THE AGE MUSIC VICTORIA AWARDS 2017 NOMINEES REVEALED AND PUBLIC VOTING NOW OPEN!

Heading into its 12th year in 2017, The Age Music Victoria Awards are excited to once again reveal the nominees for each category and open up the polls to the public to celebrate another massive year in Victorian music. Taking place on Wednesday 22 November amidst the Melbourne Music Week program, The Age Music Victoria Awards ceremony will acknowledge the successes of its musicians, venues, and festivals with an evening at 170 Russell complete with a killer After Party for all awardees, nominees, music industry professionals and fans alike.

From now until Friday 10 November Australia’s music community can vote for their favourite acts, releases, venues and festivals within the 13 publicly voted category awards, alongside a bunch of acts nominated in the 11 genre-specific awards, which will be voted on by a select panel of industry experts in each genre. Remaining one of Australia’s largest publicly voted music awards, The Age Music Victoria Awards prides itself on the calibre of its nominees, the breadth of its voters, and the diversity of its thriving music community.

This year saw no exception, with notable mentions in the publically voted awards going to up-and-comers RVG nominated for Best Album, Best Band, Best Song and Best Emerging Act, alongside emerging powerhouse trio and After Party act Cable Ties with mentions for Best Album, Best Band, Best Song, Best Emerging Act and Best Live Act. Last year’s multi-award winners and prolific seven-piece King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard are up for another three awards this year, and Australian Music Prize winners A.B Original have pricked ears aplenty in 2017 and as such have been put forward for four public awards as well as two genre awards.

The 55 nominations for this year’s genre awards are a testament to Victoria’s vibrant and diverse music community. From Bigsound buzz act Clowns to the world conquering cult outfit The Bombay Royale, and After Party performers Birdz, Harvey Sutherland and The Teskey Brothers, the genre awards recognise the top bands and releases across Country, Electronic, Experimental/Avant Garde, Folk, Roots, Global/Reggae, Heavy, Hip Hop, Jazz, Soul/Funk/RnB/Gospel, and Blues as well Best Aboriginal Act.

‘’Victorian music boasts such strong diversity, it’s important to shine a light on the best genre acts and releases of the year at The Age Music Victoria Awards. But in a sign that genre music is no longer marginalised, many of the genre acts have been nominated for the more mainstream public awards. We encourage you to vote for your favourite acts, venues and festivals in the public awards. Victorians are passionate about their music, and by voting and buying a ticket to The After Party, you get to give something back and join in celebrating our wonderful music scene.’’ – Patrick Donovan, Music Victoria CEO

The Age Music Victoria Awards is not only about recognising the artists behind the music we love, but the venues behind the atmosphere they create. Spoilt for choice, The Awards will again recognise our state’s vast array of venues and sites with awards for Best Venue (under 500 capacity), Best Venue (over 500 capacity), Best Regional Venue (under 50 gigs per year), Best Regional Venue (over 50 gigs per year), and Best Festival also in the hands of the general public.

The full lists of nominees are: 
Nominees for Public Voting:

BEST ALBUM
A.B Original – Reclaim Australia
Big Smoke – Time Is Golden
Cable Ties – Self Titled
Jen Cloher – Self-Titled
RVG – A Quality of Mercy
 
BEST BAND
A.B. Original
Cable Ties
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
RVG
The Teskey Brothers
 
BEST SONG
A.B. Original – January 26
Cable Ties – Say What You Mean
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – Rattlesnake
RVG – A Quality of Mercy
The Smith Street Band – Death To The Lads
 
BEST FEMALE
Ali Barter
Freya Josephine Hollick
Jen Cloher
Meg Mac
Tash Sultana
 
BEST MALE
D.D Dumbo
Dan Sultan
Paul Kelly
REMI
Tim Rogers
 
BEST EMERGING ACT
Alexander Biggs
Amyl & The Sniffers
Cable Ties
RVG
The Teskey Brothers
 
BEST LIVE ACT
A.B. Original
Cable Ties
Cash Savage & The Last Drinks
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
Peep Tempel
 
BEST VENUE – UNDER 500 CAPACITY
The Curtin
The Gasometer
Howler
The Old Bar
The Tote
 
BEST VENUE – OVER 500 CAPACITY
170 Russell
The Corner Hotel
Croxton Band Room
The Forum
Melbourne Recital Centre
 
BEST FESTIVAL
Boogie Festival
Golden Plains
Laneway
Meredith Music Festival
Sugar Mountain
 
BEST REGIONAL VENUE – UNDER 50 GIGS PER YEAR
The Bridge Hotel (Castlemaine)
Meeniyan Town Hall (Meeniyan)
Music On The Hill (Red Hill)
Pier Bandroom (Frankston)
Theatre Royal (Castlemaine)
 
BEST REGIONAL VENUE – OVER 50 GIGS PER YEAR
Baha Tacos (Rye)
Barwon Club (Geelong)
The Eastern Hotel (Ballarat)
Karova Lounge (Ballarat)
Workers Club (Geelong)
 
BEST REGIONAL ACT
Benny Walker
Coda Chroma
Cosmic Psychos
D.D Dumbo
Freya Josephine Hollick
 
Nominees for Genre Awards:
(Voted by a select industry panel)

BEST COUNTRY ALBUM
Big Smoke – "Time Is Golden"
Freya Josephine Hollick – "The Unceremonious Junking Of Me"
Matt Joe Gow –"Seven Years”
Raised By Eagles – "I Must Be Somewhere”
Small Town Romance – “Self-Titled”
 
BEST ELECTRONIC ACT
Client Liaison
Dom Dolla
Harvey Sutherland
The Journey
KLLO
 
BEST EXPERIMENTAL/AVANT GARDE ACT
Byron Scullin
James Hullick
Miyuki Jokiranta
Nat Grant
Winter Sound School / Bridget Chappell
 
BEST FOLK OR ROOTS ALBUM
Jed Rowe – “A Foreign Country”
Jordie Lane and The Sleepers – “Glassellland”
Leah Senior – “Pretty Faces”
The Mae Trio – “Take Care Take Cover”
Sophie Koh – “Book of Songs”
 
BEST GLOBAL/REGGAE ACT
Amaru Tribe –  “Amaru Tribe”
The Bombay Royale – “Run Kitty Run”
George Telek, David Bridie & Musicians of the Gunantuna – “A Bit Na Ta”
Lamine Sonko and the African Intelligence – “Afro Empire”
Papa Chango – “The Lost Moon of Bellaris”
 
BEST HEAVY ALBUM
Batpiss – “Rest in Piss”
Clowns – “Lucid Again”
Divide and Dissolve – “Basic”
Dødknell – “Hatred. Absolute”
Mammoth Mammoth – “Mount the Mountain” 
 
BEST HIP HOP ALBUM
A.B Original – “Reclaim Australia”
Birdz – “Train of thought”
Must Volkoff – “Aquanaut”
Pez – ”Don't Look Down”
Remi – “Divas & Demons”
 
BEST JAZZ ALBUM
Brenton Foster –  “The Nature of Light”
Fem Belling – “Now Then”
Paul Grabowsky/Mirko Guerrini/Niko Schauble – “Torrio!”
Senegambian Jazz Band –  “Self Titled”
Speedball – “We Have Moved”
 
BEST SOUL, FUNK, RNB AND GOSPEL ALBUM
Cookin’ On 3 Burners –  “Lab Experiments Vol 1”
Lance Ferguson –  “Raw Material”
The Meltdown –  “The Meltdown”
Silver Linings –  “So Good To You”
The Teskey Brothers – “Half Mile Harvest”
 
BEST ABORIGINAL ACT
A.B Original
Archie Roach
Benny Walker
Birdz
Dan Sultan
 
BEST BLUES ALBUM
Benny & The Fly By Niters – “Watch Yourself”
Dan Dinnen – “Keep on Stirrin’ The Pot”
Fiona Boyes – “Professin The Blues”
Lloyd Spiegel – “This Time Tomorrow”
White Lightnin’ – “Mongrel Blood”
 
Public voting is open from 13 October until the 10 November.
 
By registering your vote you automatically go into the draw to win an Awards Prize Pack which includes: 2 x tickets to The After Party at 170 Russell, a Moshtix Gift Voucher, 2 x tickets to a show of your choice at 170 Russell, dinner and a double pass to a show of your choice at The Corner Hotel & The Northcote Social Club and a Music Victoria Individual Membership.
 
GET VOTING NOW AT WWW.MUSICVICTORIA.COM.AU/VOTENOW

THE AFTER PARTY THE AGE MUSIC VICTORIA AWARDS 2017
 

Wednesday 22 November - 170 Russell, Melbourne.
Featuring Live sets from Harvey Sutherland & Bermuda, Gold Class and Cable Ties
Plus The EG Allstars with guest singers:
Josh Teskey (The Teskey Brothers)
Archie Roach
Gretta Ray
Ella Thompson (GL)
Michelle Nicolle
Birdz
Mojo Juju
Jim Lawrie (Performing Big Smoke)
DJ MzRizk
Doors 8.30pm
LIMITED TICKETS ON SALE NOW
Tickets $30 + BF via moshtix & www.170russell.com or phone 1300 724 867

Tickets are also available for Face the Music Conference, which runs in the City of Melbourne on November 23 and 24, for $99.