Two Friends. Grade Nine. An Absolute Obsession with Music.

Doesn't this sound like the exact daydream every single person who has ever held a guitar or downloaded a cracked copy of FL Studio has had? We’ve all talked about starting a band with our best mate, but most of us abandon the dream the second adulting kicks in.

Well, this duo actually did it for real.

Introducing Poltergeist 9000 (P9)—the musical project of two best friends who took their 9th-grade interest completely seriously, achieving a level of commitment most of us can only dream of.

The lore goes deep. Bandmates Cal 9000 and Jax have been staples of the scene since their school days, cutting their teeth in separate hardcore and punk bands. But after a brief two-year hiatus, Jax pitched a fresh, high-energy synth-punk vision that was so unhinged, Cal literally quit his day job in Launceston on the spot, packed his bags, and moved to Hobart. No thoughts, just immaculate main character energy. Four years later, they aren't just making noise; they are actively disrespecting the traditional laws of music structure.

Their brand new standalone single, 'Blue Encounter', isn’t just a track. It’s a three-act assault on your auditory senses, and it's about to completely hijack your playlist.

So, What is the New Single Actually About?

If you’re looking for a neat little verse-chorus-verse formula to study to, look elsewhere. Poltergeist 9000 officially looked at the musical rulebook and said, "Shred this, we make our own rules." > "The song doesn't follow any traditional structure—there’s no verse, chorus, or bridge," Cal explains. "It’s just three unique parts. I look at it almost like a painting, or three completely different characters that come together." When asked if 'Blue Encounter' were a movie scene which one it would be, Cal notes it would live comfortably in the gritty, chaotic world of Fight Club. Much like the cult classic film, the track weaves entirely different storyline elements into a single, cohesive masterpiece.

Specifically, the track evolves in three distinct, chaotic acts:

It’s a beautiful, chaotic smoothie of their hardcore roots mixed with deep reverence for legendary trailblazers like the Beastie Boys, The Germs, and electronic icons No Face. What started as a basic 30-second loop immediately mutated into an absolute monster the second they laid down the drums—and honestly, once you evaluate the track yourself, you will actually feel the magic they've created.

And the title? Total accidental genius. "That’s actually just the original demo name," Cal laughs. "We should honestly just stick with the demo name, BLUE ENCOUNTER... There’s usually something raw and honest about the very first placeholder title you give a song." Honestly? Respect. Overthinking leads to complications, and this track completely sidesteps that trap by staying true to its raw origins.

Step Into the Studio Gremlin Energy

But here's where it gets interesting: to understand how they built this three-act monster, you need to know how P9 approaches the studio itself. For P9, over-polished, sterile studio tracks are an immediate red flag. They want you to hear the grit, the sweat, and the absolute chaos of two best friends locked in a room together. In fact, you’re going to need to spin 'Blue Encounter' at least three or four times just to catch all the hidden easter eggs Jaxon buried in the mix. We're talking abrupt drum drops, random gunshots, beat drops, and actual audio of the two just messing around and laughing in the studio. As Cal puts it: "That was a total ten-out-of-ten, fucking dope experience." (And trust us, listening to it is going to be just as dope).

But beneath the chaotic samples lies a deeply relatable truth. When asked about the lyrical heart of the track, Cal points to a deceptively simple line: 'Life's unfair, oh yeah.' It's giving it is what it is, but make it punk.

"It’s about writing straight from the heart," Cal says. "We all know life can be unfair, and it's just about putting that real, unfiltered truth out there."

Down the P9 Rabbit Hole

If you’ve made it this far into the article, you are definitely going to want to dive into the rest of the chaotic universe they’ve built, for the Radio Monash listeners discovering P9 for the first time today—first of all, welcome to the matrix. Second of all, do yourself a favour and queue up their debut album, I Can See Pam and Her Legendary Hands. Cal recommends it as the ultimate crash course to their back catalogue, capturing the perfect snapshot of their signature sound before they decided to break the mould completely.

Image supplied by Poltergeist 9000

But don't get too comfortable clinging to the past, because P9 is moving at warp speed. 'Blue Encounter' is just the tip of the iceberg, serving as a gateway drug to an entirely new era of music. Cal describes the single as "the first day of summer—there are still so many hot days left to come." Translation: they have an absolute vault of unreleased bangers ready to drop one after the other, and they have no intention of slowing down.

With a five-year plan that includes hitting massive festival stages and manifesting dream collabs with G.U.N, Mike D (Beastie Boys), and Mike (No Face), P9 is playing for keeps.

"Honestly, I want to do this until I’m 90 years old. I want to die on stage. That’s the ultimate life goal," Cal exclaims. "P9 is coming for you, and we’re ready to take over the world. We’re the best at what we do, and we're taking the crown—the future belongs to P9."

They came, they saw, they set the studio on fire. Having had the absolute privilege of talking to the band, my final advice to all the readers is this: turn the volume all the way up until your neighbors complain, and then turn it up some more. Becauseeeee...

'Blue Encounter' is out now on all streaming platforms. Go stream it right now so you can say you liked them before they were famous, because honestly, they are criminally underrated. GO STREAM RIGHT NOW!