Stella Donnelly, Methyl Ethel blitz WAMAwards nominations
The current buoyancy and diversity of the West Australian scene was underscored with the release of the WAMAwards nominations this morning. No less than 19 acts were multi-nominees, a mixture of…
The current buoyancy and diversity of the West Australian scene was underscored with the release of the WAMAwards nominations this morning.
No less than 19 acts were multi-nominees, a mixture of well-known and fast-rising names.
Methyl Ethel lead the field with seven gongs, coming in the wake of strong reviews for their second album Everything Is Forgotten. It peaked at #16 on the ARIA chart leading to the Sydney and Melbourne dates on their November 30 to January 7 Australian run.
Signed to 4AD, the record also got strong reviews abroad, with the band currently on a US tour until November 16.
TMN fave Stella Donnelly took five nominations, the latest achievement for a remarkable 2017 which saw her not only juggle solo commitments behind April’s Thrush Metal EP but also her two other projects, Boat Show and Bells Rapids.
This year she was signed to Phil Stevens Management (John Butler, San Cisco, Waifs) as well as European booking agency ATC Live.
She was chosen by the 2017 The Great Escape conference in the UK to play a special preview show in London in November.
Reporting from inside the Australian music business since '94.
She also played relentless around the country, Last month she was picked as artist of the week by Apple Music and generated even more heat locally after winning the BIGSOUND Levi’s Music Prize.
Also on the list with five noms each were Tired Lion and San Cisco.
With four chances each at a win were hip hop artist Ziggy Ramo, soul orchestra Odette Mercy & Her Soul Atomics, the post- punk Nerve Quakes, heavy rock band RAG N’ BONE and Afro-Peruvian style jazz drummer Daniel Susnjar.
Voyager, POW! Negro, POND, Boat Show, SLUMBERJACK, Memory of Elements, Feels, Carla Geneve, Drapht and WAYJO were each three-timers.
This year WAM consulted with category specific specialists when creating the nomination panels, and the 350-strong group of industry judges will start voting to decide the winners of the craft and industry awards.
There are six Publicly Voted categories including Most Popular Live Act, Most Popular Event and Most Popular Video.
WAM notes, “For the first time ever, the popular categories also expand beyond the usual 5 or so nominations, with longer lists and the ability to vote for acts not on the lists provided, truly making it a popular vote.”
After a sold-out event in 2016, the awards return on Thursday November 2 to Gate One Theatre at Claremont Showgrounds.
Performing on the night are Tired Lion, Stella Donnelly, Harry Mitchell & Daniel Susnjar, John Bennett & David Hyams and Nerve Quakes.
The full list is at the WAMfest website.
But here’s a look at some of the categories...
BEST ALBUM
Methyl Ethel - Everything Is Forgotten
POND - The Weather
San Cisco - The Water
The Waifs – Ironbark
MOST POPULAR ACT
Birds of Tokyo
Drapht
Jebediah
John Butler Trio
Karnivool
Make Them Suffer
Methyl Ethel
POND
San Cisco
SLUMBERJACK
Ta-ku
Tame Impala
The Waifs
Tired Lion
Troye Sivan
Voyager
MOST POPULAR LIVE ACT
Blue Shaddy
BOAT SHOW
Claim The Throne
Drapht
Hideous Sun Demon Methyl Ethel
POW! Negro
RAG N’ BONE
Scalphunter
Soukouss Internationale
Stella Donnelly
The Love Junkies
The Southern River Band
Tired Lion
The Volcanics
MOST POPULAR MUSIC EVENT
Blues at Bridgetown
Camp Doogs
Fairbridge Festival
Falls Festival
HyperFest
In The Pines
Nannup Music Festival
RTRFM Winter Music Festival
Rust In Perth
State Of The Art Festival
MOST POPULAR VENUE
Badlands Bar
Fremantle Arts Centre
Jack Rabbit Slim’s
Mojo’s Bar
Perth Arena
Rosemount Hotel
Settlers Tavern
The Bird
The Ellington Jazz Club
The Odd Fellow
The Prince of Wales Hotel
The Railway Hotel

BEST EP
Dream Rimmy - Heavy
POW! Negro - Jasmine & Licorice
SLUMBERJACK - Fracture
Stella Donnelly - Thrush Metal
BEST SINGLE
Methyl Ethel - ’Ubu’
San Cisco - ’The Distance’
Stella Donnelly - ’Mechanical Bull’
Tired Lion - ’Cinderella Dracula’
Ziggy Ramo - ’Black Face’
INDUSTRY REPRESENTATIVE OF THE YEAR
Caitlin Nienaber (Radio Presenter - RTRFM)
Chris Wheeldon (Volunteer, Events & Operations Managar – RTRFM)
Mark Neal (Manager, Booker & Event Coordinator – Blue Grey Pink / HyperFest)
Rachael Barrett (Rachael Barrett Photography)
Rose Kingdom-Barron (Programming Coordinator – The Bird / Safer Venues WA)
LABEL OF THE YEAR
Obsius Records
Rhubarb Records
Televised Suicide
MANAGEMENT AWARD
Jacob Snell (Methyl Ethel / Tired Lion)
Luke Rinaldi (RAG N’ BONE / Red Jezebel / The Ghost Hotel / Usurper of Modern Medicine)
Matt Johnson (BOAT SHOW / Dream Rimmy / The Love Junkies)
Phil Stevens (John Butler Trio / POW! Negro / San Cisco / Stella Donnelly / The Waifs)
Rachel Davison (Mosquito Coast)

GOLDEN WAMi
Caitlin Nienaber (Radio Presenter - RTRFM)
Phaedra Watts (Festival Director – Nannup Music Festival)
Rik van der Velde (Sound Engineer – Engelbert Humperdinck / Frank Sinatra / Gina Williams & Guy Ghouse / Metallica / Fly by Night Club / Perth Blues Club)
Scott Griffiths (MC Optamus – Downsyde / Rap’N’Radio)
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Reporting from inside the Australian music business since '94.
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