Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) Award longlist announced

The longlist for the third annual Scottish Album of the Year Award has been unveiled today, with recognition for Mogwai, Frightened Rabbit, Edwyn Collins, Adam Stafford, Hector Bizerk and Rick Redbeard, among others

Feature by News Team | 24 Apr 2014

The longlist for the third annual Scottish Album of the Year Award has been unveiled today, with recognition for some of Scotland's best-known and most established bands and artists, such as Mogwai, Frightened Rabbit and Edwyn Collins, as well as up-and-coming and leftfield artists, such as Adam Stafford, Hector Bizerk and Kid Canaveral. Last year's winner, RM Hubbert, is nominated again for Breaks & Bone, while world-conquering Glasgow synth-pop trio CHVRCHES are also nominated for their debut album, The Bones of What You Believe.

Interestingly, the nominations this year given to Boards of Canada (for Tomorrow's Harvest), CHVRCHES, Frightened Rabbit (for Pedestrian Verse) and Steve Mason (for Monkey Minds and the Devil's Time) closely mirror some of the top choices in The Skinny's 2013 Albums of the Year chart. Hector Bizerk, the Glasgow hip-hop group who recently took home an award for Best Hip-Hop Artist at the Scottish Alternative Music Awards, are nominated for their second album Nobody Seen Nothing, which, like the shortlisted Reject by Stanley Odd from the 2013 SAY list, was released independently, without the aid of a label – pointing to the increased audience appeal of home-grown hip-hop. Edinburgh's Young Fathers, who released a high-profile album on seminal US label Anticon, and played to rapturous responses across the USA and at the South By Southwest Festival this year, are also nominated for their mini-album, Tape Two.

The list also reflects the great breadth and diversity of music being made in Scotland, with nominations for the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and another classical ensembles, and the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra. Veteran musicians given the nod this year include Orange Juice founder Edwyn Collins, and stalwarts of the Glasgow indie scene The Pastels. Mogwai, who gained a UK album chart top ten hit with Rave Tapes, are also nominated, for their soundtrack for French zombie drama Les Revenants. Rising indie stars Adam Holmes, Kid Canaveral, the Phantom Band's Rick Redbeard and Roddy Hart & The Lonesome Fire are recognised, while Biffy Clyro's Opposites, one of the best-selling albums by a Scottish artist last year, is also nominated.

The SAY Award organisers are hoping for a record number of people to participate in the public vote, which opens on 26 May, lasting 72 hours. Fans will be able to vote for their favourite from the longlist, which will then be added to the final shortlist, chosen by a panel of industry judges from the nominated albums. The public vote will take place at the SAY Award website. The final shortlist will be announced at a reception on 29 May at the Centre for Contemporary Arts in Glasgow.

"In its third year, the SAY award and the 100 nominators who have helped choose the long-list have shone a deserving light on 20 world-class albums from contemporary Scotland," comments veteran broadcaster Vic Galloway. "This is possibly the strongest list the award has seen yet, and proves the diversity and quality across a range of rock, indie, pop, hip-hop, electronica, jazz and classical music. All 20 deserve your attention and investigation, representing the artistic 'cream of the crop' from this extremely talented land."

Louie, front-man of Hector Bizerk, comments: "We are absolutely delighted to be on the longlist for the SAY Award! Nobody Seen Nothing is an album that we are immensely proud of. We don't have a label or management so to get this sort of recognition is really special for us.” CHVRCHES, meanwhile, comment: "As is generally the case, it has been a wonderful year for Scottish music. We're genuinely honoured and thrilled to see our album in the mix for the SAY Award."

The Skinny's Music Editor, Dave Kerr, is also pleased with this year's longlist. "It has been heartening to see the SAY Award step up and finally tackle the task of chronicling and celebrating our landmark releases on such a scale over these past few years," he comments. "The Skinny is proud to be associated with an endeavour that takes the power away from old boys’ networks and dares to be this democratic in deciding its longlist."

The longlist and a sampler playlist with a few of our favourites we've compiled can be seen in full below, with links to our reviews of the albums where possible. Are you planning to take part in the public vote? Are there any glaring omissions from this year's list? Have your say in the comments below.

THE SAY AWARD 2014 LONGLIST

Adam Holmes & The Embers – Heirs and Graces

Adam Stafford – Imaginary Walls Collapse

Biffy Clyro – Opposites

Boards Of Canada – Tomorrow's Harvest

Camera Obscura – Desire Lines

CHVRCHES – The Bones Of What You Believe

Dunedin Consort (Dir. John Butt) – J. S. Bach: Six Brandenburg Concertos

Edwyn Collins – Understated

Frightened Rabbit – Pedestrian Verse

Hector Bizerk – Nobody Seen Nothing

Kid Canaveral – Now That You Are A Dancer