Asking Dom Cooley to describe his music is an impossible task: short of reeling off a genre list including blues, indie, reggae and folk, the best description he can give is a broad grin and 'acoustic roots'. Dom is a versatile musician whose songs range from grooving reggae rhythms to emotional ballads, and his own distinctive musical style is laced with diverse influences of Ani Difranco, Bob Dylan, Damien Rice, Bob Marley and Ben Harper.

After several years of song-writing and becoming fairly well known on the Brisbane roots music circuit as a more vocal audience member, Dom made the move to the other side of the microphone in August 2004, supporting Loren at Brisbane's Alley Bar. Recruiting talented Brisbane percussionist Kasper Skou, he has since played venues across Australia with artists such as Mick Hart, Carus, Josh Owen, Rob Sawyer, David Lane, Nathan Kaye and Marcus Bancroft.

In January 2006, Dom made the solo move to Melbourne: a move, he says, which has fuelled his passion for music. Melbourne has been great for me so far, Dom says. I don't know if it's the change of scenery, or the cultural differences, or just breaking out of everything I was familiar with, but I haven't been able to stop writing since I arrived. Sometimes it's just the tiniest thing that sets it off.

Clearly the inspiration is paying off, as Dom has already played several gigs around Melbourne and Geelong. I won't be touring until I have a few more Melbourne gigs under my belt, he says. Just around the corner is the added excitement of a new album. It has been a long time coming! Dom laughs. We had several demo tracks down when I was still in Brisbane, but various things got in the way of recording a full album. I've got the opportunity now to record again, and by chance I have a great set of songs that Imp really looking forward to recording. Hopefully it will work out pretty well.

The added year hasn't gone to waste, with Dom's music better now than ever before. Vocally, I feel that I've developed a lot over the last year. I've learned what works live and what doesn't, and I've been getting good feedback from audiences. Moving to Melbourne was a tough thing to do: I went from a scene that I was familiar with, and where I knew everyone, to a new scene, with new venues and new people. It has been a great challenge for me, and I know that my music has matured because of it.

Dom Cooley creates an amazing stage presence, which draws in and ignites an audience. Captivating lyrics, amazing vocal talent and some downright good tunes which you'll find yourself singing long after a gig has ended. He's definitely one to watch out for on the Melbourne scene and beyond.