Hundreds of unsung voices that stitch together the fabric of Albany — be that a daughter of the Stolen Generation, a recovered drug addict, or a young student growing up in the city — are now free to listen to on a new app.
Launched on Thursday at the Albany Town Hall by FORM in conjunction with Barking Wolf and Envelope Audio, Albany Is showcases more than 170 voices that tell, in their own words, exactly that — what Albany is.
The free app is akin to an oral history time capsule, and explores the city’s past and present via 11 different themes or “journeys”, as part of Albany’s bicentenary commemorations.
Among these journeys are “harvest” (think whaling and early Indigenous farming practices), “edge” (a theme both geographically literal and socially figurative), and “hidden hands” (those that history has otherwise forgotten).
The mini podcast clips, which range from 20 seconds to 20 minutes in length and whittled from more than 400 hours of interviews, are woven together in an interactive way, with users able to pick which story branch they would like to follow once a clip ends.
This allows users to flow from former blacksmith Andrew Dickinson, who as a young man re-forged the bent harpoons that struck whales, to sustainable fashion designer Sally Pell who works with fabric from the Albany Woollen Mills, to Brenda Holland who remembered her mother’s sewing work in the early 1900s, in the case of “practices”.
Other journeys drift along familial lines, with “belonging” starting with Menang man Larry Blight talking on the healing gifts of Boodja, before his mother Vernice Gillies details what life was like in the Albany she grew up in, when her extended family all lived together on a large block in Kelly Street.
Many journeys open with Menang voices, a strategy the app’s creative director and narrator Josh Hogan describes with the museum analogy of “entering through a Menang doorway first in each gallery”.
“We wanted to make sure we were really walking that walk,” he said.
Compiled both from fresh interviews and archival material, Hogan said he wanted the app to contain the stories of Albany from both a modern and historic lens — a touchstone struck particularly by the “young” journey, which, among other voices, features students from Albany Senior High School.
Two of the students, Talen and Kayla, and their teacher Julia Seitz featured in the launch’s panel discussion.
Ms Seitz said students were sent off in pairs to record and to her surprise, opened up to each other, revealing everything from their favourite fishing spots and weekend activities to the trials of growing up in an isolated city in regional WA.
“They would just go for a walk around the school and actually ask each other really big questions and be really honest with each other,” she said.
“That was really cool because we don’t see that a lot and I think it’s really hard as a teenager to be vulnerable, especially with your mates.”
Hogan said the app would not have been possible without the generosity of those who had contributed their stories, and hoped listeners would be able to learn more about their city.
Mayor Greg Stocks said though he felt “deeply unqualified” to judge artistic programs, he knew Albany Is would be one of the Albany 2026 program’s best long-lasting projects.
“Someone said to me this week, we should have a time capsule for the bicentenary, which is a good idea,” he said.
“But when you think about what Albany Is, it is, within 130 stories, we have our time encapsulated in digital audio, time immemorial.
“Long after everybody’s finished the 2026 commemorations, these stories will continue to be told.”
The Albany Is app is freely available for download via the App Store and Google Play.
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