down Brunswick Street, Fitzroy, before becoming a casual at Arts Centre Melbourne, while doing freelance monitoring engineering for cover bands, then finally became a Senior Sound Technician at Arts Centre Melbourne.

After a three-year stint in Europe, I returned to Melbourne in 2006 and became a Sales Manager, then National Sales Manager, in the Commercial Audio Division of Yamaha Music Australia. In 2013, I started the company that now owns this masthead, VCS Creative Services. Originally a specialised content creation service for the AV and entertainment technology sector, VCS is now a full-service marketing and business development company with its own integrated electronic and printed media company.

Andy Stewart – Sub Editor and Regular

Andy Stewart is an internationally recognised recording, mixing and mastering engineer, whose  studio, The Mill, is tucked away in the rolling hills of Bass Coast Shire in Victoria. Set on 21 acres, with ocean views and rural surroundings, The Mill offers a secluded artistic environment, combining privacy, spectacular vistas and comfortable accommodation. The equipment list is to die for, as is the friendly, relaxed atmosphere. Some of the best sounding Australian music productions of the last decade have come from The Mill.

Andy is well known for his epic audio productions, incredible gear list and extensive musical instrument collection. His most recent production of note was Circling Time by legendary Mutti Mutti elder Kutcha Edwards, on which Andy also played several instruments.

Andy was the editor of Audio Technology Magazine for a decade before joining the ranks of CX magazine well over 100 issues ago now – how time flies! He contributes his highly regarded Listen Here article to this mag every issue, as well as the occasional insightful, real-world equipment review.

Andy lives on the farm with his wife Sierra, whom he met at the AES in San Francisco back in 2006 – Sierra previously worked in the US for Universal Audio. They have two amazing kids: River and Ava. Andy is also the captain of his local CFA fire brigade, volunteering his time and efforts, which occasionally include putting himself in positions many of us would generally run a mile from…

With nearly 40 years’ experience producing, mixing and mastering, Andy is widely regarded as a one-stop shop for all things audio. He is as comfortable mastering an album as he is producing or mixing, and his production facility, The Mill, has become one of the most sought-after studios amongst artists and producers Australia-wide.

John O’Brien – Regular, Sub Editor of ‘New Gear’, Web Wrangler

Architecture and construction == labourer / assistant PM. Concerts and theatre == lighting up the dark, making it pretty or making it noisy. Corporate theatre and AV installations == making it happen, from tech to project manager. Control systems == programmer / tech support / trainer / sales designer.  Magazines == wrangler of words.

Owner builder. Practical artist. Photographer. Volunteer.

Living regionally among rocks I arranged myself.

Jenny Barrett – New Zealand Correspondent

A desire to travel far from Birmingham saw me morph from English Language Teaching, into educational technology, into the audio-visual sector. I successfully ticked off stints in Europe, North America and Asia before settling in Whakamarama (say it carefully), New Zealand. After a decade on the AV/tech sales frontline, I moved into a marketing role and was astonished to find that staying in one place had its benefits.

I established ‘The Writing Room’ nine years ago to provide marketing and copywriting services to the AV and tech sectors, although now over half my business is tender writing for the engineering and construction industry. Luckily my gig with CX Magazine keeps me in touch with the amazing Kiwi audio visual sector. I am inspired on a monthly basis by the passion and creativity of the wonderful people that I have the good fortune to interview. Thanks CX Magazine and all the visionary individuals that I have chatted with over the last eight years!

Brian Coleman – Regular – The Gaffa Tapes

Brian played in various bands in the 70s and 80s before finding his niche in sound, lighting, and band management. After the mid-life employment crisis most of us in this business experienced, he spent 10 years (heavily medicated) in sales. The audiovisual boom of the 90s was the lifeline, and he went into audiovisual management. In 2003, he became editor of Broadcast Engineering News (BEN Magazine). The story around the traps goes something like this: Brian actually applied as a janitor at Reed Elsevier, which was the largest publishing company in the world, with headquarters at Chatswood. They were so impressed at how cleverly he demonstrated changing the towel in the men’s room that they offered him the job of editor of their broadcast journal. In 2005, Brian jumped ship and started writing for CX.

Artemis Horton – Feature Writer

Canadian born and raised, Artemis came to Australia nearly 20 years ago to take a much-needed break from the pressures of full-time music performance and teaching. Blue sky and red sand was the life she envisioned. Speakers and mixing consoles was the life she found. Happily transferring skill set from onstage to backstage, Artemis and her partner Peter have co-owned/operated an audiovisual production company together for the past eight years. They currently reside in Newcastle, NSW with their two children and two boisterous Great Danes. Travel, music and viscous dog drool are abundant in family life.

Allee Richards – Feature Writer

Allee Richards is a theatre lighting technician from Melbourne. Over her six years in the industry she has worked for the Australian Ballet, Opera Australia, Melbourne Theatre Company, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and countless other musicians, comedians and independent theatre companies. A bit of an all-rounder, with board op and programming skills, her first and enduring love is for doming. Her career highlight to date was being a dome op on Harry Potter and the Cursed Child which she did for three years. When not inside a theatre (and also sometimes when she is) she writes fiction. She has published two novels, Small Joys of Real Life and A Light in the Dark that both draw inspiration from her work in the performing arts. 

Kurtis Hammer – Writer – Lighting

Kurtis started in the industry in 2011 as a theatre followspot operator on Jersey Boys. He has been writing content for CX Magazine since 2022. Since 2018 Kurtis Hammer has been employed as Head of Lighting at The Star Events Centre, Sydney, which typically does around 200 events per year. In that time the 3,000 seat venue has hosted many large scale events such as The ARIAs, The Logies, Lionel Ritchie, and The Dally Ms.

Fiona Davis – Feature Writer

Welcome to the colourful world that epitomises my life. My name is Fiona and I’ve lived many chapters of a life that’s still unfolding in all its synchronicity. If Wes Anderson were to capture my story in his perfect cinematic essence, I’m writing deliriously fantastical stories in my childhood brain that transferred to a passion for writing in the adult realm. From teaching high school English, writing magazine articles, travel brochures, blogs, a weekly newspaper column, writing/self-publishing a book and a myriad of other interludes that also combine my passion for music, animals and all things retro.

In one chapter of my life, I lived in the USA travelling with a band on tour capturing the highs and hideous lows through an eye watering blog. To combine my affection for music, animals and the world of retro, I more recently owned and managed a dog friendly retro bar/live music venue. The perfect trifecta! I currently do freelance writing, seeking out the next chapter of my life which hopefully sees me penning a best-selling novel from a cabin in the woods; the director’s cut of my life’s movie.

Julius Grafton – Correspondent at Large

Julius Grafton founded this journal of note, the origins of which lay in December 1990. Having published Channels magazine, then the independent Channels (1993 – 2003), CX was born as the new century evolution. In December 2019 Julius sold this media channel to Jason Allen’s VCS Creative Services and the result was sufficiently strong to survive lockdown. You’re reading it now!

A throwback to an almost primal time 50+ years ago, Julius mixed with the legendary founders of today’s high-tech AV and entertainment technology industry. So much so he still owns and runs ENTECH, which has become the go-to place for buying, specifying, and choosing expensive and mission essential equipment and tech each year. ENTECH celebrates 30 years in 2024 having first rolled out in 1993.

Julius is a ‘correspondent at large’ for CX, authoring articles series such as ’Theatres at Large’ and ‘Why Do I Still Do This?’ In 2024 he left a side hustle as a live sound engineer. Catch him and his wife Kate at ENTECH across NZ in August, or AU October.