It was in 2017 that the world was first introduced to Ostendorf and her bandmates. Born in the US and raised in Germany, Ostendorf found herself immersed in Naarm/Melbourne’s music scene while working at the world-famous Milk! Records label while on exchange from her studies in London. Though place and identity may play a role in Ostendorf’s work, it was Naarm/Melbourne where her Hachiku bloomed, with the world quickly looking on in amazement. 

Performing with the likes of Courtney Barnett, Jen Cloher and Aldous Harding, alongside support slots for The Breeders and José Golzález on national tours, the release of a self-titled EP in 2017 served as an introduction to Hachiku’s dreamy atmospheres and relatable sentiments, but it was 2020’s I’ll Probably Be Asleep that cemented the band’s standing on the national stage.

Support from the likes of Bandcamp and NPR’s All Songs Considered would arrive swiftly, along with US syncs from Netflix’s Never Have I Ever, HBO Max’s The Sex Lives of College Girls and Audi’s mysterious 13-minute ‘Led Balloon’ film commercial. Meanwhile, Ostendorf would also flex her production skills, co-producing Cloher’s 2023 ARIA, AMP, AIR and Music Victoria-nominated fifth album I Am The River, The River Is Me.

2021 was the last time that fans had heard from Hachiku, however, with their last appearance being by way of a collaboration on Cloher’s ‘Fairytale In The Supermarket’. In 2024, however, Ostendorf and her bandmates have returned by way of their latest single, ‘Time Wasted Worrying’.