Melbourne hip hop duo A.B. Original have received the most amount of nominations, with five across five different categories including Best Independent Artist, Best Independent Album Or EP, Best Independent Single, Breakthrough Independent Artist Of The Year and Best Independent Hip Hop Album.
The AIR Awards were absent from the calendar in 2016, but thanks to funding from the South Australian government’s Live Music Event Fund, the night will return for it’s 11th year, taking place at Adelaide’s Queen Theatre on Thursday July 27.
For the first time, the event will also have a live music component, with shows being held on the night in six different venues throughout the city. This will present opportunities for local and touring acts to showcase their material in front of music industry professionals, similar to the already established conferences such as Brisbane’s Bigsound and Melbourne’s Face the Music.
The AIR Industry Conference will coincide with the awards, and has secured funding for the next three years. Taking place over two days, the conference will feature panels and workshops with input from successful independent labels, musicians and businesses. See the full list of nominated artists below.
BEST INDEPENDENT ARTIST
D. D. DUMBO
FLUME
A.B. ORIGINAL
ALEX LAHEY
ALI BARTER
BEST INDEPENDENT ALBUM OR EP
NGAIIRE – BLASTOMA
A.B. ORIGINAL – RECLAIM AUSTRALIA
ALEX LAHEY – B GRADE UNIVERSIT Y
D. D. DUMBO – UTOPIA DEFEATED
BIG SCARY – ANIMAL
BEST INDEPENDENT SINGLE
FLUME – NEVER BE LIKE YOU {FEAT. KAI)
D. D. DUMBO – SATAN
A.B. ORIGINAL – JANUARY 26 FEAT. DAN SULTAN
BIG SCARY – THE OPPOSITE OF US
ALEX LAHEY – YOU DON’T THINK YOU LIKE PEOPLE LIKE ME
BREAKTHROUGH INDEPENDENT ARTIST OF THE YEAR – PRESENTED BY PPCA
JULIA JACKLIN
D.D. DUMBO
A.B. ORIGINAL
CAMP COPE
ALEX LAHEY
BEST INDEPENDENT HIP HOP ALBUM
REMI – DIVAS AND DEMONS
A.B. ORIGINAL – RECLAIM AUSTRALIA
L-FRESH THE LION – BECOME
HAU – THE NO END THEORY
MILWAUKEE BANKS – DEEP INTO THE NIGHT
BEST INDEPENDENT COUNTRY ALBUM
WILLIAM CRIGHTON – WILLIAM CRIGHTON
HENRY WAGONS – AFTER WHAT I DID LAST NIGHT
BIG SMOKE – TIME IS GOLDEN
BILL CHAMBERS – COLD TRAIL
HALFWAY – THE GOLDEN HALFWAY RECORD
BEST INDEPENDENT BLUES AND ROOTS ALBUM
ARCHIE ROACH – LET LOVE RULE
THE WAIFS – BEAUTIFUL YOU
RUSSELL MORRIS – RED DIRT RED HEART
JULIA JACKLIN – DON’T LET THE KIDS WIN
THE WILSON PICKERS – YOU CAN’T CATCH FISH FROM A TRAIN
BEST INDEPENDENT HARD ROCK, HEAVY OR PUNK ALBUM
DEAD LETTER CIRCUS – AESTHESIS
VIOLENT SOHO – WACO
LUCA BRASI – IF THIS IS ALL WE’RE GOING TO BE
HELLIONS – OPERA OBLIVIA
TWELVE FOOT NINJA – OUTLIER
BEST INDEPENDENT DANCE/ELECTRONICA ALBUM
FLUME – SKIN
JAGWAR MA – EVERY NOW & THEN
ELIZABETH ROSE – INTRA
FRIENDSHIPS – NULLABOR 1988-1989
RAINBOW CHAN – SPACINGS
BEST INDEPENDENT DANCE, ELECTRONICA OR CLUB SINGLE
FLUME – NEVER BE LIKE YOU {FEAT. KAI)
NICK MURPHY – STOP ME (STOP YOU)
STARLEY – CALL ON ME
BEST INDEPENDENT JAZZ ALBUM
VINCE JONES & PAUL GRABOWSKY – PROVENANCE
KELLER MURPHY BROWNE – TRAVELLERS
JAMES MORRISON & DON BURROWS – IN GOOD COMPANY
BEN WINKELMAN TRIO – THE KNIFE
BEST INDEPENDENT CLASSICAL ALBUM
AUSTRALIAN BRANDENBURG ORCHESTRA – BRANDENBURG CELEBRATES
SLAVA GRIGORYAN – BACH: CELLO SUITES VOL 1
AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER ORCHESTRA/RICHARD TOGNETTI – MOZART’S LAST SYMPHONIES
GENEVIEVE LACEY & JAMES CRABB – HEARD THIS AND THOUGHT OF YOU
The AIR Awards will take place on Thursday July 27 and the AIR Industry Conference on July 27-28. For more information head to air.org.au.
