Indigenous Band Records Third Album in Remote Desert Shed

Deep in Western Australia's Great Victoria Desert, an Indigenous rock band just finished recording what could be the most remote album ever made.

The Desert Stars wrapped up a dozen new tracks for their third album inside a steel machinery shed in Ilkurlka, a tiny outpost along an unsealed highway stretching between Western Australia and South Australia. For lead singer James (Jay) Minning, recording on ancestral land where his people were forcefully removed during the 1950s nuclear tests turned the sessions into something deeper than music.

"It's healing being out there, you're healed and you're ready to go," Minning said. His lyrics tell stories of the Spinifex people's decades-long fight to reclaim their land, spreading their message through rock and roll.

The four-piece band grew up together in communities about 650 kilometers east of Kalgoorlie-Boulder. Since their 2003 debut album, they've built a cult following touring remote Australian communities and gained wider attention through the 2022 documentary Gravel Road.

Getting the band together for recording sessions takes serious planning. Members live scattered between Tjuntjuntjarra and Kalgoorlie-Boulder, making rehearsal time precious. This September, they finally gathered for two weeks of recording in the desert.

Producer Leigh Ivin, who manages the local Ilkurlka Roadhouse between music projects, helped capture the raw sound inside the shed. Recording had to pause several times when rain pounded the tin roof, but Ivin said the authentic environment beat any sterile studio.

"We're in quite an authentic environment, where you can step outside and walk straight back into the desert again," he explained. On calm days, they opened the shed doors to let sunlight stream in while they played.

The Ripple Effect

Lead guitarist Desmond Anderson, now in his mid-40s with most bandmates, says performing on country where his elders walked feels like both privilege and honor. That connection resonates through every recording.

The band's journey started when Minning was a child at Cundelee, building himself a makeshift stage and playing a guitar his father carved from wood. Today, when audiences sing back lyrics Minning wrote about his people's resilience and struggles, he can only smile.

"Someone got the message," he said. The third album drops next year, carrying those messages from one of Earth's most remote recording locations to listeners worldwide.