About The Music – Taite Music Prize Awards

About The Music – Taite Music Prize Awards

By Kyle Church

The annual Taite Music Prize was awarded tonight from among a 'diverse range of finalists'. The prize, which is in it's fourth year, was presented to aritst SJD for his album Elastic Wasteland. In a short speech to the crowd of about one hundred and fifty Sean James Donnelly thanked Independent Music NZ (IMNZ) and the Taite Prize “for being all about the music, and not the bull****”.

The awards ceremony, held in the Galatos Ballroom, and hosted by Charlotte Ryan, began with IMNZ's Ben Howe paying tribute to muscician Dave McCartney who passed away earlier this week, and the prize's namesake music journalist Dylan Taite. He said he was really proud of the award and how it “assesses music on its own terms and in its own way”, rather than just basing success on popularity and sales.

The first award given out was a new addition to the Taite Prize, the Independent Music NZ Classic Record award, which had earlier been claimed by iconic band The Gordons, for their self-titled debut. Howe discussed the way in which sometimes one only realises how influential an album has been well after its release, and that The Gordons' sound had been of huge musical influence world-wide, as well as here in New Zealand. Shayne Carter presented the award to band member John Halvorsen, stating that, “The Gordons played music that can, and did, rearrange molecules”.

The main prize was then introduced and presented by PPNZ Managing Director Kristin Bowman. She noted that there had been a, “diverse range of finalists”, but that in the end, “there can be only one”, and that there had been, “a very spirited debate among the judges”. The prize was then presented to SJD who gave a short speech before turning the stage back over to Charlotte Ryan.

The final events of the night were performances from past Taite Music Prize nominees, solo artist Julia Deans and band Street Chant. Both played a mix of songs, including music from their new albums.

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