UPDATE (Dec. 6): Melbourne-based alt band RVG won the Soundmerch Australian Music Prize for their third album, Brain Worms, released via Ivy League Records. The 19th annual ceremony was held at APRA AMCOS headquarters in Ultimo on Wednesday (Dec. 6).
Brain Worms was recorded in London at Snap Studios with James Trevascus (Billy Nomates, Nick Cave & Warren Ellis, The Goon Sax). It was chosen from a shortlist of nine albums, including Troye Sivan’s Something to Give Each Other and Genesis Owusu’s Struggler. Owusu won this award in 2021 for Smiling With No Teeth. “Rush,” the opening track from Sivan’s shortlisted album, is nominated for best pop dance recording and best music video at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards. The awards will be presented on Feb. 4 in Los Angeles.
Inspired by the UK’s Mercury Prize, the Soundmerch Australian Music Prize aims to rise above genre, popularity and sales to focus entirely on artistic merit.
PREVIOUSLY (Nov. 28): Albums by Troye Sivan, Genesis Owusu, Gretta Ray and Jen Cloher are among the finalists for the 19th annual Australia Music Prize, announced Thursday, Nov. 29.
Sivan has a chance of extending his winning streak, which earlier this month saw the Aussie pop star clean up at the 2023 ARIA Awards with four wins, including song of the year and best solo artist. The Perth, Western Australia-raised singer and songwriter is one of nine artists nominated for the AMP, earning a nod for Something to Give Each Other, his ARIA Chart-topping third studio album.
Meanwhile, Owusu can go a perfect two-from-two with Struggler, his sophomore effort. The Ghana-born, Canberra-raised hip-hop-meets-funk artist won the AMP in 2021 for Smiling with No Teeth.
Cloher, the singer, songwriter and guitarist, is recognized on the shortlist with I Am The River, The River is Me, her third AMP nomination after chances at the 2013 and 2017 editions.
Gretta Ray is no stranger to industry accolades, having triumphed in the Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition and Triple J Unearthed contest earlier in her career. Making Positive Spin, her second album, was “such a joyous, rewarding process,” she explains. The collection “heavily focuses on the theme of gratitude, and after touring it throughout Australia and the U.K. over these past few months, being shortlisted for this prize has me feeling more grateful than ever.”
Also in the running are longplays by Angie McMahon (Light, Dark, Light Again), Floodlights (Painting Of My Time), Mo’Ju (ORO,PLATA,MATA), Polaris (Fatalism), and RVG (Brain Worms).
One of the top honors in Australia’s music awards calendar, the AMP celebrates “the album as an art form,” regardless of commercial success.
Those eligible Australian artist albums were released during the period Jan. 1 to Oct. 27, 2023, with the winner snaring A$30,000 ($20,000), courtesy of headline sponsor SoundMerch. Almost 450 eligible albums were considered this time by a judging panel of industry experts.
“It’s always an honor to be shortlisted for the AMP, I know how rigorous a process goes into deciding on the final nine,” comments Cloher in a statement unveiling the shortlist. “To be honest, it’s the only music award that I take seriously on this continent.”
Spearheaded by founder and prize director Scott Murphy, previous AMP recipients include Sampa the Great (twice), the Avalanches, Courtney Barnett, the late Gurrumul, and the most recent champ, King Stingray.
The winner for 2023 will be announced during an event held next Wednesday, Dec. 6 at the APRA AMCOS offices in Sydney. Universal Music Australia labels EMI, Virgin and Island Records continue their support of the AMP by contributing funds which enable nominees to attend the finale.
2023 AMP shortlist:
Angie McMahon – Light, Dark, Light Again
Floodlights – Painting Of My Time
Genesis Owusu – Struggler
Gretta Ray – Positive Spin
Jen Cloher – I Am The River, The River is Me
Mo’Ju – ORO,PLATA,MATA
Polaris – Fatalism
RVG – Brain Worms
Troye Sivan – Something to Give Each Other
