Dr Flouride Brings Decades Of Music & Culture To The Cassowary Coast

Cassowary Coast musician Jeffrey McLaughlin, better known as Dr Flouride, is bringing decades of musical experience and a passion for culture, language and community to the region. Photo credit: William Thompson

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By Chelsea Ravizza

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With a natural instinct for sound, Jeffrey McLaughlin, better known by his distinctive stage name Dr Flouride, has always viewed music as a way to connect people, preserve culture, share stories and, ultimately, heal.

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Now calling the Cassowary Coast home after years spent working across remote communities in the Northern Territory, the musician, producer and one-man-band has brought decades of experience to the region.

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“I moved to the Cassowary Coast region for a sea change after living in the desert for so long – and also to give my children more opportunities,” Jeffrey said.

“This is a beautiful part of the world with the rainforest meeting the reef.”

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Over the years, Jeffrey has built an impressive career, from helping establish the Winanjjikari Music Centre in Tennant Creek to working alongside some of Australia’s most respected Indigenous musicians. Much of his work has centred on using music and technology to create opportunities for artists, while supporting the preservation and celebration of culture and language within communities.

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Jeffrey’s own musical journey, however, began almost three decades ago when the stage name Dr Flouride was born during a karaoke night with former bandmates on the Sunshine Coast when he was just 19.

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Now, after spending the past three decades working on and producing approximately 40 albums for other artists, earning national radio airplay, contributing to festival performances and working alongside award-winning musicians, a typical day in the life of Dr Flouride centres on creating and developing his own independent music.

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Since settling on the Cassowary Coast, Jeffrey has wasted little time immersing himself in the region’s music scene, helping establish a local live venue where open mic nights have brought him together with a new generation of musicians and friends.  

He has also transformed an old dance school into a creative space, where he’s currently working on two albums; one incorporating multiple Indigenous languages and another featuring new original works. Alongside his solo one-man-band performances, Jeffrey’s also preparing to take a new big band to the stage later this year.

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With two albums in the works, several local performances scheduled across the region, a new big band on the horizon and an ever-growing local music community around him, Dr Flouride shows no signs of slowing down, and after three decades of following his passion from the Northern Territory to the Cassowary Coast, he continues to find inspiration in the sounds, stories and people around him.

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“Music is something that always draws me back and is healing to me. I love finding sounds and ideas and putting them down.”

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