Broods, Marlon Williams and Unknown Mortal Orchestra are all up for awards at this year's VNZMAs.
Broods, Marlon Williams and Unknown Mortal Orchestra are all up for awards at this year's VNZMAs.
The TimeOut team have their say on how tonight's Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards at Vector Arena should shake down.
Little known Kiwi rapper Diaz Grimm spent the best part of a year flipping burgers during the day then imagining the Earth's destruction at night. He turned his distopian visions of an oppressive future into a hip-hop opera during nights spent writing music in his clapped-out car under Auckland's harbour bridge.
Rapper Diaz Grimm.
The impressive result was Osiris, an album that should win him Best Urban/Hip-Hop album at the music awards today. And I'm putting my money on Shihad's impressively raw FVEY for best rock album - if not Album of the Year. Yes, it's that good.
If you've been in my house or my car in the last six months, you'll know how much of a crazed Unknown Mortal Orchestra fan I am - not just of the single Multi-Love, which is musical perfection to me, but of the whole album, with its surprising harmonic ideas and jungle grooves. I can't stop dancing round the living room, or singing along at traffic lights. But I'm also a long-time, devoted Marlon Williams (above right) fan (at last count, I've seen him perform 15 times), spellbound by his voice and his incredible soul, and seduced by his dark stories. So I'd love both of them to win everything. Except in the best female category, where I can only decide that a three-way tie would be appropriate - or perhaps a four-way tie, because Kimbra really should be in that list too.
- Lydia Jenkin
Forget the music awards, I want Marlon Williams to win everything, everywhere, all the time. I want him to win at life. Because Williams is, without doubt, one of the best humans you'll ever meet. He is charming and thoughtful and funny and kind. And he has that voice. A voice so rich and unexpected, it heals your soul. Yes, I am a fangirl - but you should be too.
Melbourne-based New Zealand musician Marlon Williams. Photo / Nick Reed
Speaking of which, Anika Moa (another Marlon fangirl) also deserves to win, because she is choice. Although, it would be amazing if Brooke or Gin claimed it, setting the stage for Moa to get all Kanye on their ass. Imagine.
It's been a big couple of years for pop duo Broods, and what better way it would be to top it off than to win Album of the Year, or at least best Pop Album. TimeOut gave the brother-sister act's debut album Evergreen 4.5 stars and it's filled with so many great electro-synth pop tracks from, Mother & Father to LAF and the hit that shot them into the spot light, Bridges. It would even be amazing to see them beat out Six60 and Shihad for Best Group - they are the clear underdogs, but I'm backing Broods all the way. I'd also love for She's So Rad to take out their category for Best Alternative Album with their record, Tango, which earned five stars from TimeOut. With irresistibly catchy songs like Cool It and Levels, She's So Rad deliver dream-pop perfection with this album.
- Rachel Bache
There's just something about Broods. The siblings from Nelson have a certain magnetic quality that keeps me eagerly hanging on their every move. They are the perfect blend of effortless, cool and captivating. It's one thing turning up the car radio to distorted levels or listening to Evergreen so loud the neighbours complain, but quite another when petite vocalist Georgia Nott unleashes her voice on a live audience.
Georgia and Caleb Nott aka Broods. Photo / Kyle Dean Reinford
I'd like to see these guys take out Album of the Year over stalwarts Shihad and the predictable choice, Six60, as well as Best Pop Album because in my mind it's just that, the best.
For the sake of interest and originality, I'm also backing Marlon Williams. That voice, with its smooth, dreamy quality always manages to move me.
- Amy Shanks
If tonight Marlon Williams walks away with everything he's nominated with - and he's nominated for a lot - that would certainly satisfy folks like me - those who favour distinctive voices over commercial clout and ambition. That said, Williams' country-shaped music's closest competition, oddly might be from Unknown Mortal Orchestra's warped funk artpop.
Unknown Mortal Orchestra.
And while we're playing favourites, yes, it's great there's a heap of clever kids in the topline nominations, but it's not that great that 2015 albums by both Don McGlashan and SJD (okay, he was nominated for Producer of the Year) have gone unrecognised. Though, I hear those old buggers the Exponents are up for something ...
- Russell Baillie
Where to get the best awards coverage
We'll have the music awards covered with the best photos, videos and news straight from the red carpet at Vector Arena.
The Spy team will be on-site with one of our favourite singers Tami Neilson, as she gets the full glam squad treatment ahead of the awards. For a sneak peek at her red carpet look, follow the hashtag #spyglam on social media.
Then, we hit the carpet with host Laura McGoldrick interviewing all the stars as they arrive, before striking a pose in the official Spy Glam Cam 360.
Anika Moa is also back with the team for the night, reviving her hit Herald webseries Face-to-Face for a Music Awards special, accosting her friends and fellow musicians as only she can.
Inside, team TimeOut will be live-blogging all the action from on stage, while Spy will be across all the behind-the-scenes mischief from the official Spy After Party.
For all the best music awards news, photos and videos, stay tuned to nzherald.co.nz or follow us on Twitter (@spynews) and Instagram (@seenbyspy).
The awards, MC-ed by Taika Waititi screens on TV3 from 8.30pm tonight and will feature performances from Marlon Williams, Broods, Gin Wigmore, Savage, Janine and The Mixtape, Devilskin as well as Dave Dobbyn with Neilson, paying musical tribute to the Exponents.
