Ebbs and flows: Women as musicians in Perth popular music, 1980s–1990s

Abstract

This article calls for a recognition of women’s roles in contributing to the Perth popular music scene during the 1980s and 1990s. The research thus functions as a balance to the already established literature which explores Perth popular music around this period more broadly. The research herein indicates a surge in women’s musicianship following on from the relatively low levels of women’s participation in the late 1960s to early 1970s. It has also been noted in popular music studies literature that women in music are generally written out of dominant narratives. Thus, this research functions to redress some of those gaps. Through a mixed-methods approach comprising semi-structured interviews and literature review, it is revealed that women faced unique challenges for inaugurating community and securing careers in the Perth industry during the 1980s and 1990s. The greatest surge in participation occurs the mid- to late 1990s.