This week we sat down with Gamilaroi alt-rock artist The Terrifying Lows (Tyler Millott)
The Terrifying Lows has had a presence in the Melbourne music scene for quite some years, gradually building a name and local following. His self-titled, debut album released in 2021 and he’s been quietly releasing singles since, moving to a process that sees Tyler writing, composing and producing most tracks himself.
Despite a quiet 2025, he still managed to release the stunning Pretty Pictures with the incredible Queenie. And 2026 is looking to be a busy year with a recently announced St Kilda Festival slot, a new side project Super Free with some close friends which he describes as “kind of has a more, like 60s, 70s, folk rock feel. It’s like Neil Young”, and hopefully lots of new The Terrifying Lows music too (fingers crossed for an album).
Hailing from a music family, (his dad and sisters are all singers) The Terrifying Lows has always been surrounded by music: “Even my cousins were musicians, probably not as practising as I am these days. And so that just fed into my entire life. When I got into high school all my friends were musicians everyone I was surrounded by was creative in some kind of way.”
The name came from a desire of a classic band name like The White Stripes or The Black Keys and The Terrifying Lows felt just classic enough, a common phrase and a good reflection of his music. However, he later (jokingly) confesses it might all have just been subliminal messaging from The Simpsons as he heard the phrase repeated in a rewatched episode years after settling on it.
Tyler initially moved to Melbourne to pursue music. Having always been surrounded by music he quickly found his community and spent the best part of a decade playing regularly in the local scene. Reflecting on this as time has passed he acknowledges that he’s “ definitely not an outsider” but does recognise there have been changes in how opportunities present themselves. We revisit this later in the conversation too, looking at how easy it can be now to be a musician and just be locked in a room working through your process. His voice echoes many who I’ve spoken with on the realities of doing music as, I guess, an adult. When life becomes more complicated and juggling your music career around other responsibilities becomes the norm.
However with lots on the cards for 2026, including a long-awaited St Kilda Festival slot that he’s going “all out” for with an expanded 6 member band, and plenty of new music in the works Tyler seems set for a promising year.
Before we concluded the interview I asked what would be one piece of advice for an up and coming artist, and while Tyler shared he wouldn’t change anything from his own journey, he did offer the following words of wisdom:
“I would encourage anyone, anyone young who’s coming, especially people coming out of high school. if you’re from a small town or even if you’re from the big cities, just going out, going to lots of gigs, meeting as many people as I can. I very quickly got swept up performing with, you know, really great artists. And so I would just say, try as hard as you can, be as good as you can at your craft as well. Practice lots, meet people, try and find the best blend of that as you possibly can, you don’t want to just be sitting in a room, on your own practising 24/7 because then you won’t meet people and you won’t find those opportunities”.
We chatted a little further about this, and the way connection can look different now with the constant ability to be online, but it’s clear that being surrounded by others has been a key part of The Terrifying Lows musical experience from being young, and throughout our chat he refers to being inspired by the talent around him.
I also asked for a music recommendation:
After a short deliberation he settles on Drifting Clouds. Hailing from Arnhem Land, Drifting Clouds is the project of Yolngu artist Terry Guyula. Blending ancient Songlines with 80s synth-pop and rock, they create a soulful, euphoric sound deeply rooted in community. Bawuypawuy (2025), which features lyrics in Terry’s first language, Liyawulma’mirr-Djambarrpuyngu. You can also catch them at this year’s St. Kilda Festival.
Find out more about The Terrifying Lows here.