about
James Gales is a songwriter, music producer, composer and pianist living in Naarm/Melbourne, Australia. From a virtuosic background in classical & jazz piano, majoring in piano performance at the Melbourne Conservatorium, he is now a prolific composer & music producer active in the diverse worlds of pop, experimental music, and music for screen & stage. He is usually enthusiastic about: video games, cartoons, horror, memory, time, worldbuilding, synthesisers, etc.
Quasi-mentored by Nick Littlemore (Empire of the Sun, PNAU), James co-wrote and co-produced 5 songs on Jessica Mauboy’s album “Yours Forever”, which reached #1 on the Australian Albums chart and was nominated for Best Pop Release at the 2024 ARIA Awards. He has continued this streak with recent songwriting & music production work for Kita Alexander (Warner Music Australia), Phebe Starr (AntiFragile Music) and more.
His experimental music as Jim Nopédie has received attention from KEXP, Triple J, Double J & FBi Radio, as well as a ‘cult’ YouTube following exceeding half a million views. Jim’s most recent album “Keep It Rolling” was released in 2023 on Aivi Tran’s Infloresce Records, inspired by early 2000s ambient & glitch music, and an attitude of lightness towards the present moment. He releases his own pop music as Lighthouser, which has appeared in Liminal Magazine, including the 2025 EP “Say You Want Love”.
James has also collaborated extensively with Lou Wall, Jean Tong & other wonderful theatre-makers on multiple award-winning musicals, comedy shows, cabarets & plays over the years, including Lou Wall’s “Facebook Marketplace” sketch which has received over 78 million views, the stage musical Romeo Is Not The Only Fruit (2017), nominated for 2 Green Room Awards, and Flat Earthers: The Musical (2024), an original 2-hour work which sold out its original run at Sydney’s Griffin & Hayes Theatre, and received 4-star reviews from Arts Hub, Time Out, Stage Door & the Sydney Morning Herald.