Dom Alessio, host of the Gold Coast Music Awards, looks at the growth of its strong music scene

The Gold Coast Music Awards, held on Thursday May 3 on the beach in Surfers Paradise, will be hosted by Dom Alessio, the major triple j identity now continuing his passion for Australian music at export body Sounds Australia.

Getting Alessio on board sees the awards take another major step forward.

His knowledge of emerging music and trends is tremendous, and he’s been keeping an eye on the Gold Coast scene.

The breakthrough of Amy Shark in particular has generated a greater excitement and confidence, with more acts wanting to follow suit.

“Amy’s success has definitely focused attention on the Gold Coast,” Alessio tells TMN.

“Undoubtedly when an act breaks through in the way she has, it really inspires other musicians.

“But people have been putting in a lot of hard work over the years to foster a sense of community within the local scene and I think you’re seeing the benefits of that now.”

Many emerging acts are pushing Alessio’s buttons.

“I really enjoyed Eliza & The Delusionals’ EP The Deeper End which they brought out late last year.

“I saw sibling duo Lastlings support The Jungle Giants in Melbourne last year and I was really impressed by their live set.

“There’s also a bunch of acts I’m really keen to hear new stuff from: Old Sault, San Mei (and) Lane-Harry x Ike Campbell.”

History has shown that a breakthrough by one act has seen the spotlight turn on where they came from in the hope they were just the tip of the iceberg.

Grinspoon and Lismore come to mind, so does Busby Marou and Townsville, and now Darwin after Baker Boy, Caitlin Baker, East Journey and At The Dakota.

Says Alessio, “Fremantle comes to mind for me. Maybe because it’s another place by the beach, and has a larger sister city so close by.

“You’ve got a band like San Cisco, and the musical universe which revolves around Kevin Parker, coming out of Fremantle, and maybe the success of acts like John Butler Trio and Eskimo Joe helped propel that city’s music scene.”

The growth of the Gold Coast Music Awards reflect what is going on around the region’s music scene.

In recent years, the awards which began low profile, have picked up major sponsors and voting figures, and also expanded their categories to eight.

Last year they added Album of the Year to the list to a strong public response, and this year Breakout Artist to set a flashpoint for its current hive of activity.

Nominations for the awards close on March 2, see gcmusicawards.com.au.