The Scottish Album of the Year Award (SAY) longlist has been announced and sees some of Scotland’s most talented honoured. This year sees twenty amazing albums announced as part of the longlist for Scotland’s national music prize, including CHVRCHES. The SAY Award longlist was announced on July 26, in front of a live audience, at The Queen’s Hall, in Edinburgh.
The event was hosted by Vic Galloway and Nicola Meighan, and also featured performances from the likes of C Duncan, Kobi Onyame and a collaboration between Idlewild’s Rod Jones and Modern Studies. Proceeds from the event will go to the supported charity partner Help Musicians Scotland.
The SAY Award is now in its eighth year, after a record number of 293 album submissions this year’s longlist is another stellar selection of artistic talent, that represents the diverse music scene in Scotland right now. Proudly representing Scotland’s ever-vibrant music scene with everything from rock and pipe music via classical, electronica, trad, jazz, folk, dance and pop.
A huge congratulations to the 20 outstanding Scottish albums making up The SAY Award Longlist for 2019! #SAYaward
Explore this year’s Longlist now at https://t.co/tPlP6QlfCe pic.twitter.com/KsttklEPD3
— The SAY Award (@SAYaward) July 26, 2019
The longlist sees some of today’s hottest names including CHVRCHES and ‘Love Is Dead’, C Duncan with ‘Health’, Graham Costello’s STRATA with ‘OBELISK’, The Twilight Sad with ‘It Won’t Be Like This All The Time’, and Kathryn Joseph – who won in 2015 with Bone You have Thrown Me And Blood I’ve Spilled – with ‘From When I Wake The Want Is’.
The Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) produce the SAY Awards, and this year the SMIA received more than 293 submissions for the most desirable prize, in the Scottish music industry. All submissions to the SMIA were then narrowed down to the 20 albums, that are in the longlist, this was done by 100 impartial music industry nominators – who voted for their favourite album of the year.
The announcement of this year’s longlist comes after the SMIA announced that both this year’s SAY Award nominators list and judging panel will feature a 50:50 gender split, an important milestone for the Scottish music industry.
Speaking about the SAY Award longlist, General Manager of the SMIA, Robert Kilpatrick, said; “Each year, the announcement of The SAY Award longlist allows us to take a step back and feel proud of our cultural identity as a nation. It gives us a chance to both shout about and reflect on who we are, as well as celebrate the passion, creativity and vibrancy of Scottish music; in all its incredible diversity and glory.”
The Scottish Album of the Year Award was established in 2012 and has since went on to become Scotland’s most coveted and sought-after music prize. The winner of the award not only gets the notoriety of being the SAY, but they also take home the prize fund, which consists of £20,000, which is awarded by Creative Scotland. However, its not just the winner that takes home a cash prize, all nine runners-up each earn £1,000. The SAY Award has been described as “placing artistic merit above all else and is well-respected amongst artists and within the Scottish music industry.”
Previous winners include last year’s winners Young Fathers’ with Cocoa Sugar, Sacred Paws’ Strike A Match (2017), Anna Meredith’s Varmints (2016), Kathryn Joseph’s Bones You Have Thrown Me And Blood I’ve Spilled (2015), Young Fathers’ Tape Two (2014), RM Hubbert’s Thirteen Lost & Found (2013) and the inaugural winner Bill Wells and Aidan Moffat’s Everything’s Getting Older (2012).
Following an online public vote, the shortlist of ten albums will be announced, on Thursday the 15th of August 2019, as part of a special BBC Radio Scotland show, at 9pm. The winner of the SAY Award will be announced at the final event, on Friday the 6th of September 2019, at Edinburgh’s Assembly Rooms.
Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) Award Longlist 2019:
Aidan Moffat and RM Hubbert – ‘Here Lies The Body’
Aidan O’Rourke – ‘365: Volume One’
Andrew Wasylyk – ‘The Paralian’
Auntie Flo – ‘Radio Highlife’
Brighde Chaimbeul – ‘The Reeling’
C Duncan – ‘Health’
Carla J. Easton – ‘Impossible Stuff’
CHVRCHES – ‘Love Is Dead’
Edwyn Collins – ‘Badbea’
Fatherson – ‘Sum Of All Your Parts’
Fergus McCreadie Trio – ‘Turas’
Free Love – ‘Luxury Hits’
Graham Costello’s STRATA – ‘OBELISK’
Karine Polwart with Steven Polwart and Inge Thomson– ‘Laws of Motion’
Kathryn Joseph – ‘From When I Wake The Want Is’
Kinnaris Quintet – ‘Free One’
Mastersystem – ‘Dance Music’
Niteworks – ‘Air Fàir an Là’
Sean Shibe – ‘softLOUD’
The Twilight Sad – ‘It Won/t Be Like This All The Time’
