Scribe tops 'Tui' nominations

By RUSSELL BAILLIE

Scribe might consider changing his monicker to "InScribe" - he's the most likely nominee to be getting his name engraved on a 2004 New Zealand music award.

The nominations for this year's Tuis announced tonight revealed the hip-hop star the leading contender with nine nods springing from his hit debut album The Crusader.

Scribe figures in the best album, single, male solo artist, songwriter, highest selling album and single, best hip-hop album, video, people's choice and international achievement categories.

The rapper already has one win attached to his name- his producer DJ P-Money was awarded the producer of the year Tui for his Crusader work, one of three technical categories whose winners were announced prior to the ceremony next month.

Also, Scribe was one of an array of guest voices on Concord Dawn's album Uprising which is nominated in the best dance/elctronica album.

Also figuring heavily in the nominations is another debuting star - Brooke Fraser has six nominations springing from first album What To Do With Daylight including best album, single, breakthrough artist, female solo artist, songwriter as well as the public-vote people's choice category.

The dominant band in this year's line-up are Goodshirt with nods in five categories connected to sophomore album Fiji Baby, having won single of the year and songwriter of the year in 2003.

Dimmer - the acclaimed solo project by former Straitjacket Fits mainman Shayne Carter - also figures strongly with four nominations including best album, single, group and video.

Overall, the nominations indicate the judges - about 100 connected to the music industry selected by umbrella body RIANZ - have weighed up critical considerations slightly ahead of commercial ones.

Hence the nomination of little-known but acclaimed independent Wellington left-field rock act Phoenix Foundation in the best album category. While number one albums from the likes of Salmonella Dub, Adeaze, and NZ Idol Ben Lummis don't figure in the category.

Lummis only has once nomination - for highest selling single.

Among other categories classical-pop singer Hayley Westenra would seem to have the international achievement award sewn up for her million-plus selling album Pure, which also sees her nominated alongside Bic Runga and Fraser in the best solo female artist category.

There are some notable absences from acts who dominated at awards in previous years and who released new albums in the qualifiying period - the feelers, Fur Patrol and Zed (though they are up for people's choice) among them.

Also some nominations create some anomalies. It's curious to see aforementioned Dimmer nominated as a group in the rock category when it's as much a solo project in the studio which could fit as easily in the dance/electronic category.

Also saxophone-playing jazz-dance artist Nathan Haines is nominated in the best solo male artist category, and not in the jazz or dance categories. It may mean Haines has now transcended mere genres.

In the other categories, the Wellington composer behind the sound of the opening of the Athens Olympcis, John Psathas, has his album Fragments up against the New Zealand Sympthony Orchestra and the New Zealand String Quartet in the classical section.

Among the music industry veterans featuring are Peter Posa - New Zealand's guitar hero of the 1960s - whose album My Pick features in the gospel category, while albums by stalwarts Frank Gibson Jr and Rodger Fox are competing in the jazz category.

While in the best urban/hip-hop album department it's an all-Samoan final with the three contenders King Kapisi, Mareko, and Scribe, all New Zealand-born Samoans.

The 39th annual awards ceremony will be held at the Aotea Centre on Wednesday September 22.

The nominations:

Album of the year

Brooke Fraser - What To Do With Daylight

Dimmer - You've Got To Hear The Music

Goodshirt - Fiji Baby

Phoenix Foundation - Horsepower

Scribe - The Crusader


Single of the year

Brooke Fraser - Lifeline

Dimmer - Getting What You Give

Goldenhorse - Maybe Tomorrow

Goodshirt - Buck It Up

Scribe - Stand Up


Best group

Dimmer - You've Got To Hear The Music

Elemeno P - Love & Disrespect

Goodshirt - Fiji Baby


Breakthrough artist of the year

Adeaze - Always And For Real

Brooke Fraser - What To Do With Daylight

Minuit - The 88


Best male solo artist

Greg Johnson - Here Comes The Caviar

Nathan Haines - Squire For Hire

Scribe - The Crusader


Best female solo artist

Bic Runga - Live In Concert

Brooke Fraser - What To Do With Daylight

Hayley Westenra - Pure


Songwriter of the year

Brooke Fraser - Lifeline

Greg Johnson - Save Yourself

Scribe, P-Money, Con Psy & Savage - Not Many: The Remix


Highest-selling album

Bic Runga - Beautiful Collision

Hayley Westenra - Pure

Scribe - The Crusader


Highest-selling single

Ben Lummis - They Can't Take That Away

Blindspott - Phlex

Scribe - Stand Up


Best rock album


Dimmer - You've Got To Hear The Music

Elemeno P - Love & Disrespect

Goodshirt - Fiji Baby


Best urban/hip-hop album

King Kapisi - 2nd Round Testament

Mareko - White Sunday

Scribe - The Crusader


Best dance/electronica album

Concord Dawn - Uprising

Salmonella Dub - One Drop East

Shapeshifter - The Riddim Wise LP


Best music video

Chris Graham - Stand Up (Scribe)

Gary Sullivan - Getting What You Give (Dimmer)

Mark Trethewey & Shane Mason - Fools Love (Misfits Of Science)


People's choice award

Brooke Fraser

Elemeno P

Goodshirt

Scribe

Steriogram

Zed


Best jazz album

Charmaine Ford - Blues For Guppy

The Frank Gibson Quartet - Rainbow Bridge

The Rodger Fox Big Band - A Rare Connection


Best Maori album

Ruia - Hawaiki

Hirini Melbourne, Richard Nunns and Aroha Yates-Smith - Te Hekenga-a-rangi

Whirimako Black - Tangihaku


Best Pacific music album

Adeaze - Always And For Real

Te Vaka - Tutuki

The All Stars - Pele Ea


Best classical album

John Psathas - Psathas: Fragments

New Zealand String Quartet - Szekely/Dvorak

NZSO - David Farquhar: Three Symphonies


Best gospel / Christian album

Magnify - In Wonder

Parachute Band - Glorious

Peter Posa - My Pick


International achievement award

Bic Runga

Hayley Westenra

Scribe


Technical category winners already announced

Best album cover: Ben Sciascia for Supergroove's Postage


Best Engineer: Chris van de Geer for Carly Binding's Passenger


Best Producer: P-Money for Scribe's The Crusader